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Sir Banastre Tarleton ( August 21, 1754– January 25, 1833) was a British soldier and statesman.Born to a Liverpool merchant named John Tarleton, he was educated at Oxford University and then entered the army. In December 1775 he sailed as a volunteer to America with then-Earl Cornwallis, and his services to the British during the American War of Independence in the year 1776 gained for him the position of a brigade major of cavalry.
Tarleton was present at the Battle of Brandywine and at other engagements in 1777 and 1778, and as the commander of the British legion, a mixed force of cavalry and light infantry called Tarleton's Raiders, he proceeded at the beginning of 1780 to South Carolina, rendering valuable services to Sir Henry ClintonGeneral Sir Henry Clinton K. 1732 1795) was a British officer during the American War of Independence. He was born in Newfoundland, Canada where his father George Clinton served Governor, and he grew up in New York when his father served as Royal Governor in the operations which culminated in the capture of Charleston, South CarolinaCharleston is an American city located predominantly in Charleston County, South Carolina. The city was founded as Charlestown or Charles Town Carolina in 1670, and moved to its present location in 1690, when it had a population of 1200 and was the fifth. He was responsible for a British victory at Waxhaw in May 1780, and he materially helped Cornwallis to win the Battle of CamdenThe Battle of Camden was an important battle in the southern theatre of the American Revolutionary War. On August 16, 1780 British Forces under Lt. General Charles Cornwallis routed the American forces of Major General Horatio Gates about six miles north in the succeeding August. He was completely victorious in an engagement with Thomas SumterGeneral Thomas Sumter ( August 14, 1734 June 1, 1832) was a hero of the American Revolution and went on to become a longtime member of the US Congress. Sumter was born in Virginia came to South Carolina at age 30 and settled in Stateburg in the Camden dis at Fishing Creek , or Catawba Fords , but was not equally successful when he encountered the same general at Blackstock Hill in November 1780; then in January 1781, in spite of much personal valour, he was defeated with heavy losses at the Battle of Cowpens .
Having been successful in a skirmish at Tarrants House , and having taken part in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse in March 1781, he marched with Cornwallis into Virginia, and after affording much assistance to his commander-in-chief he was instructed to hold GloucesterThis is about Gloucester, England for other uses see Gloucester (disambiguation Gloucester (pronounced 'Gloster') is a city in south-west England, close to the Welsh border. In 1991 it had a population of 106,526. Traditionally Gloucester has been the cou. This post, however, was surrendered to the Americans with Yorktown, VirginiaYorktown is a census-designated place located in York County, Virginia. As of the 2000 census, the CDP had a total population of 203. It is the county seat of York County 6. Geography Yorktown is located at 37°14'4" North, 76°30'35" West (37. 234352, -76. in October 1781, and Tarleton returned to England on parole.
In 1790 he entered the Parliament of Great Britain as member for Liverpool, and with the exception of a single year he remained in the House of Commons until 1812. In 1794 he became a major-general; in 1812 a general; and he held a military command in Ireland and another in England. In 1815 he was made a baronet. He died without issue at Leintwardine , Shropshire, England.
For some time Tarleton lived with the actress Mary Robinson (Perdita), and his portrait was painted both by Joshua Reynolds and by Thomas Gainsborough. Sir Banastre wrote a History of the Campaigns of 1780 and 1781 in the Southern Provinces of North America (London, 1781), which, although of some value, is marred by the author's vanity and by his attacks on Cornwallis. It was criticized by Colonel Roderick Mackenzie in his Strictures on Lieutenant-Colonel Tarleton's History (1781) and in the Cornwallis Correspondence .
The Hollywood movie The Patriot (2000) controversially portrayed a character based on Tarleton as a sadistic, Nazi-like monster. [1].
