Exploring Natures Agency: An Environmental Study of the Campaign for Savannah from 1778-1779

The fight for Savannah during the American Revolution included two major operations: the British amphibious assault against the American defenses and the failed Franco-American siege and assault on the British defenses. This monograph explores how natural forces directly contributed to commanders' sensemaking throughout the campaign. Analyzing the sea, the terrain, and disease as actors in the campaign shows that nature did not just provide a stage for the fight to occur, but took part in the fight itself. Natural forces did not take a side; the sea, the terrain, and disease did not favor the British, Americans, or French, but each contributed into the complex system that is warfare. The way that each commander viewed himself in relation to nature directly affected the decisions that they made and the outcome of the engagements.