John Laurens (October 28, 1754 - August 27, 1782) was an American soldier and statesman from South Carolina during the Revolutionary War. October 28 is the 301st day of the year (302nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 64 days remaining. ... 1754 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Births 1407 - Ashikaga Yoshikazu, Japanese shogun (d. ... 1782 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Official language(s) English Capital Columbia Largest city Columbia Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 40th 82,965 km² 320 km 420 km 6 32°430N to 35°12N 78°030W to 83°20W Population  - Total (2000)  - Density Ranked 26th 4,012... Combatants American Revolutionaries, France, Netherlands, Spain, Native Americans Great Britain, German mercenaries, Loyalists, Native Americans Commanders George Washington Comte de Rochambeau Nathanael Greene William Howe Henry Clinton Charles Cornwallis The American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), also known as the American War of Independence, was the military component of the American...

John Laurens (miniature by Charles Willson Peale) This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years. ...

Early life

John was born to Henry Laurens and Eleanor Ball in Charleston, South Carolina. After tutoring at home, he extended his education in Europe, first in London in 1771, then in Geneva, Switzerland in 1772. In August of 1774 he returned to London to study law. Henry Laurens (1724–1792) was an American merchant and planter from South Carolina who became a political leader during the Revolutionary War. ... This article is about the city in South Carolina. ... The Houses of Parliament and the clock tower containing Big Ben Part of the London skyline viewed from the South Bank London (see Wiktionary:London for the name in other languages) is the capital of the United Kingdom and England. ... Coat of arms of the Canton of Geneva Coat of arms of the City of Geneva Geneva (French: Genève, German: Genf, Italian: Ginevra, Romansh Genevra, Spanish: Ginebra) is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zurich), located where Lake Geneva (French: Lac de Genève or Lac L...

In late 1776, he married Martha Manning in London. In December of that year, he sailed for Charleston to join the rebel forces in America. He left his wife behind, pregnant with an unborn daughter he would never see. In the summer of 1777, he accompanied his father, Henry Laurens, on the trip to Philadelphia where Henry was serving in the Continental Congress. Henry Laurens (1724–1792) was an American merchant and planter from South Carolina who became a political leader during the Revolutionary War. ... Philadelphia is a village located in Jefferson County, New York. ... The Continental Congress is the label given to three successive bodies of representatives: The First Continental Congress met from September 5, 1774 to October 26, 1774. ...

1779-1780

John joined the main army of the Continental Army as an aide to General Washington. He became very good friends of his fellow aides, Alexander Hamilton and the Marquis de Lafayette. He also gave the first demonstrations of his tendency to reckless courage at the Battles of Monmouth, Brandywine, and Germantown. After the battle of Brandywine Lafayette observed that, "It was not his fault that he was not killed or wounded . . . he did every thing that was necessary to procure one or the other." Illustration depicting uniforms and weapons used during the 1779 to 1783 period of the American Revolution by showing four soldiers standing in an informal group General George Washington, was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army on June 15, 1775. ... George Washington (February 22, 1732–December 14, 1799) was the successful Commander in Chief of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War from 1775 to 1783, and later became the first President of the United States, an office to which he was twice elected unanimously, and held from 1789... A portrait of Alexander Hamilton by John Trumbull, 1792. ... Marie-Joseph-Paul-Roch-Yves-Gilbert du Motier, marquis de La Fayette (September 6, 1757 – May 20, 1834), was a French aristocrat most famous for his participation in the American Revolutionary War and early French Revolution. ... The Battle of Monmouth was an inconclusive battle of the American Revolutionary War fought on June 28, 1778. ... Combatants United States Britain Commanders George Washington William Howe Strength 11,000 17,000 Casualties 250 killed, 750 wounded, 400 captured 89 killed, 487 wounded The Battle of Brandywine was a battle of the American Revolutionary War fought on September 11, 1777 near Chadds Ford Township, Pennsylvania|Chadds Ford]] on... Combatants Continental Army Britain Commanders George Washington William Howe Strength ? 9,000 Casualties 152 killed, 521 wounded, & 400 captured 71 killed, 450 wounded, & 14 missing The Battle of Germantown was in the American Revolutionary War. ... Marie-Joseph-Paul-Roch-Yves-Gilbert du Motier, marquis de La Fayette (September 6, 1757 – May 20, 1834), was a French aristocrat most famous for his participation in the American Revolutionary War and early French Revolution. ...

As the British stepped up operations in the South, Laurens promoted the idea of arming slaves and granting them freedom in return for their service. In March 1779 Congress approved this idea, commissioned him Lieutenant Colonel, and sent him south to implement it. He won election to the South Carolina House of Representatives, and introduced his black regiment plan in 1779 and 1780 (and again in 1782) only to meet overwhelming rejection each time. His belief that blacks shared a similar nature with whites and could aspire to freedom in a republican society set Laurens apart from other leaders in revolutionary South Carolina. {See [{for reference only}

In 1779, when the British threatened Charleston, Governor Rutledge proposed to surrender the city with the condition the Carolina become neutral in the war. Laurens loudly and critically opposed the idea, and the British were repulsed. That fall he commanded an infantry regiment in General Lincoln's failed assault on Savannah, Georgia. John became a prisoner in May of 1780 with the fall of Charleston, but he was exchanged in November. In December, Congress named him a special minister to France. John Rutledge (September 17, 1739-July 18, 1800) was Governor of South Carolina, delegate to the Constitutional Convention, and served on the U.S. Supreme Court (Chief Justice from August to December 1795). ... Benjamin Lincoln ( 1733– 1810) was a General on the American side in the American Revolutionary War. ... Nickname: The Coastal Empire or The Hostess City Official website: Savannah, Georgia Location Government County Chatham Mayor Otis S. Johnson Geographical characteristics Area Total 202. ...

1781-1782

John was sent to Paris by George Washington in March of 1781 and gained French assurances that their navy would support American operations in that year. He also arranged a loan and supplies from the Dutch before returning home in May. Laurens persistence to the King of France and his unbridled audacity in insisting for French aid is the only reason monies were received from France. He boldly stated that unless the American Continental Army received aid, the Americans might be forced to fight for the British against France. He returned home in time to see the French fleet arrive and to join Washington at the Battle of Yorktown. Young Laurens was the principle spokesman for negotiating General Cornwallis surrender after the Battle. Combatants Britain Colonial America France Commanders Charles Cornwallis George Washington Comte de Rochambeau Strength 7,500 8,845 Americans 7,800 French Casualties 156 killed 326 wounded 7,018 captured Americans: 20 killed, 56 wounded French: 52 killed, 134 wounded The Battle of Yorktown (1781) was a victory by a... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

Laurens returned to South Carolina and served General Nathanael Greene by creating and operating a network of spies that tracked British operations in and around Charleston. But, in August of 1782, his reckless nature came to the fore again. Learning of a British force movement to gather supplies, he sent a quick note to Greene and left his post to join Mordecai Gist in an attempt to intercept them. He was killed in a useless skirmish that did nothing to alter the course of the war. At the Battle of Chehaw Neck near the Combahee River, he was shot from the saddle and died on August 27, 1782. He is buried on the family estate, called Mepkin, near Moncks Corner. Charles Willson Peale painted a portrait of General Greene from life in 1783, which was then copied several times by C.W. Peale and his son, Rembrandt Peale. ... The Combahee River is a short blackwater river (length needed) in the Southern Lowcountry region of South Carolina formed at the confluence of the Salkehatchie and Little Salkehatchie rivers near the Islandton community of Colleton County. ... Births 1407 - Ashikaga Yoshikazu, Japanese shogun (d. ... Mepkin Abbey is a Trappist Monastery in Berkeley County, South Carolina. ... Moncks Corner is the county seat of Berkeley County, South Carolina. ...

Modern perspectives

Laurens's proposal for black troops in Carolina were implemented in the fictional account in the 2000 movie The Patriot, and some of his words and actions went into the creation of the Benjamin Martin character in the film. In another aspect of the movie the family's plantation home at Mepkin was burned as a British retaliation, and his younger siblings escaped at night. The Patriot is an American film released in 2000 that was written by Robert Rodat and directed by Roland Emmerich. ...

There are also modern reports circulated that John Laurens had a homosexual relationship with Alexander Hamilton. These reports are based upon letters Hamilton wrote Laurens during a period in which Laurens was absent from the camp. In preparing a biography, Hamilton's family actually crossed out parts of letters they each sent one another. Whether their relationship was sexual or not is unknown- sodomy was a punishable offence in all thirteen colonies at the time, and so even if it had been they would have been most cautious, and it is likely that the truth will never be known. Hamilton was never as emotionally open with any other man in his lifetime, however, and the sentiments expressed by him are equalled only in letters he wrote to his wife Eliza. Whether Laurens reciprocated these feelings is not certain. There is also a statue of the two that stands in Lafayette Park in Washington, D.C. They are depicted clasping hands and congratulating each other after capturing the British redoubt at Yorktown. For many years the statue was a popular gay rendezvous. Nickname: the District Motto: Justitia Omnibus (Justice for All) Official website: http://www. ...

Further reading

• Gregory D. Massey; John Laurens and the American Revolution; 2000, University of South Carolina Press; ISBN 1570033307.
• David D. Wallace; The Life of Henry Laurens: With a Sketch of the Life of Lieutenant Colonel John Laurens; 1967, Russell & Russell Publishers, ISBN 0846210150.
• Henry Wiencek; An Imperfect God; 2003, Farrar, Straus And Giroux, ISBN 978-0-374-52951-2. Chapter 6