It has been almost 243 years since the Battle of Camden was fought during the American Revolution.

According to the American Battlefield Trust, the Battle of Camden, which was fought near Camden, South Carolina, on August 16, 1780, was “one of several devastating defeats suffered by the Americans in the early stages of the British military offensive in the South.”

In July, American Maj. Gen. Horatio Gates marched his army into South Carolina, intent on liberating the state from British control. As Gates neared Camden, word of his movement reached Cornwallis at his headquarters in Charleston. The British commander immediately left the city to take the field against Gates. The armies approached one another north of Camden early on the morning of August 16, 1780.”

After a brief skirmish Gates formed his men for battle. He made a critical error in his deployment. Under the custom of 18th Century warfare, the most experienced units were placed on the right of the line. Gates positioned the veterans from the Maryland and Delaware Line on the right. He should have recognized, however, that his opponent would do the same. The American commander positioned inexperienced Virginia militia under Brig. Gen. Edward Stevens on his left.”

When the British advanced and presented bayonets, the Virginians immediately turned and ran. Their flight carried to North Carolina militia in the center of Gates’s line and the American position quickly collapsed.”

The Continental Regulars from Maryland and Delaware, however, withstood the onslaught. Under Maj. Gen. Johann de Kalb, the Continentals remained on the field as Gates and the rest of the army fled. Nearly surrounded and overwhelmed many joined their comrades in the retreat. Among Gates’s casualties were de Kalb. Mortally wounded, he died several days later in Camden.”

This defeat at Camden allowed Cornwallis to then invade North Carolina, and led to Major General Gates being replaced by Major General Nathanael Greene. Estimated casualties show just how bad the defeat was for the American forces – 1,900 Americans to only 324 British.

Over the years and through conservation efforts, the Battle of Camden’s battlefield has been preserved, first through the local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and then eventually to the Historic Camden Foundation. Working with the South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust and the American Battlefield Trust, a “master plan” for the conservation efforts was initiated in 2019, which involved an archeological survey with the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology (SCIAA). The SCIAA had previously surveyed the battlefield from 2002 to 2009, using federal grant money. At that time, burial sites on the battlefield were identified. With the new plan, the SCIAA came in again and began a further investigation. Eventually, fourteen different individuals within seven different graves were located.

Today we are humbled to share that the remains of fourteen soldiers were excavated during a recent dig at the Revolutionary War Camden Battlefield – a battle that took place August 16, 1780 Battle of Camden.

Learn more about this remarkable discovery: https://t.co/L9JVkN4wzo

— South Carolina Battleground Preservation Trust (@SC_Battleground) November 11, 2022

Archeologists then exhumed and attempted to identify the remains, and determined that thirteen of the fourteen were American soldiers. The last was a British soldier who was also buried on the battlefield.

According to Steven Smith, a historian and research professor at the University of South Carolina, the young men who fought in the war were farmers, students, and family men, many from Virginia and Maryland willing to sacrifice their lives for what they believed in.”

“The continental soldiers were hardcore veterans, they had been in plenty of battles up north,” Smith said.”

He said the soldiers who died fighting for America were a part of the Second Continental Army. They were marching to Camden when they encountered the British army.”

“In the middle of the night, there was a skirmish and then throughout the night, both sides deployed and prepared for battle in the morning,” Smith said.”

Smith said a fierce fight took place between the sides and estimates between 300 and 400 soldiers lost their lives.”

“It was Aug. 16, you can imagine how hot and humid it was, and it was in a big woods, open woods, large trees,” he said. “We don’t know how many of those people were buried. Every one of the gentlemen we found, except the British soldier, was buried very shallowly.”

While DNA testing is ongoing, the decision was made to reinter the remains in a new burial plot on the battlefield grounds.

And since these were soldiers who had fallen on the field of battle, they were given a burial service with full military honors on April 22, 2023 at Bethesda Presbyterian Church in Camden. After the service, a battlefield honors ceremony was held on the site of the new burial ground at the Battle of Camden. And not only were the American soldiers honored for their service and death in the line of duty, the regiment of the sole British soldier also showed up to pay their respects and bury their man under his flag.

Soldiers from 2nd Battalion the Royal Regiment of Scotland have taken part in the funeral of 13 (sic) soldiers killed in a battle during the American revolutionary war in South Carolina nearly 250 years ago.”

Their remains were discovered by archaeologists last year at the site of the Battle of Camden in South Carolina.”

One of the soldiers was from the British 71st Regiment of Foot, Fraser’s Highlanders, a Scottish regiment formed for the Revolutionary War.”

Soldiers from 2 SCOTS were flown over especially for the funeral to be pallbearers for the Highlander.”

Almost 243 years later, the United States and Great Britain, once combatants, now laid their honored dead from the same battle to rest together.

And while these soldiers are still unknown, there remains a chance that DNA testing will eventually reveal who these men were. In the meantime, they now lay at peace where their remains will stay undisturbed and honored for years to come.

The Revolutionary War can often feel so distant, especially when compared to wars within living memory. But thanks to preservation efforts that date back over a hundred years, these soldiers have now received the honors due them, centuries after their deaths in combat.

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