HESSIAN PARTICIPATION IN THE ATTACK ON
FORT WASHINGTON, 1776 AND THE
OCCUPATION OF NORTHERN NEW JERSEY,
1777
he following excerpts are taken from the
journal of a Hessian battalion in British
service during the American Revolution from
1776 to 1784.¹ The author, Quartermaster Carl
Bauer, was a keen observer and gave a thor-
ough account of the organization and training
of the unit in Hessia and of its unpleasant voy-
age to England and across the Atlantic to
North America. During the assault on Fort
Washington, and later during the occupation
of New Jersey, Bauer was serving in the
Grenadier Battalion von Köhler, which was re-
designated two years later, upon a change of
command, as the Grenadier Battalion von
Graff, and four years later as von Platte, the
name of the battalion at the time that Bauer
completed his journal.
Bauer gives the date of each event in a col-
umn along the left margin of the page, yet
sometimes the date is incorporated into the
grammar of the sentence. For the convenience
of the type-setter of this translation, all dates
will be embodied in the text.
October
At nine o'clock on October the 16th the
commodore and various transport ships raised
flags indicating, to our general joy, that they
had sighted land. At about one o'clock in the
afternoon we saw various promontories to the
north of us. I greatly doubt that Columbus
could have had greater joy than we at his first
view of the New World and at the discovery he
had made. Everyone seemed to revive again.
The sick had themselves brought up from be-
tween decks to convince themselves of this dis-
covery. Another sailor died.²
(The 17th) Because of the calm we could
not sail far today. However, we were already so
close to land that we cast anchor this evening.
(The 18th) Because of the scurvy raging
among the sailors we could hardly raise the
sails today even with the greatest effort. The
land that lay so close to us last night to the west
was the province of New Jersey,³ between the
Delaware River and New York. After we had fi-
nally raised the sails with great effort and
through the help of the soldiers, we steered
northward toward Long Island. However, be-
cause of contrary winds we could not sail into
the harbor of New York but were compelled, to
our general displeasure, to cast anchor at
about twelve o'clock noon at Sandy Hook.
(The 18th) Sandy Hook is a small unoc-
cupied sandy island on which stands a light-
house toward which the ships going to New
York must head. A river separates this island
from New Jersey.
This morning (the 19th) at six o'clock we
weighed anchor and sailed into the channel
between Long Island and Staten Island that
leads to New York. On Staten Island we saw a
Hessian encampment. On both islands we saw
pleasant farms. We dropped anchor in North
River off New York at about seven o'clock in
the evening in the dark of the night. Because
the wind today was not the best for sailing into
the harbor, the largest part of the fleet had to
remain at Sandy Hook, which is thirty English
miles from New York.
Today (the 20th) everyone was on deck very
early, and instead of a beautiful city we saw
nothing but the ruins of beautiful buildings.
We were lying off the west end of the city,
where the Rebels had burned down thirteen
hundred houses after the city had fallen into
our hands. At noon today the remainder of our
fleet came to us with the flood tide. Despite our
long journey, we had good reason to consider
ourselves lucky that we had never had to suffer
a violent and lasting storm and that the entire
fleet, which consisted of sixty-three sails, had
arrived here without having lost a single one.
(The 20th) In this harbor we found more
than four hundred large ships and a multitude
of small ones that were anchored here. New
York is a large city that is said to have had five
thousand houses before the fire. Some of the
streets are regular, others are irregular. It is
very convenient for trade. Merchant ships can
come close to the wharves and unload their
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wares easily. It lies on an island that is called
York Island,4 to wit, on the point to the south,
where the North and the East Rivers flow to-
gether.5 On this point near the water lies a fort
called Fort George.
(The 20th) The Rebels had dug trenches
and thrown up earthworks everywhere, which,
however, were of no use to them since our
army made its attack on this island in their
rear. With regard to population, the island was
waste and empty, for most of its inhabitants
had fled through fear and the houses in entire
streets stood empty. Most of these were con-
verted into barracks. New York has eighteen
churches and meeting-houses, of these St.
Paul's and George's Chapel were the most
splendid. Two of these eighteen had been vic-
tims of the flames during the fire. There was
also a beautiful college there which, however,
has now been converted into a hospital for the
army. There is a royal shipyard here; however,
no new ships can be built but only old ones re-
paired. The area around New York is very
pleasant. Two more grenadiers died today.
On the 21st we lay quietly at anchor. Today,
the 22nd, the so eagerly awaited moment fi-
nally arrived when, after a sojourn of a hun-
dred and forty-two days, we left the dwelling in
which we had suffered so much fear, worry,
and sad hours. We were loaded aboard a
schooner; and for a while everyone in it
seemed as melancholy as if we were once again
remembering all the dangers from which we
had been so fortunately released.
We sailed up the East River between Long Is-
land and York Island until we finally reached
an eddy where there are great rocks. The route
between these rocks is very narrow and dan-
gerous and is called Hell's Gate. Here one sees
the remains of many wrecked ships. The pas-
sage is so narrow that one can throw an object
from the ship to the land on either side. Never-
theless, transport ships and frigates can go
through it safely with a good wind. The master
of our schooner told us that a boat with British
grenadiers and artillery had sunk here during
the landing of our troops.
Pro nota. Subsequently, Sir James Wallace
passed through Hell's Gate in the year 1778
with the warship Experiment with fifty canons.
Today we sailed some fourteen English miles
and had to drop anchor toward evening, which
would not have been necessary if we had not
run up on sandbanks twice because of the un-
certainty of the master of our schooner.
Today, the 23rd, we weighed anchor at break
of day and were disembarked on dry land at
about ten o'clock at New Rochelle about three
miles from where General Howe was camped.6
Here we met all the troops of the Second Divi-
sion who had come with us from Europe and
who had been disembarked on flatboats and
had come ashore before us. We had to leave
our baggage behind us on the ships and could
take nothing with us but the tents. After all the
troops had landed and four two-span wagons
had been supplied to each regiment for the
transport of the tents (for, indeed, no more
could be loaded on them), we set out on our
march toward New Rochelle. This actually be-
gins where the church stands. After we had
marched for several miles we had to march
past His Excellency Lieutenant General von
Heister.7 Although we had marched for only
three English miles, a large number of ex-
hausted men remained behind.
Near the New Rochelle church we made
camp in the army line. This place is a colony of
French who were settled here under British
sovereignty. The entire colony is divided into
farms that lie scattered about. It belongs to the
province of New York. This evening the Yeager
Company8 that disembarked with us today has
already had an engagement with the Rebels, in
which Lieutenant [Karl]9 von Rau was severely
wounded in his leg. Most of the area around
here has been laid waste by the Rebels.
On the 24th we remained quietly in our
camp.
At daybreak on the 25th we received orders
to break camp and to be ready to march. The
entire army marched away from us. However,
at about midday the Second Division under the
command of Lieutenant General von
Knyphausen10 returned to the old camp, but to
deceive the enemy the tents were pitched in
two lines, for which reason our front extended
twice as far as yesterday. This evening, because
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of a heavy cannonade from the army on our
right, we had to withdraw; but nothing else
occurred.
On the 26th we were still standing in our for-
mer position, and we received provisions for
the second time. A man receives daily one
pound of Zwieback or wheat flour, a pound of
fresh beef or three quarters of a pound of
salted pork, and one and one third gills of
rum, which is as much as one and one third
quarts or one twelfth measure. For this, two
and a half pence are deducted from his pay.
On the 27th we had a rest day. The region
appears rather fertile. Cattle raising is still in a
right good condition now even though a great
many cattle were taken away. The inhabitants,
of whom one finds few in their dwellings, all
appear to have lived in a happy condition. The
houses are beautiful and regular, not built in
the way our peasant houses are. In all the aban-
doned houses we found fine furniture, which
was ruined and from which one can conclude
that the occupants were above the taste of
German peasants.
The crops we found around here were
wheat, oats, Indian corn, potatoes, flax, and
buckwheat. Rye could also be found, but not
much of it. We found whole fields of squash.
The other European garden plants had already
been harvested by our predecessors, yet we still
found traces of them proving that they had
grown here. Fruits of all sorts, with the ex-
ception of Zwetzschen,11 were found here in
great quantities, but especially very many
peach trees. The wild trees were various kinds
of oaks, walnuts, leafnut trees,12 cedars, acacia,
tulip trees, beeches, white beeches, alders, wil-
lows, and a quantity of ???.13 There are also
many chestnut trees, the ripe fruit of which we
could gather in the morning in our camp.
A multitude of shrubs and bushes were en-
tirely unknown to us. The inhabitants' knowl-
edge of botany was very limited, for often they
could not give us any names for the trees with
which we were not familiar. Birches and lin-
dens were to be found individually here and
there, and we found a kind of mulberry here
that looked like a linden with respect to trunk
and leaves but bore a black mulberry. Wild
cherry trees, whose fruit grows like a bunch of
grapes and is black and the size of a pea, grow
here in great quantities. Its wood is said to be
very good for working by cabinet makers, and
it is especially good for gun stocks.
On the 28th the Corps under the command
of Lieutenant General von Knyphausen
marched to Mile Square.14 It consisted of 1) the
Grenadier Battalion Köhler, 2) the von Wut-
ginau Regiment, 3) von Stein, 4) von Wis-
senbach, 5) von Huyn, 6) von Bünau, and 7)
Regiment Waldeck from New Rochelle.15 The
march was about six English miles. The way was
very bad and stony. All the houses we passed
were empty and wasted. We came to the rear of
the army of Lieutenant General Howe.
The 29th. Day of rest in Mile Square. It is a
hilly region which forced us to pitch our camp
on various hills. Yesterday evening, the 30th, at
nine o'clock, First Lieutenant [Wilhelm Lud-
wig] von Romrodt of the von Wutginau Regi-
ment was commanded to march from the
camp at midnight with three hundred men of
the said regiment. After midnight at about
three o'clock the entire Corps, under the com-
mand of Lieutenant General Knyphausen,
broke camp and arrived an hour after daybreak
at a knoll on the eastern side of Kingsbridge.
En route we saw several burned down huts
that were built in the form of a barracks. We
also found the remains of ruined magazines.
On the above-mentioned height, ndhl??16 First
Lieutenant von Romrodt and his command
had taken possession of a fort named Indepen-
dence, which the enemy left last night. It was
rather large. For its defense at least nine hun-
dred or a thousand men would have been re-
quired. The enemy had left the cannons and
ammunition behind. The fort has several small
redoubts, past which we marched this morning
on either side. Fort Independence covers the
entire region and is especially situated to cover
the passage over the King's Bridge from the
land side.
At a distance of about three quarters of an
English mile and between the hills and cliffs
there is a creek that unites the North or Hud-
son River with the East River.17 By means of this
creek both rivers form an island which is called
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York Island and on which stands New York City.
The mainland and this island are connected by
a little wooden bridge called Kingsbridge, from
which the area around here gets its name of
Kingsbridge.
The enemy are now occupied with tearing
down the bridge to deny us passage to York Is-
land. They are also bringing the magazines
that are still standing on both sides of the
bridge further towards their camp below Fort
Washington. This fort lies, reckoned in a
straight line, about an hour in front of us on
the highest summit, one might well say cliff, of
York Island. It is surrounded on all sides by
thick forests and marshes and high cliffs. Na-
ture has contributed far more than skill to its
fortification. The enemy consider it invincible.
However, since it appears that our sojourn
here was coined for the capture of this fort, it is
questionable how long they will be able to
maintain this adjective.
On the 31st we are lying camped quietly on
the height of Fort Independence. King's
Bridge, which was ruined by the Rebels, was re-
paired again last night; and Captain [Jo-
hannes] Neumann of our battalion crossed
Harlem Creek this morning with a hundred
men by means of this bridge and drove back
the enemy outposts into the forests below Fort
Washington and took firm possession of a
height across the bridge with his command.
The unit that crossed Harlem Creek today has
sent back several lightly wounded.
November
On the 1st we were still lying quietly in our
camp. We had to have supplies sent up from
New Rochelle.
This morning, the 2nd, our battalion
marched over Kingsbridge and pitched camp
on a height, On the 3rd the Kohler Grenadier
Battalion's outposts were engaged almost all
day with the enemy's patrols and had seven
wounded.
On the 4th three more men from Köhler's
outposts were wounded. Today the entire bat-
talion advanced into a forest lying to the right
front of the camp, which the enemy had still
held until now, but they were compelled to
abandon it and to withdraw into their abatises
closer to Fort Washington. Our battalion's
tents remained standing. The von Wutginau
and von Stein regiments also crossed Kings-
bridge. When the von Stein regiment wished to
pitch camp on a plain before our camp, the
enemy began to cannonade the regiment vio-
lently from Fort Washington, and because of
this it was forced to leave the place chosen for
a camp and to withdraw behind a height next
to the von Wutginau regiment.
Today, the 5th, the Wissenbach regiment oc-
cupied the camp of the grenadier battalion
Kohler. At eight o'clock in the evening the
grenadier battalion was detached from all the
other regiments by a meliertes command,18 and
it occupied the camp on the right wing of the
regiments von Wutginau and von Stein. Today
we again had several severely wounded. On the
6th we remained quiet. The outposts were en-
gaged constantly.
(The 16th) From the 6th until now nothing
has occurred except that we have suffered
wounded and dead on the outposts. The entire
army, under the command of General Howe,
came from White Plains and pitched camp
across King's Bridge on a high ground behind
Fort Independence. A battery for heavy ar-
tillery was erected on this high ground oppo-
site Fort Washington. At daybreak today the
following regiments under the command of
Lieutenant General von Knyphausen marched
into the forest lying on North River to the right
of our camp: 1) One unit of yeagers under the
command of Capt. Loreis,19 2) Grenadier Bat-
talion Köhler, 3) Regiment von Wutginau, 4)
Regiment von Losberg, 5) Regiment Rall,20
Regiment von Huine,21 8) Regiment von Bü-
nau, and 9) Regiment Waldeck. Regiment von
Stein occupied a redoubt on a plain to the left.
At about seven o'clock the previously men-
tioned nine regiments, battalion, and corps
formed the main attack from the forest against
Fort Washington. However, the many and
strong abatises and marshes forced them to
stand still until about ten o'clock until they
could clear away enough area to get through.
At ten o'clock the main attack began against a
large and tree-covered cliff, which they had to
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occupy before they could attack the fort. By
eleven o'clock they were masters of this cliff. Be-
tween this and Fort Washington nature had
formed an entrenchment, or rather a breast-
work, of rocks, which the Rebels had occupied
with cannons without Avetten.22 This breastwork
was seized at the same time, but not without
great loss on our side, which the Wutginau Regi-
ment felt especially severely. This was because it,
like the largest part of the left wing of this corps,
was flanked by the cannons with grape shot that
were placed on the cliffs. We halted as soon as
this entrenchment, called the Stone Entrench-
ment,23 was in our hands. In addition to Lieu-
tenant General von Knyphausen's corps, the
fort was bombarded by various frigates on North
River from the direction of New York. It was also
attacked by an English division that crossed
Harlem Creek in flatboats and made an assault
below Laurel Hill.
The fire from all sides was very heavy until
the capture of the Stone Entrenchment, at
which time it entirely stopped. The troops
there halted and began surrendering. In the
afternoon the fort capitulated and the garrison
surrendered as prisoners of war. The number
is said to amount to more than three thousand.
The losses on our side from the crossing of
Kingsbridge to the surrender of the fort are
said to amount to nearly four hundred dead
and wounded. The grenadier battalion Kohler
had in all thirty-eight men dead and wounded.
On the 17th the prisoners were transported
to New York and the wounded to Harlem,
where a Hessian sick bay was established. On
the 18th the grenadier battalion Kohler and
the von Stein and Wissenbach regiments
pitched camp at Fort Washington. Several Eng-
lish regiments, likewise 1) the von Wutginau
regiment, 2) the von Ditfurth, 3) the Leip
Regiment,24 4) the Prince Karl25 5) the von
Huyne, and 6) the von Bünau marched to New
York and pitched camp near the city and re-
ceived orders to submit embarktion lists.
On the 18th we received orders to submit
embarkation lists.
On the 19th Lord Cornwallis went with a
corps across North River. Of the Hessians, the
three grenadier battalions and 1) von Linsing,
2) Block, and 3) Minnigerode, as well as the
two yeager companies crossed with him. (The
21st) According to today's general orders, Fort
Washington will henceforth be called Fort
Knyphausen.
December
(The 19th) Since the previous date the regi-
ments 1) von Stein and 2) von Wissenbach and
3) the grenadier battalion Köhler remained in
camp near Fort Knyphausen. During this time
work was done continuously on the barracks
that are to be built for those by the fort. How-
ever, today the grenadier battalion received or-
ders to march tomorrow from here to New
York. All other regiments, battalions, and corps
were moved into winter quarters or into can-
tonment quarters.
On the 20th the grenadier battalion Köhler
was relieved by the von Trümbach regiment,
which came from New York.26 The former oc-
cupied the quarters left by the above-men-
tioned regiment. This evening we received or-
ders to stand ready for embarkation tomorrow.
§§§
Hessian Operations in New Jersey
Dec. 21,1776-July 6,1777
After reporting the capture of Fort Wash-
ington, Bauer tells what disposition was made
of the various Hessian units. On December 19,
1776, he reports that the Grenadier Battalion
Kohler has received orders to prepare for em-
barkation the next day. He then continues:
On the 21st the aforesaid grenadier battal-
ion was embarked, to wit: 1) the staff on the
transport ship Aeolus, 2) Capt. [Friedrich Wil-
helm] Boden's and Capt. [Heinrich Christian]
Hessenmüller's companies on the ship Symme-
try,27 Capt. [Johannes] Neumann's and Capt.
[Georg] Hohenstein's companies on the ship
Royal Exchange.
At 8 o'clock this morning, the 22nd, our
ships set sail. We took our course toward Perth
Amboy but dropped anchor in Prince's Bay off
Staten Island. Until today, the 27th, we re-
mained on our ships in Prince's Bay. During all
these days we had to put up with a great deal.
The weather was so very cold and frightfully
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stormy that we were forced to drop three an-
chors to keep the ship from being anchorless.
The Second Day of Christmas was the saddest
of all for us since we thought at every moment
that the storm would carry the ship away.
Our suffering was greatly intensified because
we had no foodstuffs with us. In New York we
had been told that we would be disembarked
on the 23rd or the 24th and did not need to
take any provisions along because they would
have to be left behind when debarking. Having
relied on this, we had nothing more with us
but what was necessary for our subsistence
until the 23rd at the longest. Unfortunately,
the ships had no provisions either, and we had
to get along as best we could in these most piti-
ful circumstances until today, when the storm
abated and we received fresh provisions from
Perth Amboy.
Here in Amboy28 we received news that Col.
Rail's brigade in Trenton was captured on the
26th of this month. Here in Amboy we in-
quired concerning our horses that had been
sent from New York with four grooms in a sepa-
rate sloop, but no one could give us any
information about them.
The battalion was debarked at South Amboy
in Jersey today, the 28th. No troops from the
army had come into this region. We marched
almost all day in nothing but forest. The region
is scarcely cultivated and, with the exception of
a few houses, we found nothing but some mis-
erable shacks that were built on newly cleared
fields. In the evening we arrived at a little vil-
lage named Spottswood, where we were quar-
tered. Here there was a handsome forge.
Today, the 29th, we marched in a region just
as distressing as yesterday from Spottswood to
New Brunswick on the Raritan River.29 Al-
though we thought that we would be quartered
here according to our orders, we learned the
contrary here and had to inarch ten English
miles farther to Hillsborough.30 Here we joined
three English regiments, which were part of
Col. [Charles} Mawhood's brigade. Because
they had already taken possession of all houses
in the village, our battalion had to make do
with two barns.
The 30th, rest day in Hillsborough. On the
31st we made cantonment quarters in the
houses on the eastern side of Mill River.
January 1, 1777. Instead of occupying the
cantonment quarters as we expected, we re-
ceived orders last night to break camp at once.
At two past midnight the three English regi-
ments and our grenadier battalion inarched to
Princeton. The baggage remained behind in
Hillsborough. These three English regiments
remained under the command of Col. Maw-
hood in Princeton. The Grenadier Battalion
Köhler joined Col. [Carl Emil Ulrich] von
Donop's brigade in Trenton.
On the 3rd General Washington marched to
Princeton and attacked Col. Mawhood, who
lost very many men from the three regiments
he had with him.31 Today, from the Battalion
Köhler, one grenadier was shot dead and one
man was wounded.
On the 4th the corps under Lord Cornwallis
marched from Trenton back to New Brunswick
on the Raritan. The entire corps consisted of
sixteen battalions and regiments and two com-
panies of yeagers.32 All these troops established
winter quarters in and around Brunswick33 on
both sides of the Raritan in a line of about one
and a half hours. In view of the many men,
these quarters had to be bad. All the officers of
the Grenadier Battalion Kohler received two
rooms. Small redoubts were established all
around Brunswick.
Brunswick is an open place, built in a
square; and it is pleasingly situated with many
lovely houses. All in all, the number of houses
amounts to about one hundred and fifty. Two-
masted and one-masted ships can come close
to the wharves when the tide is high. A sloop of
twenty guns came close to the city. About one
English mile up the Raritan River lies Raritan
Landing, where a wooden bridge spans the
river. The tide goes up to this bridge. Here at
Brunswick are copper mines, which are not
being operated at present. They are the prop-
erty of a local family named French. The Rebel
army had encircled us so that our outposts
could be alarmed constantly from all sides, and
all too often they were.
General Washington had his headquarters in
Morristown. This town lies very much in the
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mountains and was strongly entrenched on all
sides. We had no other outpost in Jersey but
Perth Amboy, which is on the point at the
mouth of the Raritan River. It is approximately
sixteen or eighteen miles from Brunswick.
However, we had no other contact with the
corps there but what could be made on several
occasions by strong detachments that had to
consist of closed regiments. The only com-
munication between New York and Amboy was
maintained by way of the river, yet it too was
sometimes very unsafe because of the hostile
patrols on land, from which the ships were
often attacked.
With the exception of two fruitless expedi-
tions to, or rather attacks against, Bound
Brook,34 we remained on the defensive all win-
ter except when we foraged. For this, often five
or six regiments had to be taken in order to
dislodge the enemy first. The service was ex-
tremely difficult and very strenuous for the
men. Everyone who served had to lie in the
open air. The snow fell very often and deep. It
seemed to us that the weather here is generally
colder than in Europe.
The men were unable to buy anything to
supplement the provisions supplied us, which
at first were not of the best. If one also adds the
poor and miserable quarters, it is easy to con-
clude that sickness could not stay away. This
had a particularly bad effect on the Grenadier
Battalion Köhler, which consisted of young
people who were still full of scurvy from the
ships.35 Because of the cold, the scurvy dimin-
ished and changed itself into sicknesses. Natu-
rally, for those who were still healthy the ser-
vice became heavier and heavier because of
the sick who were increasing daily and because
of the additional circumstance that those who
were convalescing in the hospital in New York
often had to remain there for a month before
finding an opportunity to return to the battal-
ion. As a result of this, the healthy decreased
daily until finally the battalion was no longer in
a condition to perform like the other three
grenadier battalions.
May 10. So far, nothing has changed except
that we have been alarmed and disquieted, es-
pecially the two Hessian yeager companies that
held the outposts before Bound Brook and
Quibbletown. At about five o'clock today, in
the direction of Piscataway on the road to
Perth Amboy, we heard a heavy cannonade
and small arms fire, which not only was very vi-
olent but also lasted a long time. The 42nd reg-
iment of Scots had intended to attack the
enemy in their quarters, but they were driven
back with a loss of fifty men dead and
wounded. In the meanwhile this regiment had
thirty-six men dead, captured, and wounded,
among the latter the major.
On May 11 the garrison of Bound Brook and
surrounding places made an attack against the
yeager companies and the English guards, but
they, likewise, had to retreat with loss. From
captives and deserters we now learned that
there was a misunderstanding in yesterday's at-
tack. According to their report, the enemy had
firmly determined to launch a general attack
against Brunswick at four o'clock this morning.
Because we had occupied the side toward
Princeton most strongly, the main attack was to
be made from this direction and, in their
expectation of achieving their goal, their
forces were to be detached to the other side to-
ward Amboy, which was our weakest. This they
were going to do in hopes of destroying the
troops there completely or at least of causing
our side to withdraw, whereby we would natu-
rally have to suffer frightfully many losses as
well as being forced into a corner.
On the 16th of May the garrison in and
around Brunswick on both sides of the Raritan
pitched camp on the heights. From then on
hardly a day passed that our outposts were not
attacked by the rebels. We were now more shut
in than in the winter, we could not venture out
any more than in winter; and to this the forests
and fields, which had become green, con-
tributed much.
On the 5th of June we received orders to
hold ourselves ready for an impending em-
barkation. The place where this will occur still
remains undetermined. Every battalion is to
take no more than seven riding horses and five
wagons without horses. On the 6th we were
told the names of the transport ships that will
hold each of our battalions. The Grenadier
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Hessian Participation
Battalion Köhler is getting one called Bird of
277 tons and Twiet of 162 tons.
Today a rebel captain, who has been in
Brunswick as a spy for some time and has been
practicing merchandizing, was hanged on a
tree near our camp. A letter that he had written
to General Washington promised to ignite all
the magazines in Brunswick on His Royal
Majesty's birthday. He had given it for for-
warding to an English grenadier who had of-
fered to desert for a promised number of
guineas. However, the said grenadier brought it
to Lord Cornwallis. The plan had been made
for General Washington to be ready on that day
to attack as soon as the fires were set. This spy's
enthusiasm was so great that, when he came to
the ladder, he climbed it very calmly and, as he
pulled the white mask over his eyes, he said to
those standing around, "I die for liberty."36
On June the 9th the first recruits from Lt.
[Friedrich Adam Julius] von Wangenheim's
transport came to us here in Brunswick. On
the 12th arrived in Brunswick the command-
ing general-in-chief Sir William Howe and also
Lt. Gen. [Philip] von Heister with many Eng-
lish regiments and Maj. Gen. [Johann Daniel]
von Stirn's brigade, consisting of the Prince's
Own Regiment, the regiments of von Donop
and von Mirbach, and also the Combined Bat-
talion.37 As soon as the regiments had reached
the camp, large redoubts were thrown up on
both sides of the Raritan.
On June the 13th many flatboats from New
York came up the Raritan River. In every flat-
boat was a wagon which could be launched in
the water with little effort and on which the
boat could be loaded very quickly. In a short
time we saw the boats that had come by water
proceed further on land. With the coming of
night the army set out in two columns on their
march to Princeton. They stopped, however,
on Mills River in the vicinity of Hillsborough
and Middlebush. The rebels have moved into
the mountains across the Mills River and forti-
fied themselves. Various English regiments, the
Grenadier Battalion Kohler, and the Com-
bined Battalion remained in Brunswick under
the command of Gen. [Edward] Matthew.
On June the 19th the army came back here
without having undertaken anything against
the enemy. On the 20th, in compliance with
the orders we received yesterday, our battalion
had to break camp today with Maj. Gen.
[John] Vaughn and escort the flatboats on the
wagons to Perth Amboy. Here we encountered
two yeager companies that had just come from
Hessia, also two regiments from Anspach and
the Waldeck regiment.38
On the 22nd the entire army also came here
from New Brunswick and pitched camp on the
heights before us. The English light infantry
suffered more than forty dead and wounded in
their rear guard. The region between
Brunswick and Amboy is an uninterrupted for-
est and very suitable for the rebel's manner of
fighting. Between the two places there is a
small and pleasant village named Bonham-
town. Six English regiments and Maj. Gen. von
Stirn's brigade embarked today and went to
Staten Island, from where they went aboard
their transport ships. Today in Amboy39 Lt.
Gen. von Heister received their call back to
Hessia and they had themselves ferried at once
to Staten Island in order to go to New York.
On June the 25th six embarked English regi-
ments and Stirn's brigade arrived at Amboy on
their transport ships and were debarked here
already this evening. On the 26th the army
broke camp again and marched to Brunswick
in several columns in order to fall upon the
rebels, who had moved out of their entrenched
camp. With a loss of sixty prisoners and many
dead and three metal40 cannons they returned
to their mountains. Many of our men lay dead
from the heat.41
With regard to our crossing the Hudson,
when one calculates the advantages that this
last expedition has brought us, the losses on
both sides seem to balance out. Several of the
regiments that returned from the expedition
were embarked today. The Grenadier Battalion
von Minnigerode captured two of the three
previously mentioned metal cannons.
Today, the 26th, a large part of the army's
baggage was ferried over to Staten Island. On
the 28th Gen. Howe returned from the expedi-
tion with his army.42 Several English regiments,
the Regiment von Mirbach, and the Prince's
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Hessian Participation
Own Regiment were immediately embarked
on the transports assigned to them. Some Eng-
lish regiments and the Grenadier Regiments
von Linsing, von Lengercke, and von Min-
nigerode were ferried over to Staten Island
today.
On June the 29th six English regiments, the
two Anspach regiments, the Waldeck regiment,
and the Grenadier Battalion Kohler were fer-
ried over to Staten Island and pitched camp
near the ferry. At three o'clock in the after-
noon today, the 30th, our Light Infantry, and
the Hessian Jägers, who formed the rear guard,
crossed the Hudson River. With these we were
aban-doning New Jersey, which had brought us
little profit and had cost us many men. Perhaps
it would have been better if we had not in-
vaded it or else had held on to it. The enemy's
light cavalry was already in Perth Amboy be-
fore the last boats shoved off.
New Jersey is undeniably one of the most fer-
tile and pleasing provinces in North America.
One finds there many beautiful, splendid, and
pleasant farms that supply an excess of ev-
erything needed for human subsistence. How-
ever, this province does not yet have nearly
enough people to cultivate it. It could nourish
at least four times as many people as it actually
has. There are still considerable large and un-
cultivated regions where one sees only forests
and where one finds no other trace of culture
than what nature provides. Perth Amboy has
some beautiful houses.
The location of the city is exceptionally
pleasant because it lies on a gradually sloping
mountain and gives a very glorious view of all
parts of the city. It lies on a spit of land that is
made by an arm of the Hudson River, the Kills,
and the Raritan River. Toward the south one
sees the open sea across a large bay in the di-
rection of Sandy Hook. Up to now there are
still few houses, but the streets are laid out reg-
ularly. It is convenient for commerce because
merchant and transport ships can come up
close to the wharves.
On July 2 the army on Staten Island
marched out. The march went very slowly be-
cause on Staten Island only one road goes
from southwest to northeast and we had to
march on it. This road is seventeen English
miles long and is the same length as Staten Is-
land. We pitched camp at Cole's Ferry, just op-
posite New York. This area is also called "the
watering place" because ships are accus-tomed
to take on water here.
On July the 6th Lt. Gen. [Henry] Clinton ar-
rived from England on a frigate, which had
eight transport ships under its protection. On
the 7th to the 9th the troops assigned to the ex-
pedition43 were embarked on the fleet that was
lying here. With warships and all other vessels
the fleet had a strength of three to four hun-
dred ships, the strongest fleet that any of the
inhabitants here had ever seen. Staten Island is
rather well cultivated and has many hills and
fresh water springs. On the 14th the Grenadier
Battalion Köhler and two English regiments
marched to Cole's Ferry and were ferried to
New York. It is ten miles from Cole's Ferry to
New York. Two miles behind New York we
pitched camp at Greenwich Road.
§ § §
The Hessians' morale had been badly
shaken by the surrender of Gen. Burgoyne at
Saratoga, and it suffered another blow when
Gen. Johann Gottlieb Rail's crack Hessian regi-
ment was captured at Trenton just five days
after the Kohler Battalion arrived in New Jer-
sey. Bauer probably reflected the general Hess-
ian sentiment when he concluded that the en-
tire expedition to New Jersey had been useless.
After more than two years spent, mostly in-
actively, in the area of New York City, the von
Kohler Battalian had the opportunity to prove
itself in the siege of Charleston, South Car-
olina, which capitulated on May 11, 1780.
Bauer's account of the campaign is very infor-
mative.44
. George Fenwick Jones
University of Maryland
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Hessian Participation
NOTES
'Journal vom Hochfürstlich-Hessischen Grenadier-Bat-
talion Platte vom 16then Februar: 1776 bis den 24then May
1784, geführt durch den Regiments-Quartier Meister Carl
Bauer (Hessisches Staatsarchiv, Marburg, Signatur I B a 16)
The sailors, even more than the soldiers, were suffering
from scurvy.
3
Bauer writes "New yersey."
4
Manhattan Island.
5
By North River, Bauer meant the Hudson. Instead of
"East River" he writes "Edisto."
6
General Sir William Howe, commander of British
troops in New York.
7
Lieutenant General Philip von Heister, senior Hessian
officer in the New World.
8
The Jager (called "yeagers" by the Americans) were
chasseurs, or light infantry recruited among foresters and
gamekeepers, who were therefore good marksmen and fa-
miliar with the forest. The most famous of these was Capt.
Johann Ewald, best known for his trail-blazing military ac-
count of his experiences in the War of Independence
(trans, and ed. by Joseph P. Tustin as Diary of the American
War, New Haven, 1979).
9
Names in brackets have been added. The first names of
the Hessians can be found in Hetrina, Hessische Truppen im
amerikanischm Unabhängig-keitskrieg (Marburg 1974).
10
Lt. Gen. Wilhelm von Knyphausen, honorary com-
mander of the Fuselier Regiment.
11
A kind of plum.
12
"Blatnussbäume," unidentified.
13
The text appears to read "hier," but the context calls
for a kind of fruit tree.
14
Bauer consistently writes Knyphausen.
15
1) Bauer fails to note that this was his own bat
talion, which later became Grenadier Battalion von
Platte (See note 1).
2) Usually called the Regiment Landgraf. Freder-
ick II, the Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel, was the hon-
orary commander, but Lt. Gen. Henrich Wilhelm
Wutginau actually led it.
3) Garnisons Regiment von Stein, honorary com-
mander Lt. Gen. Johann Ludwig Ferdinand von
Stein, but actually commanded by Franz Erdmann
Carl von Seitz.
4) Garnisons Regiment Wissenbach, honorary
commander Lt. Gen. Christoph Moritz von Wis-
senbach, but actually commanded by Lt. Cols.
Friedrich von Porbeck and Carl von Kitzel.
5) Garnisons Regiment von Huyn. The name ap-
pears mostly as 'Von Huyn" or 'Von Huyne," Bauer
writes von Hine. Honorary commander Johann
Christoph von Huyne, actually commanded by Lt.
Col. Hubert Frantz Kurtz.
6) Garnisons Regiment von Bunau, honorary
commander Col. Rudolph von Bunau, actually com-
manded by Lt. Col. Johann Adam Scheffer.
7) The Waldeckers were not Hessians. The princi-
pality of Waldeck had its own Prince Friedrich.
16
"ndhl" is not explained.
"Later identified as Harlem Creek.
18
The common meaning of meliert is "mixed," but its
meaning in this context is unclear.
19
This would appear to have been Capt. Friedrich Hein-
rich Lohrey of the Courier Corps (Feldjäger-Korps).
20
This was the Hessian regiment captured by Washington
at Trenton. In 1777 the remnants and returned prisoners
were reorganized as the Wöllwarth Regiment, which was re-
designated a year later as the von Trumbach Regiment.
21
The von Huyn Garrison Regiment was redesignated in
1780 as the von Benning Regiment.
22
Mounted sentinels.
23
"Steinschantze."
24
Leib-Infanterie-Regiment (the Prince's Own In-fantry
Regiment).
25
Regiment Printz Karl.
26
Von Trumbach.
27
Bauer, who tended to write phonetically, wrote
"Cymetry."
28
Bauer sometimes writes Perth Amboy and sometimes
just Amboy, just as he writes both New Brunswick and just
Brunswick.
29
Bauer consistently writes Rarington.
30
Bauer writes Hillsboury.
31
This was the Battle of Princeton.
32
The Jager were recruited among foresters and game-
keepers and were therefore good shots and familiar with
the woods. The Americans usually called them "yeagers."
33
Bauer fluctuates between Brunswick and New
Brunswick, as he does between Amboy and Perth Amboy.
34
Bauer consistently writes "Baumbrouck."
35
Bauer had previously mentioned the scurvy among his
troops, which had been even more severe among the seamen.
36
Considerable inquiry has failed to reveal the name of
this hero, who should be remembered along with Nathan
Hale.
37
Gen. Leopold von Heister was the commander-in-chief
of the Hessians serving in North America. Gen. Johann
Daniel Stirn's brigade consisted of the Leib-Infanterie-Reg-
iment, the regiments of Wilhelm Henrich August von
Donop and Werner von Mirbach, and the Combinierte
Battalion under the command of Capt. Eman Anselm von
Wilmovsky.
38
The auxilliary troops from Anspach and Waldeck were
not actually Hessians, being from independent states, yet
they are usually included in the term "Hessian."
39
See note 33.
40
"Metal" must have meant "brass," as opposed to iron.
41
Almost exactly a year later at the Battle of Monmouth
Courthouse, Maria Ludwig (Molly Pitcher) took over her
husband's cannon when he was prostrated by the heat.
42
This would appear to be Howe's unsuccessful attempt
to come to the aid of Gen. Burgoyne.
43
At this time Bauer does not seem to know the destina-
tion of the impending expedition. Since Howe's expedi-
tion up the Hudson has failed, he must be referring to the
impending campaign against Charleston.
44
See The 1780 Siege of Charleston as Experienced by
a Hessian Officer," South Carolina Historical Magazine, 88
(1987), 23-33, 63-75.
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