9. Colonel Tye
Cornelius Tye proved himself a successful guerrilla leader in the summer of 1779. He led his band of black and white Loyalists in a hit-and-run campaign that terrorized and enraged the local Patriots, seizing food and provisions, destroying property, and freeing numerous slaves. It was during this period that Tye became known as Colonel Tye – an honorific bestowed upon him by the British, albeit not an actual rank.
By the winter of 1779, Colonel Tye, after distinguishing himself in combat, joined a detachment of the Black Brigade – a unit of about two dozen black Loyalists. They fought alongside the Queen’s Rangers – a white Loyalist unit that was eventually integrated by incorporating into its ranks the Black Brigade, and black Loyalists from some other units.