To the Last Extremity: The Battles for Charleston, 1776-1782

June 1776: Just a month before America declared its independence from Great Britain, a British fleet of warships and thousands of British soldiers appeared off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina. After a day-long battle, the most powerful navy in the world was bloodily repulsed by the Americans.

In the spring of 1779, a British force brazenly marched from Savannah to Charleston and tested the city’s defenses before falling back. Finally, in the spring of 1780, a large British force retu...