Tales from Tennessee and Beyond: Francis Marion

Francis Marion is widely regarded as the father of guerrilla warfare. He served in the American Revolution, and fought with the Continental Army and the South Carolina Militia. Marion was known as the "Swamp Fox." He was born in 1732, and spent most of his childhood working on his family's plantation in South Carolina. When he was fifteen he set sail in a boat for the West Indies. The boat sank, but Marion got off on a lifeboat. He ended up spending a week at sea before reaching land, and eventually being rescued. Upon returning to America he became the manager of his family's plantation. His first military experience came during the French and Indian War. His first service in the American Revolution came during the Siege of Savannah in 1779. He failed however to capture Savannah. Marion later participated in the Fall of Charleston in 1780. This endeavor was also a failure. Marion was able to escape British capture. He later took part in the Waxhow Massacre. It was after this skirmish that Marion decided he wanted to form his own band of fighters. His goal was to terrorize as many loyalists as he could. His men became known as "Marion's Men." These men served without pay, and also supplied their own horses and food. Marion's Men were able to drive the British out of Williamsburg at the Battle of Black Mingo. The British knew that they had to get rid of Francis Marion. They tasked Colonel Banastre Tarleton with capturing or killing Marion. Marion was able to evade Tarleton by traveling through swamps (hence the name "Swamp Fox"). Marion also had the task of rounding up freed slaves who were fighting with the British government and returning them to their owner. On August 31, 1781, Marion was able to rescue five hundred American soldiers who had been captured by the British. This earned Francis Marion much praise from the Continental Congress. Marion was later elected to the State Assembly at Jacksonborough. He left his men to claim his seat. Rumor has it that his men became mad at him and wanted to turn him over to the British. This has not been confirmed however. Marion did put down a loyalist uprising on the banks of the Pee Dee River. In August 1782, Marion left his band of men and returned to his plantation, only to find it burned to the ground. Marion had to borrow money in order to restock his plantation with slaves. By this time the war had ended. Marion served many terms in the South Carolina State Senate. In 1784, he was made commander of Fort Johnson, South Carolina, in appreciation for his service to the state. In 1795 Francis Marion passed away peacefully at his plantation. An American hero had died. Marion's legacy lived own however. Confederate Partisan Ranger John Singleton Mosby thought of Marion as a role model. Mosby studied Marion and patterned his life and guerrilla tactics after him. This further solidified Marion as the father of guerrilla warfare.