Burning of Norfolk

The Burning of Norfolk on January 1, 1776 destroyed what had been the largest and most prosperous town in colonial Virginia — a deliberate act of destruction that hardened Virginian resistance to British rule. Following his defeat at Great Bridge in December 1775, Lord Dunmore withdrew to his fleet and on New Year's Day opened a naval bombardment of Norfolk.

The bombardment started fires along the waterfront. American forces, ordered to prevent the buildings from providing shelter to Dunmore's troops, then torched the remaining structures. The combined British naval action and American burning reduced Norfolk to ashes. Thousands of residents were left homeless. The commercial center of Tidewater Virginia was obliterated.

The destruction of Norfolk achieved nothing of lasting military value for either side, but its political consequences were significant. The burning hardened Virginia opinion against any possibility of reconciliation with Britain. Men who had been moderates — who had hoped for a negotiated settlement — became committed revolutionaries when they saw the smoking ruins of Virginia's greatest city. Norfolk's destruction was cited alongside the Burning of Falmouth and other British atrocities as evidence that Britain's war was against the American people, not merely against rebel leaders.