We’ve all seen this painting from 1851 depicting General George Washington standing up in the boat as his troops navigate the icy waters of the Delaware River. Nobody stood up in these flat-bottomed boats that were designed to carry freight across the river. However, the inaccuracies of this painting don’t detract from the exceptional job done by those solders of the Continental Army. The reality of this night deserves some details
“The game is pretty near up”
The Continental Army had just lost several battles and surrendered two forts in New York, retreating to New Jersey and then Pennsylvania. They were loosing men from desertion and from enlistments expiring, with the next termination date being Dec 31. Washington was very concerned that the war was almost lost; in his words “I think the game is pretty near up”. He had precious little time and knew he had to do something, something bold to regain the momentum and get the country and his army behind The Cause again.
Thomas Payne, the author “Common Sense” and a familiar voice to colonialist, wrote a pamphlet entitled “The American Crisis”. This rousing piece, which Washington ordered be read to his troops, opens with the words:
“THESE are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.”
11-Hour Crossing
They were encamped in Bucks County, PA, near Newtown. By mid-December, 1776, he had consolidated his forces into an army of about 2400 men. He decided to attack the Hessian troops at Trenton on Christmas night, thinking this would be unexpected, and ordered river crossings to begin just after dark.
Washington knew he needed men with the maritime skills to handle these keel-less “Durham” cargo boats in such a difficult environment. One of his officers, Colonel John Glover brought a group of men from Marblehead, MA, officially the 14th Continental Regiment. The “Marbleheaders”, along with shipyard workers from Philadelphia, manned the oars and made the dozens of trips across the Delaware safely.
It took 11 hours for his men to cross the river, in the 16 to 20 boats that they had. With a capacity of only 16 soldiers each boat had to cross up to ten times.
A 9-mile March and Victory at Trenton
After all were across, the soldiers assembled and marched 9 miles to Trenton in a severe storm of snow, rain and sleet. By 8AM they arrived and attacked the totally unaware Hessian troops, capturing 900 prisoners and killing or wounding about 100 more. The Americans suffered only 5 casualties and no deaths. After seizing much needed supplies, weapons and ammunition, Washington’s troops then marched the 9 miles back to the crossing point and made the return trip to Pennsylvania.
On January 2, 1777, in the Second Battle of Trenton (the Battle of the Assunpink Creek), the Americans slowed an advance by British General Charles Cornwallis heading to Trenton in the aftermath of their loss of December 26. The British were repulsed three times as they attacked American positions south of Assunpink Creek and Cornwallis decided to wait and finish the battle the next day.
Victory at Princeton
Washington then moved is army around the British camp that night, leaving campfires burning to increase the deception, and attacked Princeton the following day. This was a solid victory for the Americans and prompted the British to withdraw from most of New Jersey for the winter.
These victories at Trenton and Princeton gave the American troops and the American public the lift they needed, prompting a flood of enlistments and re-enlistments and swelled the morale of the Continental Army.
Later, when General Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown, he commented to Washington that while history may focus on the battle at Yorktown “Fame will gather your brightest laurels from the banks of the Delaware”.