On July 12, 1780, the Battle of Williamson's Plantation, known as Huck's Defeat, took place at James Williamson's plantation and showed that backcountry militia could engage and defeat British troops. The victory gave the Patriots a tremendous morale boost, inspired many new recruits to join the fight for independence, and, along with similar battles in the Carolina Piedmont, helped turn the tide of the American Revolution and ultimately led to the British surrender at Yorktown, Virginia, in October 1781. The battle was named for Williamson's plantation, located about 300 yards away, and for the defeated British officer, Captain Christian Huck. During the summer of 1780, Huck had aroused great animosity through his aggressive and brutal treatment of local residents, and after his death militiamen called the battle Huck's Defeat as a triumph over a hated enemy. The American Revolution had begun in 1775 with campaigns in the northern and southern colonies, and by early 1780 the war had reached a virtual stalemate, prompting the British to launch a new southern campaign intended to turn the conflict in their favor. After capturing Charleston, South Carolina, on May 12, 1780, bringing about the surrender of the Southern Continental and the downfall of South Carolina's government, the British advanced into the Carolina Piedmont, or backcountry, expecting to pacify the two Carolinas and use the region as a springboard for invading Virginia. They counted on widespread support from Carolinians loyal to the Crown, but although many backcountry settlers were Loyalists, or Tories, thousands of Patriots, or Whigs, were willing to fight for independence, and the Revolution there became not only a war for independence but also a civil war dividing families and communities.