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The New York and New Jersey campaigns were important early events in the American Revolutionary War. Beginning with the British landing on Staten Island on July 3, 1776, British forces gained control of New York City and its surroundings.
The early campaign was a major strategic and tactical success for the British and a clear defeat for the Continental Army. British naval forces, led by Admiral Lord Richard Howe, and the British Army, led by his brother, General Sir William Howe, gained control of New York City, its harbor, and the surrounding agricultural areas. They would hold the city and Long Island for seven years, until 1783.
The Americans, led by General George Washington lost a series of battles, took significant casualties, lost important supplies, and were driven across New Jersey and into Pennsylvania. But Washington managed to withdraw the core of his army, and avoided the decisive confrontation that could have ended the war. Late in 1776, he recrossed the Delaware River and launched quick and effective counterstrike, an effort that was an important morale boost for the Americans.
New York campaign
Having withdrawn from Boston after an unsuccessful campaign, the British now focused on capturing New York City. General Howe, with the services of his brother, Admiral Lord Howe, began amassing troops on Staten Island in July 1776. General Washington, with a smaller army of about 20,000 men, was uncertain where the Howes intended to strike. He unwittingly violated a cardinal rule of warfare, and divided his troops about equally in the face of a stronger opponent between Long Island and Manhattan, thus allowing the stronger Howes to engage only one half of the smaller Continental Army at a time.
In late August, the Howes transported about 22,000 men (including 9,000 "Hessians") to Long Island. In the Battle of Long Island on August 27, 1776, the British expertly executed a surprise flanking maneuver, driving the Americans back to the Brooklyn Heights fortifications. General Howe then began to lay siege to the works, but Washington skillfully managed a nighttime evacuation through his unguarded rear across the East River to Manhattan Island.
Having taken Long Island, the Howes moved to seize Manhattan. On September 15, General Howe landed about 12,000 men on lower Manhattan, quickly taking control of New York City. The Americans withdrew to Harlem Heights, where they skirmished the next day, but held their ground.
When Howe moved to encircle Washington's army in October, the Americans again fell back, and a battle at White Plains was fought on October 28, 1776. Once more Washington retreated, but Howe, instead of aggressively pursuing the withdrawal, returned to Manhattan and captured Fort Washington in mid November, taking almost 3,000 prisoners. Four days later, Fort Lee, across the Hudson River from Fort Washington, was also taken.
New Jersey campaign
General Lord Cornwallis continued to chase Washington's army through New Jersey, until the Americans withdrew across the Delaware River into Pennsylvania in early December. With the campaign at an apparent conclusion for the season, the British entered winter quarters. Although Howe had missed several opportunities to crush the diminishing rebel army, he had killed or captured over 5,000 Americans. He controlled much of New York and New Jersey, and was in a good position to resume operations in the spring, with the rebel capital of Philadelphia in striking distance.
The outlook of the Continental Army—and thus the revolution itself—was bleak. "These are the times that try men's souls," wrote Thomas Paine, who was with the army on the retreat. The army had dwindled to fewer than 5,000 men fit for duty, and would be reduced to 1,400 after enlistments expired at the end of the year. Spirits were low, popular support was wavering, and Congress had abandoned Philadelphia in despair.
Washington reacted by taking the offensive, stealthily crossing the Delaware on Christmas night and capturing nearly 1,000 Hessians at the Battle of Trenton on December 26, 1776. Cornwallis marched to retake Trenton, but was outmaneuvered by Washington, who successfully attacked the British rearguard at Princeton on January 3, 1777. Washington then entered winter quarters at Morristown, New Jersey, having retaken most of the colony from the British.
See also
Further reading
- Black, Jeremy. War for America: The Fight for Independence, 1775-1783. St. Martin's Press (New York) and Sutton Publishing (UK), 1991. ISBN 0312067135 (1991), ISBN 0312123469 (1994 paperback), ISBN 0750928085 (2001 paperpack).
- Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. Encyclopedia of the American Revolution. New York: McKay, 1966; revised 1974. ISBN 0811705781.
- Buchanan, John. The Road to Valley Forge: How Washington Built the Army That Won the Revolution. Wiley, 2004. ISBN 0471441562.
- Fischer, David Hackett. Washington's Crossing. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004. ISBN 0195170342. Winner of the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for History.
- McCullough, David. 1776. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2005. ISBN 0743226712.
- Schecter, Barnet. The Battle for New York: The City at the Heart of the American Revolution. 2002. (website)
- Wood, W. J. Battles of the Revolutionary War, 1775-1781. Originally published Chapel Hill, N.C.: Algonquin, 1990; reprinted by Da Capo Press, 1995. ISBN 0306806177 (paperback); ISBN 0306813297 (2003 paperback reprint).
Campaigns of the American Revolutionary War | Battles of the New York Campaign
"New York and New Jersey campaigns"