The Battle of Long Island 1776
War: American Revolution
Date: 27th August 1776
Place: New York, United States of America
Combatants: British and the American Continental Army
British Light Dragoon Officer
Generals: Major General Lord Howe and General George
Washington
Size of the armies engaged: 20,000 British and Hessian Troops and
around 10,000 Americans
Uniforms, arms and equipment: The British wore red coats and headgear
of bearskin caps, small caps or tricorne hats depending on whether the
troops were grenadiers, light infantry or battalion company men. The
Americans were still dressing as best they could. Both sides were
armed with muskets and guns. The Pennsylvania regiments carried rifled
weapons.
Winner: The British drove the Americans from Brooklyn and forced them
to evacuate New York.
British Regiments:
17th Light Dragoons later the 17th/21st Lancers and now the Queen’s
Royal Lancers
Composite battalion of grenadiers
Composite battalion of light infantry
Composite battalion of Foot Guards (1st, 2nd and 3rd Guards)
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The Battle of Long Island
(c) Illustration by John Mackenzie 2007 -
available for sale.
Click on the illustration to reach the enlarged version, keep the
cursor on the illustration
and then click again on the shield that will appear in the bottom
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4th Foot later the King’s Royal Regiment and now the King’s Own Royal
Border Regiment
5th Foot later Northumberland Fusiliers and now the Royal Regiment of
Fusiliers
10th Foot later the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment and now the Royal
Anglian Regiment
15th Foot later the East Yorkshire Regiment and now the Prince of
Wales’s Own Regiment of Yorkshire
22nd Foot now the Cheshire Regiment
27th Foot later the Inniskilling Fusiliers and now the Royal Irish
Regiment
28th Foot later the Gloucestershire Regiment and now the Royal
Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment
33rd Foot now the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment
35th Foot later the Royal Sussex Regiment and now the Princess of
Wales’s Royal Regiment
37th Foot later the Hampshire Regiment and now the Princess of Wales’s
Royal Regiment
38th Foot later the South Staffordshire Regiment and now the
Staffordshire Regiment
42nd Foot now the Black Watch
43rd Foot later the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry and
now the Royal Green Jackets
44th Foot later the Essex Regiment and now the Royal Anglian Regiment
45th Foot later the Sherwood Foresters and now the Worcestershire and
Sherwood Foresters Regiment
49th Foot later the Royal Berkshire Regiment and now the Royal
Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment
52nd Foot later the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry and
now the Royal Green Jackets
55th Foot later the Border Regiment and now the King’s Own Royal
Border Regiment
63rd Foot later the Manchester Regiment and now the King’s Regiment
Fraser’s Highlanders
The Battle of Long Island
Account:
Following the withdrawal of the British army from Boston on 17th
March 1776, Washington in the expectation that Howe would attack New
York which was held for the Congress marched much of his army south to
that city. In fact the British had sailed north to Halifax in Nova
Scotia. It was not until the summer of 1776 that Howe launched his
attack on New York.
British Troops Advancing
The British fleet reached the entrance to the Hudson River on 29th
June 1776 and Howe landed on Staten Island on 3rd July. The Congress
declared independence the next day. Reinforcements began to arrive from Britain and Major General Clinton
arrived from his abortive foray to Charleston, South Carolina.
The battle of Long island
Washington had built batteries on Manhattan and Long Island to prevent
the British fleet penetrating past New York. Of his 18,000 men
Washington had positioned around 10,000 in fortifications on Brooklyn
Heights, facing the sea and inland, to defend the approach to
Manhattan. This force was commanded by Major General Israel Putnam.
Part of the American force held the fortified area along the coast
while the main body had taken up positions along the high ground
inland. Putnam had served through the French and Indian Wars in various ranger
companies. He was a tough and popular man but elderly and of limited
ability in a high ranking command.
On 22nd August the British force landed on Long Island to the South of
the American fortifications.
General Washington ordering the disembarkation
On 26th August the main body of the British troops marched north-east
along the line of high ground held by the Americans to begin their
attack. Information revealed to the British that the most northern of
the three roads across the high ground was not guarded. Howe took his
troops over the road and was enabled to attack the left American
division commanded by Sullivan in the flank and rear while German
troops attacked in front. Sullivan’s troops forced to leave their
positions with much loss and retreat behind the main Brooklyn
fortifications.
British Troops landing at New York after the battle of Long
Island
On the right of the American position, Clinton had attacked with a
smaller force. Sterling and his men resisted for some hours until the
British appeared in their rear from the other flank. His force then
fell back to the fortified line.
| On 28th August Washington brought reinforcements from New York but
with the increasing threat from the Royal Navy he withdrew from
Brooklyn on 29th August. Howe failed to interfere with the withdrawal.
On 15th September Washington was forced to leave New York. Again Howe
failed to interfere with the withdrawal losing the opportunity to
capture Washington and much of the Continental Army. Washington was forced to conduct a fighting withdrawal to the Delaware
River where he wintered.
Casualties: British casualties were around 400 while the
Americans lost around 2,000 and several guns.
Follow-up: Brooklyn and the loss of New York was the worst
period of the war for Washington and the American cause of
independence. Morale in parts of the Continental Army collapsed and
whole companies deserted. It is the mark of a truly great leader that
he is able to recover from such a reverse.
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General George Washington in the uniform of the Virginia
Regiment |
Caption: The British 27th Inniskilling Regiment of Foot (from Tim
Reese’s CD Rom of 116 illustrations of British and American
Regiments from the Revolutionary War. For details on how to buy the
CD click on the illustration). References:
• History of the British Army by Sir John Fortescue
• The War of the Revolution by Christopher Ward
British troops crossing the river
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