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Battle of Princeton Part of the American Revolutionary War George Washington rallying his troops at the Battle of Princeton Date January 3, 1777 Location Princeton, New Jersey Result Decisive American victory Belligerents United States Great Britain Commanders George Washington, Hugh Mercer†, John Haslet† Lord Cornwallis Charles Mawhood Strength 4,500 35 guns[1] 1,200 6-9 guns[2] Casualties and losses 31 Killed 40 Wounded 100 Killed 70 Wounded 280 Captured [3]

v â€¢ d â€¢ e New York and New Jersey 1776–1777 Long Island – Kip's Bay – Harlem Heights – Pell's Point â€“ White Plains – Fort Washington – Iron Works Hill â€“ Trenton â€“ Assunpink Creek – Princeton – Forage War – Millstone â€“ Bound Brook â€“ Short Hills

The Battle of Princeton (January 3, 1777) was a battle in which General Washington's revolutionary forces defeated British forces near Princeton, New Jersey. The site is administered as a state park operated and maintained by the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry.

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Background

The night after the Second Battle of Trenton, General Washington stealthily led the roughly 6,000-man main body of his army away from Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis and his troops. To disguise the departure of the American soldiers, Washington left a detachment of 500 Pennsylvania militia behind to tend to large campfires and periodically fire volleys from two cannons.

During the night, Washington's army marched over a back road toward Princeton and reached the Quaker Bridge over Stony Brook, about a mile and a half south of the town. The Quaker Bridge was not strong enough to support the army’s cannon and ammunition carts, so another bridge had to be hastily built. While it was being constructed, Washington divided his army into two groups: a large right wing under General John Sullivan, and a smaller left wing with 2,300 men under General Nathanael Greene. Washington had intended to attack Princeton before dawn, but the sun was rising.

Greene’s assignment was to advance to the Princeton-Trenton highway to block traffic there and destroy the highway bridge over Stony Brook. Sullivan’s division, the main attack force, moved toward the rear of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University). The British were known to have outposts on the roads leading north, east, and west, so Sullivan took an abandoned road that went into town from the east.

Before Greene’s wing could reach the highway, its leading brigade, made up of 350 men under General Hugh Mercer of Virginia, met up with 800 men of the British 4th Brigade, armed with 2 light guns, under the overall command of Lieutenant Colonel Charles Mawhood. The British group had been marching from Princeton to Trenton to reinforce General Leslie's 2nd Brigade. The remaining unit of the 4th Brigade had been left to hold Princeton along with another 400 men.

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The Battle

Upon sighting the American force, Mawhood formed up his men in a defensive position across the edge of an orchard, which Mercer's troops were passing through. A violent firefight ensued, and Mawhood launched an assault which largely cleared the orchard of Mercer's troops, who began to retreat in confusion. General Mercer was wounded but refused to surrender. When he tried to attack the enemy with his sword, he was bayoneted and presumed dead; he died of his wounds nine days later. Colonel John Haslet of Delaware replaced General Mercer and was killed by a shot to the head.

The death of Mercer. Washington is the background.

During the confusion, General Washington rode up to rally Mercer's men, while a fresh brigade of 2,100 troops under General John Cadwalader arrived with an artillery battery.^{[citation needed]} Washington then rode straight into the British fire, personally leading the attack. As Washington charged towards the British lines, he was heard yelling

"Parade with me my brave fellows, we will have them soon!"

^[4] Legend has it that Washington was obscured by smoke, but when it cleared, he was still there.^[5]

With Cadwalader's reinforcements and Washington's successful rallying of Mercer's men, the larger American force was able to attack the British flanks and retake most of the orchard, until fire from Mawhood's guns halted the American advance.

A second British assault cleared the orchard, and seemed about to win the day until Sullivan led up another 1,300 troops.^{[citation needed]} Now outnumbered nearly 6 to 1, Mawhood led a final charge to break through the American lines.^{[citation needed]} A number of British soldiers broke through the Americans in a desperate bayonet charge, continuing down the road to Trenton.^{[citation needed]} Washington led some of his force in pursuit of Mawhood, then abandoned the pursuit and turned around when some of Leslie's 2nd Brigade troops were sighted. The remainder of the British force fell back to Princeton, where, along with the troops already present, they defended the town against Sullivan's force before retreating to New Brunswick. A number of British troops left behind in Princeton, facing overwhelming numbers and artillery fire, surrendered. The British casualty list stated 86 killed and wounded, and 200 captured. The Americans suffered 40 killed and wounded.

In Trenton, Cornwallis and his men awoke to the sounds of cannon fire coming from behind their position. Cornwallis and his army began to race towards Princeton. However, Washington's rear guard had managed to damage the bridge over the Stony Brook, and American snipers further delayed Cornwallis' advance. The exhausted American Army slipped away, marching to Somerset County Courthouse (now Millstone), where they spent the night. When the main British force finally reached Princeton late in the day, they did not stay but quickly continued on toward New Brunswick.

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Aftermath

The Princeton Battle Monument in Princeton Borough, NJ

Princeton Battlefield State Park

After the battle, Cornwallis abandoned many of his posts in New Jersey, and ordered his army to retreat to New Brunswick. The battle at Princeton cost the British some 276 men killed, wounded or captured and greatly boosted the morale of the Continental troops, leading 8,000 new recruits to join the Continental Army.

American historians often consider the Battle of Princeton a great victory, on par with the battle of Trenton, due to the subsequent loss of control of most of New Jersey by the Crown forces, as well as the important political implications of the battle across the Atlantic in France and Spain, both of which would expand their military aid to the Continental forces after the battle. Fredrick the Great is said to have pronounced Washington's achievements in those few weeks "the most brilliant in military history". ^[6]

The site of the battlefield is south of Princeton and has become the Princeton Battlefield State Park. The mortally wounded General Mercer reportedly rested under an oak tree on the battlefield. The surrounding Mercer County is now named after him; the Mercer Oak is pictured on its seal. The tree died in 2000 and a replacement grown from its acorns was planted on the site.

The 3rd Battalion/112th Field Artillery Regiment claims lineage from the Eastern Artillery Company of New Jersey assigned to Thomas Procter's 4th Continental Artillery Regiment, which took part in battle of Princeton.

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Princeton Battlefield State Park

The State of New Jersey preserves 100 acres of the site as the Princeton Battlefield State Park. The park is located on Mercer Road (Princeton Pike), about 1.5 miles south of Princeton University and 3.8 miles north of Interstate 295/95.

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References

• Fisher, David Hackett. Washington's Crossing. Oxford University Press USA, 2004, 576 pages. ISBN 0195170342
• Ketchum, Richard. The Winter Soldiers: The Battles for Trenton and Princeton. Owl Books, 1999, 448 pages. ISBN 0805060987
  • Elson, Henry William History of the United States of America . 1905

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Notes

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See also

New Jersey during the American Revolution
Battle of Trenton

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External links

• Princeton Battlefield Society
• The Battle of Princeton
• Battle of Princeton
• Princeton Battlefield State Park official site
• Virtual Tour of the park

v â€¢ d â€¢ e New Jersey in the American Revolutionary War 1776 Fort Lee - Washington's crossing of the Delaware - First Trenton 1777 Second Trenton - Princeton - Millstone - Short Hills - Forage War - Bound Brook - Middlebrook encampment 1778 Monmouth - Molly Pitcher - Baylor Massacre - Little Egg Harbor massacre - Chestnut Neck 1779 Paulus Hook 1780 Connecticut Farms - Springfield 1783 U.S. Capital at Princeton