came to the fore that demanded Tryon’s ab-
solute attention.
The British government still desired an in-
creased flow of revenue from the colonies,
and in 1773 Parliament enacted the Tea Act.
The result was another wave of colonial bel-
ligerence. By 1774, Tryon had been recalled to
Great Britain for consultation, and he strongly
advised moderation and restraint in the mat-
ter of colonial revenue. However, by the time
he returned in April 1775, the American Revo-
lution had commenced in Boston, and he
began agitating for strong military action
against the rebels. This stridency led to
threats of violence against him; fearing for his
safety, Tryon withdrew to a British ship in
New York Harbor, where he maintained a gov-
ernment-in-exile for nearly a year.
In the summer of 1776, British forces
under Gen. William Howerecaptured New
York City, and Tryon came ashore. However,
because Howe had assumed civilian author-
ity, Tryon spent his time organizing and train-
ing Loyalist forces. In April 1777, he was au-
thorized to lead a large raid against
Waterbury, Connecticut, which burned 40
buildings and captured large quantities of
stores. Thereafter, quick, successful raids be-
came something a personal trademark, and
on one occasion he nearly captured Gen. Is-
rael Putnam. Then, Tryon was promoted to
major general of local forces and adopted an
officially sponsored strategy of depredatory
excursions, whereby numerous towns were
attacked and put to the torch. In July 1779,
the former governor gained even greater no-
toriety when he launched a successful raid
along the Connecticut coast that stormed
New Haven, East Haven, Fairfield, Green’s
Farm, and Norwalk, inflicting considerable
damage. But these activities, competently ex-
ecuted and harmful to the United States, did
not materially change the outcome of fighting
in the north. Furthermore, Tryon exchanged
his previously sterling reputation as an ad-
ministrator for that of a villain. His very ruth-
lessness became a rallying point for greater
resistance to British rule.
In 1780, illness required the former gover-
nor to return to England, where he would live
the rest of his life in relative luxury. Tryon
died in London on January 27, 1788, a onetime
voice of political moderation turned by neces-
sity into an iron fist of military vengeance.
Gen. Henry Clinton, Howe’s successor, is
known to have privately disagreed with his re-
taliatory policy for the inevitable resentment
it generated.Bibliography
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Ekirch, A. Roger. “Poor Carolina”: Politics and So-
ciety in Colonial North Carolina, 1729–1776.
Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press,
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ton.” American History Illustrated 21, no. 10
(1987): 8–12; Henner, Solomon. “The Career of
William Tryon as Governor of the Providence of
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Lower Cape Fear.” North Carolina Historical Re-
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The Lost Battle of Alamace, Also Known as the
Battle of Clapp’s Mill.N.p., 1993.TRYON, WILLIAM