When British troops occupied Rebecca Brewton Motte’s home during the Revolutionary War, Patriot leaders faced a grim military reality: To force the British to surrender, the Patriot army would need to set fire to Motte’s house.
Motte’s response became legend.
“Oh, burn it,” she reportedly told them, according to historical accounts. “I will watch it with delight.”
That moment of sacrifice sits at the heart of actor Chris Weatherhead’s portrayal of Motte during Greenville Chautauqua’s admission-free History Comes Alive Festival, where historical figures are brought to life through solo performances.
This year’s festival, June 12-23, celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence with the theme of “Revolutionary Americans.”
Other featured figures — each transformative in his or her own way — include:
- Captain Henry Felder — South Carolina patriot and militia leader who authored an early Declaration of Separation from Britain.
- Edgar Allan Poe — Influential writer and pioneer of detective fiction and gothic literature.
- Mother Jones — Labor activist who fought for workers’ rights and against child labor.
- Paul Robeson — Renowned singer/actor, athlete, and civil rights advocate.
Weatherhead, co-founder of Actors Theatre of South Carolina, has spent 14 years researching and portraying Motte, the South Carolina Patriot remembered for agreeing to sacrifice her Congaree River home — later called Fort Motte — to help force a British surrender.
“She would probably say, ‘I just did what any freedom-fighting woman would have done,’” Weatherhead said in a recent interview. “But people really respect her willingness to sacrifice her house.”
Weatherhead’s husband, Clarence Felder, performs as his own ancestor, Captain Henry Felder, an important if perhaps little-known South Carolina Patriot leader.
Historical detective
For Weatherhead, portraying Motte has become something of a historical detective project. Since first developing the role in 2013, she has immersed herself in letters, military accounts and historical scholarship, piecing together details of a woman whose own voice survives mostly through the observations of others.
“I try to stay with what I feel was really accurate,” she said.
Motte, born into a prominent Charleston family, emerged as an important Patriot supporter during the war. By 1781, British troops had fortified her inland home, strategically positioned along military supply routes. When Patriot commanders Francis Marion and Henry “Light-Horse Harry” Lee sought to reclaim the position, Motte supported a risky plan to set fire to the roof and force the British surrender.
The story has made Motte one of South Carolina’s better-known Revolutionary War figures, though Weatherhead believes many people still know little about her life beyond that defining moment.
“She was very, very smart,” Weatherhead said. “I believe she largely educated herself.”
At Chautauqua, Weatherhead’s performance will place audiences face-to-face with Motte herself, blending scholarship and theater to illuminate a turbulent chapter of South Carolina history.
“This was war,” Weatherhead said. “There’s a lot that we know, and a lot we’re still trying to understand.”
At Chautauqua, audiences will encounter Motte not as a textbook figure but as a woman confronting an impossible wartime choice.
Following are the free Chautauqua performances in Greenville. Other performances take place in Spartanburg, Abbeville, Liberty, and Brevard. (For a full list of performances, visit HistoryComesAlive.org or call 864-244-1499.)
June 12, 7:30 p.m.: Edgar Allan Poe (Greenville Tech, bring lawn seating)
June 13, 2 p.m.: Mother Jones (Hartness Performing Arts Center on the Christ Church School Campus)
June 13, 7:30 p.m.: Captain Henry Felder (Greenville Tech, bring lawn seating)
June 14, 2 p.m.: Rebecca Motte (Hartness Performing Arts Center on the Christ Church School Campus)
June 14, 7:30 p.m.: Paul Robeson (Greenville Tech, bring lawn seating)
June 15, 10 a.m.: Discussion: Edgar Allan Poe, Senior Action, 3715 E. North St.
June 15, 7:30 p.m.: Mother Jones (Greenville Tech, bring lawn seating)
June 16, 10 a.m.: Discussion: Captain Henry Felder (Senior Action, 3715 E. North St.)
June 16, 11:30 a.m.: Edgar Allan Poe (Centre Stage, 501 River St.)
June 16, 7:30 p.m.: Rebecca Motte (Greenville Tech, bring lawn seating)
June 17, 10 a.m.: Discussion: Mother Jones (Senior Action, 3715 E. North St.)
June 18, 10 a.m.: Discussion: Paul Robeson (Senior Action, 3715 E. North St.)
June 19, 10 a.m.: Discussion: Rebecca Motte (Senior Action, 3715 E. North St.)
June 20, 2 p.m.: Paul Robeson (Hartness Performing Arts Center on the Christ Church School Campus)
June 21, 2 p.m.: Captain Henry Felder (Hartness Performing Arts Center on the Christ Church School Campus)
