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Brandywine
and Germantown
On
August 24, 1777, Washington's Army of 16,000 regulars and militia
marched through Philadelphia to Wilmington, Delaware, and by September
11, the two armies were poised for battle near Brandywine Creek,
Pennsylvania.
Howe
divided his force for a frontal attack on the Americans and a flanking
attack on the American right. Washington tried to counter the British
flanking movement, ordering Green's division, including the First
Virginia, to support the outflanked Americans under General Sullivan.
Greene's men covered almost four miles in 45 minutes, arriving to
find Sullivan's men retreating in a rout. Greene's Virginians opened
their line to allow the panicked Americans through and then held
off the advancing British to allow Washington's Army to fall back
and retire in order. Greene's troops held out against an enemy force
three times larger until nightfall, preventing the British from
destroying the entire American army.
Although
Washington's Army had been outmaneuvered at Brandywine, they had
fought a larger British force and managed to hold them off until
dark. The American's spirits were high and Washington was anxious
for another chance to engage the enemy. The British continued their
march to Philadelphia, with Washington looking for an opportunity
to make a stand against them. On September 15 he marched his army
into battle formation before the British but a severe storm rendered
the American's ammunition useless and drove them from the field.
The British entered Philadelphia unopposed on September 26.
Continuing
to look for a favorable opportunity to engage the British, Washington
decided to attack a large enemy force garrisoned at Germantown,
Pennsylvania. Washington devised a plan that included dividing his
force into several divisions that would march separately through
the night and attack from different directions simultaneously at
dawn on October 4th.
As
part of Muhlenberg's Brigade, the First Virginia arrived an hour
after Sullivan's troops began the attack on the main British camp.
A heavy fog made the complex plan even more confusing and some of
the American troops even began to fire on one another.
When
the fighting started, a small enemy force retreated into the Chew
House, a heavy stone manor that proved almost impervious to canon
attack. A large part of the American force was delayed trying to
force the British inside the house to surrender. In the mean time
Sullivan and Greene's troops managed to attack the main British
force, with Greene's Virginians driving through the British line
in a bayonet charge that carried to the enemy's camp. Prisoners
were taken by the First Virginia, but with the rest of the American
attack still in confusion or stalled at the Chew House, the Virginians
found themselves surrounded by the enemy and forced to fight their
way out. The Virginians lost 100 prisoners they had taken, and in
the process, nearly all of the Ninth Virginia Regiment was captured.
The battle ended with the Americans withdrawing and Greene's division
holding off a determined British attack as the Americans fell back.
Over
the next two months both Washington and Howe looked for favorable
opportunities to renew the fighting but neither found one to his
liking.
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