Francis Marion (February 26 1732–February 27, 1795) was a lieutenant colonel in the Continental Army and later
brigadier general in the South Carolina Militia during the American Revolutionary War. He became known as the "Swamp Fox" for his ability to use
decoys and ambushes to disrupt enemy communications, capture supplies, and free prisoners. His use of guerrilla tactics helped
set in motion the decline of open battles in the conflict. Before the Revolutionary War, he was a sailor.
Marion is considered one of the fathers of modern guerilla warfare, and is credited
in the lineage of the United States Army Rangers.
Family and early life
Marion's family was of Huguenot ancestry. His parents were Gabriel Marion and Esther Cordes
Marion, both first-generation Carolinians. His grandparents were Benjamin and Judith Baluet Marion, and Anthony and Esther Baluet
Cordes. Gabriel and Esther had six children: Esther, Isaac, Gabriel, Benjamin, Job, and Francis. Francis was the last born and
was a puny child. Peter Horry, who served under Marion in the American Revolution, joked, "I have it from good authority, that
this great soldier, at his birth, was not larger than a New England lobster, and might easily enough have been put into a quart
pot."
The family settled at Winyah, near Georgetown, South Carolina. Marion was born in midwinter, 1732, at Gayfield Plantation in
St. James Parish, Berkeley County, South
Carolina. When he was five or six, his family moved to a plantation in St. George, a parish on Winyah Bay. Apparently,
they wanted to be near the English school in Georgetown. In 1759, he moved to Pond Bluff plantation near Eutaw Springs, in St. John's Parish, Berkeley County, South Carolina. Francis Marion was
fluent in both French and English.
When Francis was 15, he decided to become a sailor. His imagination had been stirred by the ships in the Georgetown port. When
he asked his parent's permission, they willingly agreed. They hoped a voyage to the Caribbean
would strengthen his frail physique. He signed on as the sixth crewman of a schooner heading
for the West Indies. As they were returning, a whale rammed the
schooner and caused a plank to come loose. The captain and crew escaped in a boat, but the schooner sank so quickly that they
were unable to take any food or water. After six days under the tropical sun, two crewman died of thirst and exposure. The
following day, they reached shore.
Despite his sea ordeal, Francis came back in better health. Peter Horry wrote, "His constitution seemed renewed, his frame
commenced a second and rapid growth, while his cheeks, quitting their pale, suet-colored cast, assumed a bright and healthy
olive." However, Francis was done with sailing after that one disastrous voyage.
Marion began his military career shortly before his 25th birthday. On January 1,
1757, Francis and his brother Gabriel were recruited by Captain John Postell for the
French and Indian War to drive the Cherokee away
from the border. In 1761, Marion served as a lieutenant under Captain William Moultrie
in a campaign against the Cherokee. Peter Horry quoted a letter in which Marion spoke
of this British-led campaign with sorrow:
"The next morning we proceeded by order of Colonel James Grant, to
burn down the Indians' cabins. Some of our men seemed to enjoy this cruel work, laughing very heartily at the curling flames, as
they mounted loud crackling over the tops of the huts. But to me it appeared a shocking sight. Poor creatures! thought I, we
surely need not grudge you such miserable habitations. But, when we came, according to orders, to cut down the fields of corn, I
could scarcely refrain from tears. For who could see the stalks that stood so stately with broad green leaves and gaily tasseled
shocks, filled with sweet milky fluid and flour, the staff of life; who, I say, without grift, could see these sacred plants
sinking under our swords with all their precious load, to wither and rot untasted in their mourning fields."[1]
Service during the Revolution
Francis Marion - plaque at the South Carolina statehouse
In 1775, he was a member of the South Carolina Provincial Congress, and on June 21,1775 was commissioned captain in the 2nd South Carolina Regiment under William
Moultrie, with whom he served in June 1776 in the defense of Fort
Sullivan and Fort Moultrie, in Charleston harbor.
In September 1776, the Continental Congress commissioned Marion as a
lieutenant-colonel. In the autumn of 1779, he took part in the siege of Savannah, and
early in 1780, under Gen. Benjamin Lincoln, was engaged in drilling militia.
Marion escaped capture when Charleston fell on May 12, 1780,
because he had broken an ankle in an accident and had left the city to recuperate.
After the loss of Charleston,the defeats of Gen. Isaac Huger at Moncks Corner and Lt. Col. Abraham Buford at the
Waxhaw massacre (near the North Carolina border,
in what is now Lancaster County), Marion organized a small troop, which
at first consisted of between 20 and 70 men—the only force then opposing the British Army in the state. At this point, he was
still nearly crippled from the slowly-healing ankle.
He joined General Horatio Gates just before the Battle of Camden, but Gates had no confidence in him and sent him (mostly to get rid of him) to take
command of the Williamsburg Militia in the Pee Dee area and asked him to undertake scouting
missions and impede the expected flight of the British after the battle. Marion thus missed the battle, but was able to intercept
and recapture 150 Maryland prisoners, plus about twenty of their British guards, who had been
en route from the battle to Charleston. The freed prisoners, thinking the war already lost, refused to join Marion and
deserted.
However, with his militiamen, Marion showed himself to be a singularly able leader of irregulars. Unlike the Continental troops, Marion's Men, as they were known, served without pay,
supplied their own horses, arms, and often their food. All of Marion's supplies that were not obtained locally were captured from
the British or Loyalist ("Tory") forces.
Marion rarely committed his men to frontal warfare, but repeatedly surprised larger bodies of Loyalists or British regulars with quick surprise attacks and equally quick withdrawal from the field. After
the surrender of Charleston, the British garrisoned South Carolina with help from local Tories, except for Williamsburg (the
present Pee Dee), which they were never able to hold. The British made one attempt to garrison Williamsburg at Willtown, but were
driven out by Marion at the Battle of Mingo Creek.
The British especially hated Marion and made repeated efforts to neutralize his force, but Marion's intelligence gathering was excellent and that of the British was poor,
due to the overwhelming Patriot loyalty of the populace in the
Williamsburg area.
Col. Banastre Tarleton, sent to capture Marion, despaired of finding the "old swamp
fox", who eluded him by travelling along swamp paths. Tarleton and Marion were sharply contrasted in the popular mind. Tarleton
was hated because he burned and destroyed homes and supplies, whereas Marion's Men, when they requisitioned supplies (or
destroyed them to keep them out of British hands) gave the owners receipts for them. After the war, most of the receipts were
redeemed by the new state government.
Once Marion had shown his ability at guerrilla warfare, making himself a serious nuisance to the British, Governor
John Rutledge (in exile in North Carolina) commissioned him a brigadier-general of state
troops.
When Gen. Nathanael Greene took command in the south, Marion and Lieutenant Colonel
Henry Lee were ordered in January 1781 to attack Georgetown, but were
unsuccessful. In April, however, they took Fort Watson and in May, Fort Motte, and succeeded in breaking communications between the British posts in the Carolinas. On August 31, Marion rescued a small American force
trapped by Major C. Fraser with 500 British. For this, he received the thanks of the Continental Congress. Marion commanded the
right wing under General Greene at the Battle of Eutaw Springs.
In 1782, during his absence as State Senator at Jacksonborough, his brigade grew
disheartened and there was reportedly a conspiracy to turn him over to the British. But in June of that year, he put down a
Loyalist uprising on the banks of the Pee Dee River. In August, he left his brigade and
returned to his plantation.
General Marion Inviting a British Officer to Share His Meal by
John Blake White; his slave
Oscar Marion kneels at the left of the group.
After the war, Marion married his cousin, Mary Esther Videau.[2] His nephew Theodore had hinted to his uncle that it was time to get married. His relatives and
friends informed him that Mary always listened with glowing cheeks and sparkling eyes when anyone began reciting the exploits of
the Swamp Fox. Marion was in love earlier with Mary Esther Simons but she refused his proposal and married Jack Holmes.(Source
The Simons folder at the SC Historical Society, Letters of James SIMONS, probably a letter from Harrier Hyrne Simons to Mary
Simons (Mrs. Horatio Allen).)
Marion served several terms in the South Carolina State Senate, and in 1784, in
recognition of his services, was made commander of Fort Johnson, practically a
courtesy title with a salary of $500 per annum. He was originally supposed to receive 500 English pounds a year, but economy-frightened politicians reduced his payment to 500 Continental dollars.
He died on his estate in 1795.
Slave owner
Like many of the Southern political and military leaders of the Revolutionary War (including George Washington), Francis Marion was a slave owner - a situation
taken for granted at the time, though made controversial at later periods and up to the present. He had an estimated 200 slaves,
many of whom took the last name "Marion." Of them, the slave Oscar Marion was renowned for
his service as a soldier in the war, and apparently was especially close to his master.
Popular culture
The Hollywood movie The Patriot (2000) is based very loosely on
Marion's biography.
A television version of Marion's exploits, a mid-1950s Walt
Disney series called The Swamp Fox, was a less-successful follow
up to Disney's Davy Crockett series. As with Crockett, it featured the lead
actor (Leslie Nielsen) singing the show's theme song.
Swamp Fox is referred to in the TV series Knight Rider episode
"Knightmares" as "the greatest tracker of all time".
Robert Heinlein used the name "Swamp Fox" for a troop-carrying starship, briefly mentioned at the end of his novel
Starship Troopers.
Controversy about Marion's character
Early drafts of the screenplay for The Patriot called Mel Gibson's character Francis Marion, but the name was changed to the fictional Benjamin Martin "to avoid
some controversy and to allow for more dramatic storytelling." [3]
This controversy derives in part from comments made by British historian Christopher
Hibbert at the time of the movie's release. Hibbert described Marion as "very active in the persecution of the Cherokee
Indians and not at all the sort of chap who should be celebrated as a hero. The truth is that
people like Marion committed atrocities as bad, if not worse, than those perpetrated by the British." [4]
In a commentary published in the National Review, conservative talk radio host
Michael Graham rejected Hibbert's criticisms:
Was Francis Marion a slave owner? Was he a determined and dangerous warrior? Did he commit acts in an 18th-century war that we
would consider atrocious in the current world of peace and political correctness?
As another great American film hero might say: "You damn right." That's what made him a hero, 200 years ago and today.[5]
Landmarks
-
The Francis Marion National Forest near Charleston, South Carolina is named after Marion, as is the historic Francis Marion Hotel in
downtown Charleston. Numerous other locations across the country are named after Marion. The city of Marion, South Carolina is named after Francis, and the city holds an annual "Swamp Fox Festival"
and parade every summer. Marion County, South Carolina, and its county
seat, the City of Marion, are named for General Marion. The City of Marion features a statute of General Marion in its town
square, has a museum that includes many artifacts related to Francis Marion, and the Marion High School mascot is the Swamp Fox.
Francis Marion University is located nearby in Florence County, South Carolina. In Washington, DC, Marion Park is one the four "major"
or large parks in the Capitol Hill Parks constellation. The park is bounded by 4th & 6th Streets and at the intersection of E
Street and South Carolina Avenue in southeast Washington, DC. [6] The town of Marion, MA, formerly Sippican, is also
named after Francis Marion. The town of Marion, Alabama is named after Francis Marion,
as are Marion, Illinois and Marion County,
Illinois. The Junior Military College Marion Military Insitute located in Marion, Alabama has an organization called Swamp Fox which is attributed to Francis Marion.
In 2006 the U.S. House of Representatives approved a monument
to Francis Marion, to be built in Washington, D.C. sometime in 2007–08. The bill,
however, died in the U.S. Senate and was reintroduced in January, 2007. The
Brigadier General Francis Marion Memorial Act of 2007 passed the US House of Representatives in March of 2007, and has emerged
from the Energy Committee in the US Senate with a favorable opinion. The bill, H.R. 497, has been placed on the General Calendar
and waits for a Senate vote and a Presidential signature to become law.[7]
Gravestone
His grave stone reads:
Sacred to the Memory
of
BRIG. GEN. FRANCIS MARION
Who departed his life, on the 27th of February, 1795,
IN THE SIXTY-THIRD YEAR OF HIS AGE
Deeply regretted by all his fellow citizens
HISTORY
will record his worth, and rising generations embalm
his memory, as one of the most distinguished
Patriots and Heroes of the American Revolution:
which elevated his native Country
TO HONOUR AND INDEPENDENCE,
AND
Secured to her the blessings of
LIBERTY AND PEACE
This tribute of veneration and gratitude is erected
in commemoration of
the noble and disinterested virtues of the
CITIZEN;
and the gallant exploits of the
SOLDIER;
Who lived without fear, and died without reproach
He is buried at Belle Isle Plantation Cemetery, Berkeley County, South Carolina.
See also
External links
References
- This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia
Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public
domain.
- Bass, Robert D. Swamp Fox. 1959.
- Boddie, William Willis. History of Williamsburg. Columbia, SC: State Co., 1923.
- Boddie, William Willis. Marion's Men: A List of Twenty-Five Hundred. Charleston, SC: Heisser Print Co., 1938.
- Boddie, William Willis. Traditions of the Swamp Fox: William W. Boddie's Francis Marion. Spartanburg, SC: Reprint Co.
2000.
- Busick, Sean R. A Sober Desire for History: William Gilmore Simms as Historian. 2005. ISBN 1-57003-565-2.
- Simms, W.G. The Life of Francis Marion. New York, 1833.
- Myers, Jonathan. Swamp Fox: Birth of a Legend. Ambition Studios, 2004.
Notes
- ^ W. Gilmore Simms: The Life of Francis Marion
- ^ "Banner Description", Berkeley
County Government. Retrieved on 2006-10-23.
- ^ http://www.patriotresource.com/factfiction/people/benmarion.html
- ^ Mel Gibson's latest
hero: a rapist who hunted Indians for fun The Guardian; United Kingdom June 15, 2000
- ^ The British Are Crying, the British Are Crying, The National Review Online; New York, 6/26/00 2:25 p.m.
- ^ National Park Service - Marion Park: http://www.nps.gov/cahi/historyculture/cahi_marion.htm
- ^ Thomson http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:HR00497:@@@X
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
