Battle of Cowpens (1781)

The Battle of Cowpens was a tactical masterpiece and a turning point in the Southern theater of the American Revolution. General Daniel Morgan utilized a clever "double envelopment" strategy to trap and defeat the feared British Legion under Banter Tarleton. This victory boosted the morale of the Southern patriots and deprived the British of their elite light troops. The "courage and fortitude" of the American sharpshooters and Continental regulars at Cowpens set the stage for the final British retreat toward Yorktown. It remains one of the most celebrated examples of American military ingenuity in the face of superior forces.