Christian Huck is a name only a writer could come up with. So, who is this guy with a name straight out of Hollywood's badboy casting? He was, in fact, a prominent Loyalist during the time of the Yankee Doodle Spies. But he was much more than that. And I am posting this on the anniversary of the day that made him famous—the day he died.
Huck the Immigrant
Christian Huck was born somewhere in Germany around 1747. His origins are pretty vague since "Germany" in the 18th century was not a nation but a region in Central Europe. By the early 1770s, he had emigrated to America and settled in Philadelphia, where he studied law. His law practice mainly dealt with real estate, a profitable yet risky business at the time. He focused on buying and selling property for cash or short-term credit, often on very favorable terms and with security. Because banks were scarce and money was tight, a lot of interesting things could happen in that field. Even George Washington himself invested in land—though that’s a story for another time. Huck became wealthy, joined the Anglican church, and clearly integrated well into society. He worked his way into Philadelphia’s upper class, many of whom were loyal to the crown and remained so throughout the war. Some of these same Philadelphians later got involved with Benedict Arnold.
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| Philadelphia was anything but the City of Brotherly Love during the time of the Yankee Doodle Spies |
Huck Goes to War
And so, our German immigrant Christian Huck (sometimes spelled Houck or even Hook) was a Loyalist and remained loyal. When the war broke out, he, along with other prominent Philadelphians, suffered for their loyalty. Harassment by the Whigs, vandalism, public humiliation, and ostracism were common. Huck’s mentor, Isaac Hunt, was paraded through town and forced to admit his Tory “misbehavior." Christian Huck stayed in Philadelphia despite these hardships. He continued working in real estate, buying and selling property. He also helped members of the Tory cause, associating with and aiding those targeted for their loyalty. When the British Army occupied Philadelphia in September 1777, Christian Huck offered his assistance and joined the army. Some might say he joined the wrong side. Because in 1778, the war intensified in its demand for retribution. That year, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court published a list of people accused of knowingly and willingly aiding the enemies of the State and the United States by joining the British Army in Philadelphia. The list included "Christian Hook, attorney at law.” Everyone on the list lost their property for committing high treason. They faced severe penalties, including all “pains and penalties.” This was not a good list to be on!
Captain Christian Huck
Huck followed the British Army when it abandoned Philadelphia and headed to New York. By June 1778, he had raised a company of thirty men for provincial duty and was granted a captain’s commission in a Provincial corps. This corps, under the command of Major Andreas Emmerick, included many men of German descent. Emmerick's corps had participated in several battles in 1777 and 1778, earning a reputation for distinguished service in the Hudson Highland Campaign, skirmishes around Kingsbridge (The Bronx), and the Battle of Monmouth. In 1778, the corps was expanded with new recruits and grew to include two troops of light dragoons, one infantry company, one rifle company, and three chasseur companies, one of which was Huck’s. Chasseurs (French for hunters) were trained to skirmish and fight in small bands.
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| Banastre Tarleton |
Huck Moves South
Soon, the corps was divided, and one light dragoon troop was assigned to Huck to attach to the British Legion under the notorious Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton. Note: Tarleton plays a cameo role in my upcoming novel, The Cavalier Spy. However, by the end of 1779, Huck’s troops were simply known as part of the British Legion. Huck took part in the infamous Battle of the Waxhaws in May 1780. He was involved in the destruction of Hill's Ironworks, an important Patriot supplier and the headquarters for Hill's Militia. The war in the South intensified in 1780. Huck became known for fighting in the Carolina backcountry. He earned the nickname “the swearing captain” because of his reputation for profanity (ach du Scheisse). He was also brutal with the Presbyterians in the region, perhaps because many of his Whig tormentors in Philadelphia were Presbyterian. Some said they reminded Huck of the rebels who had harassed him, accused him of treason, and seized his property. He certainly had reasons to seek retribution for his lost possessions. And of course, he was an Anglican. There might have been a religious reason behind his hatred. Tasked by Cornwallis with recruiting supporters for the Loyalist cause, Huck ravaged the backcountry, threatening and plundering civilians, destroying properties, and earning a reputation for cruelty for himself and his men.
Back Country Mayhem
In June 1780, Huck was sent from Rocky Mount toward Fishing Creek to disperse rebels believed to be gathering there. Along the way, he recruited 300 Loyalists and burned all the homes and plantations of known Patriots in the Catawba Valley of upper South Carolina. When he reached Fishing Creek, Huck led his men to the Presbyterian Church to seize the pastor, a known Patriot named John Simpson. When they found Simpson had fled, they torched his parsonage. Huck continued his rampage to the New Acquisition District along the North Carolina border, now York County. There, he destroyed two key rebel assets: Whites Mills on Fishing Creek and William Hill's Ironworks. The latter was a vital source of rebel cannon and ordnance. As Huck caused chaos in the backcountry, about 500 loosely organized Patriot militias responded. They launched a sweep through the woods and fields to hunt down the marauders.
Christian Huck continued his rampage and, in early July, arrived at the Bratton Plantation. Desperate to find the proprietor, Colonel William Bratton, a prominent Whig leader, Huck ordered Martha Bratton to reveal her husband’s location. At that time, Bratton was leading his militia in pursuit of Huck and other Tory bands. When Martha refused, she was threatened with a reaping hook (a fitting play on his name). Only the intervention of another Loyalist officer saved her. Note: Incivility, not to mention violence, against women of a certain status was considered particularly vile during the time of the Yankee Doodle Spies. If nothing else, this made him what the Germans call a Schlechter Knabe (Bad Boy).
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| Martha Bratton stands up to Huck's interrogation |
The Mayhem Continues, or A Woman Scorned
Undaunted, Huck moved on to the Williamson Plantation. After capturing five Whig supporters hiding in the corn crib, Huck and his officers took up quarters in the main house. His force of around 120 men set up camp nearby. Because they quickly seized the plantation, they believed there was no threat. As a result, he posted only a few guards and did not place pickets or patrols outside the perimeter. Unaware to Huck, Martha Bratton had sent a family slave named Watt to find her husband, who was with his unit on Fishing Creek. Watt told him where Huck was headed. In a double blow for Huck, a crippled spy named Joseph Kerr also found Colonel Bratton. Based on Kerr and Watt’s intelligence, Bratton planned an attack on Huck’s men.
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| Bratton's Plantation Today |
Icing the Huck
At dawn on July 12, 1780, the rebels moved against Huck’s unsuspecting encampment. There, 250 Patriots under Bratton surrounded the plantation in the cover of darkness. The few guards never saw them coming. When the Loyalist forces were awakened by the attack, Bratton's men shot them down. War in the Carolinas was brutal! Surprised by the morning assault, many of Huck’s men fled into the woods. Huck himself was shot off his horse while trying to rally his men. The Patriots tracked down and killed those of Huck’s forces that had escaped into the woods. Some reports estimate that 85 percent of the Loyalists were killed, wounded, or captured. That’s quite impressive, considering the battle lasted only a few minutes. The Patriots lost only one man killed and another wounded in the skirmish. As for Huck, he died from his wounds and was buried right there. In a final insult to the immigrant Loyalist, his body was later used as a medical skeleton.
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| Huck defeated in a battle that lasted minutes |
Defeat Significant?
In a word, yes. The Loyalists' morale in the Carolinas declined due to numerous recent losses. Many Carolinians began to see British rule as inevitable. After Huck's defeat, the fact that a Patriot militia group decisively defeated part of the British Legion rekindled the people's support for the cause. The Legion was a formidable and feared force in the Carolinas: well-led, well-equipped, and highly motivated to show no mercy. They were known as the "Huns" of their day and dominated most engagements. Therefore, the defeat of part of the Legion strengthened their resolve against British attacks and skirmishes. This shift ultimately influenced the course of the war. Over time, the British grew frustrated with their efforts to pacify the Carolinas. That frustration led Cornwallis and his troops on a long march to a place called Yorktown. But that's another story (or three). The legacy Christian Huck left behind was one of Loyalist brutality and Patriot revenge. It also highlights the intense hatred on both sides of the American struggle after five years of fighting.
