In 1685, French King Louis XIV outlawed the practice of the “heretical” religion taught by Reformer John Calvin. Called Huguenots, these believers practiced a faith rooted in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, the study of the Bible, and the freedom to worship as one pleased. Louis ordered Frenchmen to renounce this faith and join the Catholic Church. When they refused, thousands were killed, persecuted, tortured, exiled, or forced to convert, and their property was confiscated.
A Heritage of Liberty
The Huguenots were highly skilled artisans, intellectuals, and merchants. Many fled to America, where the seeds of liberty and Christian self-government were firmly planted. They became farmers, laborers, ministers, soldiers, sailors, and people who participated in government. They supplied the colonies with excellent physicians and expert artisans and craftsmen.
Francis Marion, the grandson of Huguenots, was born in South Carolina, into a strong Protestant home, and learned the meaning of liberty firsthand. The youngest of six children, he was a “scrawny baby” with “malformed legs,” but grew strong living and working on his family’s farm.
Young Francis Begins His Career
When Francis turned 15, he sought a life as a sailor. He signed on a ship bound for the West Indies that was attacked by a whale and sank. After being adrift for several days, he was rescued. It was a close brush with death; he rejected a life at sea and committed to a career as a soldier.
His first military service came in the Cherokee War, part of the larger French and Indian War. The Indians fought using guerrilla-style tactics like surprise and concealment. Providentially prepared, Francis would later use these same tactics. Following the French and Indian War, Francis returned to South Carolina and eventually bought his own plantation.
The Revolutionary War in South Carolina
Militia groups shouldered the responsibility of carrying on the fight against the advancing British. Francis took command of a unit, leading fifty militiamen in guerrilla-style raids. Once, the unit hid in dense forest, just as the Cherokee Indians had, surprising a British encampment and rescuing 150 American prisoners. Though his force was almost always smaller, Francis used this to his advantage, making the British split their forces to search for him, always moving quicker than his opponents. He made South Carolina inhospitable for the British.
Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton, known for his speed and ruthlessness, could not find Francis, who evaded the British and eventually escaped into the swamp. Tarleton gave up the pursuit, saying, “As for this old fox, the Devil himself could not catch him.” This story traveled around the South, and Francis Marion earned the name the “Swamp Fox.”
Teach the Children America’s Christian History Family Time Talks
- What influence did the Huguenots have in America?
- What were the early influences in Francis’ life?
- How did Francis earn the name “Swamp Fox”?
