The American Loyalist Regiment Led by the Most Charismatic British
Commander of the War
The British Legion was one of the most remarkable regiments, not only of
the American Revolution, but of any war. A corps made up of American
Loyalists, it saw its first action in New York and then engaged in
almost every battle in the Southern colonies. Led by a
twenty-four-year-old libertine who purchased his commission to escape
enormous gambling debts, the Legion gained notoriety for its ruthless
tactics. Excelling in "special operations," they frequently overwhelmed
the Continental forces they fought, becoming the most feared British
regiment of the war.
Banastre Tarleton and the Americans he led have always been
characterized as brutal, immoral villains--most recently in the movie,
The Patriot. But this study subverts our pre-conceived notions of
patriotism. The men who filled the Legions ranks were not weak-willed
collaborators or treacherous renegades, but free men as motivated by
conscience as the Patriots they battled. Few were wealthy. None had a
vested stake in the British Government. Each believed that in defending
the Crown; they were upholding the rule of law and preserving individual
liberty.
These men followed Banastre Tarleton clear across America for years,
sacrificing not only their families and homes but, in many instances,
their lives. Self-interest could not have persuaded them to do this.
Patriotism and fidelity did. Relying on first-hand accounts--letters,
diaries, and journals--War at Saber Point: Banastre Tarleton and the
British Legion is the enthralling story of those forgotten Americans
and the young Englishman who led them.
