Gen. Leslie, with 3,000 British troops and 60 ships, invaded and fortified Portsmouth.
January 12, 1780
General Cornwallis hoped to divert attention from his push through North Carolina to Virginia by occupying Portsmouth. When the loyalists lost battles in North Carolina, Cornwallis ordered Leslie and his remaining troops to set sail and join him in Portsmouth.
Gen. Leslie, with 3,000 British troops and 60 ships, invaded and fortified Portsmouth.
January 12, 1780
General Cornwallis hoped to divert attention from his push through North Carolina to Virginia by occupying Portsmouth. When the loyalists lost battles in North Carolina, Cornwallis ordered Leslie and his remaining troops to set sail and join him in Portsmouth.