In the Hurricane's Eye

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In the Hurricane's Eye Page 45

by Nathaniel Philbrick


  Richmond destroyed by, 31–32, 39, 69

  as traitor, 22, 27, 28, 32–33, 34, 38, 69, 218, 266, 277

  in Virginia, 38–39, 107, 120, 123, 138, 218, 266, 271

  after the war, 266

  Asgill, Charles, 243

  Audubon, John James, 198

  Bankruptcy Act (1800), 275

  Barbados:

  Great Storm of 1780 on, 17, 18

  Rodney in, 144–46

  Barras, Jacques-Melchior Saint-Laurent, Comte de:

  at Chesapeake Bay, 195, 197, 200

  as commander of French naval forces, 111

  in defense of Destouches’s action, 72

  en route to Chesapeake, 155, 161, 180, 182

  move to Boston, 116, 117

  in Newport, 111, 114, 117–18

  refusal to transport soldiers, 115, 137

  unwilling to sail to Chesapeake, 154–55

  whereabouts unknown, 164, 194

  at Yorktown, 232

  Bassett, Burwell, 237

  Biron, Marshal de, 129

  Blanchard, Claude, 64

  Bland, Theodorick, 44

  Boade, Captain Brun de, 191

  Boston, Siege of, 120, 259

  Boston Tea Party, 23

  Bougainville, Louis-Antoine de:

  in Battle of Chesapeake, 188, 189, 190, 191–94, 266, 267

  early career of, 188–89

  as first Frenchman to circumnavigate the globe, 189

  reputation of, 189, 267

  after the war, 266–67

  Brandywine, Battle of, 40, 108, 171

  Britain:

  and Caribbean, see Caribbean

  enmity of France and, 8–9, 60–61

  and Florida, 10, 132, 133–34, 269

  letters intercepted by, 117, 158, 300

  peace conference with France rumored, 124

  and Seven Years’ War, 8, 10, 60, 68, 87, 163

  British army:

  Americans’ opposition to, 19, 108, 122, 123

  brutality of, 122, 123, 217–18

  and Cornwallis, see Cornwallis, Lord Charles

  destruction of Cornwallis’s baggage train, 79–80, 87, 93

  failed strategies of, 76–77, 108–9

  at Guilford Courthouse, 96–102, 99, 107, 122, 228

  naval support of, 28, 78, 120, 173, 227

  in New York, 106, 112, 251; see also Clinton,Sir Henry

  prisoners of war, 230, 233, 251, 275

  Queen’s Rangers, 123

  in Siege of Yorktown, see Yorktown, Siege of

  slaves as servants to, 121–22, 235–36

  in the South, 18–20, 107–9

  and surrender, 232–33

  at Yorktown, see Yorktown, Siege of

  British navy:

  in Battle of Chesapeake, see Chesapeake, Battle of

  off Block Island, 114

  in Caribbean, 129–31, 134

  in Chesapeake Bay, 27–28, 30–34, 37, 38; see also Cape Henry, Battle of

  copper-sheathed ships of, 52, 55, 57, 90–91, 131, 134

  difficulties of communication in, 187–88

  on Hudson River, 7–8, 12, 155

  leaving New York undefended (July–August 1781), 136–37

  off Long Island, 37–38, 155

  miscommunications in, 146

  and naval superiority, 7, 8, 44, 54, 61, 72, 130, 131, 140, 162, 173, 241, 306

  in New York for repairs during Siege of Yorktown, 196, 199–201, 224

  as overextended, 8–9

  preparations of, 48, 59

  and Race to Chesapeake, 51–52, 53, 54–55

  return to New York after surrender, 231

  and Rodney, see Rodney, George

  sail to Chesapeake, 163–64, 179, 180

  ships of the line, 183, 201–2, 224, 225

  signal book of, 139, 259

  see also ships, British

  Bunker Hill, Battle of, 98, 108, 208, 235, 259

  Burgoyne, John, 8, 98, 107, 227, 228

  Burr, Aaron, 271

  Burrows, Edwin, 259

  Camden, Battle of, 19, 108, 259

  Canada:

  and British Empire, 8, 267

  and Seven Years’ War, 8, 189

  slaves transported to, 253

  Cape Henry, Battle of, 55–72, 163–64

  Arbuthnot’s actions in, 57–63, 68, 70–72, 95, 102, 131, 188

  Destouches’s actions in, 56–68, 66–67, 70, 187

  Destouches’s departure from, 67, 71–72, 73–74, 102, 103, 105, 109, 187, 194

  lines of battle in, 55–57, 61–65, 66–67, 188

  preparations for, 48, 59

  strategies in, 57, 61–68, 66–67, 187

  Washington’s views on, 72, 73, 102, 105

  wind and weather in, 57–58, 66, 73

  Caribbean:

  Battle of Saintes in, 240–41, 266, 270, 271, 277

  British navy in, 129–31, 134

  British possessions in, 9, 10, 240–41

  French navy in, 118–19, 125, 131–32, 134–35, 139–41, 142–44, 151, 240

  French navy’s surrender to British in, 240–41, 271

  French ships en route to, 112–14, 130

  French trade in, 9–10, 140, 161, 183

  French troops in, 120

  hurricanes in, 10–18, 112, 130, 133, 149

  map (1780), 11

  Saavedra in, see Saavedra de Sangronis, Francisco

  Spanish interests in, 9–10

  Carleton, Sir Guy, 241–42, 253, 267

  Carolinas:

  Cornwallis in, 18–20, 25, 26, 39, 76–78, 81–83, 88–102, 107–9, 227

  Greene in, 22, 25–26, 38, 39, 77, 79, 80–83, 96, 102, 107, 121, 227, 228, 237

  loyalists in, 76, 93, 94–95, 96, 108

  Moravian communities in, 88

  Morgan in, 26, 39, 77, 80–82, 85–87

  O’Hara in, 20, 77, 79–80, 84, 86, 93, 96

  rivers as strategic factors in, 79, 80–85, 86–87, 93, 101, 107

  Tarleton in, 19, 26, 85, 87, 94, 95

  Whigs vs. Tories in, 25–26, 95

  Carrington, Edward, 81, 86, 88

  Catawba River, 80–81, 82–83, 84, 86, 101

  Charleston:

  British retreat to, 102, 107

  British victory in, 108, 120, 155, 229, 230

  Washington’s proposal to focus on, 237

  Chastellux, François Jean de Beauvoir, Marquis de, 42, 113–14, 178, 197, 221–22, 244, 256, 267

  Chernow, Ron, 244

  Chesapeake, Battle of, 183–203, 190, 276

  after the battle, 194–96

  Bougainville’s performance in, 188, 189, 190, 191–94, 266, 267

  British positioning for, 186–88, 190

  British retreat to New York, 196, 199

  cessation of combat, 193–94

  de Grasse’s preliminary position, 183–84, 190

  French ligne de vitesse for, 184–86, 187, 188, 189, 190, 240

  French reinforcements, 195–96

  ideal strategy for, 186

  intense fighting in, 191–93

  lines of battle in, 191–92, 193

  Saavedra’s contribution to success in, 133, 277

  shifting winds in, 191–92, 195

  signaling systems in, 187, 188, 195

  significance of, xiii-xiv

  Chesapeake Bay:

  Arnold in, 27–28, 30–34, 37, 38, 40, 44–46, 48

  Battle of, see Chesapeake, Battle of

  Battle of Cape Henry, see Cape Henry, Battle of

  British fireships launched in, 200–2
01

  de Barras in, 195, 197, 200

  de Grasse in, 171–72, 174, 179–82, 183, 196–98, 228, 244

  maps (1780–1781), 29, 115

  meteor crater in, 27

  Middle Ground of, 183–86

  naval transport of soldiers on, 49, 171

  Race to (1781), 51–52, 53, 54–55, 69, 158–59, 162, 218

  routes to (August–September 1781), 180

  strategic importance of, 28

  Cincinnati, Society of, 272, 277

  Cincinnatus, 246

  Civil War, U.S., seeds of, 236, 279

  Clermont-Crèvecoeur, Comte de, 72, 233

  Clinton, George, 255, 258

  Clinton, Sir Henry:

  and Arbuthnot, 50, 51

  and Arnold, 28, 31, 32

  Chesapeake area deemed essential by, 28

  as commander in chief, 18, 76, 77, 109, 162, 173, 228, 299

  and Continental army mutinies, 34

  and Cornwallis, 18, 20, 76, 77, 107, 109, 137–39, 162, 170, 172–73, 199–200, 212, 225, 227–28, 230

  in New York, 10, 18, 77, 78, 107, 115, 117, 121, 158–59, 161–63, 169, 244, 259

  and possible rescue at Yorktown, 214–15, 224–25, 227–28

  replacement of, 241

  spies of, 113, 259

  after the war, 267–68

  and Washington’s secret plans, 158–59

  Closen, Baron Ludwig von, 47, 54, 172

  and de Grasse, 201, 202

  on fighting ability of Continental army, 156

  on French army at Philadelphia, 168–69

  after the war, 268

  at Yorktown, 232, 234

  Colfax, William, 160

  Concord, Battle of, 251, 259

  Constitutional Convention, Philadelphia (1787), 265, 278

  Continental army:

  African American soldiers in, 156, 216–17, 219, 236

  cavalry horses of, 90–91

  Congress’s failure to support, 23, 34–35, 153, 157, 245–51, 255

  crisis of, 245–51

  discontent among, 34–37, 168, 174, 243–44, 255

  Dutch source of supplies for, 10

  and end of war, 251–52

  exhaustion of, 106, 109

  as family of brothers, 251–52, 257

  fighting ability of, 156, 221–22, 234, 252

  food and supplies sought by, 91, 168

  at Guilford Courthouse, 96–102, 99, 107, 228

  march to Yorktown, 152, 153–54, 155, 157–60, 162–78, 166–67, 203

  mutinies in, 34–37, 244–51, 255

  naval transport of, 49, 115, 137, 147–48, 160, 164–65, 170, 173–74, 182, 198–99

  in Newport, 118

  in North Carolina, see Carolinas

  Sappers and Miners of, 199, 206–8, 219

  shabby appearance of, 156, 232, 252

  in Siege of Yorktown, see Yorktown, Siege of

  states’ failure to support, 120, 139, 148, 153, 243

  at Valley Forge, 25, 243, 247, 277

  in Virginia, 93–94, 95–96

  Washington’s authority challenged in, 245–51

  at West Point, 155

  at White Plains, 135, 143, 157

  Continental Congress:

  and army mutinies, 34–35, 245–51, 255

  “Continentals” (currency) issued by, 165

  and Conway Cabal (1778), 124, 176, 261

  failure to govern, 106, 108, 153, 238, 243, 246, 255, 258

  failure to support army, 23, 34–35, 153, 157, 245–51, 255

  false hopes of, 22–23

  and French navy, 74, 75

  move to Annapolis, 259–60, 261

  move to Princeton, 255, 257

  in Philadelphia, 22, 34, 75, 169, 238, 246, 255

  Washington’s resignation of commission to, 259, 261–62

  Continental navy, ineffectiveness of, 7–8

  Conway Cabal (1778), 124, 176, 261

  Cornwallis, Lord Charles:

  baggage train burned by, 79–80, 87, 93

  at Camden, 19, 108

  career of, 76, 268

  in Carolinas, 18–20, 25, 26, 39, 76–78, 81–83, 88–102, 107–9, 227

  and Clinton, 18, 20, 76, 77, 107, 109, 137–39, 162, 170, 172–73, 199–200, 212, 225, 227–28, 230

  at Cowan’s Ford, 83–85, 86

  and Cowpens, 39, 77–78, 98

  fanaticism of, 108–9, 122, 224

  and former slaves, 210, 211, 220–21, 234–36

  and Greene, 25, 26, 82–83, 85, 86–102, 121, 227

  and Guilford Courthouse, 96–103, 122, 228

  ignoring chain of command, 18, 77–79, 109, 138

  and Lafayette, 121–23, 125, 138–39, 151–52, 178

  march to Virginia, 107–9, 110–11, 115

  and Morgan, 39, 77, 81–82, 85–87

  order to poison wells in Virginia, 218

  public persona of, 234

  and Race to Dan, 88–94, 89, 96, 111

  recruitment efforts of, 94–95, 96

  reputation of, 75–76

  and surrender, 226–30, 231, 234–35, 241, 277

  in Virginia, 120–23, 125, 137–39

  after the war, 266, 268

  and wife’s death, 75, 78

  at Yorktown, 98, 234–35; see also Yorktown; Yorktown, Siege of

  Cosby, Phillips, 62–63, 64

  Cowan’s Ford, Cornwallis at, 83–85, 86

  Cowpens, Battle of, 26, 39, 77–78, 81, 85, 87, 97, 98, 275

  Craik, James, 117, 280

  Cuba:

  funding for French navy from, 144, 150–51, 174–75

  Old Bahama Channel of, 144, 149–50, 151

  Phoenix wrecked on coast of, 12, 15–17

  Spanish bases in, 10, 17, 143, 150

  wealth in, 143

  Custis, Eleanor, 177

  Custis, Jacky, 104, 116, 177, 203, 237–38

  Dan River, Race to, 88–94, 89, 96, 111

  Davidson, William, 82–83, 84, 86

  Davie, William, 91

  Declaration of Independence, 252

  Destouches, Charles, 38–39, 44, 48–50

  at Battle of Cape Henry, 56–68, 66–67, 70, 187

  in Chesapeake Bay, 69–71

  failure to pursue his advantage at Cape Henry, 67, 68, 71–72, 73–74, 102, 103, 105, 109, 187, 194

  and plot to capture Arnold, 45–46, 48, 61, 68, 72

  and Race to Chesapeake, 54–55, 218

  Washington’s frustration with, 73–75, 111–12, 119

  Deux-Ponts, Guillaume de, 58–59, 171, 172, 229, 273

  Diderot, Denis, 189

  Digby, Robert, 140, 155, 182, 199–200, 201–2, 224

  Doehla, Johann, 210

  Drake, Francis Samuel, 187, 190, 191, 195

  Duncan, James, 209

  Duportail, Louis Lebègue, 179, 181, 197

  Eastern North America, map (1780), 11

  Eggleston, Joseph, 95

  England, see Britain

  Enlightenment, 60, 189

  Erie Canal, 278

  Estaing, Charles-Hector, Comte d’, 10, 154, 189

  Eutaw Springs, Battle of, 228

  Ewald, Johann:

  and Arnold, 28, 32–33, 69, 70–71

  on British army under Cornwallis, 121–22

  on destruction of Richmond, 31–32

  on French-American enmity, 233

  as Hessian commander, 28, 30, 69, 71

  and Siege of Yorktown, 211, 220–21, 223–24, 226

  after the war, 268–69

  Fairfax, Bryan, 177

  F
airfax, George, 254

  Fairfax, William, 5

  Fairfax family, 5

  Federalist Papers, The, 271

  Ferguson, Patrick, 19–20, 78

  Finch, William Clement, 195

  Fish, Nicholas, 216

  Flohr, George, 234

  Florida:

  Native Americans in, 133

  Spanish vs. British in, 10, 132, 133–34, 140, 269

  Folger, Abiah, 52

  Fort Griswold, 218, 220

  Fort Stanwix, 255

  Fort Washington, 24

  Framond, Captain, 193

  France:

  aid requested for colonies from, 35, 111–12, 174

  and Caribbean, see Caribbean

  confused conduct of war by, 133, 140

  enmity of America and, 233–34

  enmity of Britain and, 8–9, 60–61

  entry into American Revolution, 8, 60, 129, 279

  French Revolution, 234, 265, 267, 268, 270, 271, 272–73

  peace conference with Britain rumored, 124

  Reign of Terror, 273, 276

  secret plans of, 45–46, 48, 112–14, 118–19, 244

  and Seven Years’ War, 8, 10, 60, 68, 163

  and Spain, 132–34, 140–42

  Franklin, Benjamin:

  on counterfeit money, 12

  in Europe, 157

  and Gulf Stream map, 52, 54

  Frederick the Great, 25

  French army:

  American need for, 153–54

  artillerists in, 221–22

  in Chesapeake area, 49, 181

  food and supplies for, 157, 158, 168

  funding needed for, 139–40, 143–44, 174–75

  march to Yorktown, 152, 153–54, 157–60, 162–78, 166–67, 203

  naval transport for, 170, 171, 173–74, 181, 182, 198

  in Newport, 20–21, 46, 154

  in Philadelphia, 168–69

  in Siege of Yorktown, see Yorktown, Siege of

  splendid appearance of, 168–69, 232

  French Expédition Particulière (Special Expedition), 20–21, 43, 125, 154

  French navy:

  in Battle of Chesapeake, see Chesapeake, Battle of

  in Caribbean, 118–19, 125, 131–32, 134–35, 139–41, 142–44, 151, 240

  in Chesapeake Bay (de Grasse), 171–72, 179–82, 183, 196, 199–203, 227, 228, 244

  in Chesapeake Bay (Destouches), 69–71; see also Cape Henry, Battle of

  class warfare in, 189

  en route to Caribbean, 112–14, 130

  en route to Chesapeake (de Barras), 155, 161, 180, 182

  en route to Chesapeake (de Grasse), 180

  fresh bread and wine served to, 142–43

  funding needed for, 139–40, 143–44, 150–51, 175

  impediments to communication with, 8, 114, 146

  importance of, to states, 7–8, 10, 44, 47–50, 106

 

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