Battle Of Brandywine: American Revolution
Battle of Brandywine
The Battle of Brandywine was fought in Philadelphia on September 11, 1777 during the American Revolution. The enemy was the British soldiers who sought to capture Philadelphia, the revolutionary state. The British came strong with 17,000 troops under the command of General Howe. The Americans, lead by General George Washington were outnumbers with 10,000 militia men. In analyzing this battle, I will discuss several key factors in terms of METT-TC, OAKOC, and the Principles of War that influenced the outcome of the British capturing Philadelphia (To emphasize these principles I will italicize METT-TC, OAKOC).
In July 1777, the British landed off the coast of New Jersey with an armanda of more that 260 ships carrying …show more content…
there 17,000 troops. There landing area was on the northern end of present day Chesapeake Bay, about 40-50 miles southwest of Philadelphia. The British faced logistical problems because of the terrain which was a narrow river neck that was shallow and muddy. General Washington on the other hand had the advantage of Observation and fields of fire, and key terrain by placing his troops on the high ground between Head of Elk and Philadelphia to defend against the British. General Washington deployed fractions of his army throughout this area in preparation of British attacks. His efforts ultimately amounted to nothing because General Howe had no intentions of fighting a full scale war at the moment against the prepared Americans. Instead, he employed a flanking maneuver (Avenue of Approach). A portion of his army 5,000 troops went to meet General Washington at Chadd’s Ford while the remainder was to march north to Jeffries Ford, an area that Washington overlooked.
The Battle
The battle began on September 11th with heavy fog which provided the British with cover.
At the time Washington received several contradicting reports about the British troop movement and continued to believe they were going to attack from Chadds Ford. The British appeared on the American flank around 2 p.m. that day. With the Americans outflanked/out maneuvered and surprised, they attempted to reposition their troops to meet the unexpected attacks from their right. The British were slow to attack which bought time for the Americans to position some of their men on high ground near the Birmingham Meeting House, a few miles north of Chadds Ford. The British attacked causing Washington’s army in Chadds Ford to bear most of the brunt and eventually retreat. The American were also forced to leave behind most of their cannons because their artillery horses were killed (supply). On the east bank of Brandywine, the British launched an attack against the weakened Americans forcing several division to retreat and leave behind most of their cannons also. General John Armstrong who was employed by General Washington to overlook Chadds Ford with 1,000 troops never engaged in combat and ultimately retreated. Darkness brought the British offensive to a halt. Most of the defeated Americans retreat to Chester. This battle demonstrated several principles of war by employed by the British, mass/shock and awe, offensive, and surprised.
Although Howe had defeated the American army, the unexpected
resistance he had met prevented him from destroying it completely and gave the Americans something to be optimistic about. Washington had committed a serious error in leaving his right flank open to attack. If it were not for the repositioning of a vital couple of fractions fighting to hold the British off the American would have suffered more casualties.
The official British casualty list detailed 587 causalities 93 killed (8 officiers, 7 sergeants and 78 rank and filed. 488 wounded. There is no casualty return for the American Army at Brandywine. Most accounts of the Patriot loss were from the British side.
Conclusion
From this battle there were several key factors from that influenced the outcome of the American losing this battle. First was the Avenue of approach by General how in deciding to attack the flank of Washington’s army, the fog that provided cover for the arriving British troops, shock and awe when the British attacked the Americans from the flank with their weapons, mass from the British out numbering the Americans nearly 2-1. What I have learned from this battle is to never overlook/ underestimate any possibility of where the enemy could potentially attack you from. As I mentioned previously, that was General Washington’s catastrophic mistake in this battle.
The Battle of Brandywine was fought in Philadelphia on September 11, 1777 during the American Revolution. The enemy was the British soldiers who sought to capture Philadelphia, the revolutionary state. The British came strong with 17,000 troops under the command of General Howe. The Americans, lead by General George Washington were outnumbers with 10,000 militia men. In analyzing this battle, I will discuss several key factors in terms of METT-TC, OAKOC, and the Principles of War that influenced the outcome of the British capturing Philadelphia (To emphasize these principles I will italicize METT-TC, OAKOC).
In July 1777, the British landed off the coast of New Jersey with an armanda of more that 260 ships carrying …show more content…
there 17,000 troops. There landing area was on the northern end of present day Chesapeake Bay, about 40-50 miles southwest of Philadelphia. The British faced logistical problems because of the terrain which was a narrow river neck that was shallow and muddy. General Washington on the other hand had the advantage of Observation and fields of fire, and key terrain by placing his troops on the high ground between Head of Elk and Philadelphia to defend against the British. General Washington deployed fractions of his army throughout this area in preparation of British attacks. His efforts ultimately amounted to nothing because General Howe had no intentions of fighting a full scale war at the moment against the prepared Americans. Instead, he employed a flanking maneuver (Avenue of Approach). A portion of his army 5,000 troops went to meet General Washington at Chadd’s Ford while the remainder was to march north to Jeffries Ford, an area that Washington overlooked.
The Battle
The battle began on September 11th with heavy fog which provided the British with cover.
At the time Washington received several contradicting reports about the British troop movement and continued to believe they were going to attack from Chadds Ford. The British appeared on the American flank around 2 p.m. that day. With the Americans outflanked/out maneuvered and surprised, they attempted to reposition their troops to meet the unexpected attacks from their right. The British were slow to attack which bought time for the Americans to position some of their men on high ground near the Birmingham Meeting House, a few miles north of Chadds Ford. The British attacked causing Washington’s army in Chadds Ford to bear most of the brunt and eventually retreat. The American were also forced to leave behind most of their cannons because their artillery horses were killed (supply). On the east bank of Brandywine, the British launched an attack against the weakened Americans forcing several division to retreat and leave behind most of their cannons also. General John Armstrong who was employed by General Washington to overlook Chadds Ford with 1,000 troops never engaged in combat and ultimately retreated. Darkness brought the British offensive to a halt. Most of the defeated Americans retreat to Chester. This battle demonstrated several principles of war by employed by the British, mass/shock and awe, offensive, and surprised.
Although Howe had defeated the American army, the unexpected
resistance he had met prevented him from destroying it completely and gave the Americans something to be optimistic about. Washington had committed a serious error in leaving his right flank open to attack. If it were not for the repositioning of a vital couple of fractions fighting to hold the British off the American would have suffered more casualties.
The official British casualty list detailed 587 causalities 93 killed (8 officiers, 7 sergeants and 78 rank and filed. 488 wounded. There is no casualty return for the American Army at Brandywine. Most accounts of the Patriot loss were from the British side.
Conclusion
From this battle there were several key factors from that influenced the outcome of the American losing this battle. First was the Avenue of approach by General how in deciding to attack the flank of Washington’s army, the fog that provided cover for the arriving British troops, shock and awe when the British attacked the Americans from the flank with their weapons, mass from the British out numbering the Americans nearly 2-1. What I have learned from this battle is to never overlook/ underestimate any possibility of where the enemy could potentially attack you from. As I mentioned previously, that was General Washington’s catastrophic mistake in this battle.