American War of Independence: Siege of Yorktown
Andronikos Phelas, 18th century Greek historian,
Since 1775 the American colonies had been struggling for their independence. For five years the tide of the war had swung from one side to another, with both the British and the Americans winning their fair share of decisive battles. 1781, however, would prove to be the decisive year in this bloody war for independence…
In 1780, 15,000 fresh Roman troops had arrived in Delaware, ready to fight against the redcoats with all of the legendary passion and bravery that the Greek soldier had come to be known for since ancient times. For the men of the Imperial Army, this was to be but another chapter in the great legacy of Sparta, Athens, Thebes and the other great city-states of old. While the British and Americans may fight bravely, never forget who bores the legacy of Thermopylae and Alexander!
Though this was not their country or their cause, they were fighting in the name of their Emperor, their sovereign, a tradition that extended back all the way to Alexander of Macedon himself. Despite being outnumbered at times, the Greek spirit made retreat a rare occurrence, for the greater the odds, the stronger their spirit.
Against the Persians, against the Lombards, against the Arabs and against the Turks, they faced all kinds of deadly and fearsome foes. The British had simply become the latest addition in that long list. Though former allies, the brave soldiers of the Roman Empire would give them no quarter. Any enemy of Rome would be struck down by the mighty spirit of Constantine.
Having landed in Delaware in October of 1780, the presence of the legions brought new hope to the beleaguered Americans. Indeed, perhaps they sensed a kindred spirit in the newly arrived soldiers. There were clear parallels after all between the heroic fight against the Persian hordes in Ancient times, and the American’s current struggle against the British. Both fought against an overwhelming foe for their freedom and independence, a cause as old as war itself.
It was in this spirit that General Adrianos Phokas lead his army south from Delaware to join with the main French and American Force in the south. The first battle that involved major Roman participation was the Battle of Chesapeake Bay. Taking place on August 25th, this naval battle took place between the fleets of Roman Admiral Athanasios Eugenikos and British Rear Admiral Sir Samuel Hood.
Having anticipated that the British might try and cut off the supply line to Washington’s army through the mouth of the Chesapeake, General Adrianos Phokas had asked for Eugenikos to move his fleet to guard the passage against any potential British interference. On August 24rh, Admiral Eugenikos set out from Delaware with a fleet of 17 ships of the line. Arriving roughly a day later, they, to their great surprise found 14 British ships of the line anchored near Cape Henry.
Though conventional naval tactics of the day dictated that Eugenikos should wait for his enemy to form a line of battle and then form his fleet parallel to that of his enemy, he saw an opportunity he could not afford to pass up.
Breaking with the tradition of the day, Eugenikos ordered his ships to sail directly into Cape Henry and fire upon the still anchored ships. Most of the officers were away, helping to unload supplies that had been brought for Cornwallis’ army further inland when the attack came. The Roman vessels, wasting no time in closing to firing distance, dealt devastating damage to the docked British fleet.
A few British ships attempted to set sail and combat the enemy fleet, but now heavily outnumbered and disorganized, they could do little but escape. By the time the naval officers had returned to their ships and set sail, 3 British ships had already been set ablaze by cannon fire, while many others were heavily damaged.
Many naval officers were left in the bay, and had to flee to Cornwallis’ southern army to escape capture by the advancing colonial army under Washington. With the Chesapeake now secure, Washington was able to continue his Southern Campaign without fearing for his line of supply. General Phokas sent roughly 10,000 of his troops with Washington to ensure his victory over Cornwallis, and to have a hand in humiliating their British foe. As the war in the Americas moved closer towards it’s conclusion, fighting continued in the other theaters of the war.
The British Navy in the Caribbean by 1781 had lost its dominant position. Outclassed by Greek naval prowess, with some minor help from the French, the Empire blockaded the British possessions in the Caribbean and prevented supplies from being brought to them. This made the native populations of the islands become rebellious, eager to throw off the yoke of British oppression and cruelty, as their American counterparts had.
Half a world away, the Empire, allied with the native kingdom of Mysore, sought to drive the British from India one and for all. Since 1779 the two sides had been engaged in a rather brutal contest for domination of the East Indies, and both sides, including the British, unfortunately, had seen their fair share of victories.
Most of the British victories in India were won thanks to French incompetence, resulting in the British capture of the French colony of Mahe in 1779. France would continue to suffer similar defeats in India throughout the war, and it was only through the bravery of the Imperial Army that the situation would be salvaged.
To be fare, the Empire’s native allies in Mysore, barbarians though they may be, did play a rather large part in the conflict. They were crucial in the fighting against Maratha, another native kingdom that had been seduced to the British side by the prospect of seizing Mysore’s northern possessions.
Under the command of Colonel Alessandro Marconi, an Italian noble from Florence, Tuscany, the Imperial Army scored several decisive victories in Northwestern India against the British. In 1780, Marconi’s army was able to seize the British-owned city of Cambay within the Gujarat province after defeating a slightly smaller British army under Colonel Henry Blackmouth. He then proceeded to lay siege to the city of Surat in early 1781, which was defended by a British garrison of 2,500 men.
Unfortunately, the British garrison of Surat proved to be resilient, and despite the harsh conditions they no doubt endured as their supplies ran short, they chose to betray all sense of logic and continue to resist.
Mysore, under the fair rule of Sultan Fateh Ali Tipu, also won its fair share of victories against their hated British enemies, as well as their Maratha collaborators. The most notable of these victories occurred in September of 1780, where an army under Tipu Sultan crushed a large British force under the command Colonel Baillie at the Battle of Polilur. Capturing nearly 4,000 men, including the Colonel himself, this was a devastating loss for the British in India.
Surat, unfortunately, still refused to fall, and by late 1781, Colonel Marconi’s supplies had nearly been depleted. With his supply lines threatened by Marathi raiders, and his men in danger of starving, he was forced to retreat back to Cambay.
The rest of the war in India was more or less a stalemate in regards to direct fighting between the Roman and British armies. However Tipu Sultan continued his string of victories right until the war’s end.
In the American theater of the war, the battle known as the Siege of Yorktown was taking place, lasting from the 28th of September to the 19th of October, this battle was credited with ending the war. However, it is this author’s opinion that had it not been for the actions of Metochites’ army to the north, it would have potentially ended disastrously for the Americans and their French allies. While General Phokas had sent 10,000 of his troops to aid Washington, Major General Metochites had remained near New York, where an attack had been planned earlier in the year.
With roughly 5,000 men under his command, Metochites had been ordered to hold his ground, his force alone being too small to assault New York directly. However, unbeknownst to the allies, the commander of the British garrison at Yorktown, General Cornwallis, had managed to slip a messenger through the American siege line. This messenger made his way to New York, where he presented a request for reinforcements to Sir Henry Clinton, the Commander-in-Chief of the British army in America.
On October 5th, 7,000 men under Colonel Andrew Morrison marched out of New York in hopes of reinforcing the besieged and battered army of Cornwallis. As they began to move south however, Metochites’ scouts soon caught wind of their movements.
Though he had been ordered to hold his position, Metochites’ knew that he could not allow these reinforcements to reach Cornwallis, as it could potentially ruin the entire campaign. Ordering his army to break camp, Metochites moved quickly to head off Colonel Morrison’s army at Tyron County, New York.
Outnumbered, Metochites decided that his only chance for victory was to divide the British army. Requesting the aid of the Pennsylvania Militia, he was able to gather some 500 militiamen, which he supplemented with 350 of his own crack troops, including 80 cavalrymen.
Staging an ambush near a small pass between the two states, the Roman cavalry initiated the attack with a mock charge on the marching army’s flank. After a section of the marching column turned and supposedly repelled the attack, the rest of the army emerged and engaged their British counterparts.
Metochites had given the militia instructions to only exchange up to 4 rounds with the British before retreating. The militia happily obliged, not wishing to stand toe to toe with the British regulars, even with the assistance of the Roman soldiers who had accompanied them. Feigning a retreat, they fled further northwards back into New York.
Fearing they would attempt to disrupt his supply lines, or even return to attack the rear of his army, Colonel Morrison dispatched 1,500 men to pursue the fleeing Militia, believing his remaining 5,500 to be enough to successfully lift the Siege of Yorktown.
In truth however, he had fallen into Metochites’ trap, negating his large numerical advantage. Now feeling confident in his victory, Metochites directly confronted his opponent in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania. Though still outnumbered, the gap between the two armies had been reduced to the extent that the superior training and discipline of Metochites’ army would be able to more than make up the difference.
Metochites’ indeed did have the advantage in quality. His army was entirely comprised of professional soldiers, while Colonel Morrison’s force was a combination of British regulars, Hessian Mercenaries, and Loyalist Militia. With the British regulars and Hessians were well-drilled troops, the Loyalists were poorly trained and tended to flee at the first sign of trouble, making them extremely unreliable.
Out of his 5,500, roughly 1,500 were Militia, 1,000 were British regulars, and the remaining army was made up of Hessians. Metochites, eager to exploit this to his advantage, placed his best troops on the right-most side of his line, parallel to the Loyalist militia.
In addition he used his cavalry force, which was superior in number to that of Morrison’s army, to further harass the Militia, causing panic to break out amongst their ranks. As Metochites’ crack soldiers exchanged fire with the increasingly disorganized Loyalists, they quickly began to break rank and flee, exposing the British left flank.
Until then, the Hessians and British regulars had been able to hold their own against their Roman counterparts, but with the collapse of their left flank, the rest of the army quickly became demoralized. Ordering his cavalry to attack the now vulnerable left-wing of the British line, the regulars began to break rank and retreat in panic. Ironically, the Hessian mercenaries were the last to flee the field, fighting longer than even the professional soldiers of the British army, and even repelling several cavalry charges. They too, however, were eventually forced to withdraw from the battlefield.
It was another great victory for Metochites, who had defeated a larger British army, and prevented Cornwallis from being reinforced. This, in all likelihood, was responsible for the eventual colonial victory at Yorktown, which would spell the end for the American War of Independence. Metochites would eventually be promoted to the rank of General, and is still loyally serving the Emperor in the war against the French.
Several weeks later, General Cornwallis surrendered to Washington at Yorktown, bringing an end to the major hostilities on the American continent. Though sporadic fighting would continue for many months afterwards, the main fighting between the Americans and their former British masters was over.
The American War of Independence proved to be the final break between the British and Roman Empires. Though they would, through unavoidable circumstance, fight together again, they would never have the close alliance that they once shared prior to the Seven Years’ War…
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Ah! There's the update! Sorry it took...well, nearly two months, but it's here, finally! Thanks for waiting, and I hope you enjoyed it.
If you can't tell, the historian portrayed in this update isn't exactly unbiased. That's intentional on my part. Tell me if you like our pompous Greek historian here and maybe I'll use him again.
