The Battle of Wahab's Plantation was a surprise attack on a

Loyalist Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cro ...

camp, which included elements of the British Legion commanded by

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(although at the time of the battle Tarleton had

yellow fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. In ...

and was not in command), by

Patriot A patriot is a person with the quality of patriotism. Patriot may also refer to: Political and military groups United States * Patriot (American Revolution), those who supported the cause of independence in the American Revolution * Patriot m ...

militia under the command of William R. Davie on September 21, 1780. The owner of the plantation was militia Captain James A. Walkup who served as a guide for Davie prior to the attack. Confusion has arisen over the spelling of the name Wahab as there are many spellings of the surname including, Walkup/Wahab/Wauchope/Waughup. The Loyalists were camped on the west side of the

Catawba River The Catawba River originates in Western North Carolina and flows into South Carolina, where it later becomes known as the Wateree River. The river is approximately 220 miles (350 km) long. It rises in the Appalachian Mountains and drains into ...

while General

Charles Cornwallis Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis, (31 December 1738 – 5 October 1805), styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as the Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army general and official. In the United S ...

' army had camped on the east side. Davie opportunistically decided to attack the Loyalist camp, and succeeded in driving them back in complete surprise and with heavy casualties. He retreated before the British regulars arrived. The latter, in revenge for the attack, burned down Captain Walkup's house.

Background

Pursuant to the British "southern strategy" for winning the

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, British forces had captured Charleston,

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early in 1780, and had driven

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

forces from South Carolina. Following his successful routing of a second Continental Army at Camden in August 1780, British General

Lord Cornwallis Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis, (31 December 1738 – 5 October 1805), styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as the Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army general and official. In the United S ...

paused with his army in the Waxhaws region of northern

. Believing British and

forces to be in control of

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and South Carolina, he decided to turn north and address the threat posed by the Continental Army remnants in

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. In mid-September he began moving north toward

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. Cornwallis' movements were shadowed by companies of North Carolina militia. One force under

Thomas Sumter Thomas Sumter (August 14, 1734June 1, 1832) was a soldier in the Colony of Virginia militia; a brigadier general in the South Carolina militia during the American Revolution, a planter, and a politician. After the United States gained independen ...

stayed back and harassed British and Loyalist outposts in the South Carolina backcountry, while another, under Major William R. Davie, maintained fairly close contact with portions of his force as it moved northward. When he learned that companies of Loyalist

dragoon Dragoons were originally a class of mounted infantry, who used horses for mobility, but dismounted to fight on foot. From the early 17th century onward, dragoons were increasingly also employed as conventional cavalry and trained for combat w ...

s and British

light infantry Light infantry refers to certain types of lightly equipped infantry throughout history. They have a more mobile or fluid function than other types of infantry, such as heavy infantry or line infantry. Historically, light infantry often fought ...

were encamped to the rear of Cornwallis' army, he decided to attempt a surprise attack on one of those camps.

Battle

Riding off on the evening of September 20, he located the Loyalist camp at Wahab's Plantation, not far from the light infantry camp. Sending

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and a company of men through a cornfield to take the plantation house, he began moving up the lane toward the camp. The surprise was practically complete, and the Loyalists took flight, leaving 15 dead and 40 wounded.

Aftermath

Davie did not linger at the Loyalist camp, as the infantry had taken notice and were beating to arms. He took away 96 horses and 120 muskets, and retreated to the north.Lee, p. 195 Davie again made contact with British forces a few days later when they entered Charlotte, North Carolina.

References

Sources

Memoirs of Henry Lee
* *{{cite web, url=http://gaz.jrshelby.com/wahabsp.htm, title=Wahab's Plantation, first=John, last=Robertson, work=Global Gazetteer of the American Revolution, accessdate=2009-06-22 1780 in the United States Wahab's Plantation Wahab's Plantation Wahab's Plantation Union County, North Carolina 1780 in North Carolina Plantation houses in North Carolina