Prevost’s March

Spanning from late April to early July 1779, General Augustine Prevost’s March was a sweeping British expedition that carved a path of destruction across the South Carolina Lowcountry. After the fall of Savannah and the breakthrough at Purrysburg, Prevost led a massive force of nearly 4,000 British regulars, Hessians, and Loyalist units northward. This was not merely a troop movement; it was an amphibious and overland campaign designed to bypass the coastal defenses of Beaufort and strike at the heart of the Patriot cause: Charleston.

The march was defined by a constant state of “running warfare.” As the British pushed through the swampy corridors of the Beaufort and Colleton districts, they were relentlessly harassed by South Carolina militia and Continental rear guards. At every river crossing and causeway—from the Salkehatchie to the Ashley—Patriot forces engaged in “hit-and-run” skirmishes, burning bridges and felling trees to muffle the British advance. Despite this resistance, Prevost’s momentum was formidable, fueled by the systematic seizure of livestock, crops, and thousands of enslaved people from the region’s wealthiest plantations.

By the time Prevost reached the outskirts of Charleston in May, his “Plunderous March” had turned the Lowcountry into a scorched-earth landscape. Though he ultimately retreated from the city’s gates due to the approach of General Benjamin Lincoln’s army, the expedition remained a strategic success for the Crown. The British withdrew southward through the Sea Islands, leaving behind a wake of economic ruin and establishing a series of fortified outposts that would haunt the region until the end of the war.

Historical Significance

• The “Civil War” of the Lowcountry: The march radicalized the local population, as neighbors were forced to choose sides between the advancing British army and the retreating Patriot militia.
• Economic Devastation: The systematic looting during the march, often referred to as the “Plunderous March,” permanently crippled the planter class of the Beaufort District and redirected the region’s resources to the British war effort.
• Strategic Pivot: The expedition proved that the British could move deep into the South Carolina interior, setting the tactical stage for the eventual successful Siege of Charleston in 1780.