De Lancey's Brigade, also known as De Lancey's Volunteers, De Lancey's Corps, De Lancey's Provincial Corps, De Lancey's Refugees, and the "Cowboys" or "Cow-boys", was 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 Cr ...
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
* British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
provincial military unit, raised for service during the
American War of Independence
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
. Its commanders were Brigadier General
Oliver De Lancey and his nephew
James De Lancey.
History
De Lancey's Brigade was raised in September 1776 on
Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...
,
New York
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* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
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* ...
, after the
Patriot forces had lost the
Battle of Brooklyn during the British
New York Campaign
New or NEW may refer to:
Music
* New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz
* ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013
** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013
* ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995
* "New" (Daya song), 2017
* "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...
. The Brigade consisted of three battalions of five hundred men each, with De Lancey serving both as brigadier general and colonel of the 1st Battalion.
In the winter of 1776–1777, De Lancey's three battalions were stationed (one each) at
Oyster Bay,
Huntington,
Brookhaven, Long Island, and
Kingsbridge, Bronx
Kingsbridge is a residential neighborhood in the northwest portion of the Bronx, New York City. Kingsbridge's boundaries are Manhattan College Parkway to the north, the Major Deegan Expressway or Bailey Avenue to the east, West 230th Street to t ...
. In May 1777, the 1st and 2nd Battalions moved to the
Kingsbridge
Kingsbridge is a market town in the South Hams district of Devon, England, with a population of 6,116 at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census. Two electoral wards bear the name of ''Kingsbridge'' (East & North). Their combined population ...
area, north of Manhattan. The following month, the 1st returned to Long Island, while the 2nd remained at Kingsbridge. In the spring of 1778, the forts that had been erected at Huntington and Brookhaven were abandoned, and the 1st and 3rd Battalions removed to encamp near
New Town
New or NEW may refer to:
Music
* New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz (South Korean band), The Boyz
* New (album), ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013
** New (Paul McCartney song), "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013
* New (EP), ''New'' (EP), ...
.
Brigadier General Oliver De Lancy conducted regular operations in the region north of New York City, in
Westchester County, New York
Westchester County is a County (United States), county located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, bordering the Long Island Sound and the Byram River to its east and the Hudson River on its west. The c ...
, between
Morrisania and the Croton Rivers, which was known as the "
Neutral Ground". Lawlessness and
guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include recruited children, use ambushes, sabotage, terrori ...
were carried out by De Lancey's "Cowboys" and their compatriots, the
New Jersey Volunteers, known by their nickname, the "Skinners." Both were British loyalist
marauders who
stole cattle,
looted, and gathered
military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...
in the New York countryside.
In November 1778, although the Brigade had originally been formed "for the defense of Long Island", the 1st and 2nd Battalions were ordered South, where they served under Lt. Col.
Archibald Campbell.
The 1st and 2nd Battalions fought successfully in the
Siege of Ninety-Six and at the
Battle of Eutaw Springs
The Battle of Eutaw Springs on September 8, 1781, was the last major engagement of the Revolutionary War to be fought in the Carolinas. Both sides claimed a victory.
Background
In early 1781, Major General Nathanael Greene, commander of the ...
and other battles in the Carolinas. The 3rd Battalion remained on Long Island for the entire war, as did De Lancey himself.
The entire brigade was disbanded in
Woodstock, New Brunswick in 1783. Many of the regiment settled in Nova Scotia after the war. A detachment of the 2nd regiment was shipwrecked off the coast of Nova Scotia on 27 April 1783, killing 99 of 174 on board.
References
{{reflist
Further reading
*Gue, Belle Willey and John D. Felter. ''The Neutral Ground''. Boston: Stratford Company, 1922
*Johnson, James M., Christopher Pryslopski, Andrew Villani Eds. ''Key to the Northern Country: The Hudson River Valley in the American Revolution''. Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2013.
*Kemble, Lieut. Col. Stephen. ''Journals of Lieut. Col. Stephen Kemble, 1773-1789: And British Army Orders: Gen. Sir William Howe, 1775-1778; Gen. Sir Henry Clinton, 1778; and Gen. Daniel Jones, 1778, American Revolutionary series: British accounts of the American Revolution, British accounts of the American Revolution, Volume 16 of Collections of the New-York Historical Society for the year ...'' New York: Ardent Media, 1972.
*Ward, Harry M. ''Between the Lines: Banditti of the American Revolution''. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger, 2002.
External links
Index to DeLancey's Brigade History - The On-Line Institute for Advanced Loyalist StudiesDeLancey's Brigade, Second Battalion, Captain Allison's Company, recreated unit
Loyalist military units in the American Revolution
Kingsbridge, Bronx
History of the Bronx