Battle of Brandywine
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The Battle of Brandywine was a battle of the American Revolutionary War fought on September 11, 1777 near Chadds Ford on Brandywine Creek in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. The battle was a major victory for the British and enabled them to capture the city of Philadelphia.
In late July, 1777, after a distressing 34-day journey from Sandy Hook on the coast of New Jersey, an armada of over 260 ships carrying some 17,000 British troops under the command of the British General Howe landed at the Head of Maryland's Elk River, on the northern end of the Chesapeake Bay (near present day Elkton), approximately 40-50 miles southwest of Philadelphia. Unloading the ships proved to be a logistical problem as the narrow river neck was shallow and muddy.
General George Washington had situated the American forces, about 11,000 strong, between Head of Elk and Philadelphia. His forces were able to reconoiter the British landing from Iron Hill, about nine miles to the northeast. Because of the delay debarking from the ships, he did not set up a typical camp, but quickly moved forward with the troops. As a result, Washington was not able to accurately gauge the strength of the opposing forces.
Washington chose the high ground near Chadds Ford to defend against the British, since Chadds Ford allowed safe passage across the Brandywine River on the road from Baltimore to Philadelphia.
On September 9, Washington positioned detachments to guard other fords above and below Chadds Ford, hoping to force the battle there. He was confident that the area was secure.
The British grouped forces at nearby Kennett Square. Howe had no intention of mounting an full scale attack against the prepared American defenses. He then employed a flanking tactic similiar to those used in the Battle of Long Island. A portion of the army, about 5,000 men under the commanded of Wilhelm von Knyphausen, was to advance to meet Washington at Chadds Ford, while the remainder, under the command of Lord Charles Cornwallis, were to march north to a ford Washington had overlooked and then march south to flank the American forces.
September 11 began with a heavy fog, which provided cover for the British troops. Washington received contradictory reports about the British troop movements and continued to believe that the main force was moving to attack at Chadds Ford. By the time the British appeared on the right flank of the Americans, it was too late to reposition and the defeated Americans were forced to retreat to Chester.
The battle cost the British about 89 killed and 487 wounded, while they clamed to have killed 200 Colonials, wounded 750 more, and captured over 400 as well as destroying or capturing most of the American artillery.
British and American forces manuvered around each other for the next several days with only minor encounters such as the Paoli Massacre on the night of September 20-21.
The Continental Congress abandoned Philadelphia, first to Lancaster, Pennsylvania for one day and then to York, Pennsylvania. Military supplies were moved out of the city to Reading, Pennsylvania. On September 26, 1777, British forces marched into Philadelphia unopposed.
External links
- Brandywine Battlefield Park (http://www.ushistory.org/brandywine/brandywine.htm)
- The Philadelphia Campaign (http://www.ushistory.org/march/index.html)
- Battle of Brandywine (http://www.generalatomic.com/AmericanHistory/battle_of_brandywine.html)