From May to June of 1781, Patriot General Nathanael Greene besieged the vital South Carolina post of Ninety Six. By the middle of June, Greene decided to launch an all-out assault but could not capture the garrison.
How It Ended
British Victory. After learning that a relief party from the British garrison at Charleston was almost a day’s march away from Ninety Six, Greene decided to launch an all-out assault on the British fort on June 18th. In the resulting action, Greene’s forces failed to capture the town and withdrew the following day.
In Context
In April 1781, Lord Cornwallis moved his British army into Virginia. American General Nathanael Greene responded by launching a campaign to retake the Carolinas. Greene’s forces soon drove the British from Fort Watson and Camden. The American general then turned his attention to the outpost at Ninety Six so named as it was thought to be 96 miles from the Cherokee village of Keowee in western South Carolina.
