Battle of Trenton 1776
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 26 December 1776 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1776 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | Early modern (1500–1799) | derived from year |
| Location | United States | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | North America | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | American Revolutionary War | Wikidata P361 |
| Coordinates | 40.2258, -74.7647 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Trenton was a short but pivotal American Revolutionary War battle on the morning of December 26, 1776, in Trenton, New Jersey. After General George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River north of Trenton the previous night, Washington led the main body of the Continental Army against Hessian auxiliaries garrisoned at Trenton. After a brief battle, almost two-thirds of the Hessian force were captured, with minimal losses to the Americans. The battle significantly boosted the Continental Army's waning morale, and inspired re-enlistments.
The Continental Army had previously suffered several defeats in New York and had been forced to retreat through New Jersey to Pennsylvania. Morale in the army was low; to end the year on a positive note, George Washington, Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, devised a plan to cross the Delaware River on the night of December 25–26 and surround the Hessians' garrison.
Because the river was icy and the weather severe, the crossing proved dangerous. Two detachments were unable to cross the river, leaving Washington with only 2,400 men under his command in the assault, 3,000 fewer than planned. The army marched 9 mi (14.5 km) south to Trenton.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Trenton (revision 1377458911), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
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Other battles of the American Revolutionary War
- Battles of Lexington and Concord 1775
- Capture of Fort Ticonderoga 1775
- Siege of Boston 1775
- Siege of Fort St. Jean 1775
- Siege of Savage's Old Fields 1775
- Ambush of Geary 1776
- Battle of Block Island 1776
- Battle of Fort Washington 1776
- Battle of Harlem Heights 1776
- Battle of Iron Works Hill 1776
All 190 battles of the American Revolutionary War →
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