In the late afternoon and evening of 24 April 1981, Virginia militia regiments of Brigadier General Peter Muhlenberg's Corps of about 1,000 men marched into Petersburg in order to counter an expected attack by the invading 2,500 man British army of Major General William Philips the following day.

That evening, Major General Frederick von Steuben, the overall American commander in Virginia, ordered Muhlenberg's Corps and other gathering militia to the north side of the Appomattox River in the community of Pocahontas and onto the heights overlooking the river (now Colonial Heights) for the night.

On the morning of the 25th, von Steuben and Muhlenberg began deploying their force to defensive positions on the eastern edges of Blandford and Petersburg. Concurrently, von Steuben left Colonel Robert Goode's militia regiment of Chesterfield County and Captain Robert Bolling's company of Cavalry in Pocahontas to secure the militia's rear and provide covering fire for operations on the south of the river.

The initial British attack began at 1:00 o'clock. Around 3:00 o'clock in the afternoon, following intense fighting against overwhelming odds, von Steuben ordered a general withdrawal of the militia from Petersburg into Chesterfield County.

The Americans had held their principal defensive position along what is now Madison Street against several assaults by Phillips' overwhelming British regulars. However, with ammunition running low and British artillery battering the militia lines, von Steuben determined that his force had accomplished as much as they could to defend the town.

With British forces in close pursuit, the militia fought a vicious hand-to-hand delaying action along this waterfront while individual units crossed the narrow Pocahontas Bridge to safety. The last units across took up the bridge planks to delay the enemy's following.

Though it had withdrawn from Petersburg, the brave Virginia militia had impeded the British invasion and remained intact to fight another day.

Line of Attack

On 24 April 1781, Major General William Phillips's force of 2,500 British regulars landed at City Point, 12 miles to the east on the James River, as part of a major campaign to disrupt the American force's main line of communication through Virginia. The next morning, Phillips marched his troops along the River Road toward Petersburg. Shortly before noon, he and Brigadier General Benedict Arnold formed the line of battle in this vicinity and launched their attack on the first line of 500 Viginia miltiamen positioned to defend Petersburg one-quarterr of a mile west(east?) in Blandford.

First Line of Defense

American Brigadier General Peter Muhlenberg formed the first line of 500 Viginia here to meet the British. The line extended along East Street from the Appomattox River to present-day Washington Street and consisted of two infantry regiments. Major General William Phillips' 2,500 man army, including one Light Infantry battalion and the 76th and 80th Regiments of Foot, struck the Americans here. After several assaults and the deployment of four British cannon, the militia withdrew westward, through Blandford across Lieutenant Run, and on to Madison Stret in eastern Petersburg.

Artillery Position

Major General Friedrich von Steuben's 1,000 Virginia miltiamen, driven from the eastern edge of Blandford, established a strong defensive line along the western summit (now Mdison Street) above Lieutenant Run valley. Major General William Phillips's British force occupied this ridge from here to the Appomattox River. After several unsuccessful infantry attacks, Phillps placed four artillery pieces here and fired on the American line. Facing this threat, and with American ammunition running low, von Steuben decided that any further defense of Petersberg would be futile and ordered a general retreat toward the Pocahontas Bridge to the north.

Second Line of Defense

American Brigadier General Peter Muhlenberg's Virginia militia fell back west from Blandford, under heavy British fire,to a prepared line of defense here aling the crest of this hill. The second line of Virginia militia, consisting of four regiments of infantry, extended from the Appomattox River on the north and present-day Washington Street to the south of here. The Virginins repelled several British assaults but soon their ammunition, and after Major General Phillips unleashed his artillery, Major General Freidrich von Steuben, the overall American commander, ordered a retreat west toward the Pocahontas Bridge.

East Hill

To the west stood East Hill (Bollingbrook), home of the widow Mary Marshall Tabb Bolling. After the 25 April 1781 Battle of Petersburg, British Major General William Phillps and Brigadier General Benedict Arnold located their headquarters at the house. The Brithish reoccupied it on May 9, after returning from Richmond. The following day, Major General Lafayette shelled Petersberg, from the heights on the north bank of the Appomattox River. After becoming gravely ill,Phillips died there on 13 May. Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis marched into town on 20 May, uniting his force with Arnold's and kept his Headquarters at East Hill until he departed on 24 May. File:Lafayette at Petersburg.jpg