Battle Of The Hook 1781 All The Kings Horses

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When General Cornwallis occupied Yorktown in September 1781 he dispatched a portion of his troops to occupy and fortify Gloucester Point, across the river from Yorktown. This force would be able to secure the British Army's flank, protect a possible escape route, and forage for food and supplies in the fertile farmland of Gloucester County. Among the British forces in Gloucester were Col. Banastre Tarleton and his Legion, along with detachments from several regular British regiments. • General Washington and his French allies recognised the importance of this area to the ensuing siege and sent a force to block the British in Gloucester. This Allied force included Virginia militia, made up in part by former Continental soldiers. The French forces included Marines, as well as Lauzun's Legion, under the command of the flamboyant Duc de Lauzun. When they met the enemy a couple of miles down the road, at the Hook (where the Guinea Road now meets Route 17), Lauzun rode up and, spotting Tarleton, galloping toward him. Before they clashed, one of Tarleton's cavalrymen's horses was wounded, and it struck Tarleton's, felling him and his horse in the process. His dragoons rescued him, retreated, then mounted a counter attack. They were thrown back, and broke for the protection of a company of the 23rd, who stopped Lauzun's infantry, but not Mercer's Virginians. • The British withdrew to their lines with the loss of their infantry commander and 12 men, and a wounded Colonel Tarleton. The Americans lost 2 killed and 11 wounded, and the French suffered 3 killed and 16 wounded, including Lauzun's second-in-command, an Irish brawler and duellist named Robert Dillon. But they stopped the British across the river from Yorktown for good: they remained in their positions at Gloucester Point until Cornwallis surrendered on that glorious day a fortnight and two days later. • #BanastreTarleton #BattleOfTheHook # History #AmericanRevolution • Song: All The King's Horses by Karmina • Clips and Audio from: • The Patriot (2000) • Charge of the Light Brigade (1968) • War and Peace (2016) • _______________________________________ • Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for fair use for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favourite of fair use.

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