Secondary Sources
Gifford, Edward S. The American Revolution in the Delaware Valley. Philadelphia: Pennsylvania Society of Sons of the Revolution, 1976.
Harris, Michael C. Brandywine: A Military History of the Battle That Lost Philadelphia but Saved America, September 11, 1777. First edition. El Dorado Hills, CA: Savas Beatie, 2014.
McGuire, Thomas J. Battle of Paoli. 1st ed. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2000.
———. The Surprise of Germantown, Or, The Battle of Cliveden: October 4th, 1777. Philadelphia, PA : Gettysburg, PA: Cliveden of the National Trust for Historic Preservation ; Thomas Publications, 1994.
Gifford, Edward S. The American Revolution in the Delaware Valley. Philadelphia: Pennsylvania Society of Sons of the Revolution, 1976.
Harris, Michael C. Brandywine: A Military History of the Battle That Lost Philadelphia but Saved America, September 11, 1777. First edition. El Dorado Hills, CA: Savas Beatie, 2014.
McGuire, Thomas J. Battle of Paoli. 1st ed. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2000.
———. The Surprise of Germantown, Or, The Battle of Cliveden: October 4th, 1777. Philadelphia, PA : Gettysburg, PA: Cliveden of the National Trust for Historic Preservation ; Thomas Publications, 1994.
Start of the British Campaign
British forces under the Command of General William Howe landed at Head of Elk, Chesapeake Bay, Maryland on August 25, 1777 with the intention of capturing Philadelphia and ending the War of Rebellion.
For more information on the commemorative plaque site in near the town of North East in Cecil County, Maryland, click on the link.
Philadelphia Revolutionary War Commemorations
Philadelphia Area Revolutionary War Sites
Fort Mifflin
Fort Mifflin guarded the Delaware River approaches to the City of Philadelphia. It is located next to the current day Philadelphia International Airport on a plot of land once called Mud Island. The fort was in use until the 20th century.
Battle of Cooch’s Bridge – September 3, 1777
General George Washington sent militia and a light infantry unit under the command of Brig. Gen. William Maxwell to impede the progress of British General William Howe’s army as it approached Philadelphia. A fierce, day-long battle occured on the banks of the Christiana River in Delaware. The vastly outnumbered Rebels were forced back over the Cooch’s Bridge as daylight ended. Casualties are uncertain with each side claiming to have inflicted perhaps 30-40 killed and wounded on the other side, while sustaining minimal losses to their units.
After the battle the British moved north and Washington repositioned his forces at Chadd’s Ford on the Brandywine Creek, setting up the second largest battle of the revolutionary war.
Battle of Brandywine – September 11, 1777
After the British landed their forces at Elk’s Head and marched on Philadelphia, General George Washington attempted to block the British advance at the Chadd’s Ford of the Brandywine River. British General William Howe executed a sweeping left flanking march which crossed an unguarded river ford above Chadds Ford and attacked the unguarded Patriot left flank. After a hotly contested battle, the Americans were forced to withdrawl towards the town of Chester.
Today, while several sections of the battlefield are preserved, houses and other development dot the battle scape. A visitor center provides driving maps that guide visitors to key locations on the battlefield.
One of the iconic images of the Revolution was inspired by the Brandywine Battle. Howard Pyle drew a famous illustration depicting the battle to be included in a December 1903 special exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago. The picture depicts Lt. General William Maxwell’s counter-attack against the flanking British. While Pyle sought to realistically show the soldiers in battle, unarmed dummers and fifers walked behind the infrantry and helping with signaling and battlefield control. However, much of the rest of the picture is realistic including the tattered American flag.
Battle of Germantown
After losing Philalephia to the British, Washington attempted a highly complex attack on the British forces outside of the city at Germantown (now within the city limits of Philadelphia). Almost from the beginning, Washington’s four pronged attack came unraveled and the Americans were forced to retreat with heavy losses.
One of the American attack columns ran into Redcoats holed up in the Chew House. Washington had Henry Knox bring up the artillery to dislodge the British. However, the solid construction prevented the cannon balls from inflicting significant damage inside and the Rebel advanced stalled when they could not capture the British unit in this house. Today, visitors can still see the cannon ball marks on the side of the house.
Returning to the home after the conflict, the Chew family refurbished the home and various descendents occupied the home for seven generations before turning over the house to the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 1972. According to family lore, they preserved a bullet hole in the first floor office commemorating the house’s role in the Germantown battle.
Battle for the Delaware River
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