The Battle of Trenton

The Battle of Trenton, fought on December 26, 1776, was a pivotal engagement during the American Revolutionary War. After crossing the icy Delaware River, General George Washington led Continental Army troops in a surprise attack against Hessian forces stationed in Trenton, New Jersey. The victory boosted American morale, revitalized the revolutionary cause, and was a significant turning point, showcasing Washington’s leadership and strategic acumen.

Trenton; The Revolution’s Darkest Hour

Introduction

In December of 1776, the rebellion of the American colonies against their British overlords looked to be coming to a dismal and premature end. The colonists had scored some promising early victories, but by the fall of 1776, the British Empire had struck back with a vengeance. Washington was forced to retreat through New York and New Jersey, and the British captured several key rebel fortresses. By that winter, many believed that the Revolution was doomed to failure. Yet from this low point—in just 10 days between December and January—the colonists would gain irresistible momentum, thanks to the bold maneuvers of Washington and the battles at Trenton and Princeton.

Dark Days of the Revolution

• (1) In the opening months of the American Revolution, everything had seemed to go the way of the colonists. Indeed, when the British army was forced to flee, Boston in March of 1776, many thought that the war was effectively over. This triumph was followed during the summer by the emotional high point of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
• (2) In August of 1776, the British commander-in-chief, Howe, launched an assault on New York and defeated the Americans at Brooklyn Heights, the largest battle yet. George Washington, the leader of the rebel army, was forced to flee with his forces to New Jersey.
• (3) In October, the British and Americans fought another major battle, but once more, the colonists were defeated and had to fall back. This process was repeated throughout the fall, as the British chased Washington south through New Jersey, winning a string of victories and swiftly capturing several key fortresses that the rebels had depended on to retard the British advance.
• (4) By December 1776, when both sides settled into winter camps, Washington had lost 90 percent of his army to death, desertion, division, capture, or simply because the volunteer soldiers’ short terms of enlistment had expired.
• (5) Washington’s reputation as a good general had been erased by that fall’s unrelieved string of demoralizing defeats and retreats, meaning that no new recruits would show up for the next campaign season in the spring. To observers on both sides that winter, it seemed certain that the American experiment was coming to an unsurprising end as a miserable failure.
• (6) Yet between December 25, 1776, and January 3, 1777, the elite British soldiers would be defeated not once but twice; Washington’s reputation as a military genius would be reestablished; and from this low point, the revolution would gain irresistible momentum, culminating in the defeat and surrender of the British at Yorktown and the acknowledgment of independence for the fledgling American Republic.

The Opponents

• (1) The person responsible for this turnaround was Washington himself. As a general, he had displayed a talent for holding together the often unruly and independent volunteers who made up the American ranks, and on the march, he habitually hovered at the end of the line to give encouragement to those who were lagging.
• (2) The general commanding the British army was an aristocrat named William Howe. At the Battle of Quebec, he was the daring officer who ordered his men to scramble directly up the steep cliffs, taking the French by surprise and winning the battle. Howe was a political moderate who disagreed with the Crown’s harsh treatment of the American colonies and who had considerable sympathy for them. Still, he firmly believed in the British Empire and its divinely mandated mission to rule.
• (3) Howe’s older brother, Richard, had a similar career arc, but in his case, it was in the Navy. Sent to sea at 13 as a midshipman, he, too, had risen quickly through the ranks, gaining a reputation for boldness and personal courage. He evinced an unusual degree of concern for the well-being of the sailors under his command and won a series of notable victories, becoming the youngest admiral in the fleet.
• (4) When the conflict with the American colonies broke out, King George III personally asked the Howe brothers to take charge of Britain’s land and sea forces in North America and to resolve the dispute by peaceful means if possible but by force if necessary.
• (5) Another important figure was General Charles Cornwallis. Much like Howe, Cornwallis was of the highest aristocratic stock, and he, too, served with distinction in the Seven Years’ War. It was his army that chased Washington across the length of New Jersey.
• (6) The soldiers employed by Britain against the Americans were an experienced group of regular line British infantry regiments supported by grenadier companies, light companies, mounted dragoons, and mobile artillery units. The infantry typically fought deployed into a long line two ranks deep.
• (7) Howe’s army also included a large contingent of Hessian regiments. These were mercenaries recruited from the Hesse-Kassel region of Germany. Ultimately, around 20,000 Hessians, plus another 10,000 men from other regions of Germany, would enlist to serve in the war against the American colonies. They were highly disciplined and formidable troops.

The Battles

• (1) When Washington reached the Delaware River, he ferried his men across to Pennsylvania, then had them gather all the boats and watercraft they could find, and place them on the south shore, thus denying the British a means to cross the river and continue their pursuit. This stratagem, coupled with the onset of winter, temporarily halted the British, who now settled down in New Jersey, waiting for spring.
• (2) In these extreme circumstances, Washington decided on one last desperate attempt before his men’s enlistment expired with the turn of the new year. As a target, he selected the contingent of about 1,500 Hessians settled for the winter in Trenton, who were under the command of an experienced soldier, Colonel Rall.
• (3) Washington planned a three-column assault in which his army would cross the Delaware at nightfall on Christmas Day and converge on Trenton before dawn. Washington would personally lead one of the attacking columns. Although the weather on Christmas Day had been clear, as dusk fell, a northeaster struck, bringing rain, snow, and biting winds.
• (4) The difficulty and complexity of moving such a quantity of men, animals, and equipment at night and in such appalling conditions inevitably caused disruption to Washington’s plans. The crossing took far longer than he calculated, and the sun was already close to rising by the time Washington’s force was assembled and ready to begin the hike to Trenton. Worse, the weather prevented the other two columns from crossing at all. Washington was determined to press on and divided his force into two sections for the march.
• (5) When the columns reached the outskirts of Trenton, they overran the outlying Hessian Pickets. Six American artillery pieces were deployed to fire down the length of the two main streets, and the attack began.
• (6) The well-sited American cannons played a key role in dispersing Hessian attacks and in keeping them from organizing. As the Hessians began to be overwhelmed and fall back, Rall was mortally wounded by two musket balls. The final casualty figures were about 100 Hessians killed and wounded and more than 900 captured.
• (7) Though militarily of marginal significance, Washington’s daring and successful raid immediately captured the American public’s imagination and rekindled enthusiasm for the war. Howe immediately dispatched Cornwallis, who had not yet departed on his ship for England, back to New Jersey to take charge.
• (8) Washington was determined to compound the momentum by launching an even more ambitious offensive, but he required additional manpower. He was able to consolidate under himself troops from other commanders, but he also needed to convince enough of his own veterans not to depart as their enlistment expired. He was able to retain about 1,400 of his experienced men, giving him a solid core of veterans for the coming campaign. They crossed over the Delaware to Trenton again and took up defensive positions along a ridge near Assunpink Creek.
• (9) Intent on avenging the embarrassing defeat of the Hessians at Trenton, Cornwallis stormed through New Jersey, gathering forces as he went. As he approached Trenton, he had an army of more than 9,000 men, and he ordered one brigade of about 1,000 under Lieutenant Colonel Mawhood to hold position as a reserve at Princeton. On January 2, he engaged the American line at Assunpink Creek. Fighting from the woods and prepared positions, the Americans stubbornly resisted the British advance, throwing back several attacks, but steady pressure forced them to give ground.
• (10) As night fell, Cornwallis called off the assault, confident that the Americans were close to breaking and that when the battle resumed in the morning, he could turn Washington’s right flank and secure the victory. Some of Cornwallis’s aides urged him to finish off the Americans immediately, but believing that he had Washington trapped, Cornwallis rejected the advice.
• (11) Washington was indeed deeply worried that the next day’s battle would see his army caught with their backs to the river. Again, he decided on a bold nocturnal maneuver that would surprise and outwit his enemy. He gave orders for his army to sneak away from Trenton during the night, to march in a dangerously exposed path all the way around Cornwallis’s sleeping army, and to fall upon the British reserve left at Princeton.
• (12) While one group stayed behind to keep the campfires lit, the bulk of Washington’s army slipped away. The cannon wheels were muffled with cloths, and the soldiers were ordered to observe strict silence. The army remained undetected, and by dawn on January 3, the leading elements were approaching Princeton.
• (13) The Battle of Princeton was much more of a conventional European-style stand-up fight between two opposing lines of men than either Trenton or Assunpink Creek had been. Across an open field, the two sides exchanged a series of volleys at close range, followed by charges and countercharges.
• (14) At one point, Washington, conspicuous on his grey horse, rallied the faltering American lines by dangerously exposing himself to British fire at a range of less than 50 yards. Eventually, the Americans prevailed against the outnumbered British, and Washington scored yet another brilliant victory. In some ways, this one was even more inspiring because it had shown that the American militia could go toe-to-toe with the British regulars and defeat them.

Outcomes

• (1) The Revolutionary War continued for several more years, until it finally ended with Washington’s victory over Cornwallis at Yorktown in 1781. But the true turning point was the twin victories of Trenton and Princeton. These came at the very darkest moment for the Revolution, at a time when support for it was faltering and everything seemed to be turning against the young republic.
• (2) Instead, by a series of clever and daring maneuvers, Washington restored the enthusiasm and confidence of his army, firmly established his reputation as a general, and saved the nascent revolutionary movement. From that moment on, the continuance of the Revolution was never again seriously in doubt, leading inexorably toward the colonists’ attainment of freedom from Great Britain.

Conclusion

The Battle of Trenton was a pivotal moment in the American Revolutionary War, marking a significant turning point for the Continental Army. The successful surprise attack, led by General George Washington, not only secured a vital victory but also restored hope and morale among American troops and supporters. It demonstrated the resilience and determination of the revolutionary forces, proving that they could overcome formidable opponents. The victory at Trenton set the stage for further successes and solidified Washington’s reputation as a capable and strategic leader, ultimately contributing to the eventual American triumph in the war for independence.

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