George Washington shouted to his troops at the Second Battle of Trenton, “Defend the bridge to the last extremity!” The answer came back, “To the last man, Excellency.”
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There are so many inspiring, beautiful stories about the great heroes of American history which are scarcely ever told. One happens on them accidentally—buried in a thick, out-of-print biography, in small print on a museum sign, casually and fleetingly mentioned in an obscure educational video. America cannot return to greatness in the future if we do not truly understand the greatness of our past. That is why I am writing an article series to tell a few of these little-known but moving “untold stories” of American greatness. Previous articles in this series have included the “indomitable courage” of D-Day heroes; how Union Col. Trimble saved black freemen from Confederate enslavers; Tim McCoy, actor, Army officer, cowboy, and Indian expert; how George Washington single-handedly ended dangerous infighting in the Revolutionary Army; Harpo Marx, comedian, musician, and fighter for Jewish rights; and Joe Medicine Crow, WWII hero and the last Crow war chief.
Today’s story honors the U.S. Army in its nascent war to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Army’s formation on June 14, 1775. The Army is older than the United States itself and ensured the birth of this great Republic. But only a year and a half after the Army’s birth, it faced potential destruction.
One private soberly said of that second battle at Trenton in January 1777, “On one hour, yes, on forty minutes, commencing at the moment when the British troops first saw the bridge and creek before them, depended the all-important question whether we should be independent States, or conquered rebels.”
The Americans Patriots under Washington had successfully and nigh miraculously achieved a resounding surprise Christmas victory over Britain’s Hessian mercenaries in Trenton where the only American casualties were due to the bitter weather. The late arrival of the Philadelphia Associators at Trenton convinced Washington to change his plans and brave a second fight at the New Jersey town—specifically, at a key bridge. “Your country is at stake, your wives, your houses, and all that you hold dear,” the commander-in-chief urged his soldiers. Having convinced many men whose enlistments expired on New Year’s to stay with the Army, Washington sat on his horse at the bridge over the Assunpink Creek and assessed his plan against Hessian and British troops renowned for their fierceness and brutality. Fortunately, among the regiments standing by Washington at the crucial bridge were the aptly nicknamed Indispensables and Immortals.
Historian Patrick K. O’Donnell describes the ensuing critical clash in vivid detail. A private proved an invaluable firsthand source for the battle, as quoted by O’Donnell:
The noble horse of Gen. Washington stood with his breast pressed close against the end of the west rail of the bridge, and the firm, composed, and majestic countenance of the General inspired confidence and assurance in a moment so important and critical. In this passage across the bridge it was my fortune to be next to the west rail, and arriving at the end of the bridge rail, I was pressed against the shoulder of the General’s horse and in contact with the General’s boot. The horse stood as firm as the rider, and seemed to understand that he was not to quit his post and station.
As noted above, Washington could not have had better troops at his back. The “Immortals” were the remains of Maryland and Delaware regiments who had sacrificed many of their own men bravely engaging the British to enable a previous American retreat. The “Indispensables” from Marblehead, Massachusetts, were fresh off their famous feat of moving the American Army and artillery back-and-forth across the Delaware River in a snowstorm. Both regiments were racially integrated and included a cross section of society from their native states. Black, white, and Native American Indian soldiers all gripped their muskets in the ranks as they awaited the Hessian charge.
Related: Untold Stories: John Fitzgerald, Irishman, Revolutionary, and Friend of George Washington
One officer exemplified the practicality and rough humor of many of the Patriots in his orders to his men at the bridge: “Well, boys, you know the Old Boss has put us here to defend this bridge; and by God it must be done, let what will come. Now I want to tell you one thing. You’re all in the habit of shooting too high. You waste your powder and lead; and I have cursed you about it an hundred times. Now I tell you what it is, nothing must be wasted; every crack must count. For that reason, boys, whenever you see them fellows first begin to put their feet upon this [bridge], do you shin ‘em…Fire low.”
Just in case there was any confusion, the officer re-emphasized, “Bring down your pieces, fire at their legs, one man wounded in the leg is better than a dead one, for it takes two more to carry him off & there is three gone. Leg them, dam ‘em, I say leg them.”
The soldiers followed their orders precisely, and it proved a brilliant success. There could be no complaints of wasted shot that day. From O’Donnell:
[The] Battle of Trenton unfolded as Hessian grenadiers (Britain’s German allies) in prodigious columns made the first attempt to storm the bridge. The assault troops fought halfway across facing withering American musket fire, many undoubtedly “legged,” slowing their advance. Scores of Hessians fell, coating the stone bridge with blood and gore. Unbroken, they reformed and charged, again; dozens fell from the musket fire, and the columns disintegrated before they reached the center of the bridge. Elated from their triumph, the Americans raised a massive cheer at the site. “Such a shout I have never since heard… The [American] line was more than a mile in length, yet they shouted as one man.” Indomitable, the Crown’s troops reformed and charged over the bodies of their dead comrades who “lay thicker and closer together for a space than I have ever beheld sheaves of wheat lying in a field which the reapers had just passed.” Once again, the Americans held the bridge.
Yet a third time, the British/Hessian troops under Cornwallis’s command tried to charge across the bridge, and once again it was carnage.
There was still a good chance of British victory, however. The danger the Americans faced of being surrounded, cut off, and hemmed in was all too real. In fact, Cornwallis was so thoroughly confident of his ultimate victory that he put off the final onslaught on Washington and the American forces until the morning, regardless of reported advice to the contrary. “We’ve got the old fox safe now. We’ll go over and bag him in the morning,” sneered this condescending aristocrat.
Related: Untold Stories: ‘Battle of Princeton’ by William Mercer, America’s First Deaf Artist
But in the morning, Cornwallis found that the “old fox” Washington was gone. He and his men had dexterously slipped away from the lines and were on their way to Princeton and another victory over the British soldiers there.
Indeed, that wasn’t the last time Cornwallis would underestimate the “old fox” and his troops. Some five years later, a humbled Cornwallis would be raising the white flag of surrender at Yorktown.
And so Washington’s Indispensables and Immortals marched away from Trenton, and on to fame and glory. How aptly indeed could we name not only all the Revolutionaries but all the Army soldiers since then the “Immortals,” because their courage, determination, and heroism shall never be forgotten.
Happy 250th birthday to the U.S. Army!
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Author: Catherine Salgado
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