The Enemy Within

When the American Revolution began in 1775, colonists faced a wrenching decision between supporting the rebellion and remaining loyal to Great Britain, and this struggle became the heart of America’s War for Independence, creating a brutal civil war. Especially in the southern colonies, friends, neighbors, and even family fought one another. The Battle of Musgrove’s Mill was a prime example of this homegrown conflict: of the 500 men fighting for the British there, only one is known to have been born in Britain. In the South during the Revolution, the war often took on a very personal nature, and scenes of retribution killings like those described by Loyalist Anthony Allaire in a letter about the Battle of Kings Mountain were common.

South Carolina · United States