“We fight, get beat, rise, and fight again. The whole country is one continued scene of blood and slaughter... The enemy have been successful in their actions, but they have suffered so much in the victories they have obtained that they are now unable to move, and we are in a condition to act offensively. If we can only keep the field, we must eventually ruin the enemy’s army and compel them to abandon their conquests.”
— General Nathanael Greene, letter to the Chevalier de La Luzerne, 1781
The military strategy outlined by Greene in the excerpt most directly led to which of the following developments?
- The exhaustion of British forces under Lord Cornwallis, forcing their retreat to the coast and setting the stage for the siege of Yorktown.Answer
- BThe immediate establishment of a permanent standing army funded by national taxes under the newly drafted Articles of Confederation.
- CThe colonial decision to submit to the Declaratory Act in exchange for British recognition of Southern territorial sovereignty.
- DThe rapid migration of New England puritan farming families to the Southern colonies to replace loyalist labor on cash-crop plantations.
Answer
The exhaustion of British forces under Lord Cornwallis, forcing their retreat to the coast and setting the stage for the siege of Yorktown.
The military strategy of attrition employed by General Nathanael Greene in the Southern theater intentionally drew British forces into costly tactical victories. Although Cornwallis won battles like Guilford Courthouse, the losses his army suffered were unsustainable. Exhausted and depleted, Cornwallis withdrew to Yorktown, Virginia, hoping to connect with the Royal Navy, which set the stage for the decisive Franco-American siege.
Step-by-Step Solution
Key Concept
Continental Army Southern Strategy of Attrition