The Failure Of The Battle Of Trenton

British operational military successes in North America during 1776 failed to produce a quick victory over the Patriots because of a lack of strategic coherence that manifested itself in three ways: the British leadership failed to understand the kind of war on which they were embarking, they passed the culminating point of the attack from which a quick victory could have been achieved, and they failed to destroy the Patriot center of gravity in a decisive engagement. First, the British failed to adequately understand the strategic question: “What type of war are we embarking on?” British civilian leadership during the war was either incompetent, weak, or obstructed from forming a coherent strategy. Without a single mastermind behind the British strategy, the military commander was allowed authority to conduct military operations how they saw fit and given the power to engage with the Patriot civilian leadership, but with some severe restrictions. In essence, there was never one person in
Indeed, the battle showed that the British army was not invincible and gave the newly formed country confidence that Washington was the right leader of the Patriot forces. While it is true that the successful surprise attack across the Delaware helped to bolster public opinion and revitalize recruiting for the cause, the chance of a quick victory for the British had already passed. The British were already responsible for yielding the strategic initiative to Washington. By not completely crushing the Continental Army and then failing to negotiate peace at the right time, the British invited the military debacle at Trenton. The abandonment of loyalists in the south, Patriot propaganda led by Thomas Paine and Samuel Adams, and the mere survival of the Continental Army had already determined why British had missed their opportunity for quick victory in