21. The Ethiopian Regiment
Despite the waves of illnesses and epidemics that devastated the British camps set up for runaway slaves, the blacks who lived were game for service. The survivors were assembled in what came to be known as Dunmore’s Ethiopian Regiment, led by white officers and sergeants. On November 15th, 1775, the new black soldiers got their first taste of combat in the small-scale Battle of Kemp’s Landing. It was a British victory over the colonial militia, during which a Patriot colonel and slaveholder were captured by a former slave.
However, the easy victory at Kemp’s Landing made Dunmore overconfident, and he became convinced that the Patriots were cowards. A few weeks later, on December 9th, 1775, the Ethiopian Regiment fought in the Battle of Great Bridge, in which the British were tricked by a double agent into making a frontal assault across a bridge. They were decisively repulsed, and the Patriot victory forced the British to evacuate Norfolk.