Battle of Harlem Heights
The
Battle of Harlem Heights was fought in the
New York Campaign of the
American Revolutionary War. The action took place in what is now the
Morningside Heights and west
Harlem neighborhoods of
Manhattan in
New York City on
September 16,
1776.
The Americans under Generals
George Washington,
Nathaniel Greene, and
Israel Putnam, totaling around 2,000 men held a series of high ground positions in upper
Manhattan against an attacking
British division totaling around 5,000 men under the command of General Alexander Leslie. British troops made what became a
tactical error by sounding a
fox hunt bugle call while in pursuit, meant to insult the
Continentals, who were in orderly retreat. This instead infuriated the Americans who galvanized to hold their ground and rallied for victory.
Gen. George Washington was in considerable anxiety at the inability of his troops to stand up to the British and Germans of Gen. William Howe's army. Step by step, the Americans were being driven off the Island of New York, now Manhattan. Washington now held only the northern plateau of the island, around the fortification of
Fort Washington on the Hudson shore. He sent a force under Lt.Col.
Thomas Knowlton to scout the British movements to the South of his position. He descended from the northern plateau into an area of lower ground known as the
Hollow Way and on to the next plateau. There, his Rangers encountered two battalions of British
light infantry and firing broke out. The
42nd Regiment of Foot (The Black Watch) came up, reinforced by the
33rd Regiment of Foot and the
Hessian Musketeer Regiment von Donop. The Rangers was forced to retreat in some haste, with the British in pursuit. It is said that the Americans on the northern plateau were particularly enraged to hear the British using derisive fox hunting calls. Washington ordered a force forward to lure the party of British further onto the plateau, while a second force moved around the British right flank and cut them off from the southern plateau and further reinforcement.
The British took the bait and moved further onto the northern plateau as the Americans fell back before them. As they moved south, the American flanking party encountered some British troops and firing broke out, warning the light infantry that they were in a perilous position. The fighting ranged north before Washington decided to sent the
3rd Virginia Regiment under Maj. Leitch and
Knowlton's Rangers forward in two flanking maneuvers. Three brigades from the division of
Nathaniel Greene made a feint to attack the British in their front.
One of Howe's subordinates made a critical mistake during the fight. A "fox horn" was sounded before the fight was over. The American forces heard the horn and all this did was to motivate the men to fight even harder. Although the Americans attacked before the British were surrounded and Leitch and Knowlton were both mortally wounded, the British found themselves attacked on 3 sides and began their retreat. Under persistent attack, the British retreated to a field in the
Hollow Way. The fighting continued for an hour until the imminent arrival of more British forces, under
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis caused Washington to call his troops back. Washington considered that after
Kip's Bay the Americans were not ready for a general engagement with the full British army.
The British and
Hessians suffered nearly 400 casualties--about 90 killed and 300 wounded. The Americans had only about 100 wounded and 30 killed, including Lieutenant Colonel
Thomas Knowlton.
