1776: Chapter 7 Summary & Analysis

On the morning of November 21, George Washington and his troops move into New Jersey. His men are “broke and dispirited.” He sends a letter to General Charles Lee, suggesting that Lee cross the Hudson and join forces with him to protect New Jersey from British attack.

Unbeknownst to Washington, Joseph Reed sends a secret letter to Charles Lee. In this letter, Reed implores Lee to join Washington, adding that he has often worried about Washington’s “indecisive mind” during the New York campaign. He also suggests that Lee go to the Continental Congress “and form the plan of the new army.”

Another challenge arises for Washington: his enlistments will soon be free to return home, having served in the army for a year. The men’s morale is even lower than it was in Boston, suggesting that huge numbers will leave rather than reenlist. The army has lost four huge battles in the last three months. Washington wonders if he should retreat to Pennsylvania and take time to regroup.

One of the problems Washington and his army face is that the colonies are reluctant to donate troops to a continental army. There are plenty of opponents of Britain in the colonies, but the colonies’ leaders prefer to keep their armies at home, rather than sending them out to Washington. Washington sends Reed to New Jersey to entreat the governor to provide Washington with reinforcements. Washington also sends General Thomas Mifflin on a similar mission to Pennsylvania. Mifflin soon reports back that the people of Pennsylvania are “divided and lethargic.” Washington hears nothing from Reed.

On November 22, the continental army reaches New Jersey. Thomas Paine, author of the pamphlet Common Sense, has been serving as a civilian aide on Nathanael Greene’s staff, and he is inspired by the troops’ commitment. “These are the times that try men’s souls,” he writes in The Crisis, referring to this moment of determination in the face of fear and doubt at the end of 1776.

On the British side, the taking of Fort Washington catalyzed a major shift in strategy. General Clinton is reassigned to invade Rhode Island. Clinton dislikes the campaign he has been given. He thinks that it would be better to pursue Washington into New Jersey. Nevertheless, he leads 6,000 soldiers to Newport, Rhode Island, and claims the city without a fight.

General Clinton and General William Howe have been quarrelling for months. At White Plains, Clinton says he can’t stand Howe. Howe promptly replaces Clinton with General Charles Cornwallis, a commander with a distinguished military career. Howe orders Cornwallis to pursue the American troops to Brunswick (later known as New Brunswick), but not to go any farther. Washington leads his troops past Brunswick without trouble. He reunites with Lord Stirling’s troops, many of whom are tired and without shoes.

On November 24, a messenger arrives with a letter for Joseph Reed from General Charles Lee. Thinking the letter might have important information, Washington opens it. In the letter, Lee expresses that he shares Reed’s concern over Washington’s “fatal indecision of mind,” and that he intends not to march to New Jersey, as Washington has requested. Clearly, Washington thinks, Reed and Lee have “lost faith in him.” He sends the opened letter along to Reed with “a note of explanation.” Washington undoubtedly feels hurt that his closest friend and followers are distancing themselves from him.

In Philadelphia, the members of the Continental Congress are all either “ill or exhausted or absent.” There are rumors that the British intend to march to Philadelphia. The three main signers of the Declaration of Independence—Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams—are absent on diplomatic missions.

On December 1, 2,000 of Washington’s troops leave the army rather than reenlist. Washington sends another letter to General Charles Lee, commanding him to come to New Jersey at once. Meanwhile, British and Hessian troops are rapidly approaching New Jersey. By late afternoon, the British have opened fire on Washington’s remaining troops. Washington orders his troops to retreat to Trenton. The British troops, headed by General Charles Cornwallis, are only sixty miles from Philadelphia.

Admiral Lord Richard Howe and his brother William Howe send a peace treaty to the people of New Jersey. The treaty requires them to take an oath of allegiance to George III and in return receive a pardon for any actions against the crown. Many people in New Jersey take the oath. General Charles Cornwallis arrives in Brunswick but, due to a lack of clear orders from General Howe, doesn’t advance for six days, giving Washington and his troops the time they need to flee. This six-day pause is a huge blunder on the part of the British. Had Cornwallis been allowed to advance, he could have defeated Washington’s forces for good.

Everything seems to be going according to plan for the British army. However, many of the British and Hessian soldiers are pillaging local households. Many British officers find their troops’ behavior disgraceful.

On December 7, British and Hessian forces finally leave Brunswick and march to Trenton, New Jersey. Aware that the British are on their way, Washington orders another retreat across the Delaware River. For hours, his men try to lift heavy artillery into boats. Thomas Paine describes the crossing of the Delaware as an “orderly retreat,” in which no sign of fear can be detected. And yet Washington’s men are dispirited. Hundreds desert, and others are sick and tired.

It’s likely that the British soldiers will cross the Delaware and seize Philadelphia. Washington expects General Charles Lee to march toward him, providing much-needed troops. However, unbeknownst to Washington at the time, Lee has been arrested. On December 12, Lee stopped in a tavern. British cavalry arrived and burned the building, threatening to kill everyone inside unless Lee surrendered. Lee was captured, and his arrest was celebrated throughout the British army.

Washington is furious when he learns of Charles Lee’s arrest. He’s also dismayed when the Continental Congress relocates to Baltimore for fear that Philadelphia will be invaded. However, General William Howe suspends all further military operations for the winter, and orders his troops to retire in New York and New Jersey until the spring. Howe sees no reason why he should press his advantage now: the winter is cold and miserable, and he’s confident that he’ll be able to defeat Washington’s forces for good in 1777.

Washington doesn’t realize that General William Howe is suspending military operations. He sends spies to infiltrate the British army, and offers money for information on the British troops. He hears from sources in Trenton that Howe is going back to New York, but he’s skeptical that this is true. Meanwhile, Washington is concerned as he looks ahead to 1777: on New Year’s Day, all remaining enlistments will expire, meaning that he could soon find himself with no troops at all. Even if the remaining soldiers choose to stay, he’ll be left with an army of less than 7,000 troops, most of whom are shoeless, hungry, and exhausted. For all intents and purposes, it seemed, “the war was over and the Americans had lost.”

Despite clear evidence to the contrary, George Washington refuses to accept that the war is over. He knows he needs to make decisive action—especially since he has little left to lose at this point. On December 22, he receives an unsolicited letter from Joseph Reed, who advises him to strike at the British as soon as possible. Washington begins to plan an attack on the British, and schedules it for Christmas Day.

On Christmas Eve, Washington confers with his generals to go over the final details of the attack. The army is scheduled to cross the Delaware in three groups: two groups will be fairly small and one, led by Washington, will contain the majority of the troops. Late on the night of December 25th, the troops cross the Delaware, aiming to arrive in Trenton by 5AM am. The weather is harsh, and the Delaware is partly frozen.

Crossing the Delaware is an unforgettable experience for many of the troops. John Greenwood, the fifer, later describes the intense cold weather, explaining that he was genuinely frightened that he would freeze to death. By 3AM, the cannons have been transported safely across the Delaware, thanks to the careful planning of Henry Knox. By this point, the army is way behind schedule. The plan was to have made it across the river by midnight. But instead of pulling back, Washington decides to continue with the attack.

Washington leads 2,400 of his troops toward Trenton. He learns that some of his men’s guns have become so wet they no longer work. He says, “use the bayonet.” By 8AM on December 26, Washington’s troops have arrived in Trenton. The sun is up, and the troops no longer have the element of surprise. A Hessian officer named Johann Gottlieb Rall has already received intelligence that American troops might be planning an attack. On Christmas, an American patrol fired on Hessian officers. But that evening, Rall—confident that Americans would never attack on such a cold day—drank and played cards. He received a letter warning of an attack, but instead of reading it he thrust it into his pocket.

The Americans begin their attack on Trenton at 8AM. Washington’s troops have been cold and wet all night. They’re exhausted and some of their weapons don’t work. Meanwhile, the Hessians in Trenton march out of their barracks. The American forces overpower them: those whose guns work fire on the Germans and kill many of them, including Johann Gottlieb Rall. In less than one hour, the Americans have captured Trenton and taken a thousand prisoners. Not one American dies.

Washington has just won a huge victory. The defeat of the Hessians in Trenton inspires his men, and soon the newspapers are full of glorious accounts of Washington’s daring maneuvers. Meanwhile, General William Howe hears the news and decides to march to New Jersey with an army of 8,000 troops.

Washington learns that the British troops are marching out to New Jersey. He decides to “go after the enemy once again.” But this decision poses a problem: Washington doesn’t have enough troops to match the British in battle. With authorization from the Continental Congress, Washington takes every measure to ensure that his troops reenlist and stay in the army.

On January 1, 1777, General Charles Cornwallis and his army arrive in Princeton, New Jersey. From there, he leads a force of 5,500 men out to Trenton. Left with no choice, Washington and the American troops leave Trenton. But instead of retreating, Washington leads his army to attack Cornwallis’s rear guard in Princeton.

On January 3, George Washington and his troops attack British forces two miles outside Princeton. This time, the attack is a genuine surprise for the British, and many British soldiers die in the ensuing gunfight. The Americans take three hundred British prisoners in an “unexpected victory.” Afterwards, Washington marches his troops to Somerset Courthouse, where they retire to the village of Morristown for the winter.

1776 ends with two astonishing victories for Washington’s troops. The attack on Trenton is rightly seen as a turning point in the war—the moment when Americans soundly bested their opponents in battle, outfighting and outsmarting them. Many British commanders see Trenton as a minor defeat for their side, but others admit that Washington is a greater general than they’d supposed.

As 1777 begins, George III once again rides to Parliament to speak about the war. Some members of Parliament continue to denounce the war, as they did in 1775. However, Parliament once again votes to send reinforcements to America to ensure a British victory. In 1783—six years later—the war finally comes to an end with the signing of the Treaty of Paris. At this time, only two of the general officers who had been involved in the Siege of Boston (Washington and Nathanael Greene) are still serving. Henry Knox also continues to fight for the American side until the end of the war.

The Americans go on to defeat the British largely because of military and financial support from France and the Netherlands. At the same time, it is Washington and his army who win the war—not the French or the Dutch. Washington isn’t a brilliant strategist, and he has made many mistakes by the time the war ends, but he “never forgot what was at stake and he never gave up.”

1776 is remembered as America’s birth year. But for most American soldiers, it was a year of disease, hunger, and desertion—with “all-too-few victories.” Especially for those who served alongside Washington from 1776 until the end of the war, the American victory against the British “seemed little short of a miracle.”