Including Florence or Excluding Florence?
So you mean by Florenxe the area occupied by Republic of Florence?
Un Dios, Un Imperio, Un Rey | Alternate TL.
- Thread starter Paladín Wulfen
- Start date
So you mean by Florenxe the area occupied by Republic of Florence?
I never thought I would see a Spanish Louisiana with a strong Gypsy influence.
If it's interesting, by 1800 the population of Spanish Louisiana was 50,000.
In one camp alone there are about 45,000 gypsies.
By 1800 the population of Louisiana could reach close to 200,000 if we are optimistic.
Another point with Alta California more populated, much more populated to say. I can say that the Spaniards can get the whole west coast of the continent
If it's interesting, by 1800 the population of Spanish Louisiana was 50,000.
In one camp alone there are about 45,000 gypsies.
By 1800 the population of Louisiana could reach close to 200,000 if we are optimistic.
Another point with Alta California more populated, much more populated to say. I can say that the Spaniards can get the whole west coast of the continent
"Blaming the gypsies, many castillans rob"
can be a better translation, even if not accurate.
I'm very curious about what will happen now that the roots of the blues and the flamenco will share the geography.
What is the relation of the gypsies with the white settlers ? and will there be further waves of colonists , non gypsies to louisiana ?
Marruecos is basically Marroco and Argel.
New Spain like OTL but Alta California more populate.
Angola and Mozambique for moment don't are under a virroyalty, they are more Captain generals
I am thinking ask if someone can do a good see map.
«A cuenta de los gitanos, roban muchos castellanos.».Following the last battle in the French and Indian War in North America, the Battle of Signal Hill in September 1762, which confirmed British control of Canada. King Louis XV of France proposed to King Charles II of Spain that France should give Spain "the country known as Louisiana, as well as New Orleans and the island on which the city is located." Because Spain acted slowly, it allowed cities like San Luis to be founded but in April 1764, the news came from the mouth of Jean-Jacques Blaise d'Abbadie, the 1st Spanish governor of Louisiana of French origin. The reactions of the elite of New Orleans together with colonists of French origin were hostile to the point that Governor d'Abbadie was assassinated by five musket shots less than twenty meters away and a rudimentary grenade that exploded just five meters away. In response to the attack, the main French officials would end up declaring the Creole Republic of Louisiana. Logically, the Spanish response only took six months to arrive, six months which was the time to choose a commander, number of troops, supplies and personnel along with allocating transport and escort ships. The person in charge of leading the response to such an attack against a Spanish official was the Spanish general of Irish origin Alexander (Alejandro) O'Reilly, who fought for the Catholic armies of France and Spain against the armies of European Protestants, who went to New Orleans with 23 ships, loaded with 46 field guns, 150,000 pesos and almost 3,000 soldiers. O'Reilly decided to meet with a representative to reach a diplomatic solution. The representative was the Attorney General Nicolás Chauvin de La Frénière who came riding on a white horse. The meeting could be described as short: The Criollos sought to return to being a colony of the King of France even when he refused to do so, even urging them to accept Spanish control, more protective and close.
«On account of the gypsies, they steal many Castilians.».
— Attributed to Popular Saying.
Faced with refusals, Le Frénière returned to New Orleans promising an Alesian resistance. It would only take O'Reilly ten hours to take New Orleans, eight of which was a foot march and 45 minutes of gunfights and fights and the rest was the three thousand soldiers breaking into houses and buildings to get people out and round them up. in the square. In an agony of sick fear, O'Reilly, in the absence of an official executioner, would end up sentenced to be shot for a hundred convicted of rebellion and murder. A volley of muskets exploded in the still air, prompting wails and curses from the French before Antonio de Ulloa y de la Torre-Giralt, the second Spanish governor of Louisiana, arrived several days later. Faced with the scarcity of population in Louisiana, Zenón de Somodevilla y Bengoechea, I Marquis of Ensenada, a prominent Spanish statesman and enlightened politician who then held the position of Secretary of War, Navy and Indies, suggested the idea of getting rid of the entire gypsy population. from Spain while populating Louisiana. The gypsies were absolutely despised by the Spanish nobility seeing them as people who refractory to all religious ideas and practices, as public thieves and highway robbers; their women entered the towns, some under the pretext of begging, others under the guise of looking at the scratches on their hands and saying good fortune, to swindle and steal; their sexual morality was null: the old women dedicated themselves to prostitution and tricked the maidens out of their parents' houses, taking them in gangs, where many adapted to their licentious life. They only entered the temples to desecrate them and take refuge in the insurance of their enclosure in order to enjoy the product of their larceny, while the men lived by looting and robbery in the rural regions or wandering around, being considered "lazy", violators of the Christian precepts when marrying between congeners, to which must be added the accusations of sorcery, cannibalism and kidnapping of children.
Ensenada's plan consisted of the mass arrest of the gypsies to "take them out of Spain and send them divided in small numbers to the province of Louisiana, where they would be given the opportunity to contribute to the Empire." It was not difficult to obtain the approval of the King in such a task, so Ensenada launched a great operation carefully prepared as evidenced by a document that the Marquis delivered to the King. To achieve the objective of achieving the “extinction of the gypsies”, it was said in the paper, “it is necessary to know the towns in which they are and in what number. Prison must be on the same day and at the same time. Before, the retreat points must be recognized in order to place troops on them. The officers who command the parties must be chosen for trust and secrecy, in which the achievement consists and the fact that the gypsies do not take revenge on the poor countrymen, in case they manage to escape». The organization was carried out in secret, within the scope of the War Office. This institution of the absolutist State prepared very detailed instructions for each city, which had to be delivered to the corregidor by an army officer sent for that purpose. The order was to open these instructions on a certain day, with the corregidor and the officer present, in order to achieve simultaneity in the operation. Specific instructions were also prepared for each officer, who would be in charge of the troops that were to carry out the arrest. Neither the officer nor the troops knew until the last moment the objective of their mission. Both orders were placed in an envelope, to which was added a copy of the nuncio's decree and instructions for the bishops of each diocese. These envelopes were sent to the captains general, previously informed, who chose the troops based on the city to which they had to go. The instructions stipulated that, after opening the envelopes, a brief coordination meeting of the army and local law enforcement would be held.
In large cities, the operation was studied at the city level, blocking the streets to prevent a possible escape. After the arrests, the data of the detainees was crossed with that of the city census and the detainees were questioned about the whereabouts of the absentees, who were arrested by search a few days later. After the arrest, according to the plan, the gypsies would be interned in concentration centers set up to house them. The most famous would be the General Camp of Santiago de Gibraltar that came to house up to 45,000 gypsies from all over southern Spain. The military commanders, the corregidores and the local justices opened the sheets containing the instructions on July 30, 1749, following the orders received to do so "not before, nor after". Once the parties were formed with the instructions and the lists of the people on whom action was to be taken, the operation began at twelve o'clock at night on July 30, 1766, at which time all the gypsies and gypsies to lead them until further notice, to the planned places of confinement. It was the beginning of what would be known as the "Great Gypsy Migration" in the days after thousands of gypsies of all ages were taken from their homes or their settlements. In general, they only offered resistance when the families met with hostility the intrusion of the soldiers. The most serious incidents occurred in the churches when the gypsies tried to take refuge in asylum as they had done on other occasions, unaware that the Pope had annulled that right. On occasions the authorities had difficulties in determining whether this or that person was a “gypsy”, committing arbitrariness such as considering “gypsies” those who work in the trades of blacksmithing and locksmithing. The meticulous organization of the arrests allowed thousands of people to end up being transported to America in the space of three months.
The arrival in New Orleans of ships loaded with gypsies caused conflicts to break out soon, but the Spanish authorities welcomed them. The clash between an aggressive expulsion and a warm and friendly welcome left the gypsies baffled. New Orleans would eventually become home to hundreds of Gypsies while thousands more were granted land grants in the Louisiana Territories. New Orleans grew from a sleepy major city primarily as an administrative center, its original Francophile inhabitants quickly outnumbered by the influx of new immigrants from the mainland. However, although many of the families were eager and willing to go and settle in their new lands, like the many Scottish and English immigrants arriving from England, they faced great obstacles. Although the French had owned much of the land, what they didn't tell the Spanish when they handed over this land was that much of it was very untamed, and in many places, control was entirely theoretical. French ministers were willing to swallow their pride and offer these lands to their Spanish cousins if they could avoid further British control in North America, but they were more than willing to omit these details, and many gypsy families received an unpleasant shock when the unexpected native resistance revealed itself. They had assumed that they had been granted land under the impression that they were already under control, but in reality they would end up finding untamed terrain and an angry local population that had long ago learned to hate and fear the White Man. Far from being the virgin and untamed paradise only waiting to be cultivated by European settlers, as Spanish officials in New Orleans had said. The settlers discovered that their new home was filled with extreme tropical or desert environments and disease.
Even the toughest of the Last Conquerors: Spanish settlers, could not hope to go out alone to the frontier and survive, so for the first few years it seemed that privileged companies, rather than free settlers, would dominate Spanish Louisiana. But if there are two traits that Gypsies and Spaniards share, it is their immense stubbornness and their ability to improvise in difficult situations. For the gypsies, there was nothing to return home to, nor any ability to do so. Either they would conquer this new land, or they would die, there was nothing in between. Soon caravans of ox-drawn wagons began pouring out of New Orleans ready to tame the frontier with their bare hands and build something for themselves. Unlike other countries and cultures, the Roma valued a strong sense of community and hospitality towards each other, one that can often turn into xenophobia but is based on strong ties with their family and locality. Now stranded in a strange land, many found that the best way to survive was to strengthen these bonds and stick together, parting as groups. Although many new groups (usually consisting of several young families) formed and founded successful settlements, often citizens of a city or town on the mainland who had largely been deported to the colonies would find and build on their pre-existing community, selling your scattered lands to buy more land around an area. and traveling together armed to the teeth to build a new version of their old community. Traveling primarily by ox-drawn carts and mounted horsemen at first and later with military surplus cannon, who could house their families and supplies as they travelled, these groups often resembled an armed military column rather than a random group of colonists.
A Señor de las Praderas with his loyal friend... The Chucho.
Upon reaching the land they had purchased, they quickly assembled their transports and used them as temporary homes and squared off the wagons while the gaps were covered with wooden palisades to protect against the hostile elements, using them as the core of their new settlements. before dismantling them or putting them into service in the local militias of the city once they had time to build more suitable houses and accommodations. From there, they would use their new city as a base of operations from which to subjugate the local native population with their superior firepower, using their ability to retreat behind their fortifications and call in support from other communities and the newly arrived Dragones de Cuera whenever they faced overwhelming resistance to avoid loss and secure their control. This strategy would be extremely successful and largely responsible for much of the rapid expansion and settlement of Louisiana. The situation meant that traits of gypsy culture were soon adopted, such as friendship with other communities, the siege mentality always ready to defend itself, even a culture of marriages between families. Slowly, indirectly, a series of underground kingdoms would end up being formed where powerful gypsy families ended up controlling the gypsy communities of their region. The most important men were an idolized figure in gypsy myth, a born horseman, cattle/slave driver and warrior who rose from poverty to become a "Señor de las praderas". He owns perhaps a ranch or farm, and leads the community due to his natural leadership, fighting when necessary against the Indians, in exchange for sharing the spoils with his subordinates and treating them with respect. The Gypsies see these figures as natural leaders. Well, many families proudly consider themselves gypsies, while adopting many of the trappings of the upper class at home, and respect authority immensely even while maintaining a strong independent spirit.
It is common for weddings to last up to an average of a week and to be more of a family reunion of hundreds that usually takes a whole town to make room, but it contributes to the economy, formalization of deals, even settling grudges such as duels with knives or manhood competitions. The warrior mentality touches all aspects of their society and defending the family is mandatory, and despite traditional gender roles, even women are expected to know how to shoot and ride, and serve in the fight, something that has led to relatively greater egalitarianism between the genders within Louisiana, although it is still very traditional in this regard overall, just less so than on the mainland. It is a people of contradictions, at once proudly lower class and aristocratic, fiercely independent and strongly respectful of authority, egalitarian and diverse among whites, and fiercely racist and oppressive towards indigenous people and Africans. It would be unthinkable to leave a gypsy experiencing difficult times on the streets when the community could help him, but it would be equally unthinkable to extend any kind of rights to the indigenous or slave population, the subjugation and protection on which these communities were built in the first place. place. Many of the recreational activities are based on gypsy culture, such as palm reading, flamenco dancing with singing, and even cajoling women.
1st. Like everyone the Gipsy can be see like thieves or witches, but the necessary of people do wonders.
2nd. Yes.
La Chispa de la Revolucion.
«Como los gobiernos de Nueva Inglaterra están en estado de rebelión, solo la lucha permitirá decidir si han de permanecer sujetos al país o hacerse independientes».
«As the governments of New England are in a state of rebellion , only the struggle will allow them to decide if they have to remain subject to the country or become independent».
— Attributed to Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford.
The end of the French-Indian War (1754-63), included in the Seven Years' War (1756-63), which ended with the Treaty of Paris of 1763, had the consequences of the end of the French threat to the colonies British. Colonial assemblies whose members were elected by ballot hoped that London would withdraw the important military presence that filled the colonies thanks to the performance of the provincial regiments and the unified rangers under the command of the Commonwealth of America. However, although the war in America was victorious, for the English it was disastrous. Public debt threatened to bankrupt public finances. London and Paris reacted by raising taxes enormously. The difference was that Great Britain applied them to the North American colonists and France, having lost its colonies, had to tax the lives of its citizens. The dissatisfaction with the rise in taxes grew in the settlers in an important way. In February 1763, as the war drew to a close, UK Prime Minister John Stuart, Earl of Bute decided to keep an army of 10,000 British regulars standing in the colonies. Shortly thereafter, George Grenville succeeded Stuart and supported his predecessor's policy, even more so after the outbreak of Pontiac's Rebellion in May 1763. Greenville faced the problem not only of paying the troops, but of paying the public debt. The debt increased from £75,000,000 before the war to £122,600,000 in January 1763, and to over £800,000,000 by early 1764. English taxpayers paid 25 shillings (£0.75) at 6 pence (£0.06) from an American, the king's prime minister, Grenville, felt it was time to share the tax burden more evenly. Grenville did not expect the colonies to contribute to the payment of the debt, but he did expect that a part of the defense expenses would be paid by the Americans.«As the governments of New England are in a state of rebellion , only the struggle will allow them to decide if they have to remain subject to the country or become independent».
— Attributed to Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford.
The Right Hon. George Grenville
Estimating the expenses of maintaining an army in the mainland colonies and the West Indies to be approximately £200,000 per year, the Greenville levy program scheduled an estimated income of £78,000 per year. The Sugar Act was passed by Parliament on April 5, 1764, and reached the colonies at a time of economic depression. It was an indirect tax, although the colonists were well informed of its existence. In large part, this was because a significant portion of the colonial economy during the Seven Years' War was involved in providing food and other supplies to the British Army; however, settlers, especially those directly affected as merchants and shippers, assumed that the new tax program was the main culprit. Protests against the Sugar Act began and it was clear that the main focus of Americans' attention was the economic impact of the measure, rather than the constitutional issue of paying taxes without political representation. The protests against the Sugar Law were actually directed against administrative provisions intended to control evasion. The act was a typical tough collection measure that treated every merchant as a liar. A multitude of regulations affected all importers, even small coastal vessels, and any breach warranted seizure of the vessel, as well as all cargo. Even the personal luggage of sailors was confiscated if the contents were not included in customs declarations. The Sugar Law caught more innocents than guilty. The revenues from the Sugar Act did not bring much relief to British taxpayers in the metropolis. In 1765 there were serious riots in Great Britain. After harassing excise collectors, cider taxes were abolished. Seeking new revenue, the wealthy and lightly taxed colonies attracted the attention of the British government.
The prime minister asked Parliament if any member questioned the crown's right to tax colonists. There were no dissidents. He then asked if the colonies would refuse to "contribute in one trifle to relieve us of the heavy burdens under which we find ourselves." A year later, new laws emerged: the Stamp Act of 1765, which was a direct and specific tax for the Thirteen Colonies of British America that required that most of the materials printed in the colonies be published on paper stamped and produced in London , stamped with an embossed tax stamp. These printed materials were legal documents, magazines, newspapers, and many other types of paper used throughout the colonies. Like previous taxes, the stamp duty had to be paid in valid British currency, not colonial paper money. The purpose of the tax was to help pay for troops stationed in North America after Britain's victory in the Seven Years' War and to control the growing freedom of the press in the colonies. The Stamp Act was abolished and there was rejoicing in the colonies. British merchants in England opposed the Stamp Act as much as the colonists. Abolition was a victory for all except the treasury and the cabinet. At the same time, the Quartering Act of 1765, which was a tax in disguise, was tolerated, except in New York, which had the largest number of British soldiers. The law was decidedly unfair and placed an undue burden on New Yorkers, who refused to provide all the necessities for the troops. The order was to house them first in barracks and public houses and then directly in homes. It was the duty of the local legislatures to finance the expenses. Most colonial legislatures agreed to the new law, although spending to finance the troops was seen as a tax. In January 1766 the New York Assembly refused to collect the money.
New York was the main port of arrival and departure for the soldiers and the burden to finance housing was heavier for them than for any other Assembly. An enraged Parliament suspended the New York legislature and nullified its future laws. A tough mood was created. Dr. Samuel Johnson, a leading intellectual, said: "They are a race of convicts and they should be thankful for anything we allow them to do other than hang them." But in 1667, the Townshend Laws came into being: a series of laws establishing new import duties on British goods including paint, paper, lead, glass, and tea. They use the proceeds to maintain British troops in America and to pay the salaries of some royal officials such as royal judges who were appointed to work in the American colonies, at the same time a decrease in the strength of the colony was proposed. In order to achieve this, the customs service was strengthened, establishing a commissioners' office in Boston. The reaction was so violent in Boston that in July 1768, the customs commissioners asked General Gage to send troops to help the officials in carrying out their mission. The rebellion against this law came from colonial merchants, who boycotted British goods. In Britain many businesses went bankrupt, many shipping companies went bankrupt and there was unemployment. England's response was to increase the presence of British troops in the Thirteen Colonies. The colonists rebuked the English troops, giving rise to the event known as the "Boston Massacre". This episode ended with the death of 50 American protesters. As a result of the tension produced between colonists and metropolis, London had no alternative but to abolish the taxes, except for a small tax on tea, reduced from 12 pence to 3 pence per pound of tea.
Tensions rose in Boston in the early 1770s. More than 2,000 British soldiers were stationed in the city of 16,000 settlers and attempted to enforce Britain's tax laws such as the Stamp Act and the Townshend Acts. American settlers rebelled against taxes they found repressive and rallied around the cry: “no taxes without representation”. Skirmishes between settlers and soldiers, and between patriotic settlers and settlers loyal to Britain, were becoming more common. To protest taxes, patriots often vandalized shops selling British goods and intimidated shopkeepers and their customers. On February 22, a mob of patriots attacked a store owned by a known loyalist. Customs officer Ebenezer Richardson lived near the store and tried to divide the crowd by throwing stones through the window of his house. One of the stones struck and killed an 11-year-old boy named Christopher Seider and further infuriated the patriots. Several days later, a fight broke out between local workers and British soldiers. It ended without bloodshed, but it helped set the stage for the bloody incident that was yet to come. On the cold, snowy afternoon of March 5, 1770, Private Hugh White was the only soldier guarding the Royal Custom House on King Street. A young apprentice to a wig maker named Edward Garrick, approached a Customs House officer requesting a payment from his master. When the apprentice, being ignored, became noisy in demanding him, the British soldier pulled the young man out of the building and struck him with the wooden butt of his musket. Garrick, furious, returned with a group of angry colonists and pelted White with snowballs, ice, and garbage, while hurling insults at him.
The uproar brought out the watch officer, Captain Thomas Preston, who came to White's aid with a corporal and a group of 8 soldiers from the 29th. The crowd grew in size and continued to pelt the British soldiers with stones, wood and ice. Amid the confusion, Captain Preston's "do not fire" order was heard. One of the servicemen, PFC Hugh Montgomery, fell to the ground from a blow, causing him to “accidentally” fire his musket into the air. The other soldiers panicked and opened fire on the crowd. Among those there were soldiers from the provincial regiments attached to the Commonwealth of America, who tried to make peace by separating the protesters and the regulars using their own sticks or muskets. Logically, lacking uniforms or identification, the regulars confused the Provincial Regimental Soldiers with civilian citizens. Fifty people died, the three settlers Samuel Gray, James Caldwell and the mulatto Crispus Attucks, would die instantly and two others, Samuel Maverick the next day from his wounds and Patrick Carr a week later. Provincial soldiers of the 1st Massachusetts Regiment would end up attacking the 29th's barracks in what became known as the Boston Riots. As a result, Parliament would order the dissolution of the Commonwealth of America and the disarmament of the militias, this would only further alienate the settlers from London. This would be further provoked on July 9, 1772 when Lieutenant William Dudingston commanding the schooner Gaspee in Rhode Island's Narragansett Bay to force customs service and mandatory cargo inspection, became more aggressive in his searches, shipments and seizures, even arresting merchants on the coast and forcing searches for their merchandise. On June 9, the Gaspee pursued the packet ship Hannah, but the Gaspee ran aground in shallow water on the northwest side of the bay and the crew were unable to free her, and Dudingston decided to wait for high tide, which would possibly float the ship.
However, before that could happen, a gang of Providence men led by John Brown decided to act on the "provided opportunity to put an end to the trouble and irritation she caused daily". They rowed to the ship and boarded her at dawn on June 10. The crew put up a weak resistance in which Lieutenant Dudingston was shot and wounded several times, and Providence's men burned the ship to the waterline. Joseph Bucklin was the man who shot Lieutenant Dudingston; other men who participated included Brown's brother, Joseph of Providence, Simeon Potter of Bristol, and Robert Wickes of Warwick. Most of the men involved were also members of the Sons of Liberty: a loosely organized, underground political organization whose aim was to promote colonist rights and fight taxation from the British government. The audacity of this attack was all the more remarkable as none of the attackers made any effort to conceal their identities. Duddington and his team were able to easily point out most of the participants. However, this did them little good because the local courts were also antagonistic towards the Royal Navy. Rather than attempt to prosecute the attackers, charges were brought against Lieutenant Duddington for the illegal seizure of property. When this news reached the British Parliament, there was outrage. A special commission, under the authority of the Vice-Admiral's Courts, was sent to arrest the perpetrators of the Gaspee case and bring them back to England for trial. Although the identities of the perpetrators were widely known, the investigation was unsuccessful. No arrests were made as all of the defendants presented false renowned witnesses that they were elsewhere at the time of the events. However, the most outstanding event of this stage would be the Boston Tea Party of December 16, 1773.
The Duke of Grafton resigned in January, being replaced by Lord North, 2nd Earl of Guilford, who initiated a conciliatory policy. The annulment of all import taxes except tea. The British government passed the Tea Act, which allowed the British East India Company to sell tea to the colonies directly, without paying any customs duties or taxes in Britain, in exchange for paying the colonial duty, which was much smaller. This suspension of taxes allowed the Company to sell at prices lower than those offered by merchant settlers and smugglers. The settlers, especially the wealthy smugglers, resented the favored treatment of a large company that had acted as a lobby (pressure group) and exerted great influence in Parliament. As a result, there were protests in Philadelphia and New York, but it was the demonstrations that took place in Boston that would leave their mark on history. Bostonians suspected that the new tea tax was simply another attempt by the British parliament to overwhelm colonial autonomy. Samuel Adams, a prosperous smuggler, and others who had profited from the tea smuggling, demanded that the representatives and consignees of the British East India Company leave their posts. Doubting consignees were terrorized with attacks on their warehouses and even their homes. The first of many tea-laden ships of the British East India Company was the Dartmouth, arriving in late November 1773. On December 16, 1773, the Dartmouth had been joined by her sister ships, the Beaver and the Eleanor, the three ships loaded with tea from China (Ironically, the ships were built in America and owned by Americans).
That morning, as thousands of settlers gathered on the wharf and its surrounding streets, assemblies were held where they voted to refuse to pay taxes on the tea or allow the tea to be unloaded, stored, sold or used. Governor Thomas Hutchison refused to allow the ships to return to Britain, ordering the tea fee to be paid and the tea unloaded. The colonists refused, and Hutchison stood by him. At that point, they found themselves in an impasse between the port authorities and the Sons of Liberty. Samuel Adams stirred up the growing crowd in a series of protest assemblies. Thousands attended these assemblies from across the city and outlying areas, each gathering larger than the last. The crowds called for contempt not only of the British Parliament, the East India Company, but also of Governor Thomas Hutchinson, who was fighting for the tea to be landed. On the night of December 16, the protest assembly met at the Old South Meeting House. The night of the same day, the movement was launched. Before the tea was due to be unloaded, the Sons of Liberty between 60 and 150 people dressed up as Mohawk Indians, left the large protest assembly and made their way to Griffin Pier, where the Dartmouth and the newly arrived Beaver and Eleanour were. Quickly and efficiently, armed with axes and knives, they harassed the sailors and carried crates of tea from the hold to the deck, proving that some of the “Indians” were indeed Boston longshoremen. They opened the boxes and threw the tea overboard. In the work that lasted until late at night, less than three hours were used, the assailants acting quickly and efficiently. By dawn, 342 crates containing 45 tons of tea worth an estimated £10,000 had been dumped into the waters of Boston Harbor. Nothing else was damaged or stolen, except for the accidental breakage of a padlock that was replaced anonymously soon after.
Many colonists felt that Britain's coercive acts went too far. On September 5, 1774, elected delegates from all Thirteen American Colonies, except Georgia, met in Philadelphia's Carpenter Hall for the First Continental Congress to figure out how to resist British oppression. Delegates were divided on how to move forward, but the Boston Tea Party had united them in their fervor for independence. When they were suspended in October 1774, they had written the Declaration and Resolutions in which:
- He censured Britain for passing the Coercive Acts and called for their repeal,
- It established a boycott of British goods,
- It declared that the colonies had the right to be governed independently,
- He was to rally the settlers to form and train a colonial militia.
This should have been a warning to the British Parliament that the rebellion was not a local affair, but Lord North misunderstood it, and on November 8 reported to the King: "As the governments of New England are in a state of rebellion , only the struggle will allow them to decide if they have to remain subject to the country or become independent”. MG (major-general) Thomas Gage, royal governor, boasted that he could subdue Boston with 4 Regiments, in August 1774 Gage had double that number, plus artillery. The townspeople, when not attacking officers and men (especially after Gage forbade them to use swords), encouraged them to desert, steal their weapons, or sell them (often bad) drinks. Magistrates fined soldiers disproportionately for trivial offences, while denying them justice against civilians unless they had civilian witnesses. The closure of the port caused thousands of people to be made redundant, but they refused to work for Gage or the Royal Navy, preferring to watch the troops and report their movements, making secrecy impossible for the British.
But Gage also had his spies (including Dr. Benjamin Church, a trusted member of the Provincial Congress, and MG William Brattle of the Massachusetts militia) and was aware of the plans of the Provincial Congress. On September 1, he sent 260 men to seize the King's powder at the Charlestown powder house and two brass cannons at Cambridge, completely surprising the militia. Angered by stories of atrocities (which were completely false), more than 4,000 militia gathered in Cambridge the next day, and forced the two justices to resign; two days later, 6,000 militiamen in Worcester halted the court session. Gage took the advice of the local Tories (patriots) and did not send troops to oppose them, but he reinforced the fortifications throughout the Boston Isthmus. Shocked by Gage's capture of the cannons and gunpowder, the Provincial Congress created a system of "alarm horsemen" to alert the camp whenever the regulars left Boston, and reorganized the militia. Units of "minute men" were created, ready to march at a moment's notice to oppose the British regulars, and security and supply committees were created, with the authority to mobilize militia and confiscate shops. On September 8, another force sent to retrieve the cannons from the harbor fortifications at Charlestown discovered that the guns were missing. All over Massachusetts, and even in Boston, guns, stores, and ammunition began to disappear from public armories. During the month of October, Gage received reinforcements from New York, Halifax, and Quebec, bringing his strength to about 3,000. Other colonies did the same: 400 of the New Hampshire militia under Paul Revere took Fort William and Fort Mary in Portsmouth on December 14, 1774, it was defended by 6 British, there were no deaths and after a brief fight they reduced them, removing 16 guns and ammunition, the British were later released. While the Rhode Island militia stole 44 cannons from Fort George in Newport.
Meanwhile, the routine of garrison life—desertion, drunkenness, and street fights—continued through the winter of 1774. Both the contaminated water supply (caused by the unusually mild winter weather), and the unsanitary barracks; contributed to a death toll of over 100 among the garrison and their dependents, Gage's continued attempts to placate the townspeople further alienated the troops from him and encouraged insulting editorials in Whig newspapers. He tried to keep the troops out of trouble by sending them on marches into the countryside, but while alarming the populace, he also gave the militia a chance to hone their "early warning" system. Within hours of an alarm, up to 12,000 irregulars could be mobilized and marched to intercept the regulars. On February 26, 1774, Lt. Col. Alexander Leslie took the 64th Regiment from Fort Williams to seize cannon being stored near Salem, Essex County. However, he was met by Colonel Thomas Pickering and his Essex militia, and although sources on each side differ, the result was that the guns moved away and Leslie was forced to return empty-handed. Until then, marches had involved individual regiments, but on March 30, Lord Percy led his entire brigade, more than 1,200 men, to Jamaica Plain, 5 miles south of Boston. He was met with the usual hostility from the townspeople, but also discovered that the militia had dismantled the only bridge to Cambridge over the Charles River, and had installed two cannons to protect the bridge at Watertown. On each occasion he would turn away, an act the militia saw as a sign that any determined support would force the British regulars to withdraw. Despite strict orders from both sides not to fire unless fire was taken, it was only a matter of time before such clashes led to bloodshed.
In April, Gage received a message from Lord Dartmouth, secretary of state for the American colonies, authorizing stronger action: if war was inevitable, it had better start before the Americans were ready. That January, Gage had called in officers to survey and map the field. Captain Brown of the 52nd Regiment and Ensign de Berniere of the 10th Regiment had responded and scouted Worcester and Suffolk counties, avoiding capture through sheer good fortune (and a snowstorm). They reported that the field favored the Americans and that any expedition could only end in disaster. On March 20, Gage ordered them to reconnoiter the roads in Middlesex County, where they duly discovered the military warehouses in Concord in the course of their mission. Informed by Dr. Church that the provincial conference would soon be adjourned, with the delegates scattering across Massachusetts, Gage decided to act. On Saturday, April 15, he ordered the flank companies to be withdrawn from their normal duties and asked the commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Samuel Graves, to prepare his ships' boats. Paul Revere, a Boston silversmith, reported these activities to Dr. Joseph Warren of the safety committee, who arranged for the removal of 4×6 guns from Concord. Revere then rode to Lexington to inform Hancock and Adams that they might also be the British target. On April 18, Paul Revere began the "midnight drive" to Concord to warn the townspeople that the British seemed to be planning an expedition. The trip was finalized by Samuel Prescott. Hearing the news from Prescott, the townspeople decided to remove the stores and distribute them among other nearby towns. The colonists also knew that April 19 would be the date of the expedition, despite Gage's efforts to keep the details secret, even the forces and officers who would go on the mission were not informed. Between 9 and 10 p.m. on April 18, 1775, Revere and William Dawes were told by Joseph Warren that British troops were about to embark on boats from Boston bound for Cambridge and on the way to Lexington and Concord. Warren's intelligence suggested that the most likely targets of the regulars' movements that night would be the capture of Adams and Hancock. He was not concerned about the regulars marching on Concord, since the supplies in Concord were safe, but they thought their leaders in Lexington were unaware of the potential danger that night. Revere and Dawes were sent to warn them and alert the recent formed militia in nearby towns.
Sorry if this and the next chapters are more detailed or even bored. The American revolution don't its my strength but it's necessary because US gonna be a new Perfidous enemy for Spain.
The Shot Heard 'Round the World
«The British are coming.».
— Attributed to Paul Revere.
— Attributed to Paul Revere.
Dawes covered the southern land route on horseback through Boston Neck and over the Great Bridge to Lexington. Paul Revere first gave instructions to send a signal to Charlestown using lanterns hung from the steeple of Boston's Old North Church. He then traveled the Northern Water Route, crossed the mouth of the Charles River in a rowboat and passed the anchor of the British warship Somerset. Crossings were prohibited at that hour, but Revere landed safely at Charlestown and rode west to Lexington, warning almost every house along the route. Additional horsemen were sent north from Charlestown. After arriving in Lexington, Revere, Dawes, Hancock, and Adams discussed the situation with the militia gathered there. They believed that the forces pouring out of Boston were too large for the sole task of arresting two men, and that Concord was the primary target. Lexington's men sent horsemen to surrounding towns, and Revere and Dawes continued up the road to Concord accompanied by Samuel Prescott. At Lincoln, they encountered the British patrol led by Major Mitchell. Revere was captured, Dawes fell from his horse, and only Prescott escaped to reach Concord. Additional horsemen were dispatched from Concord. The voyage of Revere, Dawes, and Prescott triggered a loose system of 'alarms and muster' that had been carefully developed months before, in reaction to the colonists' impotent response to the arrival of the British. This system was an improved version of an old notification network for use in times of emergency. Colonists had used it periodically during the early years of the Indian Wars in the colony, before it fell out of use in the French and Indian War. As well as other express riders delivering messages; bells, drums, cannons, bonfires, and trumpets were used as means of alarm for rapid communication from town to town, notifying rebels in dozens of eastern Massachusetts villages that they should rally their militia because more than 500 regulars were out leaving Boston.
This system was so effective that people in towns 25 miles from Boston were aware of the British Army's movements while they were still disembarking from boats at Cambridge. These early warnings played a crucial role in mustering a sufficient number of colonial militiamen to inflict heavy damage on British regulars later in the day. Adams and Hancock were eventually moved to safety, first to what is now Burlington and then to Billerica. At nightfall, General Gage called a meeting of his superior officers at Province House. He informed them that Lord Dartmouth's instructions had arrived, ordering him to take action against the Colonials. He also told them that Lieutenant Colonel Smith would command the expedition, with Major John Pitcairn as his executive officer. The meeting concluded around 8:30 p.m., after which the Earl of Percy mingled with the common townspeople in Boston. According to one account, the discussion among the people there centered on the unusual movement of British soldiers in the city. When Percy questioned one more man, the man replied, "Well, the regulars will miss their target." What target? Percy asked. "Why, the canyon in Concord" was the reply. Hearing this, Percy quickly returned to the Province House and relayed this information to General Gage. Stunned, Gage issued orders to prevent the messengers from leaving Boston, but they were too late to prevent Dawes and Revere from leaving. British regulars, about 700 infantry, had been drawn from 11 of Gage's 13 occupying regiments. Major Pitcairn commanded 10 elite light infantry companies, and Lt. Col. Benjamin Bernard commanded 11 grenadier companies, under the command of Lt. Col. Smith.
Each company had its own lieutenant, but most of the captains who commanded them were volunteers attached to them at the last minute; from all the Regiments stationed in Boston. This lack of familiarity between the commander and the companies would cause problems during the battle and especially considering the travel conditions for when they landed near Phipps's farm in Cambridge, it was waist-deep in water at midnight. After a long pause to unload their equipment, the regulars began their 17-mile march to Concord at about 02:00. During the wait they were provided with extra ammunition, cold salt pork, and hard crackers. They did not carry backpacks, since they would not be camping. They carried their rucksacks (bags of food), canteens, muskets, and accessories, and marched with wet, muddy shoes and soaked uniforms. As they marched through Menotomy, the sounds of colonial alarms throughout the field caused the few officers aware of their mission to realize that they had lost the element of surprise. Although the confrontation is often referred to as a battle, the confrontation at Lexington was actually a skirmish, but it achieved notoriety for being the first confrontation. The combat saw the Militia of Captain John Parker, a veteran of the French and Indian War, suffering from tuberculosis and sometimes hard of hearing engage the Regulars under the command of Lt. Col. Smith. It is unknown who fired first but after that there were several intermittent shots fired from both sides before lines of regulars began to discharge without receiving orders to do so. Some of the militiamen believed at first that the regulars were only firing blanks with no bullets, but when they realized the truth, few if any of the militiamen managed to return fire before the regulars then charged with bayonets while the militiamen ran. to save their lives while a dozen were wounded or killed.
Following the Lexington skirmish, the Concord and Lincoln militia prepared for the arrival of regular troops who quickly took over the town while the militia waited at North Bridge. The confrontation saw the Regulars and the so-called Minutemen engage in a fifty meter gap, the Regulars finding themselves caught in a situation where they were outnumbered. Lacking effective leadership and terrified of the enemy's superior numbers, broken in spirit and probably never having experienced combat before; they abandoned their wounded and fled to safety from the grenadier companies approaching from the center of town, leaving Captain Parsons and the companies stranded to search for weapons at Barrett's farm, where guns were hidden that were no longer there. The Redcoats would end up being driven out of Concord and harassed by militias from Concord to Cambridge, catching the British in crossfire. In the midst of this situation, General Gage would send the Earl of Percy in command of a thousand men to rescue Smith and his men. Along the way, the story goes, they marched to the tune of "Yankee Doodle" to taunt the locals, unaware that the song would become a patriotic propaganda song. By the end of the fighting, Boston was surrounded by a massive militia army, numbering more than 15,000 strong, who had marched in from all over New England. Unlike the gunpowder alarm, the rumors of spilled blood were true, and the war had begun. So under the leadership of General Artemas Ward, who arrived on April 20 and replaced Brigadier General William Heath, they formed a siege line stretching from Chelsea, around the Boston and Charlestown peninsulas, to Roxbury, effectively encircling to Boston on three sides. In the days immediately following, the size of the colonial forces grew, as militias from New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Connecticut arrived on the scene. The Second Continental Congress adopted these men at the beginning of the Continental Army. Even now, after open war had begun, Gage still refused to impose martial law on Boston. He persuaded the elite of the town to surrender all private weapons in exchange for promising that any inhabitant could leave the town.
The battle was followed by a war for British political opinion. Within four days of the battle, the Massachusetts Provincial Congress had collected dozens of sworn testimonies from British militiamen and prisoners. When word spread a week after the battle that Gage was sending his official description of the events to London, the provincial congress sent a package of these detailed statements, signed by more than 100 participants in the events, on another ship. Quick. The documents were presented to a sympathetic official and printed by London newspapers two weeks before Gage's report arrived. Gage's official report was too vague on details to sway anyone's opinion. George Germain, no friend of the colonists, wrote, "Bostonians have the right to make the King's troops the aggressors and claim a victory." Politicians in London tended to blame Gage for the conflict rather than his own policies and instructions. British troops in Boston blamed General Gage and Colonel Smith for the failures at Lexington and Concord.
The Rubicon had been crossed and the war had begun.
The Siege of Boston would be a special circumstance because the besieged and the besiegers reached an informal agreement that allowed traffic through the Boston Isthmus, provided that there were no weapons in this trade. The patriots who lived in Boston left the city, and the loyalists (settlers who were supporters of Great Britain) who lived in the surrounding area moved to the city. As the siege did not block the sea, the city remained open to the Royal Navy, under the command of Samuel Graves, who brought supplies from Nova Scotia and elsewhere. The colonials were unable to prevent these shipments, due to the supremacy of the British navy. What the rebels did do was make it difficult for these ships to travel, so the prices of supplies rose rapidly. Soon, the British forces found themselves short of food. And many of Boston's civilians, fed up with shortages, decided to run away and join the Patriots. In the month of May 1775, the Second Continental Congress met in Philadelphia. Recognizing the need for a united military, they named George Washington commander-in-chief of the US armed forces. But they knew that the colonies were by no means ready for all-out war, so they decided to try a peaceful settlement with Britain. They prepared a message for King George, known as the Olive Branch Petition, explaining that although the colonies remained loyal, they had many grievances against Parliament. They begged the King to cease military action so that both sides would have time to negotiate a peaceful settlement. The English parliament took the request as a sign of weakness and decided to give the rebels a lesson, sending reinforcements to Cage, some 2,000 troops and a trio of generals who would play a vital role in the war: William Howe, John Burgoyne and Henry Clinton. . As the two armies fought each other, the regulars grew increasingly frustrated and the rebels more confident, but that changed at the Battle of Bunker Hill.
On the night of June 16, rebel Colonel William Prescott led some 1,200 men to the peninsula to establish positions from which artillery fire could be directed at Boston. At first, some work was done on Bunker Hill, but Breed Hill was closer to Boston and considered more defensible. Possibly against orders, they decided to build the main redoubt there. Prescott and his men, using Gridley's outline, began to dig out a square fortification, with a wooden platform inside where the men could stand and shoot from the walls. The works at Breed Hill did not go unnoticed by the British. When the British generals met to discuss their options, General Clinton, who had urged an attack as soon as possible, preferred an attack starting from the neck of Charlestown that would cut off the colonists' retreat. However, he was voted out by the other three generals. Howe, who was the most senior officer present and would lead the assault, opined that the hill was "open and easy to climb and, in short, easy to transport." General Burgoyne agreed, arguing that the "untrained rabble" would be no match for his "trained troops". Orders were then issued to prepare the expedition. It took the British 6 hours to organize an infantry force and muster and inspect the men on parade. General Howe was to lead the main assault, drive around the rebel left flank and take them from the rear. Brigadier General Robert Pigot on the British left flank would lead the direct assault on the redoubt, with Major John Pitcairn leading the flank or reserve force. He made several trips by launch to transport Howe's initial forces (numbering about 1,500 men) to the eastern corner of the peninsula, known as Moulton Point.
By 2:00 p.m., the first wave had landed. However, as he crossed the river, Howe noted the large number of colonial troops atop Bunker Hill. Believing it to be reinforcements, he immediately sent a message to Gage, requesting additional troops. He then ordered some of the light infantry to take up a forward position along the eastern side of the peninsula, alerting the rebels to their intended line of action. The troops decided to advance rather than wait for reinforcements. Although Prescott, he saw the British preparations and called for reinforcements. These once deployed did not have time to prepare defenses in conditions, having a wall of rough earth as protection. The colonial reinforcements arrived shortly after the British reinforcements disembarked and they jumped up and ran at a brisk pace to support their comrades. Chaos at the Colonials increased when Admiral Samuel Graves ordered a bombardment of the Colonial positions by keeping a steady fire which caused confusion so severe that while General Putnam was on the scene attempting to direct matters, unit commanders often misunderstood or They disobeyed orders. At one point, HMS Glasgow managed to reach inside the Breed Hills fortification causing the powder stockpile to explode killing and wounding dozens. Colonial lines fell into disarray. The wounded soldiers who could move retreated to the Bunker Hills, and the wounded lying on the battlefield were the source of groans and cries of pain. The British soldiers advanced and following orders from their officers ended up finishing off the colonial wounded with their bayonets. By the time the Grenadiers reached Bunker Hill, the defenders were low on rounds and were rummaging through the pockets and cartridge boxes of the dead. At Cambridge, Ward was desperately trying to get supplies, but could find no one willing to take the wagons across the isthmus, much less to Bunker Hill, the supplies that did make it forward were consumed by naval artillery bombardment.
As the Royal Marines and Grenadiers stormed Bunker Hill, Prescott's men held fire until the regulars were 20 yards away, then unleashed a devastating volley. But the regulars broke into the ditches sweeping the defensive positions, the defenders fled or retreated to the redoubt. The same thing happened in the angled defences, and many rebel officers were cut down trying to inspire their men. At the fence, Stark knew that he had to cover Prescott's retreat, but also that he could be easily cut down. He considered a counterattack against the weakened light companies, but he would have to cross the same open ground and his men were no match for the regulars in open field maneuvers. Finally, the 47th Regiment assaulted the redoubt, being the first troops to enter, charging the defenders with bayonets. Prescott ordered his men to retreat through the gorge at the rear, as the regulars overwhelmed them and hurled volleys at their backs, killing Dr. Joseph Warren. In the midst of the fleeing masses, there were small groups heroically trying to cover the retreat. One such group consisted of the Gardner and Little Regiments, with 3 Connecticut Companies; that they formed up behind a low stone wall and exchanged volleys for several minutes with Pigott's 3 Light Companies, before withdrawing, close at hand, toward the isthmus; causing heavy losses to the regulars. Putnam finally accepted defeat and walked away, carrying the valuable entrenching tools. As news of the battle spread through the colonies, it was reported as a colonial loss, as the ground had been taken by the enemy, and significant casualties were incurred. George Washington, then en route to Boston as the new Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, received news of the battle while he was in New York City.
The report, which included casualty figures that were somewhat inaccurate, gave Washington hope that his army might prevail in the conflict. The Massachusetts committee of safety, seeking to repeat the kind of propaganda victory he won after the battles at Lexington and Concord, commissioned a report of the battle to send to England. However, his report did not reach England before Gage's official report arrived on July 20. The report of him unsurprisingly caused friction and argument between Tories and Whigs, but the casualty counts alarmed the military establishment and forced many to rethink their views of the colony's military capabilities. King George's attitude toward the colonies hardened, and the news may have contributed to his rejection of the Continental Congress's Olive Branch Petition, the last substantive political attempt at reconciliation. Gage's report had a more direct effect on his own career. His dismissal was decided only three days after his report was received, although General Howe did not replace him until October 1775. Gage wrote another report to the British cabinet, repeating earlier warnings that "a great army must at last be employed to reduce those people“, that would require the hiring of foreign troops. General George Washington arrived in Cambridge on July 3. He established his headquarters at Harvard Institute and took command of the newly formed Continental Army the next day. At this time, reinforcements and weapons were arriving from as far away as Maryland and Virginia. Washington began training the militias into a more professional army. Washington also ordered that the defenses be upgraded. In early September, Washington began planning two new moves: first, to send 1,000 men to invade Quebec, and second, to launch an attack on Boston.
Washington thought it was time to send men to Quebec, because according to reports from his spies in Boston, the British were not going to attack until they received reinforcements. On September 11, 1,100 men under Benedict Arnold left for Quebec. Also in September, Washington authorized the seizure of local fishing vessels, to prevent the British from receiving supplies. This activity was a precursor to the creation of a Continental Army, which was established in the current city of Portland (Maine). Winter was approaching. Both sides had problems: the rebels were short of gunpowder, so much so that in some attacks they had to fight with spears, and also of money to pay the soldiers. The British under Howe, who had succeeded Gage in October, were short of wood, and provisioning the town was becoming increasingly difficult due to winter storms and troublesome American boats. To make matters worse, epidemics of scurvy and smallpox were breaking out in the city. Among the rebels, there were also smallpox patients who were taken to hospitals. In February, when the water in the harbor was freezing, Washington thought that, due to his shortage of gunpowder, they could make a direct attack by advancing on the ice; but his officials did not allow it. So the new plan was to fortify Dorchester Heights using the cannons from Fort Ticonderoga, which had been brought up in the dead of winter by Colonel Henry Knox and a team of engineers who used sledges to transport 60 tons of heavy artillery, using the frozen Hudson River, and the rivers of Connecticut, in a very complex operation, arriving in Cambridge on January 24. On March 5, Washington moved the guns to Dorchester Heights, from where they could fire on Boston. Since it was winter, the ground was frozen, making trenches impassable, so Washington's men used logs, branches, and whatever was available to entrench themselves.
General Howe is reported to have exclaimed, "My God, these boys have worked more in one night than my men could accomplish in three months." The British fleet had no line of sight to attack the rebels on Dorchester Heights, putting Boston in grave danger. On March 8, some prominent Bostonians sent a letter to Washington, stating that the British would not destroy the city if they were allowed to evacuate unmolested. The letter worked: when the evacuation began, there was no rebel fire to hinder it. On March 10, General Howe issued an order forcing Bostonians to give up all white and wool clothing that could be used by the colonials to continue the war. The loyalist Crean Brush was authorized to receive these goods, in exchange for receiving certificates that they were indeed worthless. For the next week, the British fleet was moored in the harbor waiting for favorable winds, and when these conditions arose, on March 17, loyalists and British soldiers boarded the ships that left the port at 9 o'clock in the morning. This fleet consisted of 120 ships carrying more than 11,000 people. Once the British fleet had left, the Americans went to recapture Boston and Charlestown. At first they thought the British were still on Bunker Hill, but it turned out that what they found were mannequins. Due to the risk of smallpox, initially only a few men led by Artemas Ward entered the city, and around March 20, when the risk of contagion was lower, the rest entered. The departure of the British fleet was the largest military activity in the New England colonies. Washington, fearing that the British were going to attack New York City, set out on April 4 with his army for Manhattan, beginning the New York and New Jersey campaign.
After the siege, Boston ceased to be a military objective, but remained an important point for revolutionary activities, especially its valuable port. Bostonian leaders played an important role in the development of the United States. Boston and surrounding communities would celebrate March 17 as "evacuation day."
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The Battle of Canada
«Quebec es Nuestro».
«Quebec is ours.».
— Attributed to Morgan's men during Battle of Quebec.
«Quebec is ours.».
— Attributed to Morgan's men during Battle of Quebec.
With the capture of Fort Ticonderoga at the hands of Benedict Arnold and Colonel Ethan Allen in command of the Green Mountain Boys: an organized militia and armed military force and a de facto government comprised of settlers and land speculators who held title to land between the river Connecticut and Lake Champlain, an area then known as the New Hampshire Grants. Arnold and Allen realized that it was necessary to hold Ticonderoga as a defense against attempts by the British Army to divide the colonies, as well as that Quebec was poorly defended. They separately proposed expeditions against Quebec, suggesting that a small force of between 1,200 and 1,500 men would be enough to drive the British army out of the province. Congress first ordered that the forts be abandoned, urging New York and Connecticut to provide troops and materiel for purposes of a purely defensive nature. Public calls around New England and New York threatened Congress to change its position. When it became clear that Guy Carleton, the governor of Quebec, was fortifying Fort Saint-John and attempting to engage the Iroquois in attacking New York, Congress decided that a more active position was necessary. On June 27, 1775, Congress authorized General Philip Schuyler to investigate and, if appropriate, begin the invasion. Benedict Arnold, brushing aside his boss, headed for Boston and convinced General George Washington to send a force to Quebec City under his command. The British, after the assault on Fort Saint-John, General Carleton was aware of the danger of invasion from the south, so he asked for reinforcements from General Thomas Gage in Boston. Meanwhile he raised local militias to assist in the defense of Montreal and Quebec City, which met with limited success.
In response to the capture of Ticonderoga and the assault on Fort Saint-John, he sent 700 troops to hold the fort on the Richelieu River, south of Montreal; he ordered the construction of ships for use on Lake Champlain, and recruited nearly 100 Mohawks to help defend it. He himself oversaw the defense of Montreal, leading only 150 regulars, since he entrusted Fort Saint-John with the main defense. The defense of Quebec City was left in the hands of Governor Hector Theophilus de Cramahé. Guy Johnson, a British Indian conservative and agent who lived in the Mohawk Valley in New York; he was on good terms with the Iroquois in New York, and was concerned for his and his family's safety, after it became clear that patriotic sentiment had taken hold in New York. Apparently convinced that he could no longer safely conduct Crown business, he left his estate in New York with about 200 Conservative and Mohawk sympathizers. Guy went first to Fort Ontario, where, on June 17; he extracted from Indian tribal leaders promises to collaborate in keeping supplies and lines of communication open in the area, as well as support for the British in the event of "enemy aggression." From there, he went to Montreal, where, in a meeting with General Carleton and more than 1,500 Indians, he negotiated similar deals, advising them to "be prepared for service." However, the majority of those involved in these agreements were the Mohawks; the other tribes in the Iroquois Confederacy avoided those conferences, seeking to remain neutral. Many of the Mohawks remained in the Montreal area after the conference; however, when it seemed uncertain whether the Americans would launch an invasion in 1775, most of them returned home by mid-August.
The Continental Congress sought to keep the Six Nations out of the war. In July 1775, Samuel Kirkland, an influential missionary to the Oneidas, brought them a statement from Congress: "We wish you to remain in your homes, and join neither side, but keep your axes well buried." While the Oneidas and Turcarora remained formally neutral, many Oneidas declared their sympathy with the rebels. News of Johnson's meeting in Montreal caused General Schuyler, who also had influence among the Oneidas, to call a conference in Albany for mid-August. Attended by about 400 Indians (mainly Oneidas and Tuscaroras, and some Mohawks), Schuyler and other Indian commissioners explained the problems that divided the colonies from Great Britain, emphasizing that the colonies were at war to preserve their rights, and that they did not seek conquest. The chiefs agreed to remain neutral, with one of the Mohawk leaders saying, "it's a family matter" and that they "would stand by and watch them fight... from the outside." However, they did manage to extract concessions from the Americans, including promises to solve problems such as the establishment of settlers on their land.
The main invasion effort was led by General Schuyler, moving up Lake Champlain to storm Montreal and later Quebec City. The expedition was made up of forces from New York, Connecticut, and New Hampshire, as well as men from the Green Mountains, under the leadership of Seth Warner, with provisions supplied from New York. However, Schuyler was extremely cautious, and by mid-August the colonists received reports that General Carleton was fortifying defensive positions outside Montreal, and that some native tribes had joined the British. On August 25, while Schuyler was at the Indian conference, Richard Montgomery received information that the ships being built at Fort Saint-John were nearing completion. Montgomery, taking advantage of Schuyler's absence (and in the absence of orders authorizing the move), led 1,200 troops, massed at Ticonderoga, to a position on the Île-aux-Noix on the Richelieu River, arriving on 2 September. . Two days later Schuyler joined him. Despite his failing health, Schuyler was determined to take his men to Canada, and on September 5 he set out for Fort Saint-John. Following the first engagement, General Schuyler was too ill to continue, so he gave command to Montgomery. Schuyler left Fort Ticonderoga several days later. After another false start and the arrival of another 900 men from Connecticut, New Hampshire, and New York, as well as men from the Green Mountain, Montgomery finally proceeded to besiege Fort Saint-John. He sent a letter to James Livingston, a Canadian to prepare to raise local military forces in support of the American effort, to act in the area south of Montreal.
Anticipating a possible American incursion, Canadian Governor Guy Carleton had commissioned Major Charles Preston of RI-26 to build fortifications at Fort Saint-John. Preston, knowing it had to be done quickly, decided to erect two strong redoubts connected by a "communication trench" some 210 meters long. These works were built by 300 men from July to September and armed with 30 artillery pieces, including 2×8 howitzers, 8 Coehorn mortars, 2×24 and 6×9 cannons, others of smaller caliber. It had a garrison of 567 mostly from the 7th and 26th Regiments with some Canadian militiamen, - there were also about 700 women and children who had sought refuge, so about 1,300 people were sheltering in those two little redoubts. On 5 September Schuyler, who was ill, set out with the boats up the Richilieu River, as they approached the fort the British opened cannon fire which did little damage, and the rebel troops landed in a swamp some 1.5 km away. of the fort to recognize. As they advanced they were ambushed by 100 Indians under Lorimier, the encounter in the closed forest led to the two groups shooting at each other. Outmatched in initial engagement, Schuyler's men fought back, with Lorimier losing 4 killed and 5 wounded. Disgusted by the lack of support from the fort's garrison, the Indians withdrew. By nightfall the Americans had built a defensive work alongside the river, but then had to withdraw from île-aux-Noix when the British gunners found the right angle of fire. The situation was a tug-of-war with Montgomery and Schuyler's troops fighting in the process that saw the Royal Savage and other ships sink due to red-hot gunfire. While Colonel Ethan Allen with about 200 troops, received as a mission to occupy the shore of the Saint Lawrence River to prevent the arrival of supplies and reinforcements from Montreal.
Acting unintelligently, he decided to attack Montreal. On September 24, during the night, Allen with 110 men crossed the Saint Lawrence River, north of the city, but he had to fend for himself, since Major Brown did not find him. Carleton, the British commander, marched against him with a force of about 35 regulars, 200 volunteers, and a few Indians. Allen was repulsed, unable to cross the river, he took up a defensive position at Longue-Pointe a few miles from town. Most of the Canadian recruits fled when the first shots rang out, but Allen, constantly outflanked by Indians, led his dwindling army into a fighting retreat for more than a mile. Finally reduced to 31 troops and with the British officer "pressing boldly in the rear", Allen surrendered. The British captured Ethan Allen, 17 other Americans, and 16 Canadians. 10 of the prisoners were wounded (2 fatally, 8 slightly). Allen also lost 5 men dead. The rest escaped. On the British side, 3 were mortally wounded. This abortive attack on Montreal led to the full mobilization of the local militia, which soon numbered 2,000 men. But Carleton still refused to organize the relief of Fort Saint-John. Montgomery sent 300 men and two gunboats to reinforce Brown, who was blockading Fort Chambly, and on October 18 he took the fort which was defended by some 400 troops, half of them Canadian militiamen. There they found ample stores of ammunition and supplies. The captured artillery and supplies allowed Montgomery to intensify the bombardment, and a third battery was started to the northwest. Major Preston heard rumors that Carleton's relief column had been pushed back to Longueuil. On November 2, believing that relief might yet come, Major Preston called an eight-day truce, after which he would surrender if he was not relieved. With the arrival of winter, Montgomery rejected his proposal. Realizing the hopelessness of his situation, Preston surrendered and his men marched out with the honors of war, having delayed the enemy's advance on Montreal for almost two months.
Carleton learned of Saint-John's fall on November 4, by which time he also knew that more rebels were approaching Quebec through Maine. He also would not receive the 2 IRs ordered from Boston in the summer. The head of the North American fleet, Vice Admiral Samuel Graves, had refused to sail north so late in the year, even though the ships docked safely in Quebec as late as November. With Montgomery undoubtedly closing in, Carleton put what garrison and stores he could salvage aboard a small flotilla, but, possibly out of a sense of honor, he did not sail for Quebec until the rebel army had crossed the river. On November 8, Montgomery led his troops north and occupied Saint-Paul Island in the St. Lawrence River, crossing to Pointe-Saint-Charles the next day, where he was greeted as a liberator. Montreal fell without any significant fighting on November 13. As the British flotilla approached Sorel on November 12, one ship ran aground. By the time she sailed again, the wind had dropped and the ships had to anchor for three days. On November 15, a rebel boat carrying a flag of truce approached. The ship carried a demand for surrender, claiming that gun batteries downriver would destroy the convoy. To convince them, Brown rowed the ships and offered to show them a 32-lb battery. An officer was sent ashore to confirm this, but either evaded his work or was misled by Brown (who had hardly any guns). Carleton's flotilla numbered 30 pieces, but again the threat of loss of life made him hesitate. He called a council of war: one captain offered to attack the batteries while the rest went to Quebec; another, a noted pilot familiar with the dangerous waters around Sorel, offered to row him downriver. Carleton accepted the latter proposal.
Carleton dressed as a civilian, left the ship and headed away trying to pass through the enemy positions to reach Quebec. Leaving Prescott with instructions to jettison tents and cannons into the river in case he had to surrender. Prescott attempted to negotiate with Easton, but Easton convinced him that his position was hopeless, and on November 19, the day Carleton arrived in Quebec, he surrendered along with 120 soldiers and almost 200 sailors. Aboard the captured fleet, Easton found the cannons that Prescott had been unable to jettison, as well as 200 pairs of shoes. The captured ships carried prisoners that the British had taken. Among them was Moses Hazen, an expatriate from Massachusetts with estates near Fort Saint-John, whose mistreatment by the British turned him against them. Hazen, who had gained combat experience in the French and Indian War, joined Montgomery's army. Before leaving Montreal for Quebec City, Montgomery posted messages to residents that Congress wanted Quebec to join them, and engaged in discussions with supporters with the goal of holding a provincial convention to elect delegates to Congress. . He also wrote to Schuyler, requesting that a congressional delegation be sent for diplomatic activities. Much of Montgomery's army departed due to the enlistments of the vanquished after the fall of Montreal. He then used some of the captured ships to move toward Quebec City with about 300 soldiers on November 28, leaving about 200 in Montreal under Brigadier General David Wooster. Along the way, he picked up James Livingston's newly created 1st Canadian Regiment of about 200 men. Montgomery is headed to Quebec through Trois Rivieres. Unfortunately, the men whose enlistment was due on December 10 returned home.
With only 800 men, Montgomery wondered if he had the quantity and quality of troops to hold Montreal and take Quebec. Nearly 200 miles away, Carleton had the same concerns about holding Quebec or retaking Montreal. While this was going on, Benedict Arnold, who had been turned down for leadership of the Champlain Valley Expedition, returned to Cambridge, Massachusetts, approaching George Washington with the idea of supporting the invasion force from the east, headed for Quebec City. Washington approved of the idea, giving Arnold 1,100 men, including Daniel Morgan's riflemen for the effort. Arnold's force set out from Newburyport toward the mouth of the Kennebec River and then upriver toward Fort West. Arnold had estimated the distance to Quebec to be 290 km, when it was actually 480 km. Arnold's expedition was a success because he was able to lead a body of troops to the gates of Quebec City. However, the expedition ran into trouble as soon as it left the most significant traces of civilization in present-day Maine. There were many difficulties as the troops moved up the Kennebec River, and the boats they used frequently leaked, spoiling their powder and supplies. The altitude of the land between Kennebec and the Chaudière River was a network of lakes and streams, where the passage was difficult due to bad weather, causing the return of a quarter of the troops. The descent down the Chaudière resulted in the destruction of more boats and supplies, while the inexperienced troops found themselves unable to control the boats in the swift water. By the time Arnold reached the outskirts of civilization across the St. Lawrence River in November, his force had been reduced to 600 starving men. These had traveled almost 600 km through the wild nature. When Arnold and his troops finally reached the Plains of Abraham on November 14, Arnold sent a white-flag negotiator to demand his surrender, but to no avail.
The Americans, without cannons and in poor conditions for action, found themselves before a fortified city. Arnold, after hearing about a possible departure from the city, decided, on November 9, to withdraw towards Pointe-auz-Trembles to await Montgomery, who had recently captured Montreal. On December 2, Montgomery finally arrived from Montreal with 500 troops, taking with him the captured British supplies and winter clothing. The two forces joined forces, and plans were made for an attack on the city. Three days later, the combined army camped on the Plains of Abraham, beginning a siege of Quebec City. While planning the attack on the city, Montgomery was met by Christophe Pélissier, a Frenchman living near Trois-Rivières. Pélissier, who was politically supportive of the rebel cause, operated a hardware store in Saint-Maurice. Montgomery discussed the idea of holding the provincial convention with him. Pélissier recommended not holding a convention until after Quebec City had been taken, as the inhabitants would not feel free to act in such a manner until their safety was better assured. The two arranged for Pélissier's ironworks to provide ammunition for the siege, which it did until the rebels withdrew in May 1776. On December 30, Montgomery joined Arnold and James Livingston in an assault on Quebec City during a snowstorm. His movements went unnoticed by the British until a deserter went to Quebec and alerted Carleton to the attack. On the afternoon of December 30, another storm broke out. By nightfall it had become the heavy "northeast" that Montgomery desired and around 4 am he ordered the troops to form up. He would lead 300 New Yorkers past Cape Diamond and into Down Town from the south. Arnold, with 600 men, including 50 artillerymen, would leave Saint-Roche and attack from the north through Sault au Matelot.
At the same time, Livingston would feign an attack on the Saint-Jean gate with his Canadians, and Brown would attack the Cape Diamond stronghold with 100 men. Montgomery and Arnold would join forces and head to the Upper Town, hoping that the merchants would panic and force Carleton to surrender. In fact, Carleton had issued orders to burn the docks and warehouses in such an event. As Brown launched the signal rockets to begin the operation, Montgomery led his column toward Wolfe Cove, where they headed east, avoiding large ice packs and climbing the rocky precipice on the landward side where the river bank was. blocked up. As they approached Prés de Ville they heard the bell of Notre Dame des Victoires alarming the town. The sentinels had seen lanterns in the snow and the citizens were arming themselves. Below the tip of Cape Diamond, the column was stopped by a line of posts that stretched from the riverbank to the bluff. Four posts were cut into the side of the cliff (to avoid enemy lines of fire) and he slid down, accompanied by a dozen officers and men. After a brief conference with his aides, Montgomery drew his sword, held it aloft, and led the advance through the open space between the barricade and a two-story blockhouse. The building housed four small cannons manned by 9 sailors and about 30 French and 9 British militiamen. When the advancing rebels were about 50 meters away, they opened fire. Montgomery was hit in the head and killed instantly. Also his aides, Captains Jacob Cheesemen and John Macpherson, a sergeant, and most of the men with him. Montgomery's deputy undersecretary, Colonel Donald Campbell, was now the senior officer. Advancing he found some 50 men at the second barricade, their muskets useless in the snowstorm. The surviving officers recommended a retreat and Campbell agreed, taking command of the rear as the column fell back along the riverbank.
Inside the blockhouse, the occupants apparently panicked, having no idea what was happening outside. Later, when news of Arnold's attack arrived, a Boston loyalist, John Coffin, used Arnold's bayonet to prevent the men from leaving the post. Across town, Arnold's column was led by 30 Lamb riflemen and gunners with a 6-pound brass cannon on a sled. Behind them were the remaining Riflemen, under the command of Morgan, Steele, and Hendricks. Behind marched the contingents of Greene and Meigs, and finally the Indians and Canadians. A message had been sent to Dearborn on the north bank of the Saint-Charles, but he hadn't shown up. Arnold could only hope that he joined her on the way. When the rockets were fired, they went through Saint-Roche. Facing the Porte Palais, the main body was spotted by sentinels and the entire column was hit by musketry and grenades from the ramparts. As the column passed through the docks they were hit by the first barrier through Sault au Matelot, defended by 30 militiamen and 3 guns. Arnold used Lamb's cannon to weaken the Canadian positions before ordering a charge where he prevailed. As the column advanced, Arnold was hit in the left ankle by a ricocheting bullet. A rifleman and Chaplain Spring took him back to Dr. Senter. Almost instinctively, the men turned to Morgan, who responded by leading them forward and climbing a ladder first. Musket fire seared his face and knocked him off the ladder, but he climbed back up with two riflemen, jumped to the gun platform and rolled under one of the cannons to avoid the defenders' bayonets. His men followed the ladder and in a matter of minutes captured the 30 defenders for the loss of one killed and six wounded.
Morgan then ran towards Sault au Matelot to the next roadblock. Finding the door open and unguarded, he examined the work and returned. However, his officers refused to press on until the main body arrived, fearing that their growing load of prisoners (three times their strength) would overwhelm any guards. It was another 30 minutes before the main body caught up with them and delay would prove fatal. Still farther back, Dearborn's company, delayed by a high tide, and were entering Saint-Roche. Meanwhile, Caldwell, with a British militia detachment, was investigating the activity at Cape Diamond. Discovering that Brown's action was a feint, he informed Carleton when he had just learned of Arnold's attack on Sault au Matelot. Picking up 30 royal highland emigrants under Captain John Nairne of the MacLean Regiment and 50 sailors led by an ex-naval officer named Anderson, he headed for the second roadblock. There he found 200 French militia under the command of Voyer and Captain Alexandre Dumas, and a Company of the 7th, all in a state of confusion not knowing how to defend the barricade. Scattering the militia and émigrés into the surrounding houses, he formed the regulars into a double line behind the 12-foot-high barricade, with a platform-mounted cannon immediately behind them aimed at Sault au Matelot. Reinforced by the Pennsylvania Riflemen and Greene's and Meigs's detachments, Morgan led his men toward the second barricade. Some sailors, led by Anderson, came out the door and blocked their path. Anderson asked Morgan to surrender, and Morgan shot him dead, and the sailors retreated through the gate. Screaming "Quebec is ours!" Morgan's men moved forward but were caught in a hail of musketry from the upper windows of the houses.
The rebels then decided to enter the buildings clearing them of their defenders, degenerating into brutal melees. In the middle of it, Steele, Topham, Hendrick and Lamb fell wounded. After holding out until 10 a.m., group after group surrendered because they ran out of ammunition. Finally, only Morgan was left. Who would end up being burned alive inside his shelter. Arnold would discover that he lacked men to maintain the assault and would try to impose a somewhat ineffective siege on the city, until March 1776, when he was ordered to Montreal and replaced by Wooster. During those months, the besieging army suffered from difficult winter conditions, and smallpox began to spread significantly in the camp. These losses were offset by the arrival each month of small groups of reinforcements. By the end of March, the besieging army had grown to almost 3,000, although almost a quarter of these were unfit for service, mainly due to smallpox. Furthermore, Livingston and Moses Hazen, commanding the 500 Canadians in the army, were pessimistic about the loyalty of their men and the cooperation of the population due to persistent loyalist propaganda. Congress was conflicted over requests Arnold made for a more experienced general officer to lead the siege effort. They first chose Major-General Charles Lee, a general with experience in the British Army, to lead the troops in Quebec in January. On May 6, a small squadron of British ships under Captain Charles Douglas had arrived to relieve Quebec with supplies and 3,000 troops, precipitating the rebels' retreat to Sorel. The following months would see the rebels gradually retreat until they were finally driven out after the Battle of Valcour Island where they fought mostly with gunboats.
On November 2, Fraser's troops returned to Canada, and ten days later the entire army went into winter quarters, much to the annoyance of some officers, including Phillips and Fraser. On December 31, Bishop Briand celebrated a mass in Quebec in which many of those who had collaborated with the invaders were forced to do public penance, including serving in the army. Afterwards, Carleton hosted a lavish dinner for 60 guests and a public dance to commemorate the first anniversary of Montgomery's rejection of the attack.
Only the Boston massacre and the battle of bunker hills and a little thing in Quebec have change compared to IRL events.
Boston massacre: Provincial soldiers back fire by red coats and the military riot apart of 50 deaths when IRL where only 5.
Bunker hills:the three charges were change for one and destruction of breed hill redoubt by precise naval artillery shoot.
Quebec: the lamb cannon don't is leave.
A Bloody American Summer
«estas Colonias Unidas son, y por derecho deben ser, estados libres y soberanos».
«these United Colonies are, and by right must be, free and sovereign states».
— Attributed to Continental Congress on July 2, 1776.
On July 2, 1776, Congress finally resolved that "these United Colonies are, and by right ought to be, free and sovereign states." On July 4, 1776, 56 American congressmen met to approve the Declaration of Independence of the United States, which Thomas Jefferson wrote with the help of other citizens of Virginia. Paper money was printed and diplomatic relations with foreign powers began. In Congress were four of the main figures of independence: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and John Adams. Of the 56 congressmen, 14 would die during the war. Benjamin Franklin became the first ambassador and head of the secret services. The unit then spread out across the Thirteen Colonies to fight the British. The statement presented a public defense of the War of Independence, including a long list of complaints against the English sovereign George III. But above all, he explained the philosophy that supported independence, proclaiming that all men are born equal and have certain inalienable rights, including life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; that governments can govern only with the consent of the governed; that any government can be dissolved when it fails to protect the rights of the people. This political theory originated with the English philosopher John Locke, and occupies a prominent place in the Anglo-Saxon political tradition. These events convinced the British government that it was not simply dealing with a local New England revolt. It was soon assumed that the United Kingdom was involved in a war, and not in a simple rebellion, so conventional eighteenth-century military policy decisions were made, consisting of maneuvers and battles between organized armies. The theater of war was a long coastal strip stretching more than 2,000 km between the St. Lawrence River and Florida, with an average width of 235 km. The country was roadless and largely uncivilized, strategically favored defensive, and difficult to subdue.«these United Colonies are, and by right must be, free and sovereign states».
— Attributed to Continental Congress on July 2, 1776.
It was divided into three sectors:
- Northern sector that included New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New York.
- Central sector with New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Rode Island, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia.
- South sector the two Carolinas and Georgia.
Simultaneously reducing all three sectors was impossible for Great Britain, and therefore required defeating them one by one separately. As the northern sector was the easiest to invade because Canada could be used as a base of operations, if the rebellion was crushed in New England and New York, and the English army was provided with sufficient forces, the chances of ending the conflict were high. although the central and southern sectors continued to resist, which could be gradually subdued later.
After defeating the British at the Siege of Boston on March 17, 1776, Commander-in-Chief George Washington redeployed the Continental Army to defend the port city of New York, located on the southern tip of Manhattan Island. Washington understood that the city's harbor would provide an excellent base for the Royal Navy, so he set up defenses there and waited for the British to attack. Washington left Boston on April 4, arrived in New York on April 13, and made his headquarters at Archibald Kennedy's former home on Broadway across from Bowling Green. Washington had sent his second-in-command, Charles Lee, to New York in February to set up the city's defenses. Lee remained in New York City until March, when the Continental Congress sent him to South Carolina. The construction of the city's defenses was left to General William Alexander. The troops were in limited supply, so Washington found the defenses incomplete, but Lee had concluded that in any case it would be impossible to hold the city with the British commanding the sea. He reasoned that defenses should be placed with the ability to inflict heavy casualties on the British if they made any move to take and hold ground. Barricades and redoubts were established in and around the city, and the bastion of Fort Stirling was built across the East River on Brooklyn Heights, facing the city. He subsequently built two more forts Defiance and Cobble Hill to complete Brooklyn's defenses. Lee also made sure that the immediate area was free of loyalists.
A series of rises on Long Island, the Gowanus Heights, was later adopted as a forward defensive line. Initially just an additional zone of resistance, but Washington came to see that as the best chance of stopping the British. The slope was gentle on the defending side, and steep and heavily wooded on the other side, with walkable areas in only a small number of places. Troops were posted at every pass behind felled trees and it was hoped that the British would go no further. Washington based his strategy on the hope that the British would be unimaginative in assaulting him. Under the leadership of Israel Putnam, the Americans also seized and fortified Governor's Island and sank ships between it and the battery at the tip of Manhattan to prevent the passage of British ships. They did not do any further defensive work to protect the strait between the islands of Staten Island and Long Island, but they seemed to have limited resources and manpower. They had done what they could, but Washington rightly had a feeling. “We are expecting a very bloody summer…” he wrote to his brother on May 31, “and I am sorry to say that we are not prepared, neither in men nor in arms.” In July, the British, under the command of General William Howe, landed a few miles across the harbor on the sparsely populated Staten Island, where they were reinforced by a fleet of ships in New York Bay for the next month and medium, bringing its total strength to 32,000 soldiers. Washington knew the difficulty of holding the city with the British fleet in control of the harbor entrance at the Narrows, and accordingly moved most of his forces to Manhattan, believing that it would be the first target. The American army had about 28,500 men gathered around New York to oppose the British.
Indignity gripped the men as the disease swept through New York and more than a quarter of Washington's army was disabled, giving him just under 20,000 men fit for service. Less than half of this force were from the Continental Army, with the rest being state troops or militia. Washington was also almost totally devoid of cavalry; in fact, he had turned down Connecticut's offer of 3 RCs in June, numbering about 400, they could have done very valuable work patrolling the outlying American defenses, but Washington believed that the difficulty in feeding the horses would outweigh their usefulness ( a curious belief given the time of year and the abundance of suitable forage on Long Island). He asked the men to serve as foot soldiers, with their horses sent to Westchester to serve as roustabouts for officers or as work animals. The Connecticut Riders rejected that offer. The development of operations on Long Island would show the lack, as the only body of mounted troops was the Long Island Militia, under Nathaniel Woodhull, and they were employed exclusively to round up and herd cattle to prevent them from falling into British hands. Washington was not sure where the British would attack. Both Greene and Reed thought the British would attack Long Island, but Washington thought a British attack on Long Island might be a diversion for the main attack on Manhattan. He divided his army into two parts, half stationed in Manhattan and the other half on Long Island. Greene would command the army on Long Island. On August 20, Greene fell ill and was forced to move to a house in Manhattan where he rested to recover. John Sullivan took over command until Greene recovered. General Howe had sailed from Halifax, Nova Scotia, arriving at Sandy Hook on June 9, 25 arriving in New York Harbor with 9,000 troops in 45 ships. On June 29, a fleet of 130 ships and more than 9,000 soldiers arrived from England under the command of Admiral Richard Howe, the general's brother.
He sent a letter to Washington delivered by Lieutenant Philip Brown, who arrived under a flag of truce. The letter was addressed "George Washington, Esq." Brown was met by Joseph Reed, who had rushed to shore on Washington's orders, accompanied by Henry Knox and Samuel Webb. Washington asked his officers whether he should receive him or not, since he did not recognize his rank as a general, and they unanimously said no. Reed told Brown that there was no one in the military with that address. On July 16, Howe tried again, this time with the address "George Washington, Esq., Etc., etc.", but was again rejected. The next day, Howe dispatched Captain Nisbet Balfour to ask if Washington would meet General Howe's aide face-to-face, and a meeting was scheduled for July 20. Howe's aide was Colonel James Patterson. Patterson told Washington that Howe had come with clemency powers, but Washington said, "Those who have done no wrong don't want pardon." Patterson departed soon after. Meanwhile, on August 1, Peter Parker's fleet of 30 ships, with Generals Clinton and Cornwallis, returned from the abortive assault on Charleston, with another 3,000 troops. As news of the expedition's defeat spread, it seemed to cheer the New York garrison, but Washington called this development alarming. Later, on 12 August, 8,000 Hesse-Kassel mercenaries arrived from Portsmouth, bringing Howe's force to 32,000 soldiers, 10,000 sailors, and 2,000 marines. At this point the British fleet numbered over 400 ships, of which 73 were warships, the largest expedition of its kind ever mounted by Britain and certainly the largest fleet ever seen in America. Howe's options for the full command assault on the narrow waters were several.
The fight for Guan Heights continues throughout the morning. British troops filter through Jamaica Pass and through several other American positions, eventually gaining control of the ridge. The bloodiest fights of the battle occur near Battle Pass, where Hessian mercenaries go toe-to-toe with the patriots. As the Americans fall back towards Brooklyn Heights, one contingent is nearly surrounded by the advancing British. About 400 Maryland soldiers, known as the "400 Marylanders", fight back to buy time for their comrades to escape. More than 250 Marylanders are killed while desperately fighting the British regiments, but the rest of the army manages to retreat safely. As night falls, Americans are huddled in Brooklyn Heights with the East River behind them. General Howe overrules subordinates who advocate a renewed assault, instead digging in and preparing to besiege Washington's army. Washington, however, does not consent to a siege and eventual surrender. In the dead of night, he coordinates a retreat across the river without losing a single life. When the British investigate the American lines, they find them empty. At the time, it was by far the largest battle ever fought in North America. If the Royal Navy is included, more than 40,000 men participated in the battle. Howe reported his losses of 59 killed, 268 wounded, and 31 missing. Hessian casualties were 5 killed and 26 wounded. The Americans suffered much greater losses. About 300 were killed and more than 1,000 captured. Only half of the prisoners survived. Kept on prison ships, then transferred to places like the Dutch Church in Media, they suffered from starvation and were denied medical care. In their weakened condition, many succumbed to smallpox. The British were stunned to discover that Washington and the army had escaped.
Later in the day, August 30, British troops occupied the American fortifications. When news of the battle reached London, it caused much festivities. Bells were rung throughout the city, candles were lit in windows, and King George III gave Howe the Order of the Bath. Washington's defeat revealed his shortcomings as a strategist who divided his forces, his inexperienced generals who misunderstood the situation, and his troops who fled in disorder at the first shots. However, his daring night retreat would be seen as one of his greatest military exploits. On September 10, British troops moved from Long Island to occupy Montresor Island, a small island at the mouth of the Harlem River. On September 11, the Congressional delegation arrived on Staten Island and met with Admiral Lord Howe for several hours. The meeting came to nothing, as Howe was not authorized to agree to terms insisted on by the congressional delegation. However, he postponed the impending British attack, allowing Washington more time to decide whether and where to engage the British force. On September 12, at a court martial, Washington and his generals made the decision to leave New York City. 4,000 Continentals under Israel Putnam remained to defend the city and lower Manhattan, while the main army moved north toward Harlem and King's Bridge. On September 13, the main British movement began when the ships of the line Roebuck and Phoenix, along with the frigates Orpheus and Carysfort, advanced up the East River and anchored in Bushwick Creek, carrying 148 guns in all and accompanied by 6 transport ships. of troops. By September 14, the Americans were rushing stores of ammunition and other materials, along with sick Americans, to Orangetown, New York.
However, Washington established strong positions on Harlem Heights which he proved determined to defend in a fierce skirmish between the two armies the next day. General William Howe, unwilling to risk a costly frontal attack, did not attempt to advance further into the island for another two months. Washington was extremely angry with his troops' conduct, calling his actions "disgraceful" and "outrageous." The Connecticut militia was labeled cowardly and blamed for the defeat. Others, however, were more cautious, thinking that if the Connecticut militia had stayed behind to defend York Island under British gun fire and, in the face of overwhelming force, they would have been annihilated. On September 16, Washington was greatly concerned about the inability of his troops to deal with the British and Hessians in Howe's army. Step by step, the Americans were expelled from New York Island. Washington had only the northern plateau of the island, around the fortification of Fort Washington on the shore of the Hudson River. Washington dispatched a group of New England Rangers, under the command of Captain Thomas Knowlton, to monitor British movements south of his position. He descended from the northern plateau to a lowland area known as the Hollow Road and then to the next plateau. There his group of around 120 men met pickets of British light infantry and fire was exchanged. More British troops from the 42nd Highlander Black Watch or Black Watch Regiment emerged and the small group of Rangers were forced to withdraw in some haste, pursued by the British who blew fox horns as they pursued them.
Americans on the northern plateau are said to have been particularly incensed upon hearing the British use derisive fox-hunting calls. Washington ordered an advance force to draw the group of British further towards the plateau, while a second force moved around the British right flank and cut them off from the southern plateau and further reinforcements. The British took the bait and advanced towards the northern plateau while the Americans fell back before them. As they advanced south, the American flanking group encountered some British troops and gunfire broke out, warning the light infantry that they were in a dangerous position. The fighting spread north before Washington decided to send troops forward in two flanking maneuvers, one under Major Andrew Leitch and the other under Knowlton. A third force of Americans feinted to attack the British on their front. One of Howe's subordinates made a critical mistake during the fight. A fox horn was sounded before the fight ended. Fox hunters used a "Fox Horn" to signal to other hunters that the fox had given up and was ready to be killed. The American force heard the horn and all it did was motivate the men to fight even harder. Although the Americans attacked before the British were surrounded and Leitch and Knowlton were mortally wounded, the British found themselves attacked from three sides and began their retreat. Under persistent attack, the British withdrew to a field at Hollow Way. Fighting continued for an hour until the imminent arrival of more British forces. This caused Washington to call his troops back. The number of troops increased to nearly 5,000 on each side as the British were forced back.
Washington called off the attack after 6 hours because the Americans were not ready for a general confrontation with the entire British army. The significance of this action to the Americans was that it was the Virginia militia, who had fled the day before, fighting steadily and effectively alongside the Northern rangers that went a long way toward restoring confidence in the American military. During the British advance on New York Island, one of Knowlton's American officers, Captain Nathan Hale of Coventry, Connecticut, was caught by the British in civilian clothes acting as a spy. Hale was hanged and said in his last words «I only regret, that I only have one life to lose for my country«. After the Battle of Long Island, the British Army forced the Americans off Manhattan Island. Howe chased Washington slowly out of New York City and into the countryside. Howe extended his own command in a line from New Rochelle in the south to the town of Scarsdale in the north. Howe and his conservative supporters had a stronghold in New York City. After Washington abandoned Manhattan Island, he deployed his force in a long defensive line in Westchester County, with the northern part in White Plains. White Plains was located 20 miles northeast of New York City. It was a rural and sparsely populated farming community. The terrain consisted of gently rolling hills through which the Bronx River valley ran. His goal was to escape the clutches of the British while evacuating tons of supplies before they could be captured by the superior British force. At the behest of the Continental Congress, Washington had to leave some 2,800 troops, commanded by Colonel Robert Magaw, to occupy Fort Washington and another 3,500 troops under Major General Nathanael Greene to defend the opposite shore at Fort Lee. Their mission was to disrupt and prevent the British fleet from moving upriver above the forts and into the Hudson River Valley.
On October 22, Washington and his army arrive in White Plains. They joined his advance unit, which had started arriving the day before, and began fortifying the three surrounding hills. At White Plains, Washington spread out his army 3 miles wide, including the pass through the city. The right flank was commanded by Brigadier General William Heath, the center was commanded by Washington, and the right flank was commanded by Major General Israel Putnam. Howe was in New Rochelle, where he was in no hurry to move against Washington. This gave the Americans time to reach his new position safely. On October 23, some 8,000 Heissens, commanded by Lieutenant General Wilhelm von Knyphausen, arrived in New Rochelle and reinforced Howe's army. Howe decided to leave some 4,000 Hessians to garrison New Rochelle. On October 27, the British vanguard arrives at White Plains. Chatterson's Hill rose 180 feet above the plain and the top was gently rounded with steep, wooded slopes. The top of the hill was divided into cultivated fields by stone walls. It was located to the right of the American line, across the Bronx River. At the time, Washington had not strengthened this position. The double line front of the Washington conclave covered the city of White Plains. Looking south, the American line was anchored on the right (west) flank at Purdy Hill along the Bronx River and on the left beyond the city at Hatfield Hill near a large pond. The center was directly in front of the city. Beyond Washington's right, about half a mile across the river, was Chatterson's Hill. Initially, Washington did not perceive the hill as important enough to occupy. On the morning of October 28, the British entered Scarsdale and advanced on White Plains.
Howe received information that Washington had massed his army and deployed it in a large shallow crescent below the town, with the narrow Bronx River swollen protecting the American right flank. Howe's advance was formed into two columns, one British and one Hessian. Lieutenant General Henry Clinton commanded the British column and Major General Wilhelm von Heister commanded the Hessians. Washington ordered Brigadier General Joseph Spencer to take a detachment of 1,500 men and two guns to block the British on the plains between Chatterson's Hill and Scarsdale. Spencer had the first line manned by the Massachusetts militia and the second line was manned by the Delaware Continentals. At 9:30 a.m., once the delay force had made contact with the British, they returned and reported to Washington that the British were approaching in two columns along the East Chester Road. Once in White Plains, Howe spread out his army in an open area about a mile in front of the American line. Howe saw Chatterson's Hill and recognized that it was critical terrain. He planned the main attack on Chatterson's Hill while the rest of his army kept the rest of the American line busy. As Howe and his command consulted, the Hessian artillery on the left opened fire on the hilltop position on Chatterson's Hill, where they managed to drive the militia into a panicked retreat. The arrival of McDougall and his brigade helped to rally them and a defensive line was established, with the militia on the right and the Continentals arrayed along the brow of the hill. After the artillery bombardment, a detachment of 4,000 men was sent to attack the American position. First, Howe sent 3 Hessian regiments, commanded by Colonel Johann Rall, across the river, where they took up positions on some ridges about 1/2 mile from Chatterson's Hill. The rest of the attacking force then crossed a ford downriver and climbed the hill. Finally, the 17th Dragoons were sent out on a cavalry charge, the first cavalry charge of the war.
Rall threatened Spencer's left flank. The militia panicked and were soon routed, but the mainlanders put up a stiff resistance before being forced to make an orderly retreat. The Americans were forced across the river to Chatterson's Hill. With the British now close behind, Washington suddenly realized the critical nature of Chatterson's Hill and decided to strengthen it. He ordered around 1,600 troops, made up of Delaware Continentals and Maryland militia to help occupy the hill. This brought the total defensive force on the hill to around 2,500 soldiers. Major General Alexander McDougall assumed command of the hill force. After Spencer's detachment was driven off, Howe moved his army to the flat land below the high ground and facing the city within sight of Washington. Howe then divided his command and sent 8 regiments to attack the high ground of Chatterson's Hill. He also placed 20 guns under Chatterson's Hill and opened fire on the American positions. McDougall was only able to fire a couple of shots before being forced to abandon his guns. As the British artillery bombardment continued, British and Hessian troops fought their way under fire towards the Bronx River. They then crossed the river and fanned out to attack the hill. The British regiments attacked directly against the American positions while the Hessians attempted a flanking maneuver against the American right flank. The British were forced back with heavy casualties, but the Hessians took up a position beyond the American left flank, which was held by inexperienced militiamen from New York and Massachusetts. The fight lasted only a few minutes before the militia fled. The fleeing militia exposed the flank of the Delaware troops.
The appearance of the advancing Hessians confused the Delaware troops. Although many companies formed up and repulsed several Hessian attacks, the pressure against their front continued and supporting troops moved to the rear. Unable to maintain a defense, the rest of the Delaware troops were forced into an orderly retreat from the field. After the loss of Chatterson's Hill, Washington had no choice but to withdraw further north, beyond the Croton River, to Castle Hill. At 5:00 PM, the battle ended. Howe was content to hold on to Chatterson's Hill. The two armies remained where they were for two days, while Howe reinforced the position on Chatterton Hill and Washington organized his army to withdraw to the hills north of White Plains. With the arrival of additional Hessian and Waldeck troops under Lord Percy on October 30, Howe planned to move against the Americans the following day. However, heavy rain fell throughout the next day, and when Howe was finally ready to act, he awoke to find that Washington had eluded him again. On October 31, Washington withdrew his army into the northern foothills overnight, setting up camp near North Castle. Howe decided not to follow, instead trying unsuccessfully to draw Washington out. On November 1, the British advanced but found that Washington and his army were gone, having retreated to the hills north of White Plains. Howe decided not to follow the Americans and allowed them to withdraw safely to New Jersey. During the fighting in and around Manhattan, the US Army commanded by General George Washington, for whom the fort was named, was forced to withdraw north, leaving Forts Washington and Fort Lee isolated. After defeating the Continental Army at the Battle of White Plains, British Army forces, commanded by Lieutenant General William Howe, planned to capture Fort Washington, the last American stronghold in Manhattan.
Washington had considered abandoning Fort Washington, but was convinced by Greene, who believed that the fort could be held and that it was vital to do so. Greene argued that keeping the fort would keep communications across the river open and might deter the British from attacking New Jersey. Magaw and Putnam agreed with Greene. Washington gave in to Greene and did not leave the fort. On November 4, Howe ordered his army south toward Dobbs Ferry. Rather than pursue US forces in the highlands, and possibly motivated by intelligence gained from Demont's defection, Howe had decided to attack Fort Washington. Washington responded by dividing his army. Seven thousand soldiers were to remain east of the Hudson River under Major General Charles Lee to prevent a British invasion of New England; General William Heath, with 3,000 men, was to protect the Hudson Highlands to prevent any British advance north; and Washington, with 2,000 men, would go to Fort Lee. On November 13, Washington and his army arrived at Fort Lee. Howe's plan of attack was to assault the fort from three directions while a fourth force feigned; by then it had received reinforcements and was garrisoned by 3,000 men. Hessian troops under Lieutenant General Wilhelm von Knyphausen would attack the fort from the north, Percy would lead a brigade of Hessians and several British battalions from the south, and General Charles Cornwallis with the 33rd Regiment of Foot and General Brigadier Edward Mathew. with light infantry they were to attack from the east. The feint was to be from the 42nd Highlanders, landing on the east side of Manhattan, south of the fort. On November 15, before attacking the fort, Howe sent Lieutenant Colonel James Patterson under a flag of truce to deliver a message that if the fort did not surrender, the entire garrison would be killed. Magaw said the Patriots would defend the fort to the "last end".
On November 16, before dawn, the British and Hessian troops withdrew. General Knyphausen and his troops crossed the Harlem River in flatboats and landed in Manhattan. The boatmen then turned downriver to ferry Mateo's troops across the river. However, due to the tide, they were unable to get close enough to shore to cross the British troops. Therefore, Knyphausen's troops were forced to stop their advance and wait until Mathew could cross. Around 7:00 a.m. At 15:00 am, the Hessian guns opened fire on the American battery on Laurel Hill and the British frigate HMS Pearl began firing on the American entrenchments. Also, south of the fort, Percy had his artillery open fire on the fort. Percy's artillery took aim at Magaw's guns. At noon, Knyphausen and his Hessians restarted their advance. As soon as the tide was high enough, Mathew and his troops, accompanied by Howe, crossed the Harlem River. They landed under heavy fire from American artillery on the Manhattan shoreline. British troops charged up the hillside and dispersed the Americans until they reached a redoubt held by some companies of Pennsylvania volunteers. After a short fight, the Americans turned and ran toward the fort. North of the fort, the Hessian right, commanded by Colonel Johann Rall, moved up the steep slope south of Spuyten Duyvil Creek with almost no American resistance. The Hessians began to bring up their artillery. At this point the main body of Hessians began to advance up the Post Road, which ran between Laurel Hill and the hill Rall was on. The Hessians crossed swampy land and as they approached the wooded hillside near the fort, they were fired upon by 250 riflemen from the Maryland and Virginia Regiment of Rifles, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Moses Rawlings.
Rawlings's men hid behind rocks and trees and ran from place to place to shoot at the Hessians as they tried to advance through the fallen trees and rocks. The Hessians' first and second charges were repulsed by Rawlings's riflemen. John Corbin was in charge of firing a small cannon on top of a hill. During an assault by the Hessians, Corbin was killed, leaving his cannon without a crew. Margaret Corbin had been with her husband on the battlefield the entire time and, after witnessing his death, she immediately took her place in the cannon and continued firing until her arm, chest and jaw were hit by enemy fire, thus becoming the first known female combatant in the American Revolution. At about the same time, to the south, Percy advanced with about 3,000 men. Percy advanced in two columns with his brigade of Hessians on the left and Percy himself on the right. Some 200 yards from the American lines, Percy halted the advance, waiting for Stirling's feint to come through. Facing Percy was Alexander Graydon and his company. Graydon's superior was Lambert Cadwalader, Magaw's second-in-command, who was in charge of holding the three defensive lines south of Fort Washington. After hearing that there was a shore landing to his rear, Cadwalader sent 50 men to oppose it. The 50 men ran into the feint of the 700-man Colonel Stirling's 42nd Foot. Where Stirling landed turned out to be the least defended area of the American defenses, and when Cadwalader heard how many men were there, he sent another 100 men to reinforce the 50 he had sent earlier. The British landing parties spread out, finding a way through the rough terrain to the landing site. The Americans took up a position on top of a hill and began firing on the British troops still crossing the river, killing or wounding 80 men.
British troops charged the American position, scattering them. Hearing the gunshots, Percy ordered his troops to continue their advance. British artillery fire forced Graydon in the first defensive line back to the second line, where Washington, Greene, Putnam and Hugh Mercer stood. The four were encouraged to leave Manhattan, which they did immediately, sailing across the river to Fort Lee. Magaw realized that Cadwalader was in danger of being surrounded and sent orders for him to withdraw towards the fort. Cadwalader's force was pursued by Percy's troops at the same time that the troops opposing Stirling's landing were also pursued towards the fort. Stirling's troops, landed in Cadwalader's rear, halted, believing there were troops in the entrenchments. Some of the retreating Americans engaged Stirling, giving most of the rest of the American troops ample time to escape. With the collapse of Magaw's outer lines to the south and east of the fort, the general retreat to the perceived safety of the fort took place. To the south, the third defensive line had never been completed, so Cadwalader had nowhere left to retreat to except the fort. To the north, the Riflemen under Rawlings were still holding out, but just barely, since there were fewer Riflemen than before and since the increased firing had jammed some of the men's weapons, some of the men were forced to leave. push rocks down the hill in the attacking Hessians. The American battery at Fort Washington was silenced by the Pearl. By this time the rifle fire had almost ceased and the Hessians advanced slowly up the hill and engaged the Americans in hand-to-hand fighting. Overpowering the Americans, the Hessians reached the top of the hill and rushed the redoubt with a bayonet charge, quickly capturing it.
Washington, watching the battle from across the river, sent a note to Magaw asking him to hold out until nightfall, thinking the troops might be evacuated during the night. By this time, the Hessians had taken the ground between the fort and the Hudson River. Rall had the honor of requesting the American surrender by Knyphausen. Rall sent Captain Hohenstein, who spoke English and French, under a flag of truce to call for the fort's surrender. Hohenstein met with Cadwalader, and Cadwalader requested that Magaw have four hours to consult with his officers. Hohenstein denied the request and gave the Americans half an hour to decide. While Magaw was consulting with his officers, Washington's messenger, Captain John Gooch, arrived just before the fort was completely surrounded, with Washington's request to hold out until nightfall. Magaw attempted to obtain more favorable terms for his men, who would only be allowed to keep his belongings, but failed. at 3:00 p.m. m., the Germans had reached Fort Washington from the north and the British were in sight to the east and south. Realizing that standing up now would create a bloodbath within the crowded fort, Magaw announced his decision to capitulate the fort. at 4:00 p.m. m., the American flag was lowered at the fort, replaced by the British flag. The loss of all their weapons and equipment was especially damaging. Fort Lee was now untenable, and Washington began hauling the ammunition out of the fort. After the Hessians entered the fort, American officers attempted to placate the Hessian commander, Captain von Malmburg, who was in charge of the surrender. As they emerged from the fort, the Hessians stripped the American troops of their baggage and went so far as to murder some of them. His officers intervened to prevent further injury or death.
The British captured 34 guns, two howitzers, along with many tents, blankets, tools, and lots of ammunition. Under the usual treatment of prisoners of war during the Revolutionary War, only 800 survived their captivity to be released 18 months later in a prisoner exchange; nearly three-quarters of the prisoners died. Three days after the fall of Fort Washington, the Patriots abandoned Fort Lee. Washington and the army withdrew through New Jersey and crossed the Delaware River into Pennsylvania northwest of Trenton, pursued to New Brunswick, New Jersey by British forces.
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Delaware Crossing.
«Extincion antes que Tirania».
«Extinction before Tyranny».
— Attributed to George Washington on December 26, 1776.
«Extinction before Tyranny».
— Attributed to George Washington on December 26, 1776.
With the capture of Fort Lee, Howe sent Cornwallis additional troops consisting of elements of the 16th Regiment of Light Dragoons and the 71st Regiment of Foot. With these reinforcements, Cornwallis increased his force to over 10,000 men. Washington's 4,000 men found what shelter they could from the rain in houses and barns behind the Hackensack River. The British camped on the opposite side of the Hackensak River, he could see the fires a hundred yards away, glowing brightly in the gloom of night, spreading some distance from the town of New Bridge. Washington briefly considered making a stop along the Hackensack River, but the river was only 100–100 feet (30–30 m) wide and fordable in many places. On the morning of November 22, Washington left a rear guard to delay the British at New Bridge and ordered a further withdrawal to the relative safety of the Passaic River. Cornwallis sent a sizeable force, supported by a Hessian Jäger Company under Major General John Vaughn, to force a passage across the Hackensack River at New Bridge. The Americans occupied the Hoogland Tavern, and while the British light infantry and Jägers engaged in a short but bitter fight at New Bridge, the bulk of the American army marched towards Acquackanonk and crossed the Passaic River on a dilapidated wooden bridge. The Americans destroyed the bridge while the 16th's dragoons cautiously followed. Washington's men suffered another night in the cold rain. Washington usually rode at the back of the struggling column, encouraging his men to keep up their spirits. Lieutenant James Monroe would recount: "I saw him... at the head of a small band, or rather in the rear, because he was always close to the enemy and his countenance and attitude left an impression on me that I can never erase." Cornwallis remained in Hackensack with the main army for two days.
British feeding parties fanned out to gather supplies from the surrounding countryside, marveling at the abundance. Despite strict orders against looting, the British and Hessian troops were incriminated in their rough treatment of civilians. The abuses against rebels and loyalists did nothing to attract New Jersey citizens to the British cause. British scouts reported that large amounts of abandoned equipment littered the retreat route. Before leaving Acquackanonk Landing, Washington wrote to New Jersey Governor William Livingston, once again requesting the muster of the New Jersey militia to resist the British invasion. Withdrawing from Acquackanonk Landing, the US Army reached Newark on November 23. Major General Sterling, with his brigade consisting of Delaware Regiment 1, Virginia Regiment 3, and Regiment 1, advanced to Elizabethtown from New Brunswick to support Washington's main force. The Continental Congress, informed of the loss of Fort Lee on November 22, formed a committee that met with Washington in New Jersey, where Congress President John Hancock, who authorized Washington to withdraw troops from the Northern Department on November 24. In turn, Washington sent Brigadier General Thomas Mifflin to Philadelphia to report to Congress on the condition of the army and sent Joseph Reed to Governor Livingston and the New Jersey legislature to renew his request for reinforcements. Mifflin's report from Philadelphia was not encouraging, describing Pennsylvanians as "divided and lethargic." Washington did not hear from Reed. On November 26, Washington requested that General Phillip Schuyler send reinforcements from his Northern department to join the main army in New Jersey. A total of approximately 1,200 men were sent south on December 2.
In Newark, an agricultural center of about 140 homes and 3,000 people on the west bank of the Passaic River, Washington was faced with a choice. He could follow the road northwest to Morristown and protect the army from further attack, but he would expose most of New Jersey to British occupation. In all likelihood, this would cause Philadelphia to be lost. Washington held a court martial to review his options and spoke with officers individually about the state of the army. After the setbacks of the late summer and fall, Washington was not surprised to find pessimism and despair, but he too found sources of optimism. Although Washington's army was depleted, many without clothing, weapons, or equipment had grown to nearly 5,400 by the time the isolated detachments were assembled. As his scouts watched the British in Hackensack, Washington hoped that his time in Newark would allow more militiamen from New Jersey to come to his aid. But he must have been bitterly disappointed. More irritating than the militia's failure, however, was Lee's continued reluctance to join Washington. Lee had already taken steps to try to create two independent armies. He maintained that if his force remained east of the Hudson River, he would provide security for New England. At the same time Lee proposed to William Heath to join him with 2,000 jerseys. Heath immediately rejected it. Lee finally agreed to cross the Hudson River on December 2. While this drama was unfolding, the British and Hessians reorganized at Hackensack and General Howe met with Cornwallis to discuss next moves. Howe's original intention was to stop at Hackensack, but the apparent disintegration of Washington's army, coupled with the largesse of the New Jersey countryside, suggested that further advances might be useful.
On November 28, after spending five days resting in Newark, Washington ordered the sick and wounded transferred to Morristown, and the main army was ordered to march some 25 miles to New Brunswick, reaching the village at noon on November 29. november. In addition to the news that Cornwallis was on the move, Washington had begun to receive worrying information that the British were collecting boxcars on Staten Island to move to Perth Amboy, New Jersey. This was the move Washington feared, which would expose his army to grave danger. The British advanced against New Brunswick in two columns. Colonel von Donop commanded the right column, made up of Hessian grenadiers and jägers, British infantry. Cornwallis led the left column, made up of British units and baggage. The British vanguard entered Newark as the American rear guard was withdrawing from the city. The Americans withdrew from Newark in two columns. One retreated through Elizabethtown and Woodbridge while the other marched through Springfield and Quibbletown. Cornwallis pressed Washington's forces relentlessly. Washington's rearguard prevented the British from advancing too quickly, felling trees and engaging in brief ambushes on their pursuers. The Americans were experienced in simulating defending a given position, causing the British to call off their advance and deploy their forces, including artillery. Having bought valuable time, the Americans disappeared, withdrawing to another defensive position and repeating the strategy. New Brunswick was strategically situated along the best highway between Philadelphia and New York and included a supply depot where Washington expected the New Jersey militia to assemble. American forces arrived in New Brunswick at noon on November 29.
When he arrived in New Brunswick, Washington was still desperate for the whereabouts of Lee's Brigade. Lee sent a letter with the reasons why he couldn't go to his aid. When he arrived in New Brunswick, Washington was still desperate for the whereabouts of Lee's Brigade. Lee sent a letter with the reasons why he couldn't go to his aid. Later in the day, he sent a Battalion commanded by Major Maitland to join them at the Connecticut farms and together they reconnoitred the right flank of Cornwallis's column. Finding no sign of Lee's troops, Maitland rejoined the main force as it approached New Brunswick on December 1. While in New Brunswick, the US Army dwindled, as enlistment for some units ended on December 1. 2,000 men were free to leave that day and another 1,000 were expected to leave the army on December 31. Washington was unable to convince these officers to stay. British patrols heading north to Howells Ferri, just 6 km away, were regularly attacked by local militia gangs. While the militia attacks produced benefits to the American cause by disrupting enemy communications and gaining useful intelligence, their random nature resulted in an extremely fluid situation that hampered Washington's attempts to confirm the exact location of enemy units in a timely manner. Given moment. In early December, the Continental Army crossed the Delaware River and destroyed or captured all shipping along a 75-mile stretch of the river to prevent the British from crossing. British leaders evidently thought the Continental Army was not a threat, and General Howe decided to move his men to winter quarters in Trenton, Pennington, and Bordentown, New Jersey, with a base of operations in Brunswick.
On December 14, the Hessians arrived in Trenton to establish their winter quarters. Colonel Carl von Donop, who despised Colonel Johann Gottlieb Rall, was reluctant to hand over command of Trenton to him. Rall was known to be loud and did not know the English language, but he was also a 36-year-old soldier with a wealth of battle experience. His request for reinforcements had been refused by General James Grant, who disdained the Americans and considered them poor soldiers. Trenton lacked walls or fortifications, which was typical of American settlements. Some Hessian officers advised Rall to fortify the city, and two of his engineers advised that a redoubt be built at the upper end of the city, and that fortifications be built along the river. The engineers came up with plans, but Rall did not agree with them. When he was again urged to fortify the city, he replied: "Let them come... we will attack them with bayonets." Loyalists arrived in Trenton to report that the Americans were planning actions. American deserters told the Hessians that rations were being prepared to advance up the river. Rall publicly dismissed such talk as nonsense, but privately in letters to his superiors, he said that he was worried about an impending attack. He wrote to Donop that he was "liable to attack at any time." Rall said that Trenton was indefensible and called for British troops to garrison Maidenhead. Near Trenton, that would help defend the roads from the Americans. His request was denied. When the Americans disrupted the Hessian supply lines, the officers began to share Rall's fears. South of Trenton, James Ewing, with 600 militia, launched a series of hit-and-run attacks across the river on December 17 and 18, leaving Rail and the Hessians stunned.
On the night of December 21, Ewing's men crossed the Delaware and burned several houses on the dock and disappeared. Although the losses of men were light, these raids began to play on the nerves and confidence of the Hessians. Rumors of an impending American raid in force prompted Rall to organize an unsuccessful march along the Delaware to search for the raiders. Rail deployed his cannon in the center of the city, not knowing which direction an attack might come from, and required his men to sleep in their clothes so he could respond at any moment. Rall began sending increasingly desperate pleas for help to his superiors. Brigadier General Leslie at Princeton was sympathetic and responded on December 18 by sending a force of light infantry to Trenton. On December 22, Washington called a council of war at Sterling's headquarters to consider an attack on the enemy, before the next batch of enlistments expired on December 31. The day before, Washington agents had intercepted a letter from a Philadelphia merchant suggesting that the British were only waiting for the Delaware River to freeze over before marching on Philadelphia. Washington reconvened a smaller group and sure enough they worked out a plan to attack Trenton on December 26. That same day, a spy informed Grant that Washington had called a council of war, Grant told Rall to be on his guard. The force at Trenton was 1,356 of Rall's Brigade with the Knyphausen (429), Lossberg (345) and Rall (512) Regiments with a Jäger Company (50) and 1 Light Dragoon Company (20) of the 16th. Rall took all precautions you can. He established six outposts, on Maidenhead, Pennington and River roads, along the road to the Trenton Ferry, on the Assunpink Creek Bridge and on the Crosswicks Creek Drawbridge. The Crosswicks Creek detachment, located 6.5 km south of Trenton, made up of more than 100 men.
In case of attack, he was instructed to withdraw 3 km to Bordentown. Inside Trenton, the main picket of 73 men was stationed at the Fox Chase public house on the Maidenhead Road. Every night an entire Regiment was ordered to remain under arms and all outposts garrisoned. While plans were being formed for the attack on Trenton, Washington led an attack on the enemy around Mount Holly on December 23. By mid-December, Colonel Samuel Griffin had assembled a force of approximately 500 militia. On December 14, Griffin's men advanced from Haddonfield towards Mount Holly. The plan called for Colonel Cadwalader with 700 men to cross the Delaware from Bristol to Burlington early on December 23 to reinforce Griffin. Colonel Joseph Reed was coordinating the movements of the militia units and joined Griffin only to find him ill. Reed returned to Bristol and provided Washington with a summary of what he had seen. On Christmas Eve a patrol of over 100 men was sent up the Delaware River to Pennington and on Christmas Day the outposts were fortified. Two hours before dawn, a reinforced patrol with two guns was sent to the river. The attacks carried out by the militia resulted in the alarm of the entire garrison on December 22, 23 and 25. Despite the increased activity of the Americans, Rall again rejected Donop's advice to build redoubts on the high ground at the head of King and Queen Streets and at the Trenton Ferry. Frustrated, Major von Dechow and Lt. Col. Scheffer sent a joint letter to General Heister in New York, complaining of Rall's ineptitude. On Christmas Eve, Washington called another court-martial at Greene's headquarters at Merrick House in Buckingham to reveal the details of the attack, crossing the Delaware River at three points:
- 1,500 militia, under John Cadwalader and Colonel Joseph Reed, were ordered to cross the Delaware River at Bristol, 12 miles south of Trenton, and advance toward Burlington. Cadawalader was to be joined by Hitchcock's Brigade, made up of some 900 men in 2 Massachusetts Regiments and 2 Rhode Island Regiments, supported by a Rhode Island militia unit. Israel Putnam was also expected to show up with the militia units he had been organizing in Philadelphia to cross the river and act as a reserve.
- 600 Pennsylvania militiamen, under the James Ewing, were to cross the river at Trenton to secure the bridge over Assunpink Creek and prevent a possible Hessian retreat.
- The main force of about 5,000 troops, under Washington, would cross the Delaware River on the McKonkey ferry, about 15 km upriver. Once across, the force would split into two columns. A column, led by the John Sullivan, would take the river road to Trenton. The other column, under the Nathaliel Greene, would advance inland along the Pennington Road towards Trenton. Each column carried 9 cannons.
Before Washington and his troops left, Benjamin Rush came to cheer him on. While he was there, he saw a note that Washington had written that said, "Victory or death." Those words were the password for the surprise attack. Each soldier would carry 60 cartridges and three days of rations. The men from Washington would cross the river in a combination of the ferry and craft boats and the ships from Durham. Originally designed by Robert Durham around 1750, these ships were used to transport iron ore from Durham to the furnaces at Riegelsville in Philadelphia. Later they were used to carry other cargo and could accommodate 15-20 tons per boat. They measured up to 30 m long. They had a crew of 5, two on the sides and a helmsman in the rear. Each boat carried between 50 and 60 men. By the time the army reached the banks of the Delaware River, they were already behind schedule and it began to rain. As the temperature dropped, the rain changed to sleet and then to snow. The Americans began to cross the river with the soldiers crossing in boats from Durham, while the horses and artillery crossed by ferry. Adam Stephen's Brigade (549) with the 4th (229th), 5th (129th), and 6th (191st) Continental Regiments from Virginia, were the first to land and set up a landing head to ensure the landing of the following. Two small infantry detachments of about 40 men each were sent in front of the main columns. One of the groups was sent north to Trenton, and the other was sent to block the river highway, which ran along the Delaware River to Trenton. On December 26, terrible weather conditions delayed the landings until 3 a.m., the original plan was that they should have been completed by 12 p.m. Washington realized that it would be impossible to launch an attack before dawn.
Another setback occurred for the Americans, as Brigadier Generals Cadwalader and Ewing were unable to join the attack due to weather conditions. At 04:00 hours, the soldiers began to march towards Trenton. Along the way, several civilians joined as volunteers and led as guides due to their knowledge of the terrain. After marching 1.5 miles on winding roads, they reached the Bear Tavern, crossed Jacobs Creek, and stayed together until they reached Birmingham, where the columns parted at about 0630 hours. Close coordination of the attacks by the two columns was critical, and when notified that the men's flint and ammunition were wet and unusable, Washington replied simply, "go ahead and charge." Having a longer march, Greene's column was the first to leave, it had 2,690 troops and was led by Stephen's Brigade (549), followed by Mercer's Brigade (838), Fermoy's Brigade (628) and the Brigade from Sterling (673). Sullivan's column, 2,200 strong, was given a short break and then advanced led by Glober's Brigade (857), followed by Saint Clair's Brigade (505) and Sargent's Brigade. Soon after, they arrived at Benjamin Moore's home, where the family offered Washington food and drink. At this point, the first signs of daylight began to appear. Many of the troops did not have boots, so they were forced to wear rags around their feet. Some of the men's feet bled, leaving a dark red trail in the snow, clouding morale. As they marched, Washington moved up and down the line, encouraging the men to continue. Sullivan sent a courier to tell Washington that time had wet the powder on his men. Washington responded: “Tell General Sullivan to use the bayonet. I am determined to take Trenton.”
At approximately 0730 hours, as they approached Trenton, Greene's men were surprised by a force of approximately 40 American militia, led by Adam Stephen, unaware of the plan to attack Trenton, and had attacked a Hessian outpost. . Washington feared that the Hessians had been put on their guard and shouted to Stephen: “Sir! You, sir, may have ruined all my plans by putting them on their guard." At 08:00 hours, the advance party asked a man chopping wood where the Hessian sentries were, outside Trenton. He pointed to a nearby house. A 50-man outpost of Lieutenant Andreas Wiederhold saw the Americans emerge from the woods approximately half a mile from the north end of Trenton, on Pennington Road. The outpost waited until the Americans were within range, then made an ineffective barrage. The Americans fired three volleys and the Hessians returned one. Washington ordered Edward Hand's 1st Pennsylvania Continental Regiment and a German-speaking Brigade to block the road leading to Princeton. Wiederholdt soon realized that this was no simple raid. On the high ground at the north end of Trenton, they were joined by a company of the Hessian Regiment from Lossberg who faced the Americans, slowly falling back, keeping a steady fire, and using the houses for cover. Once in Trenton, they gained covering fire from other Hessian companies posted on the outskirts of the city. Another guard company near the Delaware River rushed east to their aid, leaving the river trail open at Trenton. Washington ordered the escape route to Princeton cut off, dispatching infantry in an orderly manner from the battle to block it, while artillery was stationed at King and Queen streets.
With the sound of the alarm, the 3 Regiments of the Hessians began to prepare for battle. The Rall Regiment (512) formed at the bottom of King Street along with the Lossberg Regiment (345), while the Knyphausen Regiment (429) formed at the lower end of Queen Street. Lieutenant Piel, a Rall aide, woke up his commander, who found that the rebels had taken the V-corner of the city's two main streets. That was the place where the engineers had recommended the construction of a redoubt. Rall ordered his Regiment to dig in at the lower end of King Street, the Lossberg Regiment to prepare for a drive up Queen Street and the Knyphausen Regiment to stand ready as a reserve to support the Rall Regiment on King Street. The Hessians were completely surprised and unprepared. They broke out quickly and formed up, but their attempts to attack north were hampered by fire flanking the column and artillery from western Washington. The Americans had stationed two cannons on a rise that protected the two main streets outside the city. The Hessians attempted to put 4 guns into action, but American fire kept them silent. Leading the southern column, General Sullivan entered Trenton via the abandoned river road and blocked the only crossing over Assunpink Creek to cut off the Hessians' escape. Sullivan briefly halted his advance to ensure that Greene's DI had time to press the Hessians to their northern outposts. Shortly after, they continued their advance, attacking the Hermitage, which was Philemon Dickinson's home, where 50 jägers were located under Lieutenant von Grothausen. Lieutenant von Grothausen called 12 of his jägers into combat against the vanguard, but they had only advanced a hundred meters when he saw a column of the Americans advancing on the Hermitage, trying to reach the Hessian barracks, joined by the rest. of the jägers.
After the exchange of fire, they turned and ran, some trying to swim across the creek, while others escaped along the bridge route, which had not yet been cut off. The 20 British light dragoons also fled. As Greene's and Sullivan's columns entered the city, Washington moved to high ground north of King and Queen streets to watch the battle and lead his troops. At this moment, American artillery positioned across the Delaware River came into action, devastating the Hessian positions. Knyphausen's Hessian Regiment (429) which was cut off from the other two regiments and driven back through the southern end of Trenton by Sullivan's Column. Many of the Hessians were able to escape south across Assumpink Creek, where Ewing's troops were supposed to be located. Rall's Hessian Regiment (512) and Lossberg Regiment (345) were expelled from the city and formed up in an apple orchard in the southeast corner of the city. Rall ordered a counterattack back into the city, trying to force a gap in the road to Princeton. A few seconds later, Rall was hit and mortally wounded while riding his horse and fell. The Hessians' guns had also gotten wet during the storm, and they had difficulty firing. As the Hessians returned to the streets of Trenton, American troops, joined by some civilians from the city, fired at them from buildings and from behind trees and fences, causing confusion. At the same time, the American guns broke any formation and the Hessian resistance faltered. They retreated back to the apple orchard and tried to escape across Assumpink Creek.
There, they found the bridge blocked and the fords upriver covered by the Americans. They were soon surrounded by the fast-moving Americans and left with no choice but to surrender. The remnants of the Knyphausen Regiment were heading for Bordentown, but slowed down as they tried to drag their cannon through the marshy ground. They soon found themselves surrounded by Sullivan's men and were also forced to surrender, numbering about 200. At 0930 hours the fighting finally stopped. The battle had been an overwhelming victory for Washington, lasting only 90 minutes. The Americans captured 1,000 muskets, several cannons and ammunition, and some much-needed supplies. Some 600 Hessians, most of whom had been stationed on the south side of the creek, managed to escape. But many were captured. This made Washington's plan to continue on to Princeton and Brunswick out of the question. With a large body of prisoners to evacuate, and British reinforcements near him, his own troops depleted, and no adequate supply from across the river, Washington had no choice but to withdraw. By noon, Washington's force had moved to recross the Delaware River back into Pennsylvania, taking their prisoners and captured supplies with them. This battle gave the Continental Congress new confidence because it showed that the American forces could defeat the regulars. He also increased re-enlistments in the Continental Army forces. The Americans had shown that they could stand up to a disciplined European army, and the fear that the Hessians had inspired earlier that year in New York was over. As Captain Johann Ewald of the Jägers, who was with von Donop on Mount Holly at the time of the attack, said of the Americans later: "Now we must give them the honor of fortifications." The Hessians had 22 killed, 83 seriously wounded and 896 captured including wounded, the Americans had 2 killed and 5 wounded.
The captured Hessians were sent to Philadelphia and later Lancaster. In 1777 they were moved to Virginia. Colonel Rall mortally wounded and died later that day at his headquarters. All four colonels of the Hessians in Trenton were killed in the battle. The Lossberg Regiment was effectively withdrawn from the British forces. Washington had changed course, pursuing British forces from the Delaware River and putting them on the defensive, if only for a few days. When the Continental Congress learned of Washington's victory at Trenton, they had renewed confidence in him and he tightened the enlistments and reenlistments for 1777. After the Hessians surrendered, Washington is reported to have shaken the hand of a young officer and said : "This is a glorious day for our country." On December 28, Washington interviewed Lieutenant Andreas Wiederhold, who detailed the failures of Rall's preparation. However, Washington soon learned that Cadwalader and Ewing had been unable to complete their crossing, leaving his 2,400 men isolated. Without his additional 2,600 men, Washington realized that he did not have the forces to attack Princeton and New Brunswick. This small but decisive battle had an effect out of proportion to its size. The patriot effort was galvanized, and the Americans reversed the psychological dominance achieved by British troops in the previous months. Howe was surprised that the Americans so easily surprised and overwhelmed the Hessian garrison.
