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The Battle of Kemp's Landing, also known as the Skirmish of Kempsville, was a
skirmish Skirmishers are light infantry or light cavalry soldiers deployed as a vanguard, flank guard or rearguard to screen a tactical position or a larger body of friendly troops from enemy advances. They are usually deployed in a skirmish line, an ...
in the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
that occurred on November 15, 1775.
Militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...
companies from
Princess Anne County County of Princess Anne is a former county in the British Colony of Virginia and the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States, first incorporated in 1691. The county was merged into the city of Virginia Beach on January 1, 1963, ceasing to ...
in the
Province of Virginia The Colony of Virginia, chartered in 1606 and settled in 1607, was the first enduring English colony in North America, following failed attempts at settlement on Newfoundland by Sir Humphrey GilbertGilbert (Saunders Family), Sir Humphrey" (hist ...
assembled at Kemp's Landing to counter
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
troops under the command of Virginia's last colonial governor, John Murray, Lord Dunmore, that had landed at nearby Great Bridge. Dunmore was investigating rumors of Patriot troop arrivals from North Carolina that turned out to be false; he instead moved against the Princess Anne militia, defeating their attempt at an ambush and routing them. Dunmore followed up the victory with a reading of his proclamation declaring martial law and promising freedom to slaves belonging to Patriot owners if they served in the British military. This increased opposition to his activities, and he was eventually forced to leave Virginia.


Background

Tensions in the
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
Colony of Virginia The Colony of Virginia, chartered in 1606 and settled in 1607, was the first enduring English colony in North America, following failed attempts at settlement on Newfoundland by Sir Humphrey GilbertGilbert (Saunders Family), Sir Humphrey" (histor ...
were raised in April 1775 at roughly the same time that the hostilities of the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
broke out in the
Province of Massachusetts Bay The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a colony in British America which became one of the thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William III and Mary II, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of E ...
with the
Battles of Lexington and Concord The Battles of Lexington and Concord were the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War. The battles were fought on April 19, 1775, in Middlesex County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, within the towns of Lexington, Concor ...
. Rebellious Whigs in control of the provincial assembly had begun recruiting troops by March 1775, leading to a struggle for control of the colony's military supplies. Under orders from
John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore (1730 – 25 February 1809), known as Lord Dunmore, was a British nobleman and colonial governor in the American colonies and The Bahamas. He was the last colonial governor of Virginia. Lord Dunmore was name ...
, the
royal governor of Virginia This is a list of colonial governors of Virginia. Some of those who held the lead role as governor of Virginia never visited the New World and governed through deputies resident in the colony. Others, such as Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, hel ...
, British troops removed gunpowder from the colonial storehouse in Williamsburg, alarming the Whigs that dominated the colonial legislature. Although the incident was resolved without violence, Dunmore, fearing for his personal safety, left Williamsburg in June 1775 and placed his family on board a
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
ship. He then assembled a small British fleet at Norfolk, a port town whose merchants had significant Loyalist (Tory) tendencies. The threat posed by this fleet may have played a role in minimizing Whig activity in the town. Incidents continued between Whigs on one side and Tories on the other until October, when Dunmore had acquired enough military support to begin operations, and the rebellious Whigs had accumulated a significant body of men at Williamsburg. General Thomas Gage, the British commander-in-chief for North America, had ordered small detachments of the
14th Regiment of Foot 14 (fourteen) is a natural number following 13 and preceding 15. In relation to the word "four" ( 4), 14 is spelled "fourteen". In mathematics * 14 is a composite number. * 14 is a square pyramidal number. * 14 is a stella octangula number. ...
to Virginia in response to pleas by Dunmore for military help. These troops began raiding surrounding counties for rebel military supplies on October 12. This activity continued through the end of October, when a small British ship ran aground and was captured by Whigs during a skirmish near
Hampton Hampton may refer to: Places Australia * Hampton bioregion, an IBRA biogeographic region in Western Australia * Hampton, New South Wales * Hampton, Queensland, a town in the Toowoomba Region * Hampton, Victoria Canada *Hampton, New Brunswick * ...
. Navy boats sent to punish the townspeople were repulsed by
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 ...
troops and militia in a skirmish that resulted in the killing and capture of several sailors. Dunmore reacted to this event by writing a proclamation on November 7 in which he declared martial law, and offered to emancipate Whig-held slaves in Virginia willing to serve in the
British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...
.Wilson, p. 8 Although he did not immediately publicize the proclamation, Dunmore was able to recruit enough slaves to form the
Ethiopian Regiment The Ethiopian Regiment, better known as Lord Dunmore's Ethiopian Regiment, was a British colonial military unit organized during the American Revolution by the Earl of Dunmore, last Royal Governor of Virginia. Composed of formerly enslaved peopl ...
, as well as raising a company of Tories he called the Queen's Own Loyal Virginia Regiment. These local forces supplemented the two companies of the 14th Foot that were the sole British military presence in the colony.Wilson, p. 9


Prelude

Virginia's Committee of Safety began organizing troops at Williamsburg to send to Norfolk in response to Dunmore's actions. The forces raised, led by
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 ...
Colonel William Woodford, did not leave Williamsburg until November 7 due to shortages of equipment and supplies. They were prevented from crossing the
James River The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 to Chesape ...
for a week by British ships sent by Dunmore to patrol the river. Dunmore, who was operating from a
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
ship, landed "109 Rank and file, with 22 Voluntteers from Norfolk" near Great Bridge on November 14, to investigate rumors that Patriot militia had arrived in the area from North Carolina.Russell, p. 69 His landing prompted the militia of
Princess Anne County County of Princess Anne is a former county in the British Colony of Virginia and the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States, first incorporated in 1691. The county was merged into the city of Virginia Beach on January 1, 1963, ceasing to ...
to be called out.Selby and Higginbotham, p. 64 About 170 men responded to the militia call issued by Joseph Hutchings, the local militia commander, and Anthony Lawson, a prominent local landowner. They mustered at Kemp's Landing, about from Great Bridge, and set up an ambush along the road to Great Bridge. Dunmore's search of the Great Bridge area the next day confirmed that the rumors were false, but heard of the militia mustering at Kemp's Landing. Leaving a company of troops to defend the causeway to the bridge and begin construction of defenses, he took 100 regulars and 20 Loyalists toward Kemp's Landing.


Skirmish

The Patriot ambush was spoiled when Hutchings' inexperienced militiamen opened fire too early. Dunmore's disciplined regulars returned fire, moving through the woods to flush out the rebels. The militia scattered, and in the ensuing chase, Hutchings was captured by one of his former slaves. Lawson was able to escape the battle, but was captured a few days later. In total, 18 Patriots were captured and seven were killed;Parkinson, p. 153 one British soldier suffered a single minor wound.


Aftermath

After securing the town, Dunmore raised the British standard, and read out the text of his proclamation. The next day more than 100 militiamen that had previously opposed him swore an oath to the Crown, claiming that they had been forced into arms by the Patriots.Selby and Higginbotham, p. 68 Dunmore then moved on to Norfolk, where he again raised the standard, and began developing defenses in and around the town. Woodford's force eventually reached Great Bridge, and was joined by companies from North Carolina. This threat prompted Dunmore to order an attack against them; in the December 9
Battle of Great Bridge The Battle of Great Bridge was fought December 9, 1775, in the area of Great Bridge, Virginia, early in the American Revolutionary War. The victory by colonial Virginia militia forces led to the departure of Royal Governor Lord Dunmore and any ...
Woodford won a decisive victory. Dunmore afterward withdrew from Norfolk, which was then burned on January 1, 1776, by a combination of Patriot and Loyalist action. He continued raiding operations against Virginia coastal communities until August 1776, when he departed for New York City. Kemp's Landing incorporated in 1778 as Kempsville, and became the county seat for
Princess Anne County County of Princess Anne is a former county in the British Colony of Virginia and the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States, first incorporated in 1691. The county was merged into the city of Virginia Beach on January 1, 1963, ceasing to ...
. Princess Anne County was merged into
Virginia Beach Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous cit ...
in 1963; Kempsville is now an urban neighborhood of the city.Yarsinske, pp. 97,187


Notes


References

* * * * *


Further reading

* – has correspondence of the time, including a letter recounting the incident


External links


period news account
{{good article 1775 in the Thirteen Colonies Kemp's Landing Kemp's Landing Kemp's Landing Kemp's Landing History of Virginia Beach, Virginia Kemp's Landing 1775 in Virginia