978-1-4222-3353-5

Endurance and Triumph

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Charleston. When South Carolina’s capital fell in May 1780, more than 5,000 American soldiers were taken prisoner. Confident now that the southern strategy would succeed, Clinton soon returned to New York City. He left General Charles Cornwallis in charge of finishing the campaign. Cornwallis was to consolidate control over South Carolina, then take North Carolina. After that, he would march into Virginia. British control of Virginia, the most populous state, might spell the end of the Revolution. Ignoring the wishes of George Washington, Congress appointed General Horatio Gates to command the Continental Army’s Southern Department.

American and French soldiers attack the British fortifications at Savannah, Georgia, in October 1779. However, the siege of Savannah failed to drive out the British, and by August 1780 the British held a strong position in the southern colonies.