July 4th, 2020 By DELTA

Today was the annual F3 Fourth of July History Lesson with a special focus on our Carolina heroes and battles from the Revolutionary War.  History lessons are a bit more difficult when holding plank.

Warm up:

• Brief mosey
• Side straddle hops
• Potato Pickers
• Merkins
• Stretch
• Emperial Walkers
• Happy Happy
• Mosey

Lesson 1: Battle of Sullivan’s Island or Battle of Fort Sulivan, SC Jun 1776. 12 killed and 25 wounded:

The Battle of Sullivan’s Island or the Battle of Fort Sullivan was fought on June 28, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War. It took place near Charleston, South Carolina, during the first British attempt to capture the city from American forces. It is also sometimes referred to as the First Siege of Charleston. 

The British organized an expedition in early 1776 for operations in the rebellious southern colonies of North America. Delayed by logistical concerns and bad weather, the expedition reached the coast of North Carolina in May 1776. Finding conditions unsuitable for their operations, General Henry Clinton and Admiral Sir Peter Parker decided instead to act against Charleston. Arriving there in early June, troops were landed on Long Island (now called Isle of Palms), near Sullivan’s Island where Colonel William Moultrie commanded a partially constructed fort, in preparation for a naval bombardment and land assault. General Charles Lee, commanding the southern Continental theater of the war, would provide supervision. 

The land assault was frustrated when the channel between the two islands was found to be too deep to wade, and the American defenses prevented an amphibious landing. The naval bombardment had little effect due to the sandy soil and the spongy nature of the fort’s palmetto log construction. Careful fire by the defenders wrought significant damage on the British fleet, which withdrew after an entire day’s bombardment. The British withdrew their expedition force to New York, and did not return to South Carolina until 1780. 

In honor of the 12 killed and 25 wounded. We will do 25 Peter Parkers, 25 Squats, 25 Merkins and 25 big boy sit ups. Repeat the entire series two more times for 12:25.

Mosey to the rock pile and pick up a medium sized lifting rock.

Lesson 2: Battle of the Waxhaws May 1780

The Battle of Waxhaws took place during the American Revolutionary War on May 29, 1780, near Lancaster, South Carolina, between a Continental Army force led by Abraham Buford and a mainly Loyalist force led by British officer Banastre Tarleton. Buford refused an initial demand to surrender, but when his men were attacked by Tarleton’s cavalry, many threw down their arms to surrender. Buford apparently attempted to surrender. However, the British commanding officer Tarleton was shot at during the truce, causing his horse to fall and trap him. Loyalists and British troops were outraged at the breaking of the truce in this manner and proceeded to fall on the rebels.[2][3] 

While Tarleton was trapped under his dead horse, men continued killing the Continental soldiers, including men who were not resisting. Little quarter was given to the patriots/rebels. Of the 400 or so Continentals, 113 were killed with sabers, 150 so badly injured they could not be moved and 53 prisoners were taken by the British and Loyalists. “Tarleton’s quarter”, thereafter became a common expression for refusing to take prisoners 

In honor of our 263 slaughtered and injured neighbors. We will do 50 curls 50 presses, 50 triceps, 50 rows and 50 squats and 13 burpees.  

Lesson 3: Battle of Camden, SC August 1780 –  900 Killed or wounded & 1,000 captured. A stunning defeat of General Gates and victory for General Cornwallis.  

The Battle of Camden was a major victory for the British in the Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War. On August 16, 1780, British forces under Lieutenant General Charles, Lord Cornwallis routed the American forces of Major General Horatio Gates (the hero of Saratoga) about five miles north of Camden, South Carolina, strengthening the British hold on the Carolinas following the capture of Charleston earlier in 1780. 

The rout was a humiliating defeat for Gates, whose army had possessed a large numerical superiority over the British force. Following the battle, he never held a field command again. 

In honor of our fallen heroes we will pair up and perform 900 exercises (as a team): 200 Mountain climbers, 200 LBC’s, 200 Lunges, 200 flutters (all single count) and 100 Merkins.

Mosey to Tennis Courts

Lesson 4: Battle of Kings Mountain October 1780. 28 Killed 61 wounded 

The Battle of Kings Mountain was a military engagement between Patriot and Loyalist militias in South Carolina during the Southern Campaign of the American Revolutionary War, resulting in a decisive victory for the Patriots. The battle took place on October 7, 1780, 9 miles south of the present-day town of Kings Mountain, North Carolina. The Patriot militia defeated the Loyalist militia commanded by British Major Patrick Ferguson of the 71st Foot. The battle has been described as “the war’s largest all-American fight”.[3] 

Ferguson had arrived in North Carolina in early September 1780 to recruit troops for the Loyalist militia and protect the flank of Lord Cornwallis‘ main force. Ferguson issued a challenge to the rebel militias to lay down their arms or suffer the consequences. In response, the Patriot militias led by Benjamin Cleveland, James Johnston, William Campbell, John Sevier, Joseph McDowell and Isaac Shelby rallied for an attack on Ferguson. 

Receiving intelligence on the oncoming attack, Ferguson decided to retreat to the safety of Lord Cornwallis’ army. However, the Patriots caught up with the Loyalists at Kings Mountain near the border with South Carolina. Achieving a complete surprise, the Patriot militiamen attacked and surrounded the Loyalists, inflicting heavy casualties. After an hour of battle, Ferguson was fatally shot while trying to break the rebel line, after which his men surrendered. Some Patriots gave no quarter until the rebel officers re-established control over their men; they were said to be seeking revenge for alleged killings by Banastre Tarleton‘s militiamen at the Battle of Waxhaws, under the slogan “Remember Tarleton’s Quarter.”  

The battle was a pivotal moment in the Southern campaign. The surprising victory of the American patriot militia over the Loyalists came after a string of rebel defeats at the hands of Lord Cornwallis, and greatly raised the Patriots’ morale. With Ferguson dead and his Loyalist militia destroyed, Cornwallis was forced to abandon his plan to invade North Carolina and retreated into South Carolina. 

In honor of our Kings of Kings Mountain we will sprint across the tennis court (28 feet roughly) and back then do 10 Carolina Dry Docks.  Do this six times for a total of 60.  Then at the end do 1 burpee for a 61 count.

Mosey back to the field 

Lesson 5: Battle of the Cowpens – 25 Killed and 124 wounded. Cherokee County, SC January 1781 

The Battle of Cowpens, fought on January 17, 1781, was an engagement between American Colonial forces under Brigadier General Daniel Morgan and British forces under Sir Banastre Tarleton, as part of the campaign in the Carolinas.  

A small force of the Continental Army under the command of Brigadier General Daniel Morgan had marched to the west of the Catawba River, in order to forage for supplies and raise the morale of local Colonial sympathizers. The British had received incorrect reports that Morgan’s army was planning to attack the important strategic fort of Ninety Six, held by American Loyalists to the British Crown and located in the west of the Carolinas. The British considered Morgan’s army a threat to their left flank. General Charles Cornwallis dispatched cavalry / dragoons commander Lieutenant Colonel Sir Banastre Tarleton to defeat Morgan’s command. Upon learning Morgan’s army was not at Ninety Six, Tarleton, bolstered by British reinforcements, set off in hot pursuit of the American detachment. 

Morgan resolved to make a stand near the Broad River. Tarleton’s force of 1000 British in the King’s Army were sent against the 2000 men under Morgan. The Colonial forces conducted a double envelopment of Tarleton’s force, and suffered minor casualties of only 20 killed and 69 wounded. Tarleton was one of around 200 British troops to escape but with 110 killed, 229 wounded, and 829 captured the Loyalist southern army was no longer an effective fighting force. 

The battle was a turning point in the American reconquest of South Carolina from the British. With Tarleton’s brigade wiped out as an effective fighting force, and, coupled with the British defeat at King’s Mountain in the northwest corner of South Carolina, this compelled Cornwallis to pursue the main southern American army into North Carolina eventually moving up to Yorktown, VA where he was defeated by General Washington in October 1781. 

In honor of our heroic Carolinians we will do 20 Burpees and 69 dips 

Mosey to Korean War memorial for last two minutes of Mary and the end.

East Charlotte, Mint Hill, The Vet

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