Battle of Long Island

In the first stage of the war, the British Army was trapped in the peninsular city of Boston and was forced to abandon it on March 17, sailing to Halifax, Nova Scotia, to await reinforcements. Washington then began to transfer regiments to New York City, which he believed the British would attack next because of the port's strategic importance. He had sent his second-in-command Charles Lee to New York the previous February to establish the city's defenses. Lee remained in New York City until March 7 when the Continental Congress sent him to the Carolinas.. Before he departed for the South, Lee had also seen to it that the immediate area was cleared of Loyalists. After Lee's departure, construction of the city's defenses was left to American General William Alexander, Lord Stirling. and established headquarters at the former home of Archibald Kennedy on Broadway facing Bowling Green. Troops were in limited supply, so Washington found the defenses incomplete, but Lee had concluded in any case it would be impossible to hold the city with the British commanding the sea. He reasoned the defenses should be located with the ability to inflict heavy casualties upon the British if any move was made to take and hold ground. Strategy , a collection of hills stretching northeast across King's County. The main defensive works were a series of forts and entrenchments located in the northwest of King's County, in and around Brooklyn. The "Road to Narrows" is Gowanus Road. No. 5, the Old Stone House, depicted in this map by Bernard Ratzer based on his 1766–1767 survey. Washington began moving troops to Brooklyn in early May, and there were several thousand of them there in a short time. Three more forts were under construction on the eastern side of the East River to support Fort Stirling, which stood to the west of the hamlet of Brooklyn Heights. These new fortifications were Fort Putnam, Fort Greene, and Fort Box (named for Major Daniel Box). They lay from north to south, with Fort Putnam farthest to the north, Greene slightly to the southwest, and Box slightly farther southwest. Each of these defensive structures was surrounded by a large ditch, all connected by a line of entrenchments and a total of 36 cannons. Fort Defiance was also being constructed at this time, located farther southwest past Fort Box, near present-day Red Hook. Hulks were sunk at strategic locations to deter the British from entering the East River and other waterways. Washington had been authorized by Congress to recruit an army of up to 28,501 troops, but he had only 19,000 when he reached New York. Military discipline was inadequate; routine orders were not carried out, muskets were fired in camp, flints were ruined, bayonets were used as knives to cut food, and firearm readiness was lax. Petty internal conflict was common under the strain of a large number of people from different regional cultures and temperaments living in relatively close proximity. Commander of the artillery Henry Knox persuaded Washington to transfer 400 to 500 soldiers, who lacked muskets or guns, to crew the artillery. On June 29, signals were sent from soldiers stationed on Staten Island indicating the British fleet had appeared. Within a few hours, 45 British ships dropped anchor in Lower New York Bay. The population of New York went into a panic at the sight of the British ships; alarms went off and troops immediately rushed to their posts. On July 6, news reached New York that Congress had voted for independence four days earlier. On Tuesday, July 9, at 18:00, Washington had several brigades march onto the commons of the city to hear the Declaration of Independence read. After the end of the reading, a mob ran down to Bowling Green with ropes and bars, where they tore down the gilded lead equestrian statue of George III of Great Britain. In their fury, the crowd cut off the statue's head, severed the nose, mounted what remained of the head on a spike outside a tavern, and the rest of the statue was dragged to Connecticut and melted down into musket balls. The American batteries opened fire from the harbor defenses of Fort George, Fort Defiance, and Governors Island, but the British returned fire into the city. The ships sailed along the New Jersey shore and continued up the Hudson, sailing past Fort Washington and arriving by nightfall at Tarrytown, the widest part of the Hudson. The goals of the British ships were to cut off American supplies from New England and the north and to encourage Loyalist support. The only casualties of the day were six Americans who were killed when their own cannon blew up. He sent a letter to Washington delivered by Lieutenant Philip Brown, who arrived under a flag of truce. The letter was addressed to "George Washington, Esq." Reed told Brown there was no one in the army with that address. On July 16, Howe tried again, this time with the address "George Washington, Esq., etc., etc.", but it was again declined. The next day, Howe sent Captain Nisbet Balfour to ask if Washington would meet with Howe's adjutant face to face, and a meeting was scheduled for July 20. Meanwhile, British ships continued to arrive. On August 1, 45 ships arrived with generals Henry Clinton and Charles Cornwallis, along with 3,000 troops. By August 12, 3,000 British troops and another 8,000 Hessians had arrived. At this point, the British fleet numbered over 400 ships, including 73 warships, and 32,000 troops were camped on Staten Island. Faced with this large force, Washington was unsure as to where the British would attack. Both Greene and Reed thought the British would attack Long Island, but Washington felt a British attack on Long Island might be a diversion for the main attack on Manhattan. He broke his army in half, stationing half of it on Manhattan and the other half on Long Island; the army on Long Island was commanded by Greene. Invasion of Long Island , which was bombarded by the British before the invasion. The Royal Navy landed farther east at Gravesend Bay, where the conditions were more favorable for small British boats carrying the troops. At 05:10 on August 22, an advance guard of 4,000 British troops left Staten Island under the command of Clinton and Cornwallis to land on Long Island. At 08:00, all 4,000 troops landed unopposed on the shore of Gravesend Bay. Colonel Edward Hand's Pennsylvanian riflemen had been stationed on the shore, but they did not oppose the landings and fell back, killing cattle and burning farmhouses on the way. By noon, 15,000 troops had landed on shore along with 40 pieces of artillery, as hundreds of Loyalists came to greet the British troops. Cornwallis pushed on with the advance guard, advancing onto the island and establishing a camp at the village of Flatbush. He was given orders to advance no further. Washington received word of the landings the same day but was informed the number was 8,000 to 9,000 troops. This convinced him it was the feint he had predicted, and therefore he only sent 1,500 more troops to Brooklyn, bringing the total number of troops on Long Island to 6,000. On August 24, Washington replaced Sullivan with Israel Putnam who commanded the troops on Long Island. Putnam arrived on Long Island the next day along with six battalions. Also that day, the British troops on Long Island received 5,000 Hessian reinforcements, bringing their total to 20,000. There was little fighting on the days immediately after the landing, although some small skirmishes did take place with American marksmen armed with rifles picking off British troops from time to time. The American plan was for Putnam to direct the defenses from Brooklyn Heights, while Sullivan and Stirling and their troops would be stationed forward on the Guan Heights. The Guan (hills) were up to 150 feet high and blocked the most direct route to Brooklyn Heights. There were three main passes through the heights; the Gowanus Road, farthest to the west; the Flatbush Road, slightly farther to the east, in the center of the American line, where it was expected the British would attack, and the Bedford Pass even further to the east. Stirling was responsible for defending the Gowanus Road with 500 men. Sullivan was to defend the Flatbush and Bedford roads, where there were 1,000 and 800 soldiers respectively. On the British side, General Clinton learned of the almost undefended Jamaica Pass from local Loyalists. He drew up a plan and gave it to William Erskine to propose to Howe. Clinton's plan had the main army making a night march and going through the Jamaica Pass to turn the American flank, while other troops would keep the Americans busy in front. On August 26, Clinton received word from Howe the plan would be used and Clinton was to command the advance guard of the main army of 10,000 soldiers on the march through the Jamaica Pass. While they made the night march, General James Grant's British troops, along with some Hessians, a total of 4,000 men, were to attack the Americans in front to distract them from the main army coming on their flank. Howe told Clinton to be ready to move out that night, August 26. ==Battle==

Night march and Jamaica Avenue. At 21:00, the British moved out. No one except the commanders knew of the plan. Clinton led a crack brigade of light infantry with fixed bayonets in front, followed by Cornwallis, who had eight battalions and 14 artillery pieces. Cornwallis was followed by Howe and Hugh Percy with six battalions, more artillery, and baggage. The column had yet to run into any American troops when they reached Howard's Tavern (also known as "Howard's Half-Way House"), just a few hundred yards from the Jamaica Pass. Tavern keeper William Howard and his son William Jr. were forced to act as guides to show the British the way to the Rockaway Foot Path, an old Lenape trail skirting the Jamaica Pass to the west, located today in the Cemetery of the Evergreens. Five minutes after leaving the tavern, the five American militia officers stationed at the pass were captured without a shot being fired, as they thought the British were Americans. Clinton interrogated the men, and they informed him they were the only troops guarding the pass. By dawn, the British were through the pass and stopped so the troops could rest. At about 23:00 on August 26, the first shots were fired in the Battle of Long Island, near the Red Lion Inn (near present-day 39th Street and 4th Avenue). American pickets from Samuel John Atlee's Pennsylvania regiment fired upon two British soldiers who were foraging in a watermelon patch near the inn. Around 01:00 on August 27, the British approached the vicinity of the Red Lion with 200–300 troops. The American troops fired upon the British; after approximately two fusillades, they fled up the Gowanus Road toward the Vechte–Cortelyou House. Major Edward Burd was in command, but he was captured along with a lieutenant and 15 privates. This first engagement was fought in the vicinity of 38th and 39th Streets between 2nd and 3rd Avenues near a swamp located adjacent to Gowanus Road. Brigadier General Samuel Holden Parsons and Colonel Atlee were stationed farther north on Gowanus Road. Parsons was a lawyer from Connecticut who had recently secured a commission in the Continental Army; Atlee was a veteran of the French and Indian War in command of the First Regiment of Pennsylvania Musketry. Putnam had been awakened by a guard at 03:00 and told the British were attacking through Gowanus Pass. He lit signals to Washington, who was on Manhattan, and then rode south to warn Stirling of the attack. Stirling led two units of Colonel John Haslet's 1st Delaware Regiment under the immediate command of Major Thomas Macdonough, and Colonel William Smallwood's 1st Maryland Infantry under the immediate command of Major Mordecai Gist; both Haslet and Smallwood were on courts-martial duty in Manhattan. Following close behind was Parson's Connecticut regiment with 251 men. Stirling led this combined force to reinforce Parsons and Atlee and stop the British advance. Stirling had a total of 1,600 troops at his command. Battle Pass , also known as "Flatbush Pass" in present-day Prospect Park in Brooklyn, General Sullivan and his troops were outflanked by the British, who attacked from the rear while the Hessians attacked up Battle Pass. The Hessians in the center under the command of General von Heister began to bombard the American lines stationed at Battle Pass under the command of General John Sullivan. The Hessian brigades did not attack, as they were waiting for the pre-arranged signal from the British, who were in the process of outflanking the American lines at that time. The Americans were still under the assumption Grant's attack up Gowanus Road was the main thrust, and thus Sullivan sent 400 soldiers to reinforce Stirling. Hand-to-hand fighting followed, with the Americans swinging their muskets and rifles like clubs to save their own lives. It was later claimed Americans who surrendered were bayoneted by the Hessians. Sullivan, despite the chaos, managed to evacuate most of his men to Brooklyn Heights, though he himself was captured. He realized he had been wrong about a feint on Long Island, and he ordered more troops to Brooklyn from Manhattan. Stirling still held the line against Grant on the American right, to the west. Maryland 400 Stirling ordered all of his troops to cross the creek, except a contingent of Maryland troops under the command of Gist. This group became known to history as the "Maryland 400", although they numbered about 260–270 soldiers. Stirling and Gist led the troops in a rear-guard action against the overwhelming numbers of British troops, which surpassed 2,000, supported by two cannons. Washington watched from a redoubt on nearby Cobble Hill, at the intersection of today's Court Street and Atlantic Avenue, and reportedly said, "Good God, what brave fellows I must this day lose." He may also have been allowing Washington to conclude his position was hopeless and surrender, in the European gentleman-officer tradition. Howe told Parliament in 1779 his essential duty was to avoid excessive British casualties for an insufficient purpose, and capturing Brooklyn Heights would likely not have meant capturing the entire Continental army. "The most essential duty I had to observe was not wantonly to commit his majesty's troops, where the object was inadequate. I knew well any considerable loss sustained by the army could not speedily, nor easily, be repaired. . . . The loss of 1,000, or perhaps 1,500 British troops, in carrying those lines, would have been but ill repaid by double that number of the enemy, could it have been supposed they would have suffered in that proportion." ==Aftermath==

Retreat to Manhattan Washington and the Continental Army were surrounded on Brooklyn Heights with the East River to their backs. As the day went on, the British began to dig trenches, slowly coming closer to the American defenses. By doing this, the British would not have to cross over open ground to assault the American defenses as they did in Boston the year before. Despite this perilous situation, Washington ordered 1,200 more soldiers from Manhattan to Brooklyn on August 28, In these outer defenses, small skirmishes were still taking place. On the afternoon of August 28, rainfall began, and Washington had his cannons bombard the British well into the night. As the rain continued, Washington sent a letter instructing General William Heath, who was at Kings Bridge over the Harlem River between Manhattan and what is now The Bronx, to send every flat-bottomed boat and sloop without delay, in case battalions of infantry from New Jersey came to reinforce their position. At 16:00 on August 29, Washington held a meeting with his generals. Mifflin advised Washington to retreat to Manhattan while Mifflin and his Pennsylvania regiments made up the rear guard, holding the line until the rest of the army had withdrawn. The troops were told they were to gather up all their ammunition and baggage and prepare for a night attack. As more troops were evacuated, more were ordered to withdraw from the lines and march to the ferry landing. Wagon wheels were muffled, and soldiers were forbidden to talk. Mifflin told the officer who had been sent to order him to leave, Major Alexander Scammell, he must be mistaken, but Scammell insisted he was not, and Mifflin ordered his troops to move out. When Mifflin's troops were within a half mile of the ferry landing, Washington rode up and demanded to know why they were not at their defenses. Edward Hand, who was leading the troops, tried to explain what had happened, but Mifflin arrived shortly. Washington exclaimed "Good God. General Mifflin, I am afraid you have ruined us." Mifflin explained that he had been told it was his turn to evacuate by Scammell; Washington told him it had been a mistake. Mifflin then led his troops back to the outer defenses. All 9,000 troops had been evacuated with no loss of life. Conclusion of the campaign fleet in New York Harbor following the battle The British were stunned to find Washington and the Continental Army had escaped. Bells were rung across the city, candles were lit in windows, and King George III awarded Howe the Order of the Bath. Washington's defeat, in the opinions of some, revealed his deficiencies as a military strategist. Splitting his forces resulted in his largely inexperienced generals misunderstanding the state of the battle, and his raw troops fled in disorder at the first shots. However, Washington and the Continental Army's daring retreat later that night has been seen by some historians as one of General Washington's greatest military accomplishments. Howe remained inactive for the next half month, not attacking until September 15 when he landed a force at Kip's Bay. The British quickly occupied the city. Although American troops delivered an unexpected check to the British at Harlem Heights in mid-September, Howe defeated Washington in battle again at White Plains and then again at Fort Washington. Because of these defeats, Washington and the army retreated across New Jersey and into Pennsylvania. Casualties , a 60-floor Manhattan skyscraper. At the time, it was by far the largest battle ever fought in North America. The Americans suffered much heavier losses. About 300 had been killed and over 1,000 captured. As few as half of the prisoners survived. Kept on prison ships in Wallabout Bay, then transferred to locations such as the Middle Dutch Church, they were starved and denied medical attention. In their weakened condition, many succumbed to smallpox. Historians believe as many as 256 soldiers of the First Maryland Regiment under Colonel William Smallwood fell in the battle, about two-thirds of the regiment. It is known they were buried in a mass grave, but the grave's exact location has been a mystery for 240 years. ==Legacy==

's Prospect Park The most significant legacy of the Battle of Long Island was that it showed there would be no easy victory and the war would be long and bloody. Commemorations of the battle include: • The Altar to Liberty: Minerva monument: The battle is commemorated with a monument, which includes a bronze statue of Minerva near the top of Battle Hill, the highest point of Brooklyn, in Greenwood Cemetery. The statue was sculpted by Frederick Ruckstull and unveiled in 1920. The statue stands in the northwest corner of the cemetery and gazes directly at the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor. In 2006, the Minerva statue was invoked in a successful defense to prevent a building from blocking the line of sight from the cemetery to the Statue of Liberty in the harbor. The annual Battle of Long Island commemoration begins inside the main Gothic arch entrance to Greenwood Cemetery and marches up Battle Hill to ceremonies at the monument. • The Prison Ship Martyrs' Monument: A freestanding Doric column in Fort Greene memorializing all those who died while kept prisoner on the British ships just off the shore of Brooklyn, in Wallabout Bay. • Soldiers' Monument – Milford, Connecticut. Memorializes the 200 seriously ill prisoners of the Battle of Long Island who were dumped on the beach at Milford on the night of January 3, 1777. • Prospect Park, Brooklyn, Battle Pass: along the eastern side of East Drive is a large granite boulder with a brass plaque affixed, and another marker lies near the road for the Dongan Oak, a very large and old tree felled to block the pass from the British advance. In addition, in the park resides the Line of Defense marker erected by the Sons of the American Revolution and, near the eastern edge of Long Meadow, the Maryland Monument & Maryland Memorial Corinthian column. There are currently 30 existing units in the U.S. Army with lineages that go back to the colonial and revolutionary eras. Derived from American units that participated in the Battle of Long Island are five Army National Guard units (101st Eng Bn, 125th MP Co, 175th Inf, 181st Inf, and 198th Sig Bn) and one Regular Army Field Artillery battalion (1st Bn, 5th FA). ==See also==