William Moultrie letter signed ("Will:m Moultrie Brig. Gen."). One page of a bifolium, 8" x 12.75", "Camp at Sheldon" [South Carolina]; July 21, 1779. Addressed to "The Hon:ble. Major General [Benjamin] Lincoln", Brigadier General Moultrie discusses a party of British they encountered driving off three hundred cattle and the subsequent skirmish. Brigadier General William Moultrie conveys intelligence to Major General Benjamin Lincoln of a skirmish with British forces. It reads, in part: "...I sent Lieutenant Orgier of harry's light horse with fifteen men in pursuit...but Mr. Orgier having got intelligence on the road, that a party of the Enemy were driving off a number of Cattle, upwards of three hundred head [of] cattle, went after them, came up with & attacked them as they were driving the Cattle over, nearly opposite to Ebenezer: he killed six & brought off two prisoners (both Brown's Corps) with three horse & saddles, & lost one man only. The Enemy were drawn up on the other side of the River whence they kept up such a constant fire with their musquetry [sic] & two field pieces, as prevented our Men from bringing off all the Cattle – they had already got about 100 head over, when our Men attacked them. Mr. Orgier was joined by the of the Militia of that part of the Country. I yesterday received a letter from Col: Maitland, dated Beaufort, who informed me, that Major McArthur had made a proposal to Major Pickney of exchanging Ensign McPherson for dr Hallins, & desired to know, whether it had be [sic] assented to...Gen: McIntosh called upon us yesterday, & set off this morning for Augusta..." Signed, "Will:m Moultrie / Brig. Gen." Brigadier General William Moultrie (1730-1805) was initially commissioned a colonel in the 2nd South Carolina Regiment in 1775. In 1776, he was stationed outside Charleston on Sullivan's Island when a superior British force attempted to take the city. Moultrie's defense on the island amounted to nothing more than a ramshackle fort constructed of palmetto logs, sand, and mud, and General Charles Lee advised him to abandon the location. Moultrie refused and instead successfully fought off the British led by General Henry Clinton and Commodore Peter Parker on June 28, 1776. It was a near-impossible victory as Moultrie's men numbered approximately 400 to the British's 2,000, and a grateful Congress promoted Moultrie to brigadier general and renamed the fort in his honor. At the time of this letter, Moultrie was serving under General Benjamin Lincoln in the southern theater. They successfully defended Charleston once again in early 1779 and by summer were engaged in a waiting game with the British. Moultrie describes this time in his memoirs, writing of July 20th, "...the legislature was in session; and our little army remained at Sheldon, waiting upon the British, who had taken post at Beaufort..." The Continental forces would not have long to wait as additional troops were assembling near Charleston and Savannah throughout the summer, which Moultrie records in this letter when he discusses General Lachlan McIntosh's brief stop in camp. The general had fled north following Button Gwinnett's death after their infamous 1777 duel and was placed in command of troops along the western frontier in Pennsylvania, but General Washington ordered McIntosh to join Lincoln in 1779. It marked his first return to the south since the duel. Two months after this letter, Lincoln and McIntosh were engaged in the disastrous Second Battle of Savannah while Moultrie took part in the defense of Charleston. The Savannah fight was one of the bloodiest battles of the Revolution and resulted in an overwhelming British victory. The enemy then turned towards Charleston, which fell in May 1780. Moultrie was captured and remained a prisoner of war until his exchange in 1782. After the war, Moultrie served as the governor of South Carolina from 1792 to 1794. The letter is accompanied by a hand-colored engraving of Moultrie and a vignette engraving of Lincoln. Reference: Memoirs of the American Revolution. Vol. II. William Moultrie. New York: David Longworth, 1802. Page 31-33. Condition: 1.5" closed tear to bottom edge of integral fold and 1.25" closed tear to fold along right edge of first sheet. Small areas of paper loss from seal removal upon opening to address leaf. Light scattered soiling. Thin strip of paper attachment along one edge of verso, presumably indicating prior mounting. HID03101062020 © 2022 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

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