Hartley's Additional Continental Regiment was an American infantry unit of the Continental Army that served for two years during the American Revolutionary War. The regiment was authorized in January 1777 and Thomas Hartley was appointed its commander. The unit comprised eight companies from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Delaware. When permanent brigades were formed in May 1777, the regiment was transferred to the 1st Pennsylvania Brigade. Hartley's Regiment fought at Brandywine, Paoli, and Germantown in 1777. The unit helped defend the Pennsylvania frontier against indigenous raids in the Summer and early Fall of 1778. In January 1779, following a resolution of the Continental Congress the regiment, along with Patton's Additional Continental Regiment and part of Malcolm's Additional Continental Regiment, were combined to form a complete battalion known as the "New" 11th Pennsylvania Regiment. The 11th participated in the Sullivan Expedition in the summer of that year. In January 1781 the 11th merged with the 3rd Pennsylvania Regiment and ceased to exist.
Hartley's Additional Continental Regiment was authorized on 12 January 1777 for service with the Continental Army.[1] In December 1776, as his army retreated across New Jersey under British pressure, George Washington appealed to the Continental Congress for more soldiers. In September 1776, Congress had authorized an army of 88 infantry battalions. In the crisis, Congress acceded to Washington's requests on 27 December 1776. The delegates gave Washington sweeping authority to appoint officers and recruit an additional 16 battalions of infantry, three regiments of artillery, an engineer corps, and light cavalry formations. Unlike the original 88 battalions which were to be raised by the states, the "additional" regiments were solely under Washington's command.[2]
Richard Henry Lee urged the appointment of Thomas Hartley as colonel.
Upon the recommendation of delegate Richard Henry Lee, Washington appointed Thomas Hartley as colonel of one "additional" regiment. Hartley was the former lieutenant colonel of the 6th Pennsylvania Battalion. Hartley had broad authority to select his own officers. Accordingly, Hartley chose as his lieutenant colonel Morgan Connor, major of the 1st Pennsylvania Regiment.[3] Initially, Hartley's Regiment was to contain ten companies, however, Hartley seems only to have recruited eight; four from Pennsylvania, three from Maryland and one from Virginia.[4][5] Hartley's Regiment included a grenadier company, which was unusual for an American unit.[6] The troops assembled at Philadelphia in the spring of 1777. On 22 May 1777, the regiment became part of the 1st Pennsylvania Brigade in Washington's main army.[7]
On 11 September 1777, Hartley's Regiment fought at the Battle of Brandywine as part of a 2,000-man division led by Brigadier GeneralAnthony Wayne. Since the division commander Major GeneralBenjamin Lincoln was absent, Wayne moved up from the command of the 1st Pennsylvania Brigade and Hartley took his place as acting brigadier. Wayne drew up the division in line with the 1st Brigade on the right flank and the 2nd Pennsylvania Brigade on its left. From right to left, Hartley's units were drawn up in the order: 1st and 7th Pennsylvania Regiments, Hartley's Regiment, 10th and 2nd Pennsylvania Regiments. The right-most unit was deployed on the Great Road with Colonel Thomas Proctor's artillery lunette about 200 yards (183m) in front. The Anglo-Hessian division led by Lieutenant GeneralWilhelm von Knyphausen attacked across Brandywine Creek at Chadds Ford. After a struggle, von Knyphausen's men overran the lunette and then advanced on Wayne's position.[8]
Howard Pyle's "Nationmakers" depicts American soldiers marching into action at the Battle of Brandywine.
In the firefight that followed, Major Lewis Bush of Hartley's Regiment had his horse killed under him. Shortly after mounting a second horse, he was fatally struck by a projectile and fell into the arms of Lieutenant Colonel Adam Hubley of the 10th Pennsylvania. Bush was the highest-ranking American officer killed at Brandywine. When the British and Hessians threatened to turn both of Wayne's flanks, he withdrew his division 600 yards (549m) to a hill while successfully bringing off the brigade artillery. Nightfall ended the British pursuit.[9]
The regiment also was present at the Battle of Paoli on 20 September. The Americans were alerted to the night-time attack, and began to retire in marching column. However, a cannon broke down, blocking the road and the 2nd and 1st Brigades halted. In a bayonet charge, the British routed the 1st Pennsylvania which was covering the retreat and burst among the Americans. The 7th Pennsylvania was the rear-most unit with Hartley's immediately ahead of it.[10] In the chaos that followed, the British inflicted heavy casualties on their adversaries. Hubley admitted that 52 Americans died and total casualties numbered about 300 men, while the British lost only three killed and eight wounded.[11]
On 4 October 1777, the regiment was in action at Battle of Germantown, still in the 1st Pennsylvania Brigade and Wayne's division. Major General John Sullivan's right wing, led by Brigadier General Thomas Conway's brigade bumped into the British 2nd Light Infantry Regiment near Mount Airy at the start of the engagement. After the light troops held up Conway's advance near Mount Pleasant, Sullivan committed the 1st and 2nd Maryland Brigades to the right of the Germantown Road and Wayne's division to the left. Recalling the Paoli "massacre", the Americans surged forward with shouts of, "Have at the Bloodhounds! Revenge Wayne's Affair!"[12] With the 1st Brigade on the right and the 2nd Brigade on the left, Wayne's men attacked with a fury, giving no quarter to those light infantrymen who tried to surrender. The 2nd Light Infantry put up a stubborn fight but was ultimately routed and the Pennsylvanians captured their camp.[13]
By this time the British Army commander Sir William Howe appeared on the scene and attempted to rally his men. He shouted, "For shame, Light Infantry! I never saw you retreat before. Form! Form! It is only a scouting party." A blast of grapeshot soon proved otherwise and Howe prudently withdrew. The 5th Foot and 55th Foot arrived to support the light infantry, but they were also forced to fall back.[14] In the confusion, the 40th Foot installed themselves in the solidly-built Chew House. After firing a few volleys at the house with no effect, Wayne's men left it behind and continued their southward advance into the morning's fog. Sullivan shifted Conway's brigade to the right of his Maryland troops and also pushed onward. At this point, contact between Wayne's division and the rest of Sullivan's wing was broken.[15] Both Wayne and Sullivan advanced several hundred yards beyond the Chew House before the advance stalled. When the American rear echelon units began bombarding the Chew House with cannons, Wayne and his men became anxious and turned back. In the fog, they blundered into Major General Adam Stephen's advancing Virginia division. In a friendly fire incident, both American forces volleyed at one another. Confused in the fog and taking fire from several directions, Wayne's men took to their heels and did not rally until they were 3 miles (4.8km) from the battlefield.[16]
John Sullivan led an expedition against the Iroquis in the summer of 1779.
On 8 January 1778, Hartley's Regiment was assigned to the Middle Department and in March it became part of the Pennsylvania Line. Captain William Scott's company from Thruston's Additional Continental Regiment was absorbed on 4 April 1778.[7] Sent to the Pennsylvania frontier to oppose raids by the Iroquois and their American Loyalist allies, Hartley's Regiment arrived in the Wyoming Valley after the Battle of Wyoming. In September 1778, elements of the regiment participated in a counter-raid in which they destroyed a few indigenous villages, recovered plunder taken in the Wyoming Valley, and skirmished with Seneca warriors. Hearing that a large body of warriors was assembling at Unadilla, Colonel Hartley withdrew his 130-man column.[17]
Since the "Old Eleventh" was consolidated with the 10th Pennsylvania Regiment in July 1778 and was no longer in existence, the regiment became known as the "New Eleventh".[21] Assigned to Edward Hand's Brigade in April 1779, the unit joined the Sullivan Expedition that summer,.[7] The only major engagement of the campaign was the Battle of Newtown on 29 August 1779.[22] In this action, Butler's Rangers, Brant's Volunteers, and several hundred Seneca and Cayuga warriors attempted to ambush Sullivan's 3,200-man column. The American advance guard of riflemen detected the trap and Sullivan deployed his troops. Enoch Poor's New Hampshire brigade supported by James Clinton's New Yorkers tried to envelop the enemy's left flank, while Hand's brigade pressed the center and the 1st New Jersey moved to attack the right. Many of the Seneca and Cayuga bolted when Thomas Proctor's artillery opened fire. A counterattack led by Joseph Brant against Poor's brigade was driven off. Faced with envelopment by a greatly superior force, the Rangers and Brant's Volunteers hastily withdrew.[23] Thereafter, the expedition did great damage to Iroquois territory, burning 40 towns, despoiling crops, and cutting down orchards. The Iroquois people were forced to beg for food from the British that winter, but their ferocious attacks on frontier settlements continued.[22] In August 1780, the regiment transferred to the 2nd Pennsylvania Brigade. On 17 January 1781 the "New Eleventh" consolidated with the 3rd Pennsylvania Regiment and ceased to exist.[7]
↑ “To George Washington from Colonel Thomas Hartley, 18 January 1777,” Founders Online, National Archives (https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/03-08-02-0103 [last update: 2015-09-29]). Source: The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 8, 6 January 1777 – 27 March 1777, ed. Frank E. Grizzard Jr. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1998, pp. 97–99.
↑ “To George Washington from Colonel Thomas Hartley, 12 February 1777,” Founders Online, National Archives (https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/03-08-02-0341 [last update: 2015-09-29]). Source: The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 8, 6 January 1777 – 27 March 1777, ed. Frank E. Grizzard Jr. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1998, pp. 317–319.
↑ (Worthington Chauncey Ford et al., eds. Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774-1789. 34 vols. Washington, D.C., 1904–37, 13:58.
↑ (Worthington Chauncey Ford et al., eds. Journals of the Continental Congress, 1774-1789. 34 vols. Washington, D.C., 1904–37. 13:180.
↑ To George Washington from Thomas Hartley, 1 March 1779,” Founders Online, National Archives (https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/03-19-02-0328 [last update: 2015-09-29]). Source: The Papers of George Washington, Revolutionary War Series, vol. 19, 15 January–7 April 1779, ed. Philander D. Chase and William M. Ferraro. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2009, pp. 298–299.
The 1st Pennsylvania Regiment - originally mustered as the 1st Pennsylvania Rifles; also known as the 1st Continental Line and 1st Continental Regiment, was raised under the command of Colonel William Thompson for service in the Continental Army.
The 6th Pennsylvania Regiment, first known as the 5th Pennsylvania Battalion, was a unit of the United States of America (U.S.) Army, raised December 9, 1775, at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for service with the Continental Army. The regiment would see action during the New York Campaign, Battle of Brandywine, Battle of Germantown, Battle of Monmouth, and Green Spring. The regiment was disbanded on January 1, 1783.
The 8th Pennsylvania Regiment or Mackay's Battalion was an American infantry unit that became part of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Authorized for frontier defense in July 1776, the eight-company unit was originally called Mackay's Battalion after its commander, Colonel Aeneas Mackay. Transferred to the main army in November 1776, the unit was renamed the 8th Pennsylvania Regiment on 1 January 1777. It completed an epic winter march from western Pennsylvania to New Jersey, though Mackay and his second-in-command both died soon afterward. In March 1777 Colonel Daniel Brodhead assumed command. The regiment was engaged at the Battles of Bound Brook, Brandywine, Paoli, and Germantown in 1777. A body of riflemen were detached from the regiment and fought at Saratoga. Assigned to the Western Department in May 1778, the 8th Pennsylvania gained a ninth company before seeing action near Fort Laurens and in the Sullivan Expedition in 1778 and 1779. The regiment consolidated with the 2nd Pennsylvania Regiment in January 1781 and ceased to exist.
The 11th Pennsylvania Regiment or Old Eleventh was authorized on 16 September 1776 for service with the Continental Army. On 25 October, Richard Humpton was named colonel. In December 1776, the regiment was assigned to George Washington's main army and was present at Assunpink Creek and fought at Princeton in January 1777. During the spring, the unit assembled at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in a strength of eight companies. The soldiers were recruited from Philadelphia and four nearby counties. On 22 May 1777, the regiment became part of the 2nd Pennsylvania Brigade. The 11th was in the thick of the action at Brandywine, Paoli, and Germantown in 1777. It was present at White Marsh and Monmouth. On 1 July 1778, the unit was consolidated with the 10th Pennsylvania Regiment, and the 11th Regiment ceased to exist. Humpton took command of the reorganized unit.
The 3rd Maryland Regiment was an infantry regiment of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. It served from 1776 to 1783, mostly in the Middle Atlantic Region of the conflict.
The 8th Virginia Regiment or German Regiment was an infantry unit that served in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Authorized in January 1776, the regiment was raised from men of several northwestern counties in the strength of 10 companies. Its first commander was Colonel Peter Muhlenberg, a clergyman and militia leader. The unit marched to defend Charleston, South Carolina in 1776, but saw no fighting. At the start of 1777, the 8th Virginia moved to join George Washington's main army. When Muhlenberg was promoted to general officer, Colonel Abraham Bowman took command of the unit.
The 2nd North Carolina Regiment was an American infantry unit that was raised for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. In 1776 the regiment helped defend Charleston, South Carolina. Ordered to join George Washington's main army in February 1777, the regiment subsequently fought at Brandywine and Germantown during the Philadelphia Campaign. After most other North Carolina regiments were sent home to recruit, the 1st and 2nd Regiments remained with the main army and fought at Monmouth in June 1778. The regiment was transferred to the Southern Department and was captured by the British army in May 1780 at the Siege of Charleston. Together with the 1st Regiment, the unit was rebuilt and fought capably at Eutaw Springs. The 2nd was furloughed in April 1783 and officially dissolved in November 1783.
The Battle of Germantown on 4 October 1777 pitted a 9,000-man British army under General William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe against an 11,000-strong American army commanded by General George Washington. After an initial advance, the American reserve allowed itself to be diverted by 120 English soldiers holding out in the Benjamin Chew House. A heavy morning fog disoriented the American assault columns and led to a friendly fire incident between elements of Major General John Sullivan's right column and Major General Nathanael Greene's left column. At about this time, the American attack lost impetus and both columns retreated. Meanwhile, two wide flanking columns numbering 3,000 American militia had little effect on the outcome. American losses was numbered at 673 soldiers killed and wounded plus 400 captured, while the British suffered 520 casualties.
At the Battle of Brandywine on September 11, 1777 a colonial American army led by General George Washington fought a British-Hessian army commanded by General William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe. Washington drew up his troops in a defensive position behind Brandywine Creek. Howe sent Lieutenant General Wilhelm von Knyphausen's 5,000 troops to demonstrate against the American front at Chadd's Ford. Meanwhile, Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis took 10,000 troops on a wide flank march that crossed the creek and got in the rear of the American right wing under Major General John Sullivan. The Americans changed front but Howe's attack broke through.
Edward Mathew began his military career in the British Army as a commissioned officer. By the time of the American Revolutionary War he had risen to the rank of colonel. Promoted to brigadier general, he was assigned to command the elite Brigade of Guards in the American campaign. In 1776 he led the Guards at Long Island, Kip's Bay, and Fort Washington where he spearheaded one of the assault forces. In the Philadelphia Campaign, he commanded his brigade at Brandywine, Germantown, White Marsh, and Monmouth. As a major general, he took part in the highly successful Chesapeake raid on Virginia ports in 1779. He led one of the columns in action at Battle of Springfield in 1780. He commanded in the West Indies in 1782 and became a full general in 1797. His beloved daughter Anna predeceased him in 1795. Mathew is likely to have been the model for a character in one of Jane Austen's novels.
Philippe Hubert, Chevalier de Preudhomme de Borre joined the French Army in 1740 and served in the War of the Austrian Succession. During the American Revolutionary War he traveled to America where he was presented as a military expert. Promoted to general officer, his career as a Continental Army officer was brief and undistinguished. He resigned under a cloud and returned to France in 1779. His career ended in obscurity.
Thomas Proctor or Thomas Procter commanded the 4th Continental Artillery Regiment during the American Revolutionary War. He was born in County Longford, Ireland, emigrated to British America, married in 1767 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and joined the carpenter's guild in 1772. Receiving a commission as an artillery captain in October 1775, he proceeded to raise a company of Pennsylvania state artillery. After a second company was recruited, Proctor was promoted to major and both companies joined George Washington's army. Proctor led his gunners at Princeton in January 1777. The state authorities elevated Proctor to the rank of colonel and charged him to recruit an eight-company Pennsylvania State Artillery Regiment a month later.
The 4th Continental Artillery Regiment, also known as Reign's Continental Artillery Regiment, was an American military unit during the American Revolutionary War. The regiment became part of the Continental Army on 10 June 1777 as Colonel Thomas Proctor's Continental Artillery Regiment. It was made up of eight artillery companies from eastern Pennsylvania. At the time of the regiment's formation, two companies were already in existence, one from as early as October 1775. One company served at Trenton in December 1776 where it performed well in action. In February 1777, Pennsylvania expanded its two-company battalion into an eight-company regiment. After officially joining the Continental Army, the regiment saw much fighting in the Philadelphia campaign in late 1777. Elements of Proctor's Regiment fought at Monmouth in June 1778 and joined the Sullivan Expedition in summer 1779.
Walter Stewart was an Irish-born American general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.
Patton's Additional Continental Regiment was an American infantry unit that existed for two years during the American Revolutionary War. Authorized on 11 January 1777, the unit was recruited from the colonies of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. Raised by Colonel John Patton in early 1777, it saw service with the Continental Army during the Philadelphia Campaign. In January 1779 the regiment was absorbed by Hartley's Additional Continental Regiment, except for one company which joined the 1st Delaware Regiment.
Grayson's Additional Continental Regiment was an American infantry unit that served for two years and three months in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Like other Additional Regiments, Grayson's remained directly under George Washington's control, unlike state regiments. Authorized in January 1777, the unit's nine companies were recruited from the colonies of Virginia, Maryland, and Delaware. Raised by Colonel William Grayson, the regiment participated in actions in Northern New Jersey in early 1777, at Brandywine in September 1777, at Germantown in October 1777, and at Monmouth in June 1778. In April 1779 the regiment was absorbed by Gist's Additional Continental Regiment and ceased to exist.
Richard Parker was an American colonel who fought in the American Revolutionary War. Son of prominent Virginia jurist Richard Parker, Parker received an officer's commission in a Virginia regiment early in the conflict. He probably was present at Great Bridge and Norfolk. Promoted to major, he fought at Trenton in December 1776 and commanded the regiment at Second Trenton and Princeton in January 1777. At Brandywine in September 1777 he led a detachment of light infantry in delaying the British. The next month he fought at Germantown. Promoted to colonel at Valley Forge, he led a picked detachment at Monmouth in June 1778. In May 1779, George Washington ordered him back to Virginia to recruit a new regiment. After being sent south with a new unit of reinforcements for Charleston, South Carolina in late 1779, he died of wounds received at the Siege of Charleston in 1780.
The "German Battalion" was an infantry formation of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Authorized in May 1776 as an extra Continental regiment, the battalion recruited ethnic Germans from Maryland and Pennsylvania.
Spencer's Additional Continental Regiment, sometimes referred to as the 5th New Jersey Regiment, was an American infantry unit that served for four years in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. The Continental Congress authorized sixteen "Additional" Continental Regiments in late 1776 and Colonel Oliver Spencer accepted command of this regiment with rank from January 15, 1777.
Oliver Spencer was a New Jersey officer during the American Revolutionary War and received a special commission to enlist and lead one of 16 Additional Continental Regiments. He was born in Connecticut and later moved to New Jersey, where he married Anna Ogden and became a tanner. He joined the revolutionary cause and engaged a British force in December 1776 as a major of New Jersey militia. On 15 January 1777 during the Forage War, his militiamen captured 70 German mercenaries. That month George Washington authorized him to recruit Spencer's Additional Continental Regiment. As colonel, he led this unit at Brandywine and Germantown in 1777 and Monmouth in 1778. His regiment participated in the Sullivan Expedition in 1779 and was disbanded at the beginning of 1781. The conflict having ruined his home and his tanning business, he moved to Ohio, where he served as a probate judge and militia commander. He was the nephew of General Joseph Spencer.
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