The Battle Of Monmouth
With the entry of France, the British had become desperate to end the war, even sending peace commission with General Henry Clinton, the new commander in chief for the British, to offer the Americans everything they would possibly want short of independence. Given that the British army was going to evacuate Philadelphia and begin a 90 mile journey to New York City, the Continental Congress saw no reason to accept the British offer. Why did the British need to evacuate the Patriot capital after only 8 months of occupation? What was only a colonial rebellion in the beginning, had now become a world war for the British because France now allied with the Americans. In the months ahead, Britain would find itself fighting battles on soil as far away as India and as close to home as the English Channel. The British need to evacuate Philadelphia and consolidate their army in New York City because 5,000 British troops were to be sent from North America to the West-Indies (Caribbean Islands). As difficult as it may be to believe today, Britain's islands in the Caribbean were of more economic importance in the 1700s than all thirteen American colonies combined.
With the British army forced to march all the way to New York, General George Washington and his officers saw one of the best opportunities of the war. British General Henry Clinton would need to divide his army to make the British march to New York City manageable. Washington could now attack a relatively small and isolated portion of the British army, without placing the Continental army in unnecessary danger. To lead this attack, General George Washington chose Major General Charles Lee. You might remember General Charles Lee as the man who criticized Washington and was captured by the British after spending an evening with a "lady friend". After a year and a half in confinement, Lee was released in a prisoner-exchange and returned to the Patriot army. When Washington chose Lee to lead the attack, Lee turned down the offer and the command was given to the Marquis de Lafayette. Soon, General Charles Lee changed his mind and was given the command at the Battle of Monmouth.
On June 28, 1778, General Charles Lee led the Continental army against the rear portion of the British army, who was marching towards New York City. In this disorganized and failed attack, British General Charles Cornwallis forced the Americans to retreat. Soon the retreating American army caught up with General George Washington. Washington, realizing that Lee was retreating, lost his temper and began swearing at Lee. In fact, one Patriot soldier wrote that,
"Never have I enjoyed such swearing before or since".
After his harsh words towards Charles Lee, George Washington set about to turn the battle around for the Americans. Washington rode his horse to the front of the battle to rally the Patriot troops. At one point a cannon ball exploded right by Washington. Washington’s horse died during the battle due to the extreme heat. With a high over 100 degrees, both sides lost almost as many men to heat stroke as to musket fire. Joseph Plum Martin, a Patriot soldier at the Battle of Monmouth later explained that,
“The mouth of a heated oven seemed to me to be but a trifle hotter than this field”
At the end of the battle, both the British & Patriots claimed victory. However, the Battle of Monmouth proved that the hardships and training during the previous winter at Valley Forge paid off for the Patriots. The legend of Molly Pitcher, the women who is said to have fought in the battle and delivered water to the Patriot soldiers, is associated with the Battle of Monmouth. As for General Charles Lee, he was court-martialed for his failures during the battle and was suspended from the army for a year. Lee resorted back to his criticisms of George Washington & was challenged to a duel by John Laurens. During the duel, Lee was wounded in the side. As for General Washington, although he had no way of knowing it, the Battle of Monmouth would be his last battlefield encounter until the Siege of Yorktown.
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