Battle of Pell's Point
Battle of Pell's Point | |
---|---|
Part of the Pelham Manor, Southern Westchester, N.Y. | |
Result | British victory |
Hesse-Kassel
13 wounded[1]
20 British wounded
200–1,000 Hessian casualties (disputed - see Aftermath)[2]
The Battle of Pell's Point (October 18, 1776), also known as the Battle of Pelham, was a skirmish fought between British and American troops during the
On October 12, British forces landed at
The battle delayed British movements long enough for Washington to move the main army to White Plains and avoid being surrounded on Manhattan. After losing to the British in a battle at White Plains, and losing Fort Washington, Washington retreated across New Jersey to Pennsylvania.
Background
After a victory at the
After 26 days of contemplation, Howe decided against a frontal attack on Harlem Heights and Fort Washington, and chose instead to attempt a flanking maneuver.[7] On October 12, leaving behind three brigades under the command of Lord Hugh Percy on Manhattan Island, Howe embarked his main army in 80 vessels and proceeded up the East River, through Hell Gate, and landed at Throgs Neck.[7] Throgs Neck—originally known as Throckmorton's, and also known as Throck's, Frog's Neck, and Frog's Point[7]—is a narrow spit of land that sits between the East River and Long Island Sound. Conveniently for Howe, there was a road running from Throgs Neck to Kingsbridge, directly behind the American forces.[7] Howe hoped to use this road to flank the Americans and pin them against the Hudson River.[7]
Under the cover of fog, an advance force of 4,000 men under the command of General
After hearing of the landing on Throgs Neck, Washington knew he risked entrapment on Manhattan.[8] He made the decision to move his army to White Plains, where he believed they would be safe. By October 17, the Continental Army was on its way to White Plains,[11] leaving behind 2,000 men to garrison Fort Washington.[9]
Battle
At dawn, the British began to land on the shore, Clinton's advance guard of 4,000 British light infantry and Hessian
Glover prepared an ambush by placing the main body in staggered positions behind the stone walls that lined either side of the laneway leading from the beachhead to the interior. Glover instructed each of the regiments to hold their position as long as they could and then to fall back to a position in the rear, while the next unit took up the fighting.[15] Glover then rode up to take command of the advance guard. The advance guard and the British began to engage each other, both sides taking casualties.[16] After a little while the British were reinforced, and Glover ordered a retreat, which was done without confusion. The British troops began to advance at the retreating Americans. However, the 200 troops of the 13th Continentals that Glover had stationed behind the stone wall stood up and fired at the British when there were only 30 yards away.[17] The ambush worked, and the column of British troops took heavy losses and fell back to the main body of the invading army.[17]
The British waited half an hour before attacking again.[18] This time when they attacked, they attacked with all 4,000 men and seven cannon. The British bombarded the American position behind the stone wall as their infantry advanced. The cannon fire was ineffective, and when the British were 50 yards away the Americans fired a volley which stopped the British infantry.[18] The British returned fire, and musket and rifle fire ensued for 20 minutes, the British supported by cannon, at which point the lead American regiment fell back under cover of the next reserve regiment. The 3rd Continental Regiment was stationed behind the stone wall on the opposite side of the road.[18][19]
The British attacked the position of the 3rd Continentals, and an engagement ensued.[20] Both sides kept up constant fire, the Americans breaking the British lines several times. However, after 17 volleys, the British numbers began to overwhelm the Americans, and Glover ordered a withdrawal to another stone wall on the crest of a hill while the next regiment in line, the 26th Continentals, engaged the British.[21][22]
A reconnaissance party of 30 men was sent out from behind the third stone wall to see if the British would try and flank the American position.[21] The party ran into the British, who had continued to advance, and they fell back to the stone wall. The Americans behind the wall fired one volley before Glover gave the order to retreat. The Americans retreated across a bridge over the Hutchinson stream, their retreat covered by the 150 men of the 14th Continentals who engaged in an artillery duel with the British.[23] Howe camped on a hill on the opposite side of the stream but made no attempt to cross the stream.[23]
Aftermath
The next day, Glover and his force retreated to the town of
With the British advance delayed, the main American army under Washington was able to safely evacuate from Harlem (on the island of Manhattan) to White Plains.
See also
- American Revolutionary War §British New York counter-offensive. The 'Battle of Pell's Point' placed in overall sequence and strategic context.
- Saint Paul's Church National Historic Site
- Glovers Rock located in Pelham Bay Park.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h McCullough, p. 232.
- ^ Ward, p. 258. Ward notes that the majority of the attacking British force was Hessian troops, and these losses were not always included in the official British casualty reports.
- ^ McCullough, p. 209
- ^ a b Ward, p. 246.
- ^ Abbatt, p. 1
- ^ a b c Ward, p. 253.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Ward, p. 255.
- ^ a b c McCullough, p. 230.
- ^ a b Ward, p. 256.
- ^ a b Abbatt, p. 5.
- ^ McCullough, p. 231.
- ^ Abbatt, p. 6
- ^ a b c Abbatt, p. 11
- ^ a b Billias, p. 116
- ^ Billias, p. 117
- ^ Abbatt, p. 13
- ^ a b Abbatt, p. 14
- ^ a b c Abbatt, p. 15
- ^ Billias, p. 118
- ^ Abbatt, p. 16
- ^ a b Abbatt, p. 17
- ^ Billias, p. 119
- ^ a b c Abbatt, p. 18
- ^ Lowell's The Hessians and the Other German Auxiliaries of Great Britain in the American Revolution lists p.209 Hessian Casualties from October 9 to October 23, 1776 as 13 killed 63 wounded 23 missing
- ^ Billias, p. 120
- ^ Abbatt, p. 20
- ^ Billias, p. 121
- ^ a b McCullough, p. 233
- ^ McCullough, p. 241
- ^ McCullough, p. 290
Bibliography
- Abbatt, William (1901). The Battle of Pell's Point. New York: University of California.
Battle of Pell's Point.
- Billias, George Athan (1960). General John Glover and his Marblehead Mariners. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
- McCullough, David (2006). 1776. New York: Simon and Schuster Paperback. ISBN 0-7432-2672-0.
1776 David.
- Ward, Christopher (1952). The War of the Revolution, Volume 1. New York: The Macmillan Company.
- Hufeland, Otto (1973). Westchester County During the American Revolution, 1775-1783. New York: Harbor Hill Books.
- Stiles, Ezra (1901). The Literary Diary of Ezra Stiles (note: future President of Yale). New York: Charles Scribner & Sons.