Swamp Fox is the story of a southern revolutionary hero. Francis Marion was a lawyer and a successful plantation owner in South Carolina. He was no longer a young man in 1776. Marion had already served with distinction in the South Carolina militia during the Indian uprisings years before. And yet when his country needed him he answered the call and took up his old position as a major in the militia. The British were sending a fleet of warships against Charles Town and he had volunteered to defend the city. The story, Swamp Fox, begins as Francis constructs a fortress using the only materials available. Even his superiors believe any attempt at defense is futile, but Francis perseveres. The defense of the city is successful, Marion is elevated to the rank of Colonel, and for a period of time the war doesnt seem to impact the south. The story touches upon the elegant life of the wealthy southerners as Marion and Mary are guests at a ball giving in honor of the Marquis de La Fayette upon his arrival in America. Francis begins to get on with his life and proposes marriage to the beautiful Mary Videau. Unfortunately he chooses the very day that Savannah is attacked and falls to the British. The British again turn their attention on Charles Town. On the evening of the attack, all officers meet to finalize their plans and in a freak accident, Francis breaks his ankle and is ordered to go home. Protesting the situation Francis is taken home by Oscar, his plantation overseer and friend since childhood. Oscar, and all the blacks who work on Marions plantation, are freed men and women since Marion is very much against slavery. Charles Town falls to the British and all the American officers are either killed or captured. The British know of Colonel Francis Marion and are searching for him as he is the only remaining American officer in the south. To hide from the British, Francis takes to the swamp with a handful of close friends. From the safety of the swamp, Francis Marion plans to rally others to the American cause of Liberty and Freedom and strike at the British. Other southerners hear that Colonel Marion is in the swamp calling for recruits and slowly a small band of men come together. They begin to harass the British who are still searching for him. Just when they seem to have captured him he slips away like a ghost into the swamp. It is the frustrated British who dub him The Swamp Fox. Throughout the tale, Francis fights discrimination and prejudice against blacks. He staunchly defends his beliefs even voicing them to his superiors. In one instance, he and is men offer their services to General Gates who laughs at them and mocking promotes Marion to the rank of general. The title sticks as Francis shrugs off the insult and continues fighting on his own. On occasion, and then only at night, Marion is able to go to the Videau plantation to see Mary. He dare not go to his beloved plantation, Pond Bluff, as the British watch it constantly. Marions band grows in size and he is able to attack the British on a larger scale, but he always is depressed as he doesnt have any contact with the American forces. Working alone, without orders, he claims that he wouldnt know if the war was over or who won. He just continues to fight and har

A biography of Francis Marion, the American general who organized a guerrilla band to fight the British in South Carolina during the Revolution.

A riveting and applicable study of how Francis Marion delivered the leadership and strategy to defeat the British in the South Carolina lowcountry campaigns. Francis Marion is certainly the stuff of which legends are made. His nickname “The Swamp Fox,” bestowed upon him by one of his fiercest enemies, captures his wily approach to battle. The embellishment of his exploits in Parson Weems’ early biography make separation of fact from fiction difficult, but certainly represents the awe, loyalty, and attraction he produced in those around him. His legacy is enshrined in the fact that more places in the United States have been named after him than any other soldier of the American Revolution, with the sole exception of George Washington. Even today’s U.S. Army Rangers include Marion as one of their formative heroes. Surely much about leadership can be learned from such an intriguing personality. Leading like the Swamp Fox: The Leadership Lessons of Francis Marion unlocks those lessons. Divided into three parts, the book first presents the historical background and context necessary to appreciate Marion’s situation. The main body of the book then examines Marion’s leadership across eight categories, with a number of vignettes demonstrating Marion’s competency. The summary then captures some conclusions about how leadership impacted the American Revolution in the South Carolina Lowcountry. An appendix provides some information about how the reader might explore those physical reminders of Marion and his exploits that exist today. Readers interested in history or leadership, or both, will all find something for them in Leading like the Swamp Fox.

The American Revolution was deadlocked in the north, and in 1778, the focus of the conflict shifted south. Following his decisive 1780 victory at Charleston, Cornwallis launched a campaign through the Carolinas that was designed to expel American Continental and militia forces from the south. The subsequent patriot victory at King's Mountain forced Cornwallis to withdraw into South Carolina in what was one of the turning points in the Revolutionary War. To the southeast, Francis Marion enacted a series of successful hit-and-run operations. Cornwallis responded to this string of raids by assigning Banastre Tarleton to capture or kill the rebel guerrilla commander. What followed was an unsuccessful pursuit of the elusive Marion, in which Tarleton practiced a scorched-earth policy that ultimately disillusioned Loyalist sympathizers and hurt the British cause in the Carolinas. This book highlights the unique style of southern frontier warfare during the Revolutionary War, and how its combatants were supplied, organized, and operated. The series of actions between August and November 1780 illustrate Marion's unconventional efforts to hinder their enemy's war effort in the southearning him his Swamp Fox monikerand Tarleton's equally irregular efforts to counter it.

Not a scholarly work, this "set-piece of avocational historical writing" is introduced "by Steven D. Smith, an archaeologist and Marion researcher who has been involved in the search for evidence of Marion's camp on Snow's Island."--Jacket.

A bevy of trouble is coming his way and it looks to be sooner, rather than later! Little does Thomas know that taking on a job as a courier during a war would lead him into more danger and harrowing experiences than his 15-year-old self could ever imagine! His questionable future looms ahead of him as a pistol in the hands of his guard jabs him squarely in the back. Who are these two ragtag men who forced him off the back of his horse, Ebony, over an hour ago? Why are they compelling him to trudge along this spongy path through the swamp to who knows where? While the stench and unidentifiable sounds from the marshland frighten him, he is more fearful of the destination. What if they are taking him to a British camp? He has a packet that could possibly seal his fate – a packet that probably has treasonable information! His plans to deliver it are now in peril, and possibly his life!

Francis Marian, a second- generation immigrant, was of French descent. As a youth, he rode his horse through the streams, lakes, and swamps, learning the lay of the land. He was shipwrecked but survived to fight in the Indian War, and it was there he learned the guerrilla warfare. The name was given to him by the British soldiers. He and his men lived off the land fighting, running, and hiding. He truly was a "Swamp Fox.".

Describes how Revolutionary War General Francis Marion earned the name, "Swamp Fox," as he led his soldiers into battle against the British in the inhospitable swamp lands of South Carolina.

“Expands the range of what we consider the Civil War—temporally, geographically, conceptually. It features exceptional, high-quality essays.” —Patrick A. Lewis, author of For Slavery and Union In this wide-ranging volume, eminent historians John David Smith and Raymond Arsenault assemble a distinguished group of scholars to build on the growing body of work on the “Long Civil War” and break new ground. They cover a variety of related subjects, including antebellum missionary activity and colonialism in Africa, the home front, the experiences of disabled veterans in the US Army Veteran Reserve Corps, and Dwight D. Eisenhower’s personal struggles with the war’s legacy amid the growing civil rights movement. The contributors offer fresh interpretations and challenging analyses of topics such as ritualistic suicide among former Confederates after the war and whitewashing in Walt Disney Studios’ historical Cold War-era movies. Featuring many leading figures in the field, The Long Civil War meaningfully expands the focus of mid-nineteenth-century history as it was understood by previous generations of historians. “An excellent collection of original, well researched, lucidly written, and forceful essays representing cutting edge scholarship that stretches the traditional boundaries of the American Civil War era. Individually, the essays stand on their own as some of the very best work by talented scholars. Taken together, the essays confirm the merit of approaching and interpreting the Civil War era in the most expansive ways possible.” —Michael Parrish, Linden G. Bowers Professor of American History at Baylor University