been inadequately braced for prolonged gunnery, and many of his guns had jumped their mounts. He returned to Boston and remained there as winter was setting in. Admiral Graves was relieved in December 1775, and these punitive raids were gradually abandoned. One of the last such raids was undertaken to avenge British military losses to the American Patriots, resulting in the burning of Norfolk on January 1, 1776 which was instigated by Lord Dunmore, the Royal Governor of the Colony of Virginia. Damage assessment More than 400 buildings and houses were recorded as damaged or destroyed by fire. In his report to Graves, Mowat stated that 11 small vessels were destroyed in the harbor and four were captured, at the cost of one man killed and one wounded. The people were left to fend for themselves for the winter. A visitor to the town a month later reported that there was "no lodging, eating or housekeeping in Falmouth". On October 26, the town formed a committee to raise funds for the distressed families. More than 1,000 people had been left homeless by the raid, including at least 160 families out of an estimated population of 2,500. The Massachusetts Provincial Congress authorized £250 to be paid to the distressed families, and arranged for the distribution of up to 15 bushels of corn to those left destitute. As late as 1779, additional grants were made to needy families in Falmouth. In 1784, the residents of Falmouth built over 40 homes and 10 shops. By 1797, over 400 homes had been built or rebuilt, along with factories, offices, and municipal buildings. The town of Falmouth accounted losses in the raid at over £50,000. Part of the Falmouth Neck was politically separated in 1786 to form the city of Portland, Maine, but significant recompense was not made until 1791, when Congress granted two tracts of land as compensation. These tracts became the towns of New Portland, Maine and Freeman. Political reaction News of the raid caused uproar in the colonies, fueled by its cruelty. Mowat was denounced as a monster in the Patriot press. The New-England Chronicle argued that "The savage and brutal barbarity of our enemies" proved that Britain was "fully determined with fire and sword, to butcher and destroy, beggar and enslave the whole American people." George Washington was briefed on the attack whilst at headquarters in Cambridge. In a letter to