1 January 1776 A.D. Royal Navy Shells Norfolk, VA
Editors. This Day in U.S. Military History. N.d. http://thisdayinusmilhist.wordpress.com/2014/01/01/january-1/. Accessed 31 Dec 2014.
1776 – The Burning of Norfolk was an incident during the
American War of Independence. British Royal Navy ships in the harbor of
Norfolk, Virginia began shelling the town, and landing parties came ashore to
burn specific properties. The town, whose significantly Tory (Loyalist)
population had fled, was occupied by Whig (Revolutionary) forces from Virginia
and North Carolina. Although these forces worked to drive off the landing
parties, they did nothing to impede the progress of the flames, and began
burning and looting Tory properties. After three days, most of the town had
been destroyed, principally by the action of the Whig forces. The destruction
was completed by Whig forces in early February to deny use of even the remnants
to the British. Norfolk was the last significant foothold of British authority
in Virginia; after raiding Virginia’s coastal areas for a time, its last Royal
Governor, Lord Dunmore, left for good in August 1776.
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