Preserving the Cause: Long Island
An American defeat left the British in control of New York City but the Continental Army intact.
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From 22 to 25 August, General Howe landed a force of about 20,000 troops on Long Island, intent on eliminating the bulk of the Continental Army before moving to seize New York itself. On the evening of 26 August, Howe made a feint toward the Flatbush and Bedford Passes on Guan Heights while his main body used an undefended avenue of approach known as Jamaica Pass. He conducted a night march and wide flanking movement around the American left, arriving in the rear of their positions.
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British Fleet Between Long Island and Staten Island, 1776, New York Public Library Digital Collections.
Following the retreat of American forces from Canada, British forces massed both naval and ground forces in lower New York Harbor, preparing to encircle and destroy the Continental Army in New York. In the summer heat of July and August 1776, British Lt. Gen. Sir William Howe, supported by a fleet commanded by his older brother V. Adm. Richard, 4th Viscount Howe, landed an army of 32,000 British and Hessian regulars unopposed on Staten Island.
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Maj. Gen. Israel Putnam, Commander of the Continental Division on Long Island, National Archives.
General George Washington’s force at New York consisted of just over 20,000 troops: a mix of veterans and new levies, Continentals, and militia members. They had constructed a system of defenses at New Jersey, New York, and Brooklyn, splitting the force to hold each position. Washington tasked three divisions with covering the south of Manhattan Island and New York itself, and positioned another at the northern approaches at Fort Washington. To cover Brooklyn, he placed a final division on Long Island under the command of Maj. Gen. Israel Putnam, who positioned his defense in two lines of fortifications on Brooklyn Heights and Guan Heights.
The American forces returned to their entrenchments on Brooklyn Heights to rest and reorganize under the watchful eye of General Washington, who had arrived with news of the initial setbacks. Howe’s forces had not forgotten the losses they had experienced when attacking the American fortifications at Bunker Hill the previous year, and delayed their pursuit in favor of establishing siege lines and preparing for an extended fight.
Washington's Retreat at Long Island, August 1776, J.C. Armytage, engraver, 1860, National Archives.
Two nights later, under cover of darkness, the Continental Army evacuated to Manhattan in a skillful withdrawal unobserved by the British.
Estimates place American losses at Long Island between 300 to 400 killed and wounded and 700 to 1,200 taken prisoner. General Howe listed his losses as 367. The engagement at Long Island was a tactical victory for the British in a battle that numerically was the largest action of the Revolutionary War in terms of troops committed. Although the British held the ground at the end of the day, Washington had been able to withdraw his forces to continue the fight over the next month in New York.
Although the Americans suffered a defeat, Washington's withdrawal from New York preserved the nascent Continental Army. With hopes dashed in their winter quarters in Pennsylvania, Washington led his troops on a daring mission against the enemy at Trenton, New Jersey