CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WVEC) -- They were merchants, farmers and residents of our area who did something revolutionary. They picked up arms and took on the mightiest army in the world.
The Battle of Great Bridge was a tremendous victory for Virginia patriots over British forces on Dec. 9, 1775.
"It was a game changer," said Mike Cicere, the leader of the 7th Virginia Regiment, a group of Revolutionary War reenactors.
It was the third battle in a series of local skirmishes between the British and area militias.
In the first skirmish, The Battle of Hampton, British forces attacked Virginians along the Hampton River at a time when patriots started expressing displeasure against British rule. The Virginians ended up defeating the British by hiding in woods and shooting at British boats. They captured a boat and some British troops. It was the first time the local militias really started to believe that they could take on England.
Then came the Battle of Kemps Landing, which is now the Kempsville section of Virginia Beach. The British wanted to quell the Virginians' rising tide of independence. They doubled their forces and delivered a crushing defeat to the patriots. It was the first time a Virginian died for what became the revolutionary cause.
After that, came the Battle of Great Bridge. Virginians and North Carolinians had worked together to turn our area, in particular the Port of Norfolk, into a major storage area for supplies to equip General George Washington's army in their fight against the British up north. British troops were sent in to bomb the port and to, once again, crush the patriots.
Instead, at the Battle of Great Bridge, the locals withstood their charge with more men and more arms and fire power. In between 62 to 102 British troops were killed or wounded. Those who survived retreated back to their ships and out of the area.
The Declaration of Independence was signed just about seven months later.
The 7th Virginia Regiment has spent the last few months bringing all three of these battles to life for Hampton Roads residents.
One of those reenactors is 11-year-old Thomas Sasso. He feels he and his group are doing something important for modern-day crowds that come out and see them.
"It's important to know what your country did to get you here," Thomas said. "A bunch of brave men fighting."
"They drove the British from the South," Thomas said. "If this battle were not won, the southern states would not have been able to help George Washington fight in the North."
As part of the reenactments, a narrator speaks to the crowd, answers questions and gives historical context.
"It was so important," he said. "We don't know what would've happened if he (Washington) didn't have the supply chain."
"That's why it's called by historians the Bunker Hill of the South because it was a decisive battle that affected the whole thing," he said.
As for Thomas, he feels educating about the past will help equip kids in the crowd with valuable knowledge and pride as they grow up and deal with our future.
"I think I'm teaching them a lot about the American Revolution," Thomas said. "I just feel good about it."
