Battle of the Combahee River

Background

By late 1781, Charleston's British occupiers found themselves effectively hemmed in, a consequence of General Nathanael Greene's forces operating throughout the surrounding region. Come March 1782, British commander Alexander Leslie sought a truce, hoping also to gain approval for buying provisions to feed both his troops and the city's residents. Greene turned down this request, prompting Leslie to declare he would resume sending armed parties out to seize supplies by force whenever necessary. In response to this threat, Greene assembled a 300-strong brigade combining infantry and cavalry, entrusting its leadership to Maryland's General Mordecai Gist.

Two separate foraging parties left British lines on August 21 under Leslie's orders. One headed toward St. Helena's Parish, while the other, commanded by Major William Brereton, made its way up the Combahee River hunting for rice supplies. Upon discovering these British troop movements, Greene dispatched Gist and his men toward the Combahee specifically to counter Brereton's mission.

By August 25, Gist had reached the river's northern bank, only to find that Brereton had beaten him there and already secured control over the ferry crossing. The following day, word reached Gist that some 300 of Brereton's soldiers had made it across the water, leading him to dispatch a detachment with instructions to strike the British forces before dawn broke.

That same day, August 26, Colonel John Laurens arrived fresh from his post near Charleston and asked Gist for permission to lead a separate small contingent farther down the river. His plan involved occupying a redoubt at Chehaw Point, a position from which they could fire upon the British during their expected withdrawal. Gist granted this request, assigning fifty Delaware infantrymen to Laurens' command along with an artillery officer named Captain James Smith, who brought along a howitzer.

Battle

Before dawn broke fully on August 27, Laurens and his men set out from a plantation house belonging to one of his friends, situated near the Combahee River, where they had rested overnight. Their destination was Chehaw Point, and they departed the property around three in the morning.

Unbeknownst to the Americans, the British had anticipated Gist's movements and slipped quietly downriver ahead of them. About a mile short of Chehaw Point, roughly 140 British troops had already taken up hidden positions in the tall roadside grass, waiting to spring a trap before Laurens's men could even reach the redoubt.

The instant the hidden soldiers rose up to open fire, Laurens responded by ordering an immediate charge, even though his opponents held both the numerical advantage and superior ground. Accounts differ on whether Laurens actually gave the command to attack before personally leading the charge, but there is no dispute that he rode at the front as the fighting began. British muskets answered at once, and the opening volley struck Laurens down from his horse with wounds that would prove mortal. His artillery captain was also killed, along with several others, and the remaining American soldiers broke ranks and fled, abandoning their howitzer on the field.

Meanwhile, Gist had learned of the enemy's repositioning at four that morning and was pushing forward with 150 horsemen, already within two miles and closing fast to reinforce Laurens's position. William McKennan, who served as a captain beneath Laurens, later recalled that his commander seemed eager to engage the British before Gist's larger force could arrive, willing to risk his small number of men in hopes of winning personal glory before the encounter ended. In McKennan's judgment, Laurens simply wanted the entire victory and its honor for himself.

By the time Gist's cavalry reached the scene, they arrived only in time to shield the retreating Americans. The howitzer could not be reclaimed, nor could the British be forced from the ground they held.

Aftermath of the battle

After the fighting subsided, the British made their way back to their boats, and Brereton's men went on gathering supplies as before. Gist, meanwhile, was left to manage the situation left behind by the clash. Laurens and one other American had fallen where they stood, while nineteen others suffered wounds.