Revolutionary War Leadership in South Carolina

An examination of the panorama of individuals whose leadership helped make the Patriot cause successful in South Carolina. Historians Kevin Dougherty and Steven D. Smith look beyond the towering figure of Francis Marion to profile significant personalities and actions both on and off the battlefield in this innovative approach to the Revolutionary War in South Carolina. The book profiles a range of individuals: Henry Laurens was the President of the Council of Safety. Richard Furman was the pastor of a church; John Rutledge was the Governor of South Carolina; and Rebecca Motte was a plantation owner. William Moultrie and Andrew Pickens--perhaps most familiar as soldiers--are discussed in their non-combatant roles: Moultrie as a prisoner of war and Pickens as a post-war civic leader. Military leaders William Jasper, Thomas Sumter, Francis Marion, Isaac Shelby, Nathanael Greene, Daniel Morgan, Tadeusz Kosciuszko, Hezekiah Maham, and Henry Lee round out the selection of profiles. The profiles are preceded by a historical overview of the Southern Campaign and the Revolutionary War in South Carolina, in order to provide the reader the background necessary to understand the leadership profiles in context. The book's conclusion highlights that the Revolutionary War was a landmark in the "democratization" of war and that the choices made by these leaders and their followers reflect the same element of choice inherent in the democratic process. AUTHORS: Steven D. Smith is a Research Professor at the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of South Carolina. He has over 40 years' experience in historical archaeology, largely focused on military sites of the American Revolution in the South and has conducted many excavations, including Parker's Ferry, Black Mingo, Snow's Island, and Camden. He is the author, co-author or editor of seven books, including Partisans, Guerillas, and Irregulars: Historical Archaeology of Asymmetric Warfare (2019), Leading Like the Swamp Fox: The Leadership Lessons of Francis Marion, (2022), and The Battles of Fort Watson and Fort Motte, 1781 (2024). Kevin Dougherty is retired from careers as a US Army officer and as the Assistant Commandant for Leadership Programs at The Citadel. He is currently an independent scholar and the author of several books including The Campaigns for Vicksburg, 1862-1863 (Casemate 2011), which illustrates leadership principles through historical narrative.