Battle Of Kings Mountain Facts And Summary For The History Lovers

The Battle of Kings Mountain was fought on October 7, 1780.

It was an all-out military conflict between the Patriot militia and Loyalist militia during the American Revolutionary War. It happened 9 mi (14 km) south of what is now known as Kings Mountain, a town in the state of North Carolina.

This battle was a part of the larger American Revolution against British dominion.

The conflict was a game-changer in the history of this revolution because it not only boosted the patriot's morale but also paved the way for an American victory in the Revolutionary War.

It sent a message of local patriots and patriot militias' rise across the entire continent of North America, which categorically shook the loyal militia operating under the British Army.

US Presidents Theodore Roosevelt, Thomas Jefferson, and Herbert Hoover would later go on to describe this battle as the primary turning point in the history of the American Revolutionary War.

If you were intrigued by this article, you might also like reading our articles on the Battle of Gallipoli and the Battle of France.

Battle Of Kings Mountain Importance

The patriots and Lord Cornwallis's army in South Carolina had previously defeated the loyalists multiple times in the past. Loyalists were comparatively weak and not properly organized as an armed force.

Their decisive victory at Kings Mountain was a turning point in the Southern Campaign.

This surprise and unexpected victory of the American Patriotic Militia over the British Loyalists boosted their morale immensely.

It also served as motivation for them to expand their on-ground action for furthering their cause of independence.

It also proved to be extremely pivotal in diverting the route of the American Revolution because the death of Patrick Ferguson during this battle compelled Lord Cornwallis to give up his plans of invading and taking over North Carolina under British control, hence forcing him to retreat into South Carolina.

This was also the destruction of Patrick Ferguson's command because of his death, dooming his plans of organizing a loyalist militia to spread in the controlled dominion of the patriot force to failure.

It also created a gap among the ranks of British forces present in the region, causing disruption in military campaigns and operations.

Who won the battle of Kings Mountain?

The Battle started around 3 p.m. after the patriots marched and attacked the whig military force in the middle of their retreat. The loyalists were forced to fight back, and after a little over one hour of fierce engagement from both sides, Major Patrick Ferguson was fatally wounded by a shot.

The loyalists suffered severe damages.

Ferguson, before getting shot, tried to run back and forth from the hill in an attempt to send a signal charge by blowing his silver whistle.

Tory militia leaders, colonels Isaac Shelby, John Sevier, and William Campbell followed Ferguson and reached the hilltop behind the loyalist forces and subsequently attacked them from the rear, giving them no time to retaliate.

The loyalists were driven back to their camps, and one event led to another, all the loyalist militias started to surrender, almost finalizing an American victory after several defeats at their hands in past years.

Ferguson still did not give up and killed a few white flags he saw approaching him with his sword.

Even though he appeared to have realized that his men had lost the battle, he still tried to rally his men by shouting, 'Hurrah, brave boys, the day is ours!'

It was when he attempted to cross the patriot line and was shot by one of their officers, eventually falling down and getting dragged by his horse behind the line.

There, one of the Tory officers demanded his surrender, and Ferguson, in an act of defiance, shot that officer, killing him.

This prompted other patriots present on the spot to shoot him multiple times, leaving Ferguson dead.

Later upon recovery, a total of seven bullet wounds were counted on his body. Upon his death, the American victory was sealed, and the loyalist force was defeated.

This victory of the American Army, an attempt to lay waste to the British campaigns, boosted patriots' morale and made loyalists retreat back to their base near the border of South Carolina.

One more interesting thing to note here is that during the entire battle, the only Englishman present was the leader of the British effort, Patrick Ferguson.

Battle Of Kings Mountain Casualties

In this heavy 65 minutes-long military engagement, there were countless casualties, which included the loss of life along with the damage of equipment and property.

According to the Formal Report of the Battle of King's Mountain, October 7, 1780, the loyalists suffered the loss of 290 lives on their side, along with 163 wounded men and 668 being taken as prisoners by the patriots.

On the attacking side, the number of casualties was relatively less, with only a total of 28 deaths along with 62 wounded.

The details of the casualties were recorded in the Formal Report, which was signed and delivered by Colonels Campbell, Shelby, and Cleveland to General Gates when they passed through Hillsboro, post-battle.

The records stated that a colonel, a major, a captain, two lieutenants, four ensigns, and 19 privates on the side of the patriots died on October 7, 1780, during the 65-minute long battle.

Also, a total of one major, three captains, three lieutenants, and 55 privates ended up wounded on the battleground from their side. On the side of the loyalists, the number of deaths was too many to categorically identify the persons who died, were injured, and were held captive.

After the report was delivered, on October 20, 1780, almost two weeks after the battle, drumhead courts-marshal was held for the captured loyalist militia mountain men, mostly belonging to the southern colonies on various charges, including but not limited to treason, desertion from patriot militias, and incitement of Indian rebellion.

Patriots gave a total of nine loyalists death sentences, right before Colonel Shelby called off the proceedings.

The patriots dispersed, and along the way, as many as 130 captured loyalists managed to escape and run away, avoiding conviction and eventually death sentences.

Battle Of Kings Mountain Leaders

The Battle of King's Mountain was an essential event during the American Revolutionary War in the 18th century. The revolution was being carried from various ends on the American land, wherein some areas were under the loyalist stronghold, under British control, and others were being administered by the hastily organized, anti-British patriots.

The Battle of King's Mountain was fought between a well-organized and trained loyalist force under the leadership of Major Patrick Ferguson and Abraham de Peyster and a poorly trained and organized patriot force.

The patriots struck the loyalists with almost 1000 men on the hillside when Major Ferguson was retreating along with his men. The patriot militia was being led by a number of military commanders, namely Colonels William Campbell, James Johnston, John Sevier, Frederick Hambright, Joseph McDowell, Benjamin Cleveland, James Williams, Isaac Shelby, Joseph Winston, and William Chronicle.

Most of these were local farmers and workers who joined the efforts of the American resistance and mountain men against the British battles during the revolutionary war.

What happened at the Battle of Kings Mountain?

The conflict arose when Major Patrick Ferguson came to North Carolina in early September of 1780 in order to recruit troops for the loyalists and safeguard Lord Cornwallis's force. It is when he called out and challenged the patriotic militia to either surrender or suffer.

The patriots, in turn, responded by rallying and planning an attack on Major Patrick Ferguson and his forces. Upon receiving the information of an impending attack, he decided to retreat and take shelter in the protection of Lord Cornwallis's army.

But the patriots caught up with the retreating loyalists at Kings Mountain, North Carolina, near the border of South Carolina.

The patriots had the element of surprise and used it to their advantage by surrounding the loyalists and inflicting severe damage to life and property in their possession. This ended with the demise of Patrick Ferguson and several other patriot militia soldiers.

After the battle ended, the loyalists captured the living soldiers who were capable of walking and were not severely injured.

While leaving the battleground, they hastily buried the dead and left those who were mortally wounded to die. They left in such a hurry because the news of the patriot's defeat and Major Ferguson's death had reached Lord Cornwallis, and they feared that if they stayed longer, Cornwallis's army would catch up and meet with them.

This would particularly be disastrous for them given they were nowhere even near to being capable of matching up to the British Army's strength, capability, and fighting skills.

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