After taking Charleston, the British, now under the command of General Cornwallis, quickly worked to establish a defensive line. They marched toward Camden and the area known as the Waxhaws (present-day York and Lancaster). The Battle of the Waxhaws was a British victory, but the events of that battle would become a rallying cry for the Patriots. British Dragoon officer Banastre Tarleton had already garnered a reputation for not offering quarter during a bloody skirmish at Monck’s Corner. That reputation would be solidified by what would become known as Buford’s Massacre. The cries of ‘Buford’s Revenge’ and ‘Tarleton’s Quarter’ would haunt the British troops for the rest of the wear.
