Battle of Blandford 1781
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 25 April 1781 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1781 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | Early modern (1500–1799) | derived from year |
| Location | United States | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | North America | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | American Revolutionary War | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | Kingdom of Great Britain, United States | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 37.2344, -77.3939 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Blandford (or Blanford), also called the Battle of Petersburg, took place near Petersburg, Virginia on 25 April 1781, late in the American War of Independence. Roughly 2,300 British regulars under the command of Brigadier General William Phillips defeated about 1,000 American militia under Major General Baron von Steuben.
The introduction of a British troop presence led by turncoat general Benedict Arnold into Virginia in early 1781 prompted an increase in American militia activity to counter the British force. The militia were, however, poorly trained and equipped, and were unable to prevent Arnold from moving freely. Arnold was reinforced in March 1781 by additional troops led by General Phillips, who targeted Petersburg in a raiding expedition. Militia troops led by von Steuben and Peter Muhlenberg decided to make a stand at Blandford, then a separate community.
When the battle was joined, the outnumbered American militiamen provided remarkably stiff resistance to the British advance, and executed a disciplined retreat across the Appomattox River, avoiding a flanking attempt led by John Graves Simcoe. They eventually retreated to Richmond, where they joined forces with Continental Army troops led by the Marquis de Lafayette.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Blandford (revision 1370107935), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Second Battle of Petersburg 1864 · 2 km
- Battle of Fort Stedman 1865 · 2 km
- Siege of Petersburg 1864 · 2 km
- Battle of the Crater 1864 · 2 km
- First Battle of Petersburg 1864 · 4 km
- Battle of Jerusalem Plank Road 1864 · 6 km
Other battles of the American Revolutionary War
- Battle of Tearcoat Swamp 1780
- Battle of Wahab's Plantation 1780
- Battle of Waxhaws 1780
- Battle of Young's House 1780
- Siege of Charleston 1780
- Action of 21 July 1781 1781
- Battle of Cape Henry 1781
- Battle of Cowan's Ford 1781
- Battle of Cowpens 1781
- Battle of Eutaw Springs 1781
All 190 battles of the American Revolutionary War →
Browse more: battles in United States · North America · Early modern battles