by Dan Pinkham, 12 August 2026
While this year marks the 250 anniversary of the start of the American War of Independence with the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4th 1776, the war itself stretched all the way into 1783.
Following defeats of British forces in the Northern colonies and the entrance of the French and Spanish into the war, the British, by 1780, reopened their ‘Southern strategy’ in an effort to recruit loyalists in the southern colonies and attack the Northern colonies from the south. One of the later and less well known battles of this campaign fought on August 16th 1780 was the Battle of Camden.
Fought in pine forests just north of the village of Camden, South Carolina this battle proved to be humiliating for the American patriots and yet not the campaign-ending victory the British were hoping for.
click images to enlarge
The Patriot force led by Horatio Gates was heavy with militia while the British led by Lord Cornwallis was mostly regulars, albeit almost outnumbered 2 to 1 by the Patriots. Both forces converged north of Camden in the early morning hours of August 16th, mutually withdrawing after some skirmishing in the dark to await first light before deploying their respective armies.
While outnumbering the British, the Patriots militia suffered from not only lack of experience but from “bad consequences of eating bad provisions.” This led to a disastrous fight for the patriots which saw most of their militia flee and the better disciplined British regulars quickly roll up the flank of those Continentals that stood and fought. A final charge into the remaining patriots rear by the ‘infamous’ Lt. Colonel Tarleton broke them completely. Estimated casualties (killed, captured or wounded) were roughly 1900 for the Patriots and 324 for the British. However, this figure doesn’t include the nearly 2,000 patriot militia who fled the battle, many without firing a single shot.
General Gates suffered humiliation following this defeat and never again led an army into battle. For his part General Cornwallis claimed, “The Rebel Forces being at present dispersed, the internal commotion and insurrections in the Province will now subside.” How wrong he would be …
Want to game it out?
While to my knowledge and limited research there have not been many games specifically on the Battle of Camden there are a few ways for you to try your hand at leading the Patriots or British forces on this field of battle.
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The one exception being The Battle of Camden published by Oldenburg Grenadiers, clearly out of print but it looks like Noble Knight Games might have some antique copies |
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On the digital side, Wargame Design Studios’ recently released American Revolutionary War has both company level and battalion scale scenarios covering the battle as well several ‘What ifs’ |
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Decisions Games’ Rebels and Redcoats: Volume II contains a Camden scenario |
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A Camden scenario is also included in Compass Games’ Commands and Colors Tricorne: The American Revolution |
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Horse & Musket IV: Tides of Revolution from Hollandspiele has a Camden scenario |
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Clash for a Continent: Battles of the American Revolution and French & Indian War has, you guessed it, a Camden scenario. From Worthington Games it is seemingly out of print but available on the secondary market. |
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While there are several strategic American Revolutionary War games that cover the whole war, some even containing an area to move through labeled Camden, I do want to call attention to the upcoming game from MMP called Crown & Crescent. This game will deal specifically with the campaign for South Carolina, giving the Battle of Camden its proper context. |
Those of you interested in playing with dolls miniatures can use a plethora of rules sets to refight the battle. While some may contain premade scenarios others may rely on user made Camden scenarios.
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