4th of July contest

Rotte

Rotte

Joined
Aug 30, 2008
Messages
3,214
Last year I did a contest for the 4th where the guess was a Patriot of the American revolution. This year I'd like to do the same type of thing, but instead of a significant person, let's guess a significant battle.

The prize is a CRK Shadow IV (5" spearpoint blade ). This is an excellent survival knife (hence the WS&S forum) with a watertight storage handle. It has seen minimal use, is quite sharp and in very good shape (couple of scratches to the finish here and there.). I really like this knife and would take it anywhere. The all metal design is rugged, but might make it less than ideal for extreme cold weather use.

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Excellent sheath (leather):

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The rules:

1) Correct answer is the name of a battle fought during the American revolution. You must include a short description of the battle and the significance of the battle (doesn't need to be long, just teach us a bit about the fight!)

2) One guess per person per day.

3) First correct guess wins.

4) You must be able to legally own this knife

5) You must love liberty and freedom.

5) You don't need to be a Citizen of the USA, but if you ain't American, you had better damn well proclaim your love of liberty.

6) Example: Boston Massacre. This riot gone bad resulted in the death of 5 Americans and fueled anger toward the British. The Boston Massacre is often cited as being one of the events leading to the colonists insurrection against tyranny. (You get the idea.)
 
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Just a few further thoughts on the CRK Shadow IV, as I think this is a great size and design for a survival knife.

The sturdy design is a definite plus, and the spear point tip is extremely strong.

The hollow handle concept might be more novelty than anything, but I confess to liking the idea of storing a few strike anywhere matches, some tinder, a few fish hooks, some mono-filament, thread, and a needle in it. Instead of matches, a small metal match might be preferable.

This size knife fits well on a belt, body armor, or pack. I like to keep my knife on my body, but with lots of gear that's not always comfortable.

The downsides to this knife are that it's all metal design is heavy (relatively). And I don't prefer hollow ground edge geometry (but it is sharp!).

Hope the winner uses this Shadow for fun in the exercise of his or her liberty and that it provides good service!
 
Battle of Brandywine. British General Howe defeated General George Washington and captured Philadelphia. The defeat led to France joining us against British. Successive battles forced British to abandon occupation of Philadelphia and pull back to New York.
I don't want to win, just love to learn. Thanks for this thread, Rotte.
 
Wow, Thats a helluva prize Rotte! You are most generous.

I always liked the Battle of Bunker Hill. June of 1775

Colonial Militia got word that the Brits were gonna send troops out of Boston to ocupy the surounding hills. So the Colonial militia sent about 1200 troops led by William Prescott. They dug and fortified the hills. When the British learned of this they send a large army straight at the Colonist instead of flanking. The British wanted to embarrass the Colonist instead of just take the hills. However, outnumbered the Colonists took out two waves of the British attack, before running out of ammo. The British did win the battle, but suffered their heaviest losses at about 40% Among the losses was a huge amount of officers. Never before had the British suffered losses in their leadership like that. So all though it was a victory for the British, the Colonists lost very few,(as they were able to flee when they ran out of ammo) and it was a big Moral boost for them.

Happy 4th everyone!
 
Awesome prize buddy, thanks for the chance.

I'm gonna go with The Seige of Boston 1775:

On June 15th, the Continental Congress appointed George Washington to be the commander of the Continental Army. In the course of a few meetings in June, the Congress passed a series of resolutions that not only created the army-delineated ranks but included a 50 article code of military conduct. Washington arrived in Cambridge on July 2, two weeks after the Battle of Bunker Hill. Washington's task was to convert the rag tag militia surrounding Boston into an army, while at the same time tightening the noose around the British troops occupying Boston. The siege had continued for many months when finally, in February 1776, with much of Boston Harbor frozen, Washington proposed a direct attack on the British forces in Boston. The Massachusetts committee on safety rejected Washington's plans, and instead proposed that the still unoccupied Dorchester Heights be seized. On the night of March 4th, after an extensive exchange of artillery, much of it coming from Fort Ticonderoga, American troops under the command of General Thomas seized the Heights. The Americans brought with them prefabricated fortifications. Thus the British awoke the morning of the March 5th to find American troops with artillery fortified in the Heights overlooking Boston. The British commander General Howe was then informed by his naval commander, Rear Admiral Molyneaux, that he would not be able to keep his ships in the harbor with American artillery on Dorchester Heights. Howe had two choices - attack the Americans or withdraw from Boston. After giving serious consideration to attacking, he decided to withdraw. By March 17th, the last of the British troops were loaded and, on the 27th, they sailed out of the harbor. Boston was now in American hands.

HAPPY 4th OF JULY;):thumbup:
 
Such a beautiful knife that I chased after....Unfortunately my hand never got to hold on to it.

Battle of Saratoga(British Surrender at Saratoga)-1777

Burgoyne felt he had no option but to press on to Albany. The American army, however, was blocking his way at Bemis Heights. The British made two attempts to break through American defenses, but failed. After the second attempt, they withdrew to Saratoga, where they were surrounded by American troops. The British had no choice but to surrender which they did on October 13, 1777. One quarter of the British forces in North America thus surrendered, and, while many battles were yet to be fought, American Independence was assured.
 
That is an amazing and generous prize, Rotte!

I'll go with the Battle(s) of Saratoga. It's considered the turning point of the war and is on the list of the 15 most decisive battles in world history. The first battle was in September of 1777 at Freeman's Farm and the 2nd battle was in October at Bemis Heights. While the Americans colonists attacked American sharpshooters made British General John Burgoyne pay dearly for every step he took and the British lost 2 men for every American.

At Bemis Heights Burgoyne attempted to break free from an colonial encirclement and decisively drive the Colonists from the battlefield, but his troops and their German allies were severely defeated, forcing them to withdraw and Burgoyne to surrender.

Benedict Arnold was wounded here. This is also what convinced France and Spain to support the Colonists.


Ah, I took too long to try to remember the details and type it up! Mielton beat me to it and stated it better.
 
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Battle of Long Island. August 1776, it was the first time an organized Army of the United States met a force of British regulars in open conflict. It was the first battle to take place after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, which had been ratified seven weeks earlier. And although exact figures are sketchy, the Battle of Long Island was the largest battle of the entire war.

Right on. :thumbup:
 
Great contest and awesome giveaway :thumbup:

The Battle of Trenton took place on December 26, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War after General George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River north of Trenton, New Jersey. The hazardous crossing in adverse weather made it possible for Washington to lead the main body of the Continental Army against Hessian soldiers garrisoned at Trenton. After a brief battle, nearly the entire Hessian force was captured, with negligible losses to the Americans. The battle significantly boosted the Continental Army's flagging morale, and inspired re-enlistments.

For the first time, Washington’s forces had defeated a regular army in the field. American losses were extremely light; only two soldiers died and those apparently from exposure, not enemy fire. The Hessians sustained more than 100 casualties and 900 of their soldiers were captured. Several hundred Hessians escaped and presumably became American farmers and tradesmen. Further, Washington gained six cannon, 40 horses and a vast array of supplies that were quickly transported to Pennsylvania.

Happy Independence day !
 
Excellent contest and very generous prize.

Battle of Lexington Green, 4/19/1775. General Gage orders the siezure of weapons in Concord and the capture of Hancock and Samuel Adams. Our militia responds and there's a shot heard round the world. The rest, as they say, is history...
 
Great contest! Thanks for hosting it.

Here's my guess. A smaller American force defeats a larger British loyalist force:

Battle of Kings Mountain, October 7, 1780, was a decisive Patriot victory in the Southern campaign of the American Revolutionary War. Frontier militia loyal to the United States overwhelmed the Loyalist American militia led by British Major Patrick Ferguson of the 71st Foot. In The Winning of the West, Theodore Roosevelt wrote of Kings Mountain, "This brilliant victory marked the turning point of the American Revolution." Thomas Jefferson called it, "The turn of the tide of success." Herbert Hoover's address at Kings Mountain said, "This is a place of inspiring memories. Here less than a thousand men, inspired by the urge of freedom, defeated a superior force intrenched in this strategic position. This small band of patriots turned back a dangerous invasion well designed to separate and dismember the united Colonies. It was a little army and a little battle, but it was of mighty portent. History has done scant justice to its significance, which rightly should place it beside Lexington, Bunker Hill, Trenton and Yorktown."
 
I wouldnt really choose any one battle. To me they were all part of one another. Just my thoughts
 
Thank you ROtte for the prize and for making us more aware of those who sacrificed before us to allow is to have the freedoms we do.

I'll point out the obvious, the Battle of Yorktown (1781) which "ended" the war.

The brittish army in the south under Gen Cormwallis were trapped between the french navy and General Washingtons forces and forced to surrender.
Much as we "love to hate" all things franco, there would not be a US of A without thier support.
 
Great contest sweet prize .I have to admit I am a war buff but not all wars have battles that come easily to mind so thanks for making me learn some more about our history and the times that made our country what is is .God Bless America and ALL the people who live here.Papers don`t make you an American the American spirit does..
I am going with Meigs Raid or The Battle of Sag Harbor, may 23 1777 a military raid starting with 130 men in rowed boats across Long Island Sound resulting in 6 british deaths and 90 captured and 12 British boats burned.The land attack took place with only one shot fired ,battle was waged with fixed bayonets.The raiders took no casualties it was the first American victory in the state of New York.
 
Man that was quick, way to go guys.

I also had a Herbert Hoover quotation in mind:

“The Battle of Kings Mountain stands out in our national memory not only because of the valor of the men of the Carolinas, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia, who trod here 150 years ago, and because of the brilliant leadership of Colonel [William] Campbell, but also because the devotion of those men revived the courage of the despondent Colonies and set a nation upon the road of final triumph in American independence” -- President Herbert Hoover @ King’s Mountain.

There is a poignant element to this battle as it was fought by insurrectionist Americans against loyalist Americans. Few British regulars were involved. The fighting was tough because of the terrain and the Loyalist side took somewhere around 30% casualties (probably many after they tried to surrender to the vengeful rebels). The battle shook General Cornwallis and helped to set up the battles of Cowpens and Yorktown.

Thanks everyone for playing, have a great 4th!

(Wildewinds: give me an e-mail address so I can get your address and ship the Shadow out to you!)
 
Ohhh, Kings Mountain was the second guess that I had in my mind, and was hesitating to do it so instead of Saratoga !!

Congratulation Wildewinds!!

I'm jealous :)
 
The battle of kemps landing

The Battle of Kemp's Landing, also known as the Skirmish of Kempsville, was a battle in the American Revolutionary War that occurred on November 15, 1775. Militia companies in Princess Anne County, Virginia, assembled at Kemp's Landing to fight the British that had gathered there under the command of Virginia's last colonial governor, John Murray, Lord Dunmore. Lord Dunmore had called in British troops to the Landing to defend a large store of gunpowder recently moved there from the nearby borough of Norfolk.

The ambush was spoiled when Hutching's inexperienced militiamen opened fire too early. Dunmore's disciplined regulars returned fire, and most of the Patriot militia scattered. A number of them that persisted in fighting were eventually captured, including Hutchings (who was captured by one of his own former slaves). Lawson escaped the immediate battle, but was captured a few days later while trying to reach North Carolina.
 
Kuruptd beat me to the Battle of Trenton, the closest thing to a perfect battle maneuver and surprise attack you'll ever see. This battle has always been one of my favorites.
 
Stupendously generous offer there Rotte and cool contest!
 
Oh holy cow! My email is wildewinds @ yahoo.com (no spaces)

Again, THANKS ROTTE! That's quite a prize and I'm very excited.
 
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