In the course of the American Revolutionary War, the Battle of Guilford Court House took place on March 15, 1781, at a site that is now located in Greensboro, Guilford County, North Carolina.
A 2,100-strong British force under the command of Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis beat a 4,500-strong American force under the command of Major General Nathanael Greene. In contrast, the British Army sustained a significant number of losses.
The battle was the largest and most fiercely contested event in the American Revolution’s southern theater. It was fought between the British and the Americans. Prior to the fight, the British had achieved significant success in conquering large portions of Georgia and South Carolina with the assistance of powerful Loyalist factions in both states. They were hopeful that they would be able to take control of North Carolina. In fact, the British were in the midst of a massive recruitment campaign in North Carolina at the time of this fight, which effectively put an end to their efforts.
Following the battle, Greene pushed his forces into South Carolina, while Cornwallis chose to march his forces towards Virginia. They attempted to form a connection with approximately 3,500 troops under the command of British Major General Phillips and American traitor Benedict Arnold.
These moves enabled Greene to wreak havoc on British dominance of the American South while driving Cornwallis to Yorktown, where he eventually surrendered to General George Washington and French Lieutenant General Comte de Rochambeau, who had accompanied them.
Every year, on or around March 15, re-enactors dressed in period uniforms conduct a tactical demonstration of Revolutionary War fighting techniques on or near the battle site, which is preserved in large part in the Guilford Courthouse National Military Park, which was established in 1917 and contains major portions of the battlefield.
Several studies have revealed that the battlefield stretched eastward into the territory that is now incorporated into the boundaries of the Greensboro Country Park to the east.
Three modern Army National Guard units are descended from forces from the United States Army that took part in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. With lineages dating back to the colonial era, there are just thirty Army National Guard and active Regular Army regiments left in the world.
The Crown Forces Monument, dedicated to the officers and men of Cornwallis’ army, was dedicated on Sunday, March 13, 2016, at the Guilford Courthouse National Military Park.
Despite a clerical error in the spelling, the battle is commemorated by the town of Gilford, New Hampshire, which bears its name. The naming is commemorated by the installation of historical marker number 118 in the area.