The Battle of Trenton

Podcast Transcript

In the winter of 1776, things did not look good for the Continental Army.

Everything got off to a great start in 1775, but this year saw a series of defeats at the hands of the British.

Things were looking so bad that many Americans thought that the revolution was effectually over.

If Washington was to keep the revolution going, he needed a miracle.

He needed a Christmas miracle.

Learn about the Battle of Trenton and the Christmas attack that kept that revolution alive on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.

While many Americans like to think of the Revolution as a glorious victory, it was anything but.

If you could go back and run the revolution again ten times, there is a good chance the Americans would lose nine of them.

That’s because the Americans were outgunned and outclassed. The British Army was more experienced, better equipped, better trained, and had a much larger population to pull from.

On top of all that, the British Navy was the greatest on Earth.

The revolution got off to a good start in 1775. The Colonists performed well at Concord and Lexington and then successfully laid siege to Boston.

During the winter of 1775 and 1776, the Green Mountain Boys, led by Ethan Allen and Colonel Benedict Arnold, captured the British-held Fort Ticonderoga in northern New York. They brought back the British cannons to Boston, which was a huge win.

Realizing their position was untenable, British General William Howe evacuated the city on March 17, 1776, marking an early and significant American victory in the war for independence.

Enthusiasm amongst the Colonists for the war was high in light of their success, resulting in the Declaration of Independence in July.

One of the reasons why the Americans were victorious so early was because the British simply weren’t prepared and weren’t ready for a full-blown revolution.

However, after Boston, the British were able to regroup and get their act together.

The Continental Army marched south to New York to meet the British, and that was when things started to go south.

The Battle of Long Island, which took place on August 27, was the first major engagement after the Declaration of Independence and the largest battle of the Revolutionary War. Following the British evacuation of Boston, General William Howe launched a massive campaign to seize New York City, a strategically vital location.

The British landed on Staten Island and then attacked American defenses on Long Island with approximately 32,000 troops and naval support. General George Washington, with about 10,000 Continental troops, defended Brooklyn Heights but was outmaneuvered when the British executed a flanking maneuver.

The battle ended in a disastrous defeat for the Continental Army, with heavy losses, including over 1,000 captured. However, Washington successfully evacuated his remaining forces across the East River to Manhattan under the cover of night and fog, avoiding complete destruction.

After retreating from Long Island, Washington established defensive positions in northern Manhattan. Following skirmishes, on September 16, British forces attempted to provoke and intimidate the Continental Army into a rout. The Battle of Harlem Heights began when an American scouting party engaged British troops near present-day Morningside Heights. Washington counterattacked with disciplined resistance, eventually forcing the British to retreat.

In late October, as the British continued their campaign to secure New York, Washington’s forces withdrew north to White Plains to avoid encirclement. General Howe pursued with his army, and on October 28, the Battle of White Plains occurred when British forces attacked a key American defensive position on Chatterton Hill.

Despite a valiant defense, the Americans were ultimately driven off the hill by superior British numbers and firepower.

November 16, 1776, was another devastating defeat for the Continental Army during the New York campaign. Located on Manhattan’s northern tip, Fort Washington was a key American stronghold intended to block British access up the Hudson River.

Despite General George Washington’s hesitation, the fort’s commander, Colonel Robert Magaw, was ordered to hold the position against advancing British and Hessian forces under General William Howe. The British launched a coordinated assault from multiple directions, overwhelming the fort’s defenses. After intense fighting, Magaw surrendered, and approximately 2,800 American troops were captured, a significant loss of both manpower and morale.

This defeat, coupled with the subsequent fall of nearby Fort Lee, forced Washington’s army into a retreat across New Jersey and then across the Delaware River into Pennsylvania.

So, by December 1776, the Continental Army was in dire straits. The soldiers were demoralized, supplies were scarce, enlistments were nearing their end, and some soldiers were deserting.

The British, for their part, believed the American resistance was collapsing. General Howe did not pursue the Americans and didn’t feel particularly rushed, given it was winter. Traditionally, armies didn’t fight in winter because it was too difficult. Given the Continental’s lack of supplies, the winter would probably reduce their numbers even further without the British having to fire a shot.

Howe had stationed a group of Hessian mercenaries in Trenton, the cNew Jersey, to hold the town for the winter.

Hessian mercenaries were German soldiers hired by the British Crown to fight against the American colonists during the Revolutionary War. They primarily came from the German state of Hesse-Cassel, which was known for its professional and disciplined military. The term “Hessian” became a general label for all German troops in British service, though they hailed from several regions.

They were especially disliked by the Colonists.

Washington needed to do something. Not only was the morale of the army low, but the colonists were also losing faith as well.

Washington devised a daring plan to cross the icy Delaware River on Christmas night, march nine miles to Trenton, and attack the Hessian garrison at dawn. His goal was to catch the Hessians off-guard, as they were expected to be in a relaxed state after Christmas celebrations.

Also, Washington had heard rumors that the British were preparing a crossing of their own as soon as the river froze over.

On the night of December 25-26, Washington led approximately 2,400 troops across the Delaware River in freezing conditions. The crossing was arduous, delayed by icy waters and a snowstorm. However, the main force successfully reached the New Jersey side before dawn.

The artist Emanuel Leutze immortalized the crossing in his 1851 painting “Washington Crossing the Delaware.”

The plan was for Washington’s force to march to Trenton from the north. Two other detachments under Generals Ewing and Cadwalader were to block potential British reinforcements and provide support. However, they could not cross due to weather, leaving Washington’s force as the only one.

After crossing the river, the soldiers embarked on a 9-mile march south to Trenton in the early hours of December 26. Despite the freezing weather and snowstorms, which soaked their clothing and equipment, the army maintained discipline and cohesion.

Along the way, Washington’s forces were bolstered by the leadership of officers such as General John Sullivan and General Nathanael Greene.

The difficulty with the crossing and the march delayed Washington’s forces, eliminating the possibility of a pre-dawn attack.

Despite these hardships, the Continental Army arrived outside Trenton and launched their attack. The harsh weather worked to their advantage, as it discouraged Hessian patrols and heightened the element of surprise.

Washington divided his force into two columns. One, led by Greene, approached Trenton from the north while Sullivan’s column moved along the river to block escape routes from the south.

The Continental Army entered the town, catching the Hessian troops completely off guard. Under Colonel Johann Rall, the Hessians were unprepared for an attack, having been lulled into complacency by a period of relative calm from both the storm and the holiday.

It should be noted that Rall was concerned about an attack. Local loyalists and some deserters had warned him that the Continental Army was preparing to attack Trenton.

Publically, Rall dismissed the concerns, but privately, he was asking the British for reinforcements as he said Trenton wasn’t defensible. The British denied his request, but many Hessian officers had the same concerns as Rall by Christmas.

The Americans advanced rapidly, their movements aided by fog and the element of surprise. Hessian sentries were quickly overwhelmed, and the streets of Trenton erupted into chaos as the Continental Army surged into the town.

The initial charge was led by Washington, who was at the front of his troops.

The Hessians, numbering around 1,400 troops were caught off guard. Many were still waking up or assembling in their barracks when the attack began. Rall attempted to organize a defense, rallying his troops and leading a counterattack, but the Americans’ disciplined assault and effective use of artillery quickly broke the Hessian resistance.

The Continental artillery, positioned strategically to dominate key streets and intersections, played a crucial role in suppressing Hessian movements and forcing them into confined areas.

As the battle progressed, Sullivan’s forces secured the southern bridge over Assunpink Creek, cutting off the Hessians’ primary route of retreat. Encircled and outgunned, the Hessian troops began to falter. Rall was mortally wounded during the fighting, further demoralizing his men and disorganizing their efforts. By mid-morning, with no hope of reinforcement or escape, the Hessians surrendered.

The engagement lasted less than two hours and ended in a decisive American victory. Washington’s forces captured more than 900 Hessian soldiers, along with their weapons, ammunition, and supplies. They also suffered another 22 killed and 83 wounded. The Americans suffered minimal casualties, with only two soldiers dying from exposure during the march and a handful wounded in combat.

The defeat damaged the reputation of the Hessian forces, who were previously considered nearly invincible and highlighted the vulnerability of British-allied troops.

Trenton marked the beginning of an American counteroffensive. Recognizing the psychological advantage, Washington planned a follow-up attack to capitalize on the British and Hessians’ disarray.

Washington’s forces held Trenton against British counterattacks in the Second Battle of Trenton on January 2, 1777. That night, Washington executed another bold maneuver, slipping his army past the British and attacking their rear at the Battle of Princeton on January 3, 1777. The victory at Princeton further solidified the American resurgence, forcing the British to withdraw from much of New Jersey and giving the Continental Army control of key territory.

To put it simply, everyone loves a winner, and Washington needed a win, and that is exactly what he got in Trenton.

The victory at Trenton revitalized the spirits of the Continental Army and the American public after a series of crushing defeats earlier in 1776, including the loss of New York City and the capture of Fort Washington.

Soldiers, many of whom were on the verge of leaving the army as their enlistments expired, were inspired to reenlist. Washington leveraged the victory to persuade both soldiers and new recruits to continue supporting the revolutionary cause.

These battles proved that the Americans could defeat professional European forces, giving hope to those previously discouraged by setbacks.

The defeats at Trenton and Princeton forced British commanders to reevaluate their strategy in the colonies. The British shifted focus to consolidating their hold on key cities and maintaining defensive positions rather than pursuing aggressive campaigns to crush the rebellion.

Although it would be over a year before France formally entered the war, the American victories in late 1776 and early 1777 showed that the revolution had staying power. These successes helped convince foreign powers that the Americans were capable of sustaining their fight for independence.

There were still more than four years of fighting that had to be fought until the Battle of Yorktown, but those years of struggle might never have happened if it wasn’t for one brilliant attack on Christmas night in 1776.