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LOT #42017 |
Starting Bid: $4,000
[Revolutionary War - Battle of Hobkirk's Hill]. Samuel Mathis Autograph Manuscript Signed...
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Description
An Exceedingly Rare Firsthand Account of the Battle of Hobkirk's Hill Compiled from American and British Witnesses
[Revolutionary War - Battle of Hobkirk's Hill]. Samuel Mathis
Autograph Manuscript Signed ("Samuel Mathis"). Fourteen
pages on seven leaves (silked on each side), 7 x 12 inches; [no
place]; June 26, 1819. Includes a cover sheet docketed by General
William Richardson Davie, to whom the manuscript is addressed.
Hinge mounted in a handsome custom green morocco folio.A vivid and detailed account of the Battle of Hobkirk's Hill (April 25, 1781) by Samuel Mathis of Camden, South Carolina, addressed to General Davie. Although not a combatant, Mathis occupied a unique position as a resident of Camden, where he was on parole during the engagement. In the immediate aftermath of the battle, he gathered testimony from participants on both sides, as well as from local witnesses, and compiled their recollections into the present narrative. His manuscript has since become an important source for understanding the events of that day.
Mathis opens with a description of the battlefield as General Nathanael Greene's army advanced toward the British forces under Lord Rawdon, noting the density of the terrain and the placement of American pickets: "Two strong pickets were placed in front of the Army but the Woods were so thick that a man could not be seen at 100 yds distance at noon day." On the night of April 24, as the two sides waited to engage, the Americans were betrayed by a spy-a deserter revealed Greene's dispositions to Rawdon, enabling the British commander to attempt a surprise attack. Rawdon then secreted his troops "in a most silent...manner" to strike the American flank in the early morning. The Americans were, indeed, caught unawares: "Kirkwood's Muskets gave the first alarm to the Americans, several of whom were at the Spring cooking & washing, and had to run a considerable distance before they got to their Arms."
Quickly regrouping, the Continental soldiers refused to let Rawdon keep the upper hand for long. Greene's artillery opened a "well directed fire with Canister and Grape," while cavalry under William A. Washington pressed forward, routing the York Volunteers and capturing as many men as they could; as Mathis tells it, "More than one third of Washington's men were incumbered with Prisoners." At this stage, Mathis observed, the battle appeared to favor the Americans-until, "only one Word, a single Word...turned the fate of the Day."
According to his account, Colonel Gunby ordered the Maryland Continentals to charge without firing but then issued a sudden halt. The confusion proved disastrous: "before the Col. could be understood...the Enemy were in among them and made them give way." Rawdon himself was nearly captured, only escaping when the American detachment attempting to secure him was driven off: "Ld. Rawdon was surrounded...pretended that his sword was hard to get out of the Scabbard...untill the [American forces] that took him were attacked & had to fly." From that point, the American line collapsed: "Washington's Dragoons were now attacked...[Greene] now ordered a Retreat."
The Battle of Hobkirk's Hill was one of several tactical setbacks for Greene in the Southern Theater, following Guilford Court House and preceding Eutaw Springs. Yet Greene's broader strategy was not dependent on individual victories. By continually engaging British forces and inflicting heavy losses, he gradually weakened their hold on the South. In this sense, Hobkirk's Hill exemplifies the strategic paradox of the campaign: a battlefield defeat that nonetheless contributed to ultimate American success, culminating in Cornwallis's surrender at Yorktown.
An important and highly detailed manuscript, preserving a rare composite account of a major Revolutionary War engagement based on firsthand testimony from both sides.
Condition: Pages silked; otherwise in excellent condition with only a few instances of very minor edgewear.
References: "Hobkirk's Hill," Southern Campaigns of the American Revolution, Vol. 3, No. 4; April 2006, pp. 15-18.
Provenance: Christie's, Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts Including Americana, June 9, 2004, Lot 356
Auction Info
2026 June 19 The John H. Freund Americana Collection Signature® Auction #6331 (go to Auction Home page)
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