Battle of Trenton

  1776- Known as Washington's memorable Christmas attack on the Hessians

    Christmas Campaign

• Attacked Hessians on Christmas Day, 1776
• Washington ordered troops to cross the Delaware River and take the enemy by surprise
• Took Trenton at bayonet point because Hessian troops had no forts build around the camp
• The Hessians were all asleep after a hard night of partying
• The Americans wona complete victory
• Washington attacked when he did because half of his army was going home on December 31
• The British viewed the American troops as ragged, unprepared, and greatly outnumbered because they had no central government to unite them
• Because the weather was so nasty (snow, freezing rain, snow and hail), the British troops did not send out the normal predawn patrol
• Washington was determined to take Trenton so they did at 8AM moving in too quickly for the Hessians to even get dressed or make formations
• So the Hessians surrendered
• The Battle only took 90 minutes

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