Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Debunking a Few More Historical Myths
HISTORY
Stony Point was captured by Americans under
Mad Anthony Wayne a month and a half later on July 16, 1779, in an impressive
victory planned by George Washington. Wayne later
swore that he would storm Hell if Washington
The American Revolution was
unique in that many military actions took place in Westchester and the lower Hudson Valley
The Myth that
Patriots Burned New York
Ironically, a week after their landing at Kip’s Bay,
on Sept. 21, 1776, the British were robbed of a portion of their prize by the
destruction of about a third of New York City in a disastrous fire that destroyed
493 houses before British troops and local citizens could extinguish the flames.
Because the city's volunteer
firemen had left with the American troops, the fire spread with intense speed.
The conflagration, which started in a house near Whitehall Slip, inconvenienced
caused the British because they had counted on billeting troops in the city.
In the belief that Americans
had deliberately fired the city, enraged British soldiers killed a number of
citizens. British soldiers and sailors called out to fight the fire pillaged
many houses.
Observing the red glow on
the southern horizon from his position at the Roger Morris house on Harlem Heights , Washington
commented, “Providence
The British claimed that the
fire had been planned with the knowledge of George Washington, but the General
and the Continental Congress denied the existence of any plot. In fact,
Congress had specifically prohibited the destruction of the city.
The Hessians of Croton’s Hessian Hill
Repetition of inaccurate information often embeds it
in local history. Hessian Hill, northeast of Mt. Airy ,
in the village of
Croton-on-Hudson
British General Sir Henry
Clinton sailed up the Hudson Clinton 's troops occupied Stony Point
on the west bank. A force under British Gen. John Vaughan landed at Verplanck
Point on June 1st and captured its Fort
Lafayette
Although
Americans abandoned the position, crucial to a key ferry crossing of the Hudson Virginia , two years later.
After Washington
reinforced American troops at Peekskill , the
British withdrew from the area north of the Croton River
Were German Mercenaries only Hessians?
Were German Mercenaries only Hessians?
No. Although many German mercenaries were from
Hesse-Kassel and Hesse-Hanau, other states, especially Brunswick
The practice of hiring
foreign soldiers was common up to the 18th century, although mercenaries could
not keep Constantinople from falling to the
Turks in the 15th century. Most small professional armies found it necessary to
employ auxiliaries in foreign wars of long duration.
Only 17,313 of the 29,867
German soldiers who reached these shores returned home. About five thousand
deserted and another 7,754 found graves in America
German mercenaries were
despised for their cruelty, even by the British. They gained no battle laurels
in America
The most notable German
defeats included their Christmas surprise at Trenton ,
N.J. , their drubbing at Bennington ,
Vt. , and General Knyphausen's failed raid
against American forces under Gen. Nathanael Greene at Springfield , N.J.
Instead of learning from
their experiences in America ,
German mercenaries returned home unshaken in their faith in the outmoded
military tactics of Frederick
This illusion persisted
until one October day in 1806 when Napoleon’s highly trained and adaptable army
crushed two great Prussian armies in a matter of hours in twin victories at
Jena and Auerstedt. Ruthless German efficiency on the battlefield had given way
to outworn precision on the parade ground with disastrous results.
The Patriots’Superior
Propaganda Skills
The Patriots’
The distorted view of the American Revolution that was
perpetuated so long is a tribute to American mastery of the art of propaganda.
Early in the struggle, patriots
like Sam Adams realized that to stir up their fellow citizens and to win
friends abroad, they had to circulate their own version of every incident and do
it quickly.
Take, for example, the
reporting of the running battle at Lexington and
Concord America to England
British General Thomas
Gage's report of the incident on April 18th and 19th in 1775 was dispatched
aboard the ship Sukey on April 22nd and reached London
Although the American
version of the affair went out four days later on April 26, it arrived at the
end of May. The Americans cleverly outwitted General Gage by sending Capt. John
Darby's ship Quero ”in ballast” (i.e., without cargo). Gage's
slower ship was heavily laden and took longer.
American propaganda
techniques occasionally backfired. A good example of this occurred a half century
after Lexington and Concord, when the Americans--who had labored to show that
they had not fired the first shot--had difficulty in proving that any Americans
had fired at all.
Myths about Militias
Large standing armies represent a relatively recent
innovation in the art of warfare. The almost continuous wars in America
Battles against the
rebelling colonists during the Revolution were fought by British regulars,
German mercenaries and Tory militia. British professional military men tended
to take a dim view of the capabilities of the colonial militias.
Yet during the American
Revolution, it was these same militiamen who gathered so quickly at Lexington and Concord , who
placed Boston under siege, who fought at Bunker Hill , and who formed the nucleus of the fledgling
Continental Army.
At the same time, because
they were part-time soldiers subject to their home state's authority, militia
units were often unreliable. After the battle of Long Island, of the 8,000 Connecticut militiamen serving under Washington
The second battle of Saratoga
in 1777 was the turning point of the Revolution Immediately before that
engagement, Gen. John Stark's New Hampshire
militia, only recently the heroes at the battle of Bennington
"Few events in the war so proved the utter
failure of the militia system," an American historian later wrote.
Paradoxically, if led by experienced officers who understood their inherent
weakness, the militia could—and did—fight like regular soldiers.
Tuesday, August 07, 2012
Debunking Still More Historical Myths
HISTORY
During the American Revolution, Westchester 's
fertile farms were looted so often by both sides the inhabitants frequently
became looters themselves, if only to survive.
Called the "neutral ground," the countryside
eventually became a sinister wasteland full of marauding bands of outlaws.
Many of its guerrillas switched allegiance between
rebel and loyalist as circumstances suited them.
Westchester’s Accidental Heroes
Westchester’s Accidental Heroes
On
Saturday morning, September 23, 1780, John Paulding, 24, Isaac Van Wart, 17,
and David Williams, 24, members of an impromptu patriot patrol, are playing cards
near the bridge over Clark’s Kill (now called "André's Brook"), the northern
boundary of Tarrytown .
Actually they are "volunteer militiamen"
operating under a recently enacted New
York
Meanwhile, a worried horseman, John Anderson, heads southwest through
the Pocantico Hills on the old Bedford-Tarrytown-Road (Route 448). John
Anderson is the name on the pass he carries signed by Gen. Benedict Arnold. He
is actually Major John André, 30, deputy Adjutant General to British Gen. Henry
Clinton, Commander-in-Chief of British forces in America
He reaches the Albany Post Road Clark 's Kill. After consulting his sketch map, Anderson
gallops his horse across the bridge over the little stream marking the northern
boundary of Tarrytown and makes his way up the
slope. A grim-faced John Paulding pointing a musket directly at him suddenly
confronts him.
More than six feet tall, an unusual
height for the time, Paulding has an air of authority reinforced by the
flintlock. Recently detained by the British in New York City
It is unmistakable--green with red piping.
The jacket helped Paulding to escape from detention in the North Dutch Church in New
York City
Paulding's distinctive jacket convinces
Anderson Arnold
"My lads," he says, "I hope
you belong to our party."
"What party might that be?"
Paulding asks, innocently.
"The lower party," Anderson
answers. The term is a geographical euphemism for the loyalists in
British-occupied New York City
Paulding assures him, "Oh, we do,
we do." He adds, "My clothing shows that."
Relieved that his ordeal is over, Anderson
At this, Paulding reveals that they are
patriots and orders him to dismount. Anderson
Paulding, the only one of the three who
can read or write, studies it.
"You had best let me go, or you
will bring yourselves into trouble," Anderson
Paulding reflects for a minute. "I
hope you will not be offended. We do not mean to take anything from you, but
there are many bad people on the road, and I don't know but that you may be
one. What is your name?"
The prisoner tells him, "John
Anderson." It is the name on General Arnold's pass.
Nevertheless, the three escort him into
a nearby clump of bushes. Paulding tells Williams to strip-search the prisoner.
Anderson
Paulding examines these and exclaims,
"He's a spy!" The other stocking contains three other papers. Some
are in Arnold Anderson
An unusual exchange ensues that has
troubled historians ever since. Based on their later testimony, the motives of André’s
captors may have been less than patriotic. Paulding asks him what he would give
to be let go. "Any sum you want," is the answer.
"A hundred guineas with the horse,
saddle, bridle--and your watch?" (A guinea was a gold coin worth a pound
and a shilling, a total of 21 shillings. The gold coin has not been minted
since 1813. Certain amounts, such as philanthropic contributions and bequests,
are still quoted in guineas.)
Will you give more?" asks
Paulding.
"Any amount you may name, in cash
or dry goods," Anderson
Eventually, the amount promised is
raised to 10,000 guineas--a king's ransom. Anderson
Lofty patriotic motives were later attributed to the
three captors of Major John André, but their real reason probably was booty. The captors later
sold André's silver watch, horse and bridle, and divided the money among the seven
members of their original party.
Paulding, Van Wart and Williams were each given the
thanks of Congress, a silver medal bearing the inscription “Fidelity,” an
annual federal pension of $200 and a farm by New York State
In 1817, when Paulding applied to Congress for an
increase in the amount of his annuity. Benjamin Tallmadge, by then a member of
Congress from Connecticut
Ironically, it was their search for money in André’s boots that led to the discovery
of the papers that sealed his fate. Major John André was hanged as a spy nine
days later on October 2, 1780.
The Mislabeled Battle
We call it the Battle of Bunker Hill. To be
historically accurate, it should be called the Battle of Breed's Hill. Had the
battle indeed been fought principally on Bunker Hill ,
the outcome would have been vastly different.
In 1775, the British were
bottled up in Boston Boston Bunker Hill . He crossed
Charlestown Neck with 1,000 men.
Upon arriving at the base of
Bunker Hill, Prescott Bunker Hill .
This was a critical error.
Military experts believe that 110-foot-high Bunker Hill
could have been made virtually impregnable. Breed's Hill ,
only 62 feet high, was untenable--as the outcome of the battle proved--and had
no strategic value to the Americans.
Working at night, Prescott 's men threw up a well-designed earthwork on Breed's Hill , protected by outlying breastworks. To Gen.
William Howe, the British commander, this affront was intolerable.
Howe cannonaded the defenses
from warships in the harbor and landed redcoats from landing barges. Heavily-laden
British soldiers toiled up the slopes of Breed's Hill ,
only to be met by withering fire from the defenders, who had been ordered to
target officers, easily identifiable by the metal gorgets they wore around their necks.
The British fell back and
regrouped. A second time the redcoats struggled up the slope and were again met
with the same intense fire. American Gen. Israel Putnam rode to nearby Bunker
Hill to get volunteers to reinforce the defenses on Breed's
Hill . He explained his lack of success to Colonel Prescott by
saying, "I could not drive the dogs." Prescott
After a third devastating
advance up the hill, the British took the redoubt. The American militia, short
of ammunition and lacking bayonets, retreated.
American casualties totaled
140 killed and 301 wounded; of the latter, 30 were captured. British losses
were heavier: 226 dead and 828 wounded.
American targeting of
officers took a terrible toll. Every one of Howe's officers was either killed
or wounded. Twenty major battles were fought during the Revolution. One-eighth
of all British officers killed in these 20 battles fell at the Bunker Hill action; one-sixth of all British officers
wounded in these 20 battles were wounded in the Battle of Bunker Hill.
