General Sir William Howe

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Perhaps another week of good fortune would have allowed him to achieve his goal. But on Christmas night Washington crossed the Delaware River with his small army and the next day surprised Britain’s German allies at Trenton, taking nearly 1,000 prisoners. Then, after pleading with his troops to stay just a few days past the end of their enlistments, he outwitted General Charles Earl Cornwallis and defeated three British regiments in Princeton, taking more than 400 additional prisoners.

The rebel victories, though small, destroyed General Howe’s hopes of ending the war by spring. Encouraged by George Washington’s success, new recruits came forward to replace those who left his army. The British commander-in-chief abandoned most of New Jersey, along with his plan to pacify its inhabitants. He admitted, regretfully, that there now seemed no hope of suppressing the rebellion without crushing the American army. Washington, however, had already reached the same conclusion and was determined to preserve his troops rather than risk all on the outcome of a single battle. From the spring of 1777 until General Howe resigned his command and returned home in 1778, Sir William won several more victories, but he was never again able to catch the rebel army in the sort of trap he had let it escape from on Long Island.

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Tags: 17th - 18th Century, American Revolutionary War, British Heritage, Historical Conflicts, Historical Figures

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