Who was Abraham Buford?

Abraham Buford (July 21, 1747-June 30, 1833) was a Continental Army officer during the American Revolutionary War, most known as commanding officer during the "Waxhaw Massacre".

Born in Culpeper County, Virginia, Buford quickly organized a company of minutemen upon the outbreak of war in 1775, eventually rising to the rank of colonel by May 1778. Assuming command of the 11th Virginia Regiment in September, he would be assigned to the 3rd Virginia Regiment in April 1780 and sent south to relieve the British siege of Charleston, South Carolina.

Forced to withdraw following the surrender of Charleston on May 12, the 3rd Virginia Continentals were trapped on May 29 by British and American Loyalist forces under Col. Banastre Tarleton who demanded Buford's surrender. When Buford refused, Tarleton ordered an assault in which Buford's forces suffered casualties so severe, American forces were forced to surrender. However, British/Loyalist forces continued their attack against the routed American force as many soldiers were bayoneted to death as they attempted to surrender (resulting in the incident known as the "Waxhaw Massacre" or "Buford's Massacre"). From that time onward, "Tarleton's Quarter" (meaning give no quarter) was an American battle cry in the Southern Theatre.

The British claimed that an American militiaman fired at Tarleton after the Americans had signalled surrender, using that as an excuse for the ensuing slaughter. Escaping on horseback with his remaining men, Buford was not found culpable for the action and continued to serve as an officer in the Continental Army through the Battle of Yorktown. He eventually settle in the Bluegrass region of Kentucky on military bounty lands in excess of several thousand acres where he helped found that state's race-horsing industry and where he lived until his death at his home which he called "Richland" (National Register of Historic Places) in Scott County, Kentucky on June 30, 1833.

On Flag Day, June 14, 2006, descendants of Lt. Col. Banastre Tarleton returned Col. Buford's regimental flags taken at the Waxhaw Massacre to the United States and sold them at Sotheby's New York for over $5,000,000 (US).

His relations were US Generals John Buford; Napoleon Bonoparte Buford; and CS General Abraham Buford