Battle of Rhode Island
The Battle of Rhode Island took place on August 29, 1778. Continental Army and militia forces under the command of Major-general John Sullivan had been besieging British forces in Newport, Rhode Island on Aquidneck Island, but they had finally abandoned their siege and were withdrawing to the northern part of the island. The British then sortied, supported by recently arrived Royal Navy ships, and they attacked the retreating Americans. The battle ended inconclusively, but the Continental forces withdrew to the mainland and left Aquidneck Island in British hands.
The battle was the first attempt at cooperation between French and American forces following France's entry into the war as an American ally. Operations against Newport were planned in conjunction with a French fleet and troops, but they were frustrated in part by difficult relations between the commanders, as well as by a storm that damaged both the French and British fleets shortly before joint operations were to begin. The battle was also notable for the participation of the 1st Rhode Island Regiment, a multiracial unit under the command of Colonel Christopher Greene.
Background
On December 8, 1776, Britain's Lieutenant General Henry Clinton led an expedition from New York City to take control of Rhode Island. The British expeditionary forces under Brigadier General Richard Prescott, with several Hessian regiments of foot, landed and seized control of Newport, Rhode Island. France formally recognized the United States of America in February 1778 following the surrender of the British Army after the Battles of Saratoga in October 1777. War was declared between France and Great Britain in March 1778.French movements
France sent Admiral Comte d'Estaing with a fleet of 12 ships of the line and 4,000 French Army troops to America in April in its first major attempt at cooperation with the Americans, with orders to blockade the British fleet in the Delaware River. British leaders had early intelligence that d'Estaing was headed for America, but political and military differences within the government and navy delayed the British response, and he sailed unopposed through the Straits of Gibraltar. It was not until early June that a fleet of 13 ships of the line left European waters in pursuit, under the command of Vice-Admiral John Byron. D'Estaing's crossing of the Atlantic took three months, but Byron was also delayed due to bad weather and did not reach New York until mid-August.The British evacuated from Philadelphia to New York City before d'Estaing's arrival. Their fleet was no longer on the river when the French fleet arrived at Delaware Bay in early July. D'Estaing decided to sail for New York, but its well-defended harbor presented a daunting challenge. The French and their American pilots believed that d'Estaing's largest ships would be unable to cross the bar into New York harbor, so French and American leaders decided to deploy their forces against British-occupied Newport, Rhode Island. While d'Estaing was outside the harbor, British General Henry Clinton and Vice-Admiral Richard Howe dispatched a fleet of transports carrying 2,000 troops to reinforce Newport via Long Island Sound. The troops reached their destination on July 15, raising the size of Major General Robert Pigot's garrison to more than 6,700 men.
American forces
American and British forces had been in a standoff on Rhode Island since the British occupation began in late 1776. Major General Joseph Spencer of the Rhode Island defenses had been ordered by Major General George Washington to launch an assault on Newport in 1777, but he had not done so and was removed from command. In March 1778, Congress approved the appointment of Major General John Sullivan to Rhode Island. By early May, Sullivan had arrived in the state and produced a detailed report on the situation. He began logistical preparations for an attack on Newport, caching equipment and supplies on the eastern shore of Narragansett Bay and the Taunton River. British General Pigot was aware of Sullivan's preparations and launched an expedition on May 25 that raided Bristol and Warren. This destroyed military supplies and plundered the towns. Sullivan's response was to make renewed appeals for assistance, which were reinforced by a Congressional declaration after a second raid on Freetown on May 31.General Washington wrote to Sullivan on July 17 ordering him to raise 5,000 troops for possible operations against Newport. Sullivan did not receive this letter until July 23, and it was followed the next day by the arrival of Colonel John Laurens with word that Newport had been chosen as the allied target on the 22nd Regiment, and that he should raise as large a force as possible. Sullivan's force at that time amounted to 1,600 troops. Laurens had left Washington's camp on the 22nd, riding ahead of a column of Continental troops led by the Marquis de Lafayette.
News of the French involvement rallied support for the cause, and militia began streaming to Rhode Island from neighboring states. Half the Rhode Island militia was called up and led by William West, and large numbers of militia from Massachusetts and New Hampshire along with the Continental Artillery came to Rhode Island to join the effort. However, these forces took some time to muster, and the majority of them did not arrive until the first week of August. Washington sent Major General Nathanael Greene, a Rhode Island native and reliable officer, to further bolster Sullivan's leadership corps on July 27. Sullivan had been regularly criticized in Congress for his performance in earlier battles, and Washington urged him to take counsel from Greene and Lafayette. Greene wrote to Sullivan on the matter and reinforced the need for a successful operation.
Prelude
French arrival at Newport
D'Estaing sailed from his position outside the New York harbor on July 22, when the British judged the tide high enough for the French ships to cross the bar. He initially sailed south before turning northeast toward Newport. The British fleet in New York consisted of eight ships of the line under the command of Admiral Howe, and they sailed out after him once they discovered that his destination was Newport. D'Estaing arrived off Point Judith on July 29 and immediately met with Generals Greene and Lafayette to develop their plan of attack. Sullivan's proposal was that the Americans would cross over to Aquidneck Island's eastern shore from Tiverton, while French troops would use Conanicut Island as a staging ground and cross from the west, cutting off a detachment of British soldiers at Butts Hill on the northern part of the island. The next day, d'Estaing sent frigates into the Sakonnet River and into the main channel leading to Newport.As allied intentions became clear, General Pigot decided to deploy his forces in a defensive posture, withdrawing troops from Conanicut Island and from Butts Hill. He also decided to move nearly all livestock into the city, ordered the leveling of orchards to provide a clear line of fire, and destroyed carriages and wagons. The arriving French ships drove several of his supporting ships aground, which were burned to prevent their capture. As the French worked their way up the channel toward Newport, Pigot ordered the remaining ships to be scuttled to hamper French access to Newport's harbor. On August 8, d'Estaing moved the bulk of his fleet into Newport Harbor.
On August 9, d'Estaing began disembarking some of his 4,000 troops onto Conanicut Island. The same day, General Sullivan learned that Pigot had abandoned Butts Hill. Contrary to the agreement with d'Estaing, Sullivan crossed troops over to seize that high ground, concerned that the British might reoccupy it in strength. D'Estaing later approved of the action, but his initial reaction and that of some of his officers was disapproval. John Laurens wrote that the action "gave much umbrage to the French officers".
Storm damage
Howe's fleet was delayed departing New York by contrary winds, and he arrived off Point Judith on August 9. D'Estaing feared that Howe would be further reinforced and eventually gain a numerical advantage, so he boarded the French troops and sailed out to do battle with Howe on August 10. The weather deteriorated into a major storm as the two fleets maneuvered for position and prepared to battle. The storm raged for two days and scattered both fleets, severely damaging the French flagship. It also frustrated Sullivan's plans to attack Newport without French support on August 11. Sullivan began siege operations while awaiting the return of the French fleet, moving closer to the British lines on August 15 and opening trenches to the northeast of the fortified British line north of Newport the next day.As the two fleets sought to regroup, individual ships encountered one another, and there were several minor naval skirmishes; two French ships were badly mauled in these encounters, including d'Estaing's flagship. The French fleet regrouped off Delaware and returned to Newport on August 20, while the British fleet regrouped at New York.
French retreat to Boston
Admiral d'Estaing was pressured by his captains to immediately sail for Boston to make repairs, but he instead sailed for Newport to inform the Americans that he would not be able to assist them. He informed Sullivan upon his arrival on August 20; Sullivan argued that the British could be compelled to surrender in just one or two days if the French remained to help, but d'Estaing refused. d'Estaing wrote that it was "difficult to persuade oneself that about six thousand men well entrenched and with a fort before which they had dug trenches could be taken either in twenty-four hours or in two days." Any thought of the French fleet remaining at Newport was also opposed by d'Estaing's captains, with whom he had a difficult relationship due to his arrival in the navy at a high rank after service in the French army. The fleet sailed for Boston on August 22.The French decision brought on a wave of anger in the American rank and file, as well as among its commanders. General Greene wrote a complaint which John Laurens termed "sensible and spirited", but General Sullivan was less diplomatic. He wrote a missive containing much inflammatory language, in which he called d'Estaing's decision "derogatory to the honor of France", and he included further complaints in orders of the day that were later suppressed when tempers had cooled. American soldiers called the French decision a "desertion" and noted that the French forces "left us in a most Rascally manner".
The French departure prompted a mass exodus of the American militia, significantly shrinking the American force, many of whom had only enlisted for a 20-day stint. On August 24, Sullivan was alerted by General Washington that Clinton in New York was assembling a relief force. That evening, his council made the decision to withdraw to positions on the northern part of the island. Sullivan continued to seek French assistance, dispatching Lafayette to Boston to negotiate further with d'Estaing, but this proved fruitless in the end. D'Estaing and Lafayette met fierce criticism in Boston, Lafayette remarking that "I am more upon a warlike footing in the American lines than when I came near the British lines at Newport."
In the meantime, the British in New York had not been idle. Howe was reinforced by the arrival of ships from Byron's storm-tossed squadron, and he sailed out to catch d'Estaing before he reached Boston. General Clinton organized a force of 4,000 men under Major General Charles Grey and sailed with it on August 26, destined for Newport.