Pursued by British forces, Washington and his remaining 5,000 men resolved on a risky strike against the British and Hessian positions across the Delaware River. Crossing the river, Washington took the Trenton garrison for the loss of only four men, before outflanking Cornwallis' 8,000-strong force and marching on Princeton. His military reputation established, Washington's victory restored American morale and turned the tide of the war.

Pursued by British forces, Washington and his remaining 5,000 men resolved on a risky strike against the British and Hessian positions across the Delaware River. Crossing the river, Washington took the Trenton garrison for the loss of only four men, before outflanking Cornwallis' 8,000-strong force and marching on Princeton. His military reputation established, Washington's victory restored American morale and turned the tide of the war.

Excerpt from A Brief Narrative of the Ravages of the British and Hessians: At Princeton in 1776-77; A Contemporary Account of the Battles of Trenton and Princeton The manuscript which is here printed for the first time was purchased in 1901 by the Library of Princeton University at the sale of the late General William Scudder Stryker's collection. It had been given to General Stryker by Governor Charles S. Olden of New Jersey who believed it to have been handed down in his family from the day of its composition a hundred and thirty years ago. It consists of twenty-four folio numbered pages, the final paragraph of which was written on April 18, 1777. The manuscript is brown with age and has suffered severely from exposure and careless handling. It has been folded in the middle and the outer leaves have crumbled along the fold, while the upper right-hand quarters of the first and last leaves are wanting altogether, causing gaps in the first two and last two pages. The handwriting is well formed and regular, and is evidently that of an old man. The document is unsigned. General Stryker, who in his History of the Battles of Trenton and Princeton was the first to note in print the existence of the manuscript, followed the Olden family tradition by referring to it as the "diary of Thomas Olden of Princeton," Mr. Olden lived in the little frame house which is locally well known as the lodge of "Drumthwacket," the residence today of M. Taylor Pyne, Esq., and formerly of Governor Olden. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

General Sir William Howe's New York campaign gave the British their best chance of destroying the Continental Army and George Washington's resistance to colonial power. Howe succeeded in dividing the Continentals, defeated them on Long Island and forced Washington to retreat to Brooklyn Heights. Under siege there, Washington successfully crossed the East River to Manhattan but soon had to fall back on Harlem Heights. After a few weeks Howe forced the Continentals north to White Plains and defeated them again. However, he allowed Washington to withdraw and preserve his army when a more aggressive pursuit could have ended the war. Instead, with the British army rapidly weakening and facing huge manpower shortages, Washington emerged from a succession of defeats to produce what was ultimately a war-winning strategy. The author provides fascinating insights into a unique campaign in which a string of British victories ultimately led to failure and defeat.

Winner of the George Washington Prize Winner of the Barbara and David Zalaznick Book Prize in American History Winner of the Excellence in American History Book Award Winner of the Fraunces Tavern Museum Book Award From the bestselling author of the Liberation Trilogy comes the extraordinary first volume of his new trilogy about the American Revolution Rick Atkinson, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning An Army at Dawn and two other superb books about World War II, has long been admired for his deeply researched, stunningly vivid narrative histories. Now he turns his attention to a new war, and in the initial volume of the Revolution Trilogy he recounts the first twenty-one months of America’s violent war for independence. From the battles at Lexington and Concord in spring 1775 to those at Trenton and Princeton in winter 1777, American militiamen and then the ragged Continental Army take on the world’s most formidable fighting force. It is a gripping saga alive with astonishing characters: Henry Knox, the former bookseller with an uncanny understanding of artillery; Nathanael Greene, the blue-eyed bumpkin who becomes a brilliant battle captain; Benjamin Franklin, the self-made man who proves to be the wiliest of diplomats; George Washington, the commander in chief who learns the difficult art of leadership when the war seems all but lost. The story is also told from the British perspective, making the mortal conflict between the redcoats and the rebels all the more compelling. Full of riveting details and untold stories, The British Are Coming is a tale of heroes and knaves, of sacrifice and blunder, of redemption and profound suffering. Rick Atkinson has given stirring new life to the first act of our country’s creation drama.