Battle of Paulus Hook

Last updated
Battle of Paulus Hook
Part of the American Revolutionary War
DateAugust 19, 1779
Location
Result American victory
Belligerents
Flag of the United States (1777-1795).svg  United States Union flag 1606 (Kings Colors).svg  Great Britain
Commanders and leaders
Henry Lee III William Sutherland
Strength
300 250
Casualties and losses
2 killed
3 wounded
7 captured
50 killed and wounded
158 captured
(including 7 to 9 officers)

The Battle of Paulus Hook was fought on August 19, 1779, between Continental Army and British forces in the American Revolutionary War. The Patriots were led by Major Light Horse Harry Lee, and launched a nighttime raid on the British-controlled fort in what is today downtown Jersey City. They surprised the British, taking 158 prisoners, and withdrew with the approach of daylight. Despite retaining the fort and its cannons, the British lost much of their control over New Jersey. Lee was rewarded by the Second Continental Congress with a gold medal, the only non-general to receive such an award during the war.

Contents

The battle

At four o'clock on the afternoon of August 8, 1779, Major Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee, with four hundred infantry and a troop of dismounted dragoons started from New Bridge (now River Edge, New Jersey), on a march of 14 miles (23 km) through the woods to make an attack upon the British fort at Paulus Hook. He detached patrols of horse to watch the communication with the North River and stationed parties of infantry at different roads leading to Paulus Hook. At Union Hill he filed into the woods where by the guide's timidity, or treachery, the march was prolonged to three hours before gaining the right road.

Major Lee and his men reached Prior's Mill at 3 am, August 19, 1779; at 3:30 they reached the ditch at what is now the intersection of Newark Avenue and Warren Street. The tide was rising but Lieutenant Rudolph found the canal fordable, and led by Lieutenants McCallister and Rudolph the troops pushed through and soon gained possession of the outer fort. Major Sutherland, who was in command of the fort, retired into a small redoubt with a few officers and forty Hessians. It was nearly daylight and Major Lee had no time to dislodge them. He had intended to burn the barracks, but on finding sick soldiers, women and children in them he refrained. He retreated, carrying with him one hundred and fifty-nine prisoners, officers and men. He lost two men killed, and had three men wounded.

Captain Forsyth was ordered to Prior's Mill to collect such men as were most fit for action and take a position on Bergen Heights to cover the retreat. This position was in the woods near Bergen and Sip avenues (today's Journal Square), said to be about the site now occupied by Dr. Hornblower's house, 631 Bergen Avenue. Dr. Hornblower's grandmother was then a little girl, Anna Merselis, and that morning in looking for a cow, she came upon Lee's soldiers, who detained her while they waited, to prevent her carrying any report of their presence to possible enemies. The troops remained there until messengers had been sent to ascertain if the boats that Major Lee had arranged to have in waiting for him at Dow's Ferry were there. He had intended to cross the Hackensack River and by the Belleville Turnpike reach the high ground east of the Passaic River, and thus return to New Bridge; but the boats had been removed to Newark and Major Lee with ruined ammunition and tired men, encumbered with prisoners, was obliged to return by a route liable to be interrupted by troops from New York City. With undaunted courage and wise precautions the brave troops started on the return march of fourteen miles to New Bridge; at "Weehock" (today's Weehawken) Captain Catlett came up with fifty men and good ammunition. At the Fort Lee road Colonel Ball met him with two hundred fresh men, and Major Lee and his men safely reached New Bridge about one o'clock in the afternoon. The English were greatly annoyed and the Americans exceedingly jubilant over the affair.

In a letter to Congress, George Washington said:

The Major displayed a remarkable degree of prudence, address and bravery upon this occasion, which does the highest honor to himself and to all the officers and men under his command. The situation of the fort rendered the attempt critical and the success brilliant.

Congressional resolution

On the 24th of September, Congress passed the following resolutions respecting the affair:

Resolved, That the thanks of Congress be given to His Excellency General Washington for ordering with so much wisdom, the late' attack on the enemy's fort and work at Powles Hook.
Resolved, That the thanks of Congress be given to Major General Lord Stirling for the judicious. measures taken by him to forward the enterprise and to secure the retreat of the party.
Resolved, That the thanks of Congress be given to Major Lee for the remarkable prudence, address and bravery displayed by him on the occasion; and that they approve the humanity shown in circumstances prompting to severity as honorable to the arms of the United States, and correspondent to the noble principles on which they were assumed.
Resolved, That Congress entertain a high sense of the discipline, fortitude, and spirit manifested by the officers and soldiers under the command of Major Lee in the march, action and retreat, and while with singular satisfaction they acknowledge the merit of these gallant Men, they feel an additional pleasure of considering them a part of an army in which very many brave officers and soldiers have proved, by their cheerful performance of every duty under every difficulty, that they ardently wish to give the truly glorious examples they now receive.
Resolved, That Congress justly appreciates the military caution so happily combined with daring activity by Lieuts. McCollister and Rudolph in leading on theforlorn hope.
Resolved, That a medal of gold emblematical of this affair be struck, under the direction of the Board of Treasury, and presented to Major Lee.
Resolved, That the brevet and the pay and subsistence of Captain be given to Lieuts. McCallister and Rudolph respectively.

Medal

Congress also gave Major Lee $15,000 to be distributed among the soldiers engaged in the attack. On one side of the medal awarded to Major Lee is a bust of him, with the words Henrico Lee, Legionis Equit Praefecto Comitia Americana. The American Congress to Henry Lee, Colonel of Cavalry." On the reverse, Non Obstantib fluminibus vallis astutia et virtute bellica parva manu hostes vicit victosq armis humanitate devinxit. In mem. pugn. ad Paulus Hook, die XIX August, 1779. "Notwithstanding rivers and entrenchments, he with a small band conquered the foe by warlike skill and prowess and firmly bound by his humanity those who had been conquered by his arms. In memory of the conflict at Paulus Hook, nineteenth of August, 1779."

See also

Notes

    Related Research Articles

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Continental Army</span> Colonial army during the American Revolutionary War

    The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775 by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia after the war's outbreak. The Continental Army was created to coordinate military efforts of the colonies in the war against the British, who sought to maintain control over the American colonies. General George Washington was appointed commander-in-chief of the Continental Army and maintained this position throughout the war.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Long Island</span> Part of the American Revolutionary War

    The Battle of Long Island, also known as the Battle of Brooklyn and the Battle of Brooklyn Heights, was an action of the American Revolutionary War fought on August 27, 1776, at the western edge of Long Island in present-day Brooklyn. The British defeated the Continental Army and gained access to the strategically important Port of New York, which they held for the rest of the war. It was the first major battle to take place after the United States declared its independence on July 4, 1776, in Philadelphia. It was the largest battle of the Revolutionary War in terms of both troop deployment and combat.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry Lee III</span> American politician (1756–1818)

    Henry Lee III was an early American Patriot and U.S. politician who served as the ninth Governor of Virginia and as the Virginia Representative to the United States Congress. Lee's service during the American Revolution as a cavalry officer in the Continental Army earned him the nickname by which he is best known, "Light-Horse Harry". He was the father of Robert E. Lee, who led the Army of Northern Virginia against the Union Army during the American Civil War.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Paulus Hook</span> Neighborhood of Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S.

    Paulus Hook is a community on the Hudson River waterfront in Jersey City, New Jersey. It is located one mile across the river from Manhattan. The name Hook comes from the Dutch word "hoeck", which translates to "point of land." This "point of land" has been described as an elevated area, the location of which today is bounded by Montgomery, Hudson, Dudley, and Van Vorst Streets.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River</span> 1776 surprise attack against Hessian forces

    George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River, which occurred on the night of December 25–26, 1776 during the American Revolutionary War, was the first move in a surprise attack organized by General George Washington, the commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, against Hessian forces garrisoned at Trenton, who were German mercenaries hired by the British. After crossing the Delaware River, Washington and his troops successfully attacked the Hessian forces in the Battle of Trenton on the morning of December 26, 1776. The military campaign was organized in great secrecy by Washington, who led a column of Continental Army troops from today's Bucks County, Pennsylvania across the icy Delaware River to today's Mercer County, New Jersey in what was one of the Revolutionary War's most logistically challenging and dangerous clandestine operations.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Lee Historic Park</span> Reconstructed historic site in Fort Lee, New Jersey, United States

    Fort Lee Historic Park is located atop a bluff of the Hudson Palisades overlooking Burdett's Landing, known as Mount Constitution, in Fort Lee, New Jersey, United States. The park was conceived as early was 1952.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">New Jersey in the American Revolution</span>

    New Jersey played a central role in the American Revolution both politically and militarily. It was the site of more than 90 military engagements, including the pivotal battles of Trenton, Princeton, and Monmouth. George Washington led his army across the state four times and encamped there during three hard winters, enduring some of the greatest's setbacks of the war as well as seminal victories. New Jersey's decisive role in the conflict earned it the title, "Crossroads of the American Revolution".

    New Bridge was a prosperous mill hamlet, centered upon a bridge strategically placed at the narrows of the Hackensack River. In the American Revolution, New Bridge Landing was the site of a strategic bridge crossing the Hackensack River, where General George Washington led his troops in retreat from British forces November 20, 1776. Eleven engagements took place here throughout the war. The current Draw Bridge at New Bridge was installed in 1889 and added to the National Register of Historic Places on July 5, 1989. The area is now a New Jersey historic site in portions of New Milford, River Edge, Hackensack and Teaneck in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">1st Continental Light Dragoons</span> Military unit

    The 1st Continental Light Dragoons, also known as Bland's Horse, was a mounted regiment of the Continental Army organized between 13 June and 10 September 1776 in Williamsburg, Virginia. It was made up of men from eastern and northern Virginia for service with the Continental Army.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Fort Washington</span> Battle of the American Revolutionary War

    The Battle of Fort Washington was fought in New York on November 16, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War between the United States and Great Britain. It was a British victory that gained the surrender of the remnant of the garrison of Fort Washington near the north end of Manhattan. It was one of the worst Patriot defeats of the war.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Steuben House</span> Historic house in New Jersey, United States

    The Steuben House is a noted example of Bergen Dutch sandstone architecture, located at New Bridge Landing on the Hackensack River in River Edge, in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States.

    William Sutherland was a British officer during the American Revolution.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">George Washington in the American Revolution</span> Overview of George Washingtons position in the American Revolution

    George Washington commanded the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783). After serving as President of the United States, he briefly was in charge of a new army in 1798.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern theater of the American Revolutionary War after Saratoga</span>

    The northern theater of the American Revolutionary War after Saratoga consisted of a series of battles between American revolutionaries and British forces, from 1778 to 1782 during the American Revolutionary War. It is characterized by two primary areas of activity. The first set of activities was based around the British base of operations in New York City, where each side made probes and counterprobes against the other's positions that sometimes resulted in notable actions. The second was essentially a frontier war in Upstate New York and rural northern Pennsylvania that was largely fought by state militia companies and some Indian allies on the American side, and Loyalist companies supported by Indians, British Indian agents, and occasionally British regulars. The notable exception to significant Continental Army participation on the frontier was the 1779 Sullivan Expedition, in which General John Sullivan led an army expedition that drove the Iroquois out of New York. The warfare amongst the splinters of the Iroquois Six Nations were particularly brutal, turning much of the Indian population into refugees.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Military career of George Washington</span>

    The military career of George Washington spanned over forty-five years of service (1752–1799). Washington's service can be broken into three periods, French and Indian War, American Revolutionary War, and the Quasi-War with France, with service in three different armed forces.

    Michael Rudolph (1758–1795), an officer in the United States Army, served as acting adjutant general and acting Inspector General of the U.S. Army in 1793.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Bulls Ferry</span> Populated place in Hudson County, New Jersey, US

    Bulls Ferry is an area along the Hudson River, just north of Weehawken Port Imperial in the towns of West New York, Guttenberg and North Bergen in New Jersey. It takes its name from a pre-Revolutionary settlement belonging to the Bull family, who operated a row-and-sail ferry to the burgeoning city of New York across the river.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Three Pigeons</span>

    The Three Pigeons was a prominent and famous meeting place in Bergen Township, New Jersey during the revolutionary period, and was used historically as a landmark as well as a popular place for hosting special occasions.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Bull's Ferry</span>

    The Battle of Bull's Ferry on 20 and 21 July 1780 saw two American brigades under Brigadier General Anthony Wayne attack a party of Loyalist Americans led by Thomas Ward. The Loyalists successfully defended a blockhouse against an ineffective bombardment by four American artillery pieces and a failed attempt to storm the position by Wayne's infantry. During the action, American light dragoons under Major Light Horse Harry Lee drove off a large number of cattle that were kept in the area for the use of the British army in New York City. The clash inspired British Major John André to write a satirical ballad entitled The Cow Chace. The skirmish was fought at Bulls Ferry, New Jersey in the Northern theater of the American Revolutionary War after Saratoga. At this stage of the conflict only raids and minor actions occurred in the north.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Francis McLean (British Army officer)</span> British Army general

    Brigadier General Francis McLean was a British army officer, one of two sons of Captain William Maclean and Anne Kinloch. He became famous for defending New Ireland (Maine) against the Penobscot Expedition during the American Revolution. The defeat of the Expedition was a noted British victory of the American Revolution. He was in command of the 74th Regiment of (Highland) Foot and 82nd Regiment of Foot (1778). He died 4 May 1781 at Halifax, Nova Scotia and is buried in the crypt of St. Paul's Church (Halifax). McLean never married.

    References

    40°42′27″N74°02′23″W / 40.70757°N 74.03961°W / 40.70757; -74.03961