The King's Carolina Rangers (KCR) 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 ...

militia

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

active 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 ...

. The KCR was composed of nine infantry companies, of which one was converted into a troop of

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 wi ...

s in 1782. The unit primarily saw action in the

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

theatres of the conflict.

Beginnings

After fleeing a particularly violent

tarring and feathering Tarring and feathering is a form of public torture where a victim is stripped naked, or stripped to the waist, while wood tar (sometimes hot) is either poured or painted onto the person. The victim then either has feathers thrown on them or is r ...

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

outside of

Augusta, Georgia Augusta is a city on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies directly across the Savannah River from North Augusta, South Carolina at the head of its navigable portion. Augusta, the third mos ...

, Thomas Brown sought refuge among loyalists in

East Florida East Florida () was a colony of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain from 1763 to 1783 and a province of the Spanish Empire from 1783 to 1821. The British gained control over Spanish Florida in 1763 as part of the Treaty of Paris (1763), Tre ...

in 1775. In June 1776, Brown received authorisation from Governor Patrick Tonyn to form and lead a loyalist unit to be named the East Florida Rangers. The East Florida Rangers were mounted on horseback, but were not a cavalry unit per se, using their horses not for fighting but for transportation over the great distances in the region. Following their formation, the contributions of the East Florida Rangers primarily concerned scouting the woods, assisting refugees in reaching the safety of East Florida, defending frontier settlements, gathering provisions, plundering farms, and stealing cattle to feed refugees who had fled to the colony.

William Henry Drayton William Henry Drayton (September 1742 – September 3, 1779) was an American Founding Father, planter, and lawyer from Charleston, South Carolina. He served as a delegate for South Carolina to the Continental Congress in 1778-79 and signed ...

, who served as a delegate for

to the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislature, legislative bodies, with some executive function, for the Thirteen Colonies of British America, Great Britain in North America, and the newly declared United States before, during, and after ...

, referred to the rangers as "splitshirt banditti" and a parcel of horse thieves and villains. In June 1778, the East Florida Rangers partook in the effort to defend Fort Tonyn from a Continental invasion led by General Robert Howe. Seventy-six members of the East Florida Rangers, led by Lt. James Moore, attempted to flank the advancing American army. Moore's plans were however leaked and the East Florida Rangers were ambushed. Lt. Moore fell in the attack.

1779

In 1779 the East Florida Rangers were reorganised into a regiment of infantry, becoming the King's Carolina Rangers on the orders of Brigadier-general

Augustine Prevost Augustine of Hippo ( , ; ; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430) was a theologian and philosopher of Berbers, Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia (Roman province), Numidia, Roman North Africa. His writings deeply influenced th ...

. The unit continued to be led by Lt. Col. Thomas Brown. In January 1779, The KCR formed part of the British force which took Augusta. Weeks later in February, they assisted during the

Battle of Kettle Creek The Battle of Kettle Creek was the first major victory for Patriots in the back country of Georgia during the American Revolutionary War that took place on February 14, 1779. It was fought in Wilkes County about from present-day Washington, ...

during the British retreat from Augusta. The KCR then partook in the decisive British victory at the

Battle of Brier Creek The Battle of Brier Creek was an American Revolutionary War battle fought on March 3, 1779, near the confluence of Brier Creek (Savannah River), Brier Creek with the Savannah River in eastern Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. An American Patriot (Am ...

. In April, the KCR formed part of the vanguard of General Provost's advance on Charleston before being assigned to Ebenezer, Georgia in July. In September, the KCR were deployed on the extreme right on the British line during the successful defence of

Savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) biome and ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach th ...

1780

In June 1780, the KCR led the British advance from Savannah to retake Augusta. With the city captured, the KCR became responsible for patrolling the surrounding area and suppressing patriot activity. In August, the unit partook in the defeat at the

Battle of Hanging Rock The Battle of Hanging Rock (August 6, 1780) took place during the American Revolutionary War between the American Patriots and the British. It was part of a campaign by militia General Thomas Sumter to harass or destroy British outposts in th ...

. Following the repelling of an attack on Augusta in September, the KCR fortified their position with the construction of Fort Cornwallis adjacent to Saint Paul's Church.

1781

In April a patriot militia force led by Micajah Williamson set up camp in close proximity to Augusta. Lt. Col. Brown, commanding a force of approximately 300 militiamen and 200 African Americans, refused to engage due to exaggerated reports of the patriot's strength. In May, Williamson was joined by Elijah Clarke and Henry 'Light Horse Harry' Lee, bringing with them additional troops. General Andrew Pickens and 400 American troops managed to cut off relief forces sent to alleviate Fort Cornwallis at Ninety Six, allowing for the

Siege of Augusta The siege of Augusta took place between May 22, 1781, and June 6, 1781. American Patriot (American Revolution), Patriot forces, led by Brigadier General Andrew Pickens (congressman), Andrew Pickens and Lieutenant Colonel Henry Lee III, Henry "Li ...

to begin. On May 23 nearby Fort Grierson fell, leaving the KCR and Lt. Col. Thomas Brown isolated, albeit well defended, in Fort Cornwallis. The besieging army only had one cannon and proved ineffective against the forts walls. To counter this, the patriots constructed a 30 feet (9.1 m) high wooden tower in order to allow their singular cannon to fire down into the fort. The KCR made several

sortie A sortie (from the French word meaning ''exit'' or from Latin root ''surgere'' meaning to "rise up") is a deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops, from a strongpoint. The term originated in siege warf ...

s to prevent its construction however were repelled each time.{{Cite journal, last=Rauch, first=Steven, date=August 2006, title="A Judicious and Gallant Defense" The Second Siege at Augusta, Georgia (The Battles of Forts Grierson and Cornwallis) 22 May – 5 June 1781, url=http://southerncampaign.org/newsletter/v3n678.pdf, journal=Southern Campaigns of the American Revolution, volume=3, pages=32–48, via= On June 1 the tower was high enough to prove effective, knocking the KCR's guns off of their mounts and destroying the barracks. On June 4 the patriots assault Fort Cornwallis and demanded surrender. Lt. Co. Brown refused due to it being the

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

's birthday. On June 5 Lt. Col. Brown negotiated a surrender and was taken prisoner alongside the rest of the KCR. Brown was then paroled, alongside most of his troops, by Nathanael Green and escorted to Savannah on the agreement they would not re-enter the war.

1782

Following defeat at Augusta, the KCR was again put on to active duty, partaking in a number of small skirmishes throughout Georgia. With the evacuation of Savannah in July, the KCR embarked for Charleston, where they remained until October. Then, with the

Royal North Carolina Regiment The Royal North Carolina Regiment was a provincial corps of Loyalists from the Province of North Carolina during the American Revolution. Provincial corps were regiments with both British and Loyalist forces. Officers * Colonel John Hamilton * C ...

and the South Carolina Royalists, they embarked for

St. Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; ; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430) was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Africa. His writings deeply influenced the development of Western philosop ...

to garrison East Florida.

1783

The KCR spent most of the year garrisoned in St. Augustine. The unit was then ‘decommissioned’ in late 1783 following the signing of the Treaty of Paris and the cessation of hostilities. Individuals serving in the KCR were unable to remain in Florida owing to the agreed transfer of the state to

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

by Britain. As a result, those who served sought to resettle elsewhere in the British Empire. A popular destination was

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

British Canada 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 cultur ...

where the unit had received a land grant outside of Country Harbour.

References

Loyalist military units in the American Revolution Military units and formations established in 1779 Military units and formations disestablished in 1783 British American Army Rangers