The Battle of Brier Creek was an American Revolutionary War battle fought on March 3, 1779, near the confluence of Brier Creek with the Savannah River in eastern Georgia. An American Patriot force consisting principally of militia from North Carolina and Georgia along with some Continental Army troops were defeated by British forces, suffering significant casualties. The rout damaged Patriot morale. On February 13, General John Ashe joined up with Williamson at his post during the evening. That same night, the British forces evacuated Augusta. On February 14, Colonel Archibald Campbell withdrew his British forces from Augusta and stopped at Hudson's Ferry, located about 15 miles south of Briar Creek. Brigadier General Augustine Prevost sent some reinforcements to Hudson's Ferry with orders to stop Ashe's advance. The British plan was for Major MacPherson to occupy the south bank of the creek as a diversion. Prevost's younger brother, Lieutenant Colonel Mark Prevost, would then take a 900-man force and make a 50 mile wide circle movement towards the west and attack the American rear. Colonel Prevost decided to execute an attack plan devised by Campbell before he left. This plan involved making a large loop, crossing over Brier Creek at a bridge further north and west, and then moving south and trapping Ashe's men on the triangle of land where the creek and the river met.

On the afternoon of March 3, a rider galloped into the American camp, warning of the British approach. While the exact amount of time they had to deploy is uncertain, the relatively hurried nature of their deployment was clear. The number of troops that actually formed up was about 900, as a number of troops had been dispatched to the south for scouting, and others were on duty at the burned-out bridge. Distribution of ammunition to the men was complicated by the shortage of cartouche boxes and varying musket calibers. When the American lines were finally formed, the left side was flanked by Brier Creek, but there was a large gap on the right side, between the end of the line and the river. Most of the Patriot militia did not have bayonets. Seeing the British charging at them, many broke and ran without even firing a shot. The Edenton men fired a few rounds, and then abandoned the fight. The carnage on the American side was never fully tallied, as many militiamen retreated all the way back to North Carolina, and an unknown number drowned in the swamps. Anthony Lytle, the commander of the American light infantry, dispersed his men to avoid capture. Ashe was seen riding after the militia companies, and was widely blamed for the disaster, often amid claims that he led the retreat. A court martial acquitted him of charges of cowardice, but did convict him of failure to secure his camp.