![Phelipeau, René, Active. Taking of Savannah in De. [1778] Map. Library of Congress.](https://www.thenmusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/map6-2.jpg)
A junior artillery officer in d’Estaing’s landing party lamented the quality of the American militia but praised the bravery and discipline of the Continental regulars and of Pulaski’s cavalry.
"They never had more than 2,500 men, for the most part Carolina militia. Their artillery consisted of eight 4-pounders and one 6-pounder, but they were very well supplied. Ah, my General, what a disappointment these men are when you see them firsthand; how different they are from the impression they give us in camp! You have no idea of the disintegration of the American army. I had considered them brave until I saw them take flight, leap out of the trenches, fall on their stomachs because of a few misdirected cannon balls, even though they were under cover. I like to think that the troops from the north are better. I must, however, make an exception of two of their regiments of regular troops, amounting to 300 men at most. The Pulaski and Virginia Dragoons acquitted themselves much better. Numbering about 250 men, they are well disciplined and served very well."
2LT Francois d’Auber de PayrelongueKennedy, Benjamin (ed.) “Muskets, Cannon Balls & Bombs: Nine Narratives of the Siege of Savannah in 1779. Madison, WI: Beehive Press, 1974, p. 30.