Relieve Us of This Burthen: American Prisoners of War in the Revolutionary South, 1780-1782 - Paperback

by Carl P. Borick (Author)

A revealing study of the experiences of prisoners of war during the American Revolution

Relieve Us of This Burthen is the first book-length study of Continental soldiers, officers, and militiamen held as prisoners of war by the British in the South during the American Revolution. Carl P. Borick focuses his study on the period 1780-82, when British forces most actively campaigned in the South. He makes groundbreaking use of the Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application files, which have been underutilized to understand the history of prisoners of war. Borick's careful reading of the pension files reveals much about what men went through and how they endured in captivity.

Author Biography

Carl P. Borick is the assistant director of the Charleston Museum in Charleston, South Carolina. He is the author of A Gallant Defense: The Siege of Charleston, 1780, which won the 2003 George C. Rogers Jr. Award of the South Carolina Historical Society for best book in South Carolina history.