Introduction
The British emerged victorious at the battle of Camden southern theater of the American war. British army under the command of General Cornwallis sent American army 10km north of Camden. The British became strong by taking control of Carolinas and capturing Charleston. The send away of American army was extremely humiliating for Gates, as he was known as the best general. He commanded American army in defeating the Saratoga who had superiority of the Britons. After the battle, he did not command in the field. He used his political connection to avoid a court martial and avoid inquires. Despite the gains of the English after the battle of Camden, they could not have maintained control over South Carolina and Georgia
Battle
The British in their attempt to reestablish their southern strategy, they were engaged in efforts to win the rebellious states back. This involved numerous military campaigns in the southern states against the patriot segments that included militias with partisan interests. After the recent victories by Horatio Gates, he appeared to be the appropriate commander to champion the resistance efforts of the south. After meeting the militia in the south, Gates was advised on the military situation and challenges facing the south’s cause. However, Gates acted against the advice of the council before being aware of the full capabilities of the southern militias to counter the English forces. This culminated in the orders that the militias should match against the English despite a significant number being untested soldiers.
The American and British army took at each other just after dawn. British army started the war by firing a volley into the militia camp causing immense number of causalities. The Britons went up the volley by using a bayonet charge. These made the militia panic and run away before the British arrive since they did not have bayonets. The panic did spread to North Carolina making the militia flee because of the attack. Only one group of the militias that was able to fire a volley before fleeing. Gates ran away with the first group of the militia after he saw the left side had collapsed. After a few minutes, the left side of Americans had already collapsed. Militias from virgin ran away quickly, and they only suffered three causalities. During the routing of the militia before Gates flight, he had ordered his right wing to attack opposing British army. Troops that were commanded by Rawdon advanced into two charges, but they were repulsed by heavy fire. Troops from the continental raised a counter attack that was close to break Rawdon’s troops. Cornwallis went to his left flank to stabilize Rawdon’s men.
The North Carolina militia that was stationed near Delaware camp stood strong, and it is the only militia that stood its ground. Regiments around the continents fought for some time, but they were about 800 facing 2000 British troops. Cornwallis found it was unnecessary to fight a sustained battle with more losses, and he ordered Tarleton troops to make a charge at the continental line. The cavalry charge broke their formation and fled away from the site. De Kalb tried to assemble his men, unfortunately; he was 11 times short musket fire. After an hour of combat, the American troops were defeated suffering 2000 casualties.
Reasons for defeat
Camden battle is one of the worst tactical decisions made by the American army throughout the American warfare. Gates become overconfident after defeating the Saratoga, and this made his rush his deployment of the American army during the battle. Gates was a former British officer, and he was used on the British deployment of the experienced regiments. He, therefore, put the continental regiments at the right flank and mass militia who joined and had never fought in the battle. At first, this appeared to be a suicide mission since Cornwallis had used the same approach. Gates loyal troops faced the continentals as the regulars took on the militias. Consequently, these forces were not the same since the loyalist had more experience than their southern counterparts did. Despite the advice of the southern militia’s council, Gates acted against the advice of the council before being aware of the full capabilities of the southern militias to counter the English forces. This was a detrimental move since the militias were unable to cope with the military superiority of the English forces. In addition, a significant portion of the militia was untested in the battlefield, and this inexperience was depicted in the resounding defeat. Another reason, which contributed to the battle loss, was that the militia suffered from diseases like dysentery. The heat was also a disadvantageous factor during the battle and contributed to the resounding loss. The British also severed the supply line of the American army, and this resulted in the American army being weakened during the war. The army could not access clean water, and adequate food hence could not match the strength of the adequately supplied British army.
Stretched military capabilities of the British
Despite the victory of the British army, it was difficult for them to hold the territories in the south. The victory meant that the British have to ensure that future rebellion from the patriots did not compromise the British situation. This meant that the British had to commit military support in order to quell any potential resistance and ensure that the territories remained under the British control. This reality was a problem for the loyalists since their military capabilities were significantly stretched. This meant that they could not spare soldiers to maintain British rule over the southern territories. Therefore, the patriots had the opportunity to reestablish their military campaigns and restore their resistance against British rule. The loyalists through inland forts hoped to attract the support of other loyalists to bolster their military capabilities. This was not successful since despite recruiting some loyalists to cause, the number was not sufficient to retain control on the southern territories. Despite their shortcomings in military capability, the British were necessitated to fight northwards. The loyalist were severely weakened contingent. The inability of the British to provided military cover for the captured forces in the south encouraged appraising by the patriots. This meant that the territories, which had been previously captured, were subjected to guerilla type attacks, which undermined the British rule. The British gains in the south due to victory in Camden were negated with this development. It is evident that the large territory under the British rule was a problem since the British were no longer able to maintain control in the region.
The French Rivalry
The rivalry between the English and the French was also a significant factor influencing the British ability to hold the northern territories. The French offered a unique challenge for the British since they were significantly powerful. The French threatened the British dominion in the American continent. This was an additional problem for the British since they had to counter the threat of the militias while fighting the French for influence in the region. The collaboration of the French and the American forces ensured that the resistance had the required military capabilities to handle the British threat. This gave impetus to the resistance incidence, which led to the consequent British surrender.
The Patriots Influence
The increasing prominence of the patriots was also a significant factor, which influenced the status of the British in America. The patriots believed that America was capable of ruling itself independently. This meant that the British had to cede their rule of the American region a condition, which the British were not ready to accept. The popularity of the patriots’ agenda meant that the American population was supportive to this cause. This depleted the support for the loyalist hence resulted in the weakened state of the British forces in the region. Despite the defeat in Camden, the patriots were still active and rallied support from other quarters of America. This was not the case for the loyalist, whereby, they were deficient in attracting more loyalists to aid in stopping the resistance. The persuasion of the loyalist in changing the perspective of the American population concerning the British rule ensured that the political undertones in the region opposed the presence of the British. Therefore, the ideology of the patriots made it difficult for the British to retain their foothold in the south.
Counter-Thesis
Strategists have argued that British could have held their territories in Georgia and South Carolina after Cornwallis defeated General Gate’s army at Camden. These strategists contend that the British army successfully chased away the American army hence providing opportunities for the British army to hold onto these territories. During this war, the British army came out victorious at the battleground of Camden, which was a southern theater of the American war. During this war, the British soldiers under the command of General Cornwallis drove the American army 10 kilometers north of the battlefields at Camden. The strength and confidence of the British army grew with the capture of Charleston and subsequent control of Carolinas. Because of the defeat, General Gates, known as the best general globally felt humiliated. This General had commanded the American soldiers during the war at Saratoga, and was considered superior to the Britons.
During deployment, he deployed the mass militia and the continental regiments in the right flank. The militias had never been engaged in any war before, and the provided loopholes to the formation and deployment of the American forces. Most importantly, the Americans had the home ground advantage and they knew the terrains, which favored their planning for the battle. The Americans also had an opportunity to regroup and re-strategize on their approaches towards the war.
Refute
The Americans gained their confidence after French forces agreed to support them against the British forces. Their failure to defeat the British forces resulted from lack of planning, which they could get from the experienced French forces. The Americans had an opportunity to redeem themselves and plan effectively. The defeat by the British forces resulted from flawed operational plans instead of mistakes in timing. Focus by the commanders could have led to better outcomes for the American forces. Increased focus by the American forces in the Camden battle would have led to better planning and deployment of the forces. For instance, the generals could have left out the militias and involved only qualified military personnel. The militias did not have any experiences in war, and they acted as weak points in the formation of the American forces. In addition, the American forces established effective communication systems in order to ensure timely delivery of supplies and back-up. This required the establishment of a communication and logistic hub, which would have acted as the central point for the American forces for the dissemination of information and deployment tactics.
Conclusion
Based on several factors, the British forces could not maintain their positions and hold on to their territories after the defeat of the American forces. The French forces were against the British forces and they decided to join the American forces during the American revolutionary war. The strategies by the British forces to win back the southerner territories had short-term successes. This is because of the limitations of the British forces and the abilities of the American forces to regroup and re-strategize. In addition, the French forces that supported the American military endeavors against the British forces joined the American forces. Strategists would argue that the British forces could hold onto their territories. This is because the British forces could seek back up from its enormous forces back home. In addition, the British forces could hold onto their territories for the short term as they awaited the delivery of additional supplies and deployment. However, forces against the British forces especially the French and American forces could gang-up against the British forces and seize back the southern territory.
Bibliography
Middlekauff, Robert. 2007. The glorious cause: the American Revolution 1763-1789. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Weigley, Russell F. 1973. The American way of war: a history of United States military strategy and policy. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
