The Patriot Film Fact or Fiction------Battles
Four major battles depicted or alluded to in The Patriot:
1. Charleston - the battle is not shown, but the results serve as a time transition in the movie.
2. Camden - the battle that Gabriel and Benjamin observe after they have both left to join the war effort.
3. Unnamed - the climactic battle.
4. Yorktown - the battle barely shown during Mel Gibson's closing narration.
Five actual battles are the basis for the battles in The Patriot:
These four battles were actually based on five real battles:
1. The British possession of Charleston resulted from the Siege of Charleston.
2. Camden was based on the real Battle of Camden.
3. The Unnamed battle was based on elements from both the Battle of Cowpens and the Battle of Guilford Courthouse.
4. Yorktown, which is barely shown, is based on the real Battle of Yorktown.
The Patriot Film Fact or Fiction------People
Francis Marion: the lead character in early drafts of the movie script, but because to avoid some controversy and to allow for more dramatic storytelling, the fictional character of Benjamin Martin was introduced. Francis Marion was a known Indian fighter from the French and Indian War, however his most famous brush with Indians was leading his 30-man scouting party into a known Indian ambush to clear the way for the main force. Only ten men, including him, survived. It was a massacre, but not of Indians. Francis Marion was known as the "Swamp Fox" and operated in South Carolina during the Revolutionary War. His base of operations was Snow's Island, which was located in the middle of the South Carolina swamps, not unlike how Benjamin Martin operated from the old Spanish mission located in the swamp. But unlike Martin, Marion was childless and did not even marry until after the war. General Charles Cornwallis sent Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton (inspiration for Colonel Tavington) after Marion. Tarleton was unable to capture Marion, just as Tavington was unable to capture Martin in the movie. Martin was already actively raiding on his own when Maj. General Nathanael Greene arrived in the South in 1781. After Greene's arrival, Marion began to coordinate his efforts with the Continental Army general's strategy for retaking the South. There are some who say they have evidence that Marion mistreated his slaves through beatings and rape. PatriotResource.com has found no sources that indicate this, but these comments were made in several articles criticizing the accuracy of the film even as far as back as when the film was in the earliest stages of preproduction. Such comments, though not backed up by any credible sources, helped prompt the producers to drop Marion as the lead character in favor of a composite fictional character.
Thomas Sumter: an independent, stubborn fighter who refused to cooperate with Continental operations, but following the Battle of Camden, he led the only organized resistance in South Carolina. Thomas Sumter was known as the "Gamecock" or "Carolina Gamecock." He was married with one son. Following the capture of Charleston by the British and the surrender of all opposing forces and taking an oath that he would not fight. He went back on his pledge, much like Andrew Pickens, when Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton's British Legion burned the home that his wife and son were staying in, forcing her to sit and watch it burn. Following Sumter's taking up arms again, Tarleton pursued him, catching him by surprise the day after the Battle of Camden where his militia was dispersed and Sumter himself narrowly escaped. His stubborn refused to coordinate his efforts with Continental Maj. General Nathanael Greene colored Greene's opinion of him and led to Sumter's harshness toward legislative efforts to assist Greene's widow in later years. Sumter ended up disbanding his militia and retiring from the war in mid-1781, because his influence had declined following a disastrous attack on the British at Quinby Bridge. He did serve for years in the state legislature where he encouraged the passage of a bill of amnesty for wartime actions. Sumter served in the militia in the Cherokee War, but did not see any action, let alone lead an Indian massacre.
Andrew Pickens: a militia fighter who operated in Georgia and South Carolina. He often was joined in his campaigns by Elijah Clarke. He is known for his large family and strict Presbyterian background. Andrew Pickens married in 1765 and would go on to father 12 children by his wife. Unlike Martin, he was not widowed at the start of the war. His home was burned by Tories in 1780 and he informed the British that they had broken his parole and he rejoined the Patriot effort. It was Pickens and his militia who were present at the Battle of Cowpens. During his time fighting in Georgia with Elijah Clarke, he participated in the Battle of Kettle Creek and the Siege of Augusta.
Elijah Clarke: another militia fighter like Marion. Clarke fought extensively in Georgia and in the Southern regions of South Carolina where he was often joined by Andrew Pickens. Other than his heroic nature, it is unclear what specifics were drawn from Clarke's life.
Daniel Morgan: Continental officer; Morgan was a colorful character and by no means the religious person that Martin is portrayed as. Morgan's one contribution to the Martin character seems to be that it was his idea at the Battle of Cowpens to use the militia as a decoy.
Colonel William Tavington is based on Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton. Tarleton first made a name for himself in December 1776, when he was part of a patrol that captured former Continental Southern Commander Maj. General Charles Lee. He would go to make a name for himself in his exploits in the South, starting with Monck's Corner. He believed in total war, which meant that civilians who helped the enemy were the enemy. Tarleton's force of Northern Tories was called the British Legion. They also became known as the Green Dragoons because their uniform was predominantly green with red trim, rather than the recognizable red uniform with the addition of green trim as in the movie. Actually, many regiments had varied uniforms, such as the Scottish regiments, who wore tartars and kilts, rather than the one standard "redcoat" uniform that Hollywood has adopted. Though Tarleton was unable to catch Francis Marion, he was successful in some of his efforts against Thomas Sumter. Because of this, it is unlikely that tensions between General Cornwallis and Tarleton were as bad as depicted in the movie between Cornwallis and Tavington. In fact, Tarleton considered Cornwallis his mentor and they stayed in touch for many years. They only broke off contact when he wrote his memoirs in which he blamed General Cornwallis for the loss of the South. Tarleton never had a face-to-face with any of the militia leaders as he does with Martin in the movie. The closest he came was when he surprised Thomas Sumter the day after Battle of Camden, but Sumter wasn't dressed and escaped in the confused, unrecognized. Tarleton was not captured or killed at either the Battle of Cowpens or Guilford Courthouse. It was he, not Cornwallis, that commanded at Cowpens. Nonetheless, he returned to Britain to be hailed as a hero for a time. He even made it to the Prince of Wales' inner circle of friends, before he wore out his welcome.
Major Jean Villeneuve is loosely based on the French and German officers who volunteered to fight for the American cause. The main inspirations for Villeneuve were probably the Marquis de Lafayette and Baron von Steuben. The Marquis never fought in the South, but he did skirmish against Lt. General Charles Cornwallis in Virginia and he was present at the Siege and Surrender at Yorktown.
Baron von Steuben was at Valley Forge in the winter of 1778 and trained General George Washington's Continental forces. Villeneuve arrives in the South to train the men, although he spends more time training the militia.
General Nathanael Greene is based on the real-life Maj. General Nathanael Greene. In his one scene, Greene is portrayed correctly. Greene's sentiments concerning the unreliability of militia were true to life. General Greene has lost confidence in militia since their poor performance in the defense of New York City in 1776.
General Greene's concerns over the militia were reinforced by the way the militia fled the field at the Battle of Camden. When he had assumed command of Continental forces in the South, Greene decided to only use militia as scouts and on small raids. The discussion of battle strategy following Greene’s comments was not accurate. Though the strategy of using militia as decoys was a real strategy, it was used by Brig. General Daniel Morgan at the Battle of Cowpens against Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton. Neither General Greene nor General Charles Cornwallis was present at that battle. The filmmakers have admitted that they combined elements of the Battle of Cowpens and the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, so this explains the fudging of details. Unconventional tactics were the keys to Cowpens, while traditional maneuvering on favorable terrain was used by Greene against Cornwallis at Guilford Cornwallis.
General Charles Cornwallis is based on the real-life Lt. General Charles Earl Cornwallis. Just as in the movie, General Cornwallis oversaw the British Army's operations in the Carolinas in 1780-81. In the movie, General Cornwallis is portrayed as a bit older, in his 50's, than he really was. Cornwallis was in his early 40's during the American Revolution. He is also portrayed to be someone pompous. This may not have really been the case, since he endeared himself to his men by often being at the front lines in harm's way alongside them, rather than hanging back and watching the battle from the safety of afar. Although General Cornwallis was part of the force that captured Charleston. He was not present at the surrender and occupation, because he was in the backcountry carrying on support operation. Although, the scene of he and Colonel Tavington in Charleston is not dated and could have been set several days after the first occupation, when he was in the city receiving orders. General Cornwallis was the commander at the Battle of Camden defeating Maj. General Horatio Gates as in the movie. He also found his efforts to move into North Carolina frustrated because of the various militia bands that continually harassed his supply lines and outposts. Cornwallis also never met in truce with any of the militia leaders as he does with Benjamin Martin.
Though Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton was unsuccessful in tracking down Francis Marion, he did succeed in surprising Thomas Sumter. As a result, there is no indication that there was as much tension between Cornwallis and Tarleton as is portrayed between Cornwallis and Colonel Tavington over Benjamin Martin's elusiveness. In fact, Cornwallis supported Tarleton even after Tarleton was routed by Brig. General Daniel Morgan at the Battle of Cowpens. They maintained a long friendship that only broke up many years later over conflicting personal memoirs (and you thought that was a 20th century problem). General Cornwallis was present at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, which served as partial basis for the unnamed climactic battle in the movie. However, at that battle, he held the field because Maj. General Nathanael Greene withdrew first, but Cornwallis did receive so many casualties that he was unable to pursue Greene. Lastly, Cornwallis did claim illness at Yorktown, sending his second-in-command Brig. General Charles O'Hara to surrender to General George Washington.