A Window on Motivation in the War for American Independence: The Battle of Williamson's Plantation, 12 July 1780.

Abstract

This thesis examines the motivations of the men who fought a small battle in the South Carolina backcountry. Using a wide array of primary sources to examine the events leading up to the baffle in detail, it specifically analyzes the factors which brought both the rebel militiamen and the Loyalist regular and irregular soldiers into the respective armies, kept them there, and made them fight. It concludes that the patriot forces in this case were more solidly motivated, with a more comprehensive and flexible set of reasons for fighting, and that this contributed to and indeed was a major factor in their victory. More importantly, this thesis illustrates the intricate and complex nature of military motivation in the American War for Independence.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 1999
Accession Number
ADA364044

Entities

People

  • Paul W. Metzloff

Organizations

  • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Abstracts
  • Air Force
  • American Revolution
  • Civil War
  • Computer Programs
  • Congress
  • Families (Human)
  • Governments
  • Materials
  • Military History
  • New England
  • New York
  • North Carolina
  • Psychology
  • South Carolina
  • United States
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • History

Readers

  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Systems Analysis and Design