GREENE, NATHANIEL, an American revolutionary gen., b. May 27, 1742, at Poto whommet, Warwick co., R. I. His father was a leading preacher among the Quakers, and educated his son very simply,trainiug him front childhood to work on his farm, and at his anchor-forge ant grist-mill. By his own perseverance. however, he acquired con siderable knowledge of ancient. and English history, geometry, law, and moral and political science; he was also fond of reading books upon war. In 1770, he was chosen a member of the Rhode Island assembly, and, to the great scandal of his fellow Quakers, was among the first to engage in the 'military exercises preparatory to resisting the mother-country. In 1774 he enlisted as private, and in 1775 was appointed to the command of the Rhode Island contingent to the army at Boston, with the rank of brig.gcn. He was promoted to be maj. gen. in 1775, and distinguished himself at the engagements of Trenton and Princeton. At the battle of Brandywine, he commanded a division, and by his skillful movements saved the American army from utter destruc tion; and at Germantown he commanded the left wing. In 1778 he accepted the office of quartermaster-gen. In 1780 he succeeded Gates (q.v.) in the command of the army of the south. Gates had just been completely defeated by Cornwallis, and
Greene found the army in a wretched state, without discipline, clothing, arms, or spirit. By dint of great activity, he got his army into better condition, and remained on the defensive for the remainder of the year. In 1781 he had a successful skirmish with an English detachment, but drawing upon himself the whole army of Cornwallis, much his superior in numbers, lie made a masterly and successful retreat. With 5,000 new• recruits he entered upon more active operations, and finally defeated the English at Eutaw Springs, the hardest fought field of the revolution, which put an end to the war in South Carolina. Congress struck, and presented to him, a medal in honor of this battle, and the Carolinas and Georgia made him valuable grants of land. When peace was restored in 1783 Greene returned to Rhode Island, where he received numerous testimonials of the public admiration. In 1785 he retired with his family to his estate in Georgia, where lie died of sun-stroke in 1780.
Greene was one of the very best generals of the war of independence, second, per haps, only to Washington, whose intimate friend he was.