Yamacraw Village in Savannah in Chatham County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)

Savannah Besieged

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, August 5, 2013

1. Savannah Besieged Marker

Inscription.
For most of the Revolutionary War, Savannah was an armed camp. With the approach of an allied French and American army in the fall of 1779, the British defenders of Savannah began improving and constructing a series of fourteen redoubts outside the town and a similar number of cannon emplacements.•This earth fortification, called a redoubt, was constructed in 2006 to remind us of the sacrifices made here during a bloody battle for possession of the British-controlled royal capital of Georgia.•Not only did the walls of earth protect the men inside, but the musket and cannon fire of the defenders made the space between the redoubts deadly to many attackers. Should a breakthrough occur, hundreds of combat-hardened British infantry placed to the rear would charge and drive back the attackers.•In front of you are 800 stones arranged as an attacking column of soldiers. Five such columns attacked the area around the actual Spring Hill redoubt.•The attacking columns were beaten back one after the other with vicious hand-to-hand fighting on the walls of the Spring Hill redoubt. Cut down by artillery and small arms fire, the dead

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and dying covered the space leading up to the Spring Hill redoubt. Approximately 800 soldiers were killed or wounded.•London rejoiced when news of the victory reached England. The war would continue another four years.•This modern reconstruction of a redoubt, designed in part from a British field manual of the era, symbolizes the original Spring Hill redoubt. Archaeologists discovered the actual location of the Spring Hill redoubt, ahead to your right. It is now represented by the small berm.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Revolutionary. A significant historical year for this entry is 1779.

Location. 32° 4.539′ N, 81° 5.975′ W. Marker is in Savannah, Georgia, in Chatham County. It is in Yamacraw Village. It can be reached from the intersection of Martin Luther King Blvd. and Louisville Road, on the right when traveling south. Marker is located in Tricentennial Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Savannah GA 31401, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Coastal Plain and on the Georgia Coast and the Golden Isles.

It is also in the American

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, August 5, 2013

2. Savannah Besieged Marker

South,

specifically in the Deep South,

and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: The Battle of Savannah (within shouting distance of this marker); Central of Georgia (within shouting distance of this marker); a different marker also named Battle of Savannah (within shouting distance of this marker); Attack on British Lines (within shouting distance of this marker); Great Indian Warrior / Trading Path (within shouting distance of this marker); Lt. Joseph Lawton (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Major General Anthony Wayne (about 300 feet away); Charles Pidcock (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Savannah.

More about this marker. A map at the upper right of the marker

Marker Inside Redoubt image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, August 5, 2013

3. Marker Inside Redoubt

contains the caption “A portion of a British battle map shows how the redoubts formed a connected ring of defense. The redoubts (marked with numbers) were within musket firing range of each other. Letters show the British units stationed in and around the area. A thick barrier of cut tree limbs, called an abates, slowed attackers and helped protect the redoubts as well.”
Below this is an illustration that has a caption of “These drawings of a typical redoubt of the period from the British military manual Elements of Field Fortification were used to build the memorial where you stand. In the trench of the actual redoubt, archeologists found evidence of palisades – vertical posts making a barrier for attacking forces.”

Also see . . . The Battle of Savannah. American Revolutionary War entry (Submitted on August 8, 2013, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.)

Entrance to the Redoubt image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, August 5, 2013

4. Entrance to the Redoubt

Redoubt Viewed from Outside image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, August 5, 2013

5. Redoubt Viewed from Outside

"Stone" Attackers of the Redoubt image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bill Coughlin, August 5, 2013

6. "Stone" Attackers of the Redoubt

The stones representing the attacking columns of soldiers are seen here from inside the redoubt. A monument marking the actual location of the Spring Hill Redoubt is visible on the right.

Credits. This page was last revised on February 8, 2023. It was originally submitted on August 8, 2013, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey. This page has been viewed 954 times since then and 42 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on August 8, 2013, by Bill Coughlin of Woodland Park, New Jersey.