Stafford County, Virginia was the boyhood home to the most famous person in the Revolutionary War, George Washington. However, it was also the boyhood home for another, often overlooked, Washington.  This was George Washington’s second cousin once removed, William Washington.  William Washington was born and spent his early life in northern Stafford County and went on to become a war hero.  He fought in many of the most important battles of the Revolutionary War and was wounded multiple times.  For his valor in combat, he received a medal from the Continental Congress.  After the war, he married and settled in Charleston, South Carolina where he became a planter and prominent state politician.

William Washington was born on February 28, 1752 at Windsor Forest plantation in Stafford County, Virginia.  The 1200-acre plantation, no longer extant, is now part of the US Marine Corps Quantico Base, about a mile and a half north of present day Garrisonville Road.  He was the second son of Bailey and Catherine Washington. The Washingtons were very active in the church and young William initially attended services at St. Paul’s in King George County and later attended services at Aquia Church in Stafford County.  He was tutored by Rev. Dr. William Stuart and was preparing to enter the ministry. When not studying, Washington played, hunted, and rode horses throughout Stafford County. He was described by Henry Lee III as “possessed [of] a stout frame, being six feet high, broad, strong and corpulent.”

In the spring of 1775, William Washington left his studies to join in the Revolutionary War.  He initially joined the Stafford minutemen and became the captain of that unit.  In February 1776, William Washington was commissioned as one of ten company captains in the 3^rd Virginia Regiment of the Continental Line.  He was 23 years old.  For the first part of 1776 the 3^rd Virginia was stationed mostly around Williamsburg.  By the end of July, they were ordered to march north and join George Washington’s main Continental Army outside of New York City.  They marched north through Stafford County and stopped at the nearby James Hunter’s Iron Works to resupply.

The 3^rd Virginia in New York in time to receive their baptism of fire at the Battle of Harlem Heights.  William Washington and his men fought bravely at Harlem Heights.  Despite this, the Continental Army lost multiple battles and was driven that fall across New Jersey into Pennsylvania.  William Washington and the 3^rd Virginia famously crossed the Delaware River on Christmas night in 1776 and charged into Trenton, New Jersey the next day.  In the pivotal Battle of Trenton, William Washington led a bayonet charge against the Hessian artillery and was wounded in both hands.  Along with his fellow 3^rd Virginia officer and future President James Monroe, William was one of the few American casualties in the battle.  But the victory saved the Revolution and changed the course of American history.

While recovering from his wounds, William was promoted to Major and moved over to the 4^th Continental Light Dragoons.  By 1779, he was promoted again to Lieutenant Colonel and placed in command of the 3^rd Continental Light Dragoons.  At the end of that year, William and his unit were transferred to South Carolina.  They made it to Charleston, South Carolina in time to engage the British army laying siege to the Continental Army defending the city.  William and his dragoons suffered heavy casualties at the Battle of Monck’s Corner on April 14, 1780.  They tried to regroup but were beaten again at the Battle of Lenud’s Ferry on May 6, 1780.  A few days later, the Continental Army in Charleston surrendered to the British, the worst defeat of the war for the Patriots.

After Charleston fell, William Washington and his men went back to Virginia to refit and resupply.  They then joined up with General Daniel Morgan’s command and returned to South Carolina. William and his troopers fought successful actions against the British at Rugeley’s Mill and Hammond’s Store that December.

British cavalry commander Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton led a force to destroy Morgan’s command in January. He caught up with Morgan at the Cowpens in western South Carolina on January 17, 1781.  At the Battle of Cowpens, William Washington charged into the British army multiple times.  The British were routed and near the end of the engagement, William fought a sword duel with Tarleton.  Tarleton was wounded but escaped. William Washington had played a vital role in the American victory.  The Continental Congress awarded him a silver medal for his valor and leadership at Cowpens.

Just two months later, William Washington fought at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse in North Carolina. He and his unit were engaged in some of the fiercest hand to hand combat at the climax of the battle.  Only British artillery firing into both American and British troops ended the fighting.  Though the Americans lost the battle, they killed or wounded a quarter of the British army.

After Guilford Courthouse William Washington sent a captured British sword to James Hunter back in Stafford, and asked him to make copies of the sword for his troopers.

William went back to South Carolina with General Nathanael Greene’s army in April of 1781.  They fought, but lost, the battle of Hobkirk’s Hill.  Nathanael Greene famously said “We fight, get beat, rise, and fight again.”

William’s last battle in the war was the Battle of Eutaw Springs on September 8, 1781.  William and his men charged into the British lines. William’s horse was shot out from under him, and he fell to the ground. With his leg pinned under the horse he held his saber and engaged in a fight with a bayonet-wielding British soldier. The soldier knocked his sword from his hand and bayoneted William through the breast. He was taken prisoner. William survived his wounds and kept in house arrest for the rest of the war in British-occupied Charleston.

While still a prisoner, William married the wealthy Jane Elliot. After the war ended, they settled at her family’s Sandy Hill Plantation just outside of Charleston. William became a wealthy South Carolina planter and purchased a large home on the Battery in Charleston that still stands today.

William served in the South Carolina state legislature from 1787 to 1804, but he refused to run for governor of South Carolina because he was a native Virginian.  When George Washington visited Charleston in 1791, William escorted him around and before leaving, George Washington visited William’s home at Sandy Hill plantation.

During the Quasi-War with France in 1798, George Washington appointed William a Brigadier General in the American Army.

William Washington died at Sandy Hill on March 6, 1810 and was buried nearby.  He was 58 years old.  Today numerous monuments and memorials exist throughout South Carolina honoring his military service.  Yet, no marker exists in his native county or state to remember his important service in securing our nation’s independence.

Suggested Reading:

Murphy, Daniel. William Washington: American Light Dragoon. Westholme Publishing: Yardley, PA, 2014.

Haller, Stephen E. William Washington: Cavalryman of the Revolution.  Heritage Books: Westminster, MD, 2001.