Battle Of Trenton Summary

There are many causes of the Battle of Trenton. Washington was driven out of New York.In the text, MacKenzie says “After being driven out of New York by the British and forced to retreat to the West bank of the Delaware during the late summer of 1776.” They were forced to retreat and get ready for

In August 1781, General George Washington, who was camped in New York, learned that Lieutenant General Lord Charles Cornwallis' army of nearly 9,000 soldiers was encamped near Yorktown, VA (Lengel,

During the march to Trenton, there was a storm, so the Hessians did not send out an early morning patrol to look out for enemies. The storm also helped to hide Washington’s army, so the Hessians did not know they were coming.

Washington took away that fear when he launched the attack on Hessian troops. He followed up this victory by a win at Princeton. Next, he was forced to fight a battle that he knew he would lose. The British navy took over Philadelphia at the battle of Brandywine Creek. Washington’s militia was strengthened in October, when General Gates won at Saratoga, New York. In the spring of 1778, good news arrived when the French decided to send money, troops, and a fleet to help the colonies. When the British heard the news they decided to consolidate their position to New York and New Jersey. In the time period between 1778 and 1781 Washington kept the British army concealed to New York City. At the time he faced a variety of disappointments by losing the battles of Brooklyn Heights, Kip’s Bay, Harlem Heights, and White Plains.

The battle of Trenton and the battle of Saratoga brought a crucial victory to the Continental Army, but the battle of Trenton improved morale in the patriots more so than the battle of Saratoga did. The battle of Trenton proved to be significant by ultimately turning the tide of the conflict in their favor, improving morale and hope for the war.

The importance of this raid lay in the fact that they captured much-needed cannons and gunpowder.

Guerrilla warfare was a big part in winning many battles in the Revolutionary war. One of biggest wins using this tactic was the Battle of Trenton. The Battle of Trenton was fought December 26, 1776 in Trenton, New Jersey. General George Washington decided to take the Hessians by surprise. The Hessians were approximately 30,000 German soldiers that Great Britain hired to help them win the war and about 1,400 were in Trenton. General George Washington took his soldiers and crossed the Delaware river at the stroke of midnight. They were going to attack the Hessians while they were all sleeping. Most people think that the

Ewing was supposed to cross with his group of about one thousand men down south while General Caldwalader was supposed to cross at Bristol with two thousand men, however they did not succeed in crossing. Luckily Washington succeeded and caught the Hessians by surprise. The battle did not last long and Washington and his men came out with a victory. They captured nine hundred eighteen Hessians and killed approximately one hundred while the Patriots only had 5 casualties (Murphy).

The Crossing is a fine reproduction of the accounts General Washington went through on the famous crossing of the Delaware to attack the Hessian’s who had occupied Trenton, New Jersey. The script for the movie was written by Howard Fast a well-known author who has written many historical novels. Many of those novels were turned into movies as well. The director, Robert Harmon, made a few noteworthy biopics on historical topics with one of the best known “Ike: Countdown to D-Day”. It was apparent that these two did some research on the events leading up to and after the crossing of the Delaware took place. The movie The Crossing is mostly historically accurate, portrays General Washington as a strong leader, and demonstrates why even popular culture movies create an

George Washington’s tactics and skills when it came to the Continental army and war were very helpful in the many battles that he led. In Trenton, Washington planned a sneak attack on the British, in which they had to cross the Delaware River on. Because of Washington’s quick thinking and great army skills allowed the Continental Army to succeed in surrounding all the Hessians in Trenton in an orchard, leaving them with

George also knew that a lot of the Hessian and British soldiers would be taking off to spend the holidays with their families. The battle was located in Trenton, New Jersey and George led his army over the icy Delaware River to the battle. However this battle was not a victory, but a highly needed boost to winning the Revolutionary War.

The Continental Army, under General George Washington, had been badly defeated in New York in August 1776, and had been pushed west into New Jersey. While late in the year they achieved some success, including General Washington’s famous crossing of the Delaware River leading to the Battle of Trenton, the situation still favored the British. While the battered Continental Army wintered in New Jersey, a major British army occupied the strategic port at New York City under the command of General William Howe. And, despite pleas from the Continental Congress for France and Spain to formally join in the war against England, they remained hesitant and offered only supplies and weapons. Until Washington’s army could prove the possibility of victory without foreign aid, France did not think it politically or diplomatically feasible to enter openly into war with Britain.

Unbeknownst to General Clinton, General Washington had sent an advance unit to direct the New Jersey Militia. Generals William Maxwell and Philemon Dickerson, ordered the NJ Militia to destroy nearly every bridge along known routes (Mitnick, 2005). This caused General Clinton to either repair the bridges or wade across shallow rivers crosses leading to the further exhaustion his men and beasts of burden. This also directed the British troops to move towards the Monmouth courthouse. The Continentals’ prediction of routes through IPB allowed for continuous harassment of the British troops while at a safe distance.

After Howe 's victory at Brandywine, his army camped at Germantown, Pennsylvania. Washington planned a surprise attack against the redcoats at sunrise. He broke the army into four separate columns for battle. The American soldiers marched to Germantown by two roads, with General Sullivan to the right and General Greene to the left. Washington, along with General Wayne, joined Sulliven and caused the British to fall back.

The Battle of Trenton is widely regarded as a turning point in the American Revolutionary War. With enlistments in the Continental Army about to expire at the end of the year, General George Washington risked everything in harsh winter conditions to advance across the Delaware River and execute a surprise attack on Hessian troops in Trenton, N.J. An evaluation of the moments that led up to the battle, the setting, area of operations, the Continental and Opposing forces, along with the use of intelligence will reveal the major factors that led to the outcome of the battle. An analysis of the battle will illustrate how Washington devised an offensive plan that demonstrated many of the principles of war still utilized in military operations today.