Battle of Gwynn's Island 1776
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Year | 1776 | 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 |
| Coordinates | 37.5042, -76.2886 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Gwynn's Island (July 8–10, 1776) saw Andrew Lewis lead patriot soldiers from Virginia against John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore's small naval squadron and British loyalist troops. In this American Revolutionary War action, accurate cannon fire from the nearby Virginia mainland persuaded Dunmore to abandon his base at Gwynn's Island. While camping on the island, the loyalists suffered heavy mortality from smallpox and an unknown fever, particularly among the escaped slaves that Dunmore recruited to fight against the American rebels. Gwynn's Island is located on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay in what is now Mathews County but was at that time in Gloucester County.
In late 1775, Dunmore and his loyalist forces were defeated and withdrew aboard their ships off Norfolk. Blocked by American troops from securing food near Norfolk, Dunmore sailed north to base his force at Gwynn's Island for six weeks. The ill-fed loyalists were cooped up aboard Dunmore's ships too long and smallpox broke out. After being driven away from Gwynn's Island, Dunmore's ships lingered in the Chesapeake Bay before his vessels departed for New York and other locations. Dunmore's absence allowed Virginia's troops to join General George Washington's main army.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Gwynn's Island (revision 1370442364), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
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