American soldier, probably born in Hunterdon Co, New Jersey, USA. The son of an ironmaster who had settled in the Shenandoah Valley, VA, he had served with the British forces in the French and Indian War and against Pontiac's rebellion (17634). He joined the Revolutionary forces on the outbreak of war and fought at Quebec (Dec 1775), where he was captured. Exchanged in 1776, he led a crack regiment of sharpshooters that played an important role in the victory at Saratoga (1777). He then served under George Washington in Pennsylvania. After briefly resigning (177980) in dissatisfaction over his lack of promotion, he rejoined the army to command troops in W North Carolina, and on 17 January 1781 a force under his command defeated the British at Cowpens, SC, in one of the war's decisive battles. In 1794, commanding Virginia militia, he helped suppress the Whiskey Rebellion in W Pennsylvania. He served in the US House of Representatives (Federalist, Virginia, 17979).
Daniel Morgan (July 6, 1736 – July 6, 1802) was an American pioneer, soldier, and United States Representative from Virginia.
One of the most gifted battlefield tacticians of the American Revolutionary War, he later commanded the troops that suppressed the Whiskey Rebellion.
Early years
Daniel was born in [Hunterdon County, New Jersey], the fifth of seven children of James Morgan (1710-1782), a forge worker.
Morgan was a large, rough man, poorly educated, and he preferred drinking and gambling to study.
French and Indian War
In 1755 Morgan was hired to accompany the Braddock Expedition against Fort Duquesne.
In 1758 he joined a company of Virginia rangers as an ensign. While carrying dispatches from Fort Edward (near Capon Bridge, West Virginia) to Winchester, Virginia, his party of only three men was ambushed. The other two were killed and Morgan was seriously wounded.
Civilian life
After the war, Morgan returned to work as a teamster.
He remained active in the local militia.
American Revolution
After the American Revolutionary War began at the Battle of Lexington and Concord in 1775, the Continental Congress created the Continental Army. The Virginia House of Burgesses chose Daniel Morgan to form one of these, and serve as its captain. He led an outstanding group of snipers nicknamed "Morgan's Sharpshooters".
The invasion of Canada
Later that year, Congress authorized an Invasion of Canada. All of the companies at Boston volunteered, so lotteries were used to choose who should go, and Morgan's company was among those chosen. Arnold selected Captain Morgan to lead all three companies as a unit. The expedition set out from Fort Western on September 25, with Morgan's men leading the advance party.
At the start, the Arnold Expedition had about 1,000 men, but by the time they arrived at the Isle of Orleans on 9 November it had been reduced to 600.
Arnold led the attack against the lower city from the North, but went down early with a bullet in his leg. Morgan took over leadership of this force, and they successfully entered the city following him over the first barricade. He moved cannons and men to the first barricade, behind Morgan's force. Morgan surrendered his sword to a French priest, refusing to give it to the troops. Morgan was among the 372 men captured.
11th Virginia regiment
When he rejoined Washington early in 1777, Morgan was surprised to learn that he had been promoted to colonel for his efforts at Quebec. He was assigned to raise and command a new regiment, the 11th Virginia Regiment of the Continental Line, and by April, Morgan had recruited 400 men to fill its ranks.
His recruiting test for riflemen became a campfire legend. Word of this even reached England, where Morgan was regarded as a war criminal, since aiming at individuals was considered unsporting, and aiming at officers was viewed as downright treacherous.
On 13 June 1777 Morgan was placed in command of an assembled Light Infantry Corp of 500 riflemen, including his own. Washington assigned them to harass General William Howe's rear guard, and Morgan followed and attacked them during their entire withdrawal across New Jersey.
Saratoga
Morgan's regiment was reassigned to the army's Northern Department and on August 30 he joined General Horatio Gates to aid in resisting Burgoyne's offense.
Freeman's Farm
Morgan led his regiment, with the added support of Henry Dearborn's New Hampshire 300 man infantry, as the advance to the main forces.
Morgan's men charged without orders, but the charge fell apart when they ran into the main column, under General Hamilton. Benedict Arnold arrived, and he and Morgan managed to reform the unit. As the British began to form on the fields at Freeman's farm, Morgan's men continued to break these formations with accurate rifle fire from the woods on the far side of the field.
For the rest of the afternoon, American fire held the British in check, but repeated American charges were repelled by British bayonets.
Bemis Heights
Burgoyne's next offensive resulted in the Battle of Bemis Heights on 7 October. Morgan was assigned command of the left (or western) flank of the American position. This brought Morgan's brigade once again up against General Fraser's forces.
Passing through the Canadian loyalists, Morgan's Virginia sharpshooters got the British light infantry trapped in a crossfire between themselves and Dearborn's regiment. Morgan reluctantly ordered Fraser shot by a sniper, and Timothy Murphy obliged him.
With Fraser mortally wounded the British light-infantry fell back into and through the redoubts occupied by Burgoyne's main force. Morgan was one of those who then followed Arnold's lead to turn a counter-attack from the British middle.
During the next week, as Burgoyne dug in, Morgan and his men moved to his north.
New Jersey and retirement
After Saratoga, Morgan's unit rejoined Washington's main army, near Philadelphia. When the Virginia Line was reorganized on 14 September 1778 Morgan became the Colonel of the 7th Virginia Regiment.
Throughout this period, Morgan became increasingly dissatisfied with the army and the Congress.
In June 1780, he was urged to reenter the service by General Gates, but he declined. Gates was taking command in the Southern Department and Morgan felt that being outranked by so many militia officers would limit his usefulness. After Gates' disaster at the Battle of Camden, Morgan thrust all other considerations aside, and went to join the Southern command at Hillsborough, North Carolina.
The Southern campaign
He met Gates at Hillsborough, and was given command of the light infantry corps on 2 October. At last, on 13 October 1780, Morgan received his promotion to Brigadier General.
Morgan met his new Department Commander, Nathanael Greene, on 3 December 1780 at Charlotte, North Carolina. He gave Morgan's command of about 700 men the job of foraging and enemy harassment in the backcountry of South Carolina, while avoiding direct battle.
When this strategy became apparent, the British General Cornwallis sent Colonel Banastre Tarleton's British Legion to track him down. Morgan talked with many of the militia who had fought Tarleton before, and decided to disobey his orders, by setting up a direct confrontation.
The Battle of Cowpens
Morgan chose to make his stand at Cowpens, South Carolina. Morgan had been joined by militia forces under Andrew Pickens and William Washington's dragoons.
Morgan's plan took advantage of Tarleton's tendency for quick action and his disdain for the militia, as well as the longer range and accuracy of his Virginia riflemen.
The tactic worked very well. Morgan's cunning plan at Cowpens is widely considered to be the tactical masterpiece of the war.
Cornwallis had lost not only Tarleton's legion, but also his light infantry, which limited his speed of reaction for the rest of the campaign. For his actions, Virginia gave Morgan land and an estate that had been abandoned by a Tory. In July 1781, Morgan briefly joined Lafayette to once more pursue Banastre Tarleton, this time in Virginia, but they were not successful.
After the Revolution
After Morgan returned home to Charles Town, he became gradually less active.
In 1794 he was briefly recalled to national service, as he led militia units to suppress the Whiskey Rebellion. Morgan ran for election to the United States House of Representatives twice, as a Federalist.
He lost in 1794 but won next time to serve a term from 1797 to 1799. When he died in 1802, on his 66th birthday, at Saratoga, New York, Daniel Morgan was buried in the Mt.
In 1821 Virginia named a new county - Morgan County - in his honor.
In 1881 (on the occasion of the hundredth anniversary of the Cowpens battle) a statue of Morgan was placed in the central town square of Spartanburg, South Carolina. The square (Morgan Square) and statue remain today (see photo in Spartanburg article).
Morgan and his actions served as one of the sources for the fictional character of Benjamin Martin in The Patriot, a motion picture released in 2000.
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