The Battle of Fort Washington was fought in New York on November 16, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War between the United States and Great Britain. It was a British victory that gained the surrender of the remnant of the garrison of Fort Washington near the north end of Manhattan. It was one of the worst Patriot defeats of the war.[6]
After defeating the Continental Army under Commander-in-Chief General George Washington at the Battle of White Plains, the British forces under the command of Lieutenant General William Howe planned to capture Fort Washington, the last American stronghold on Manhattan. General Washington issued a discretionary order to General Nathanael Greene to abandon the fort and remove its garrison, which then numbered 1,200 men[7] but which later grew to 3,000,[4] to New Jersey. Colonel Robert Magaw, acting commander of the fort, refused to abandon it, believing his troops would be able to defend it from the British. Howe's forces attacked the fort before Washington could arrive to assess the situation on November 16.
Howe led an assault from three sides: the north, east and south. The tides of the Harlem River prevented some troops from landing and delayed the attack. When the British moved against the defenses, the southern and western American defenses fell quickly, and the obstacles meant to deter an attack were bypassed with ease.[8] Patriot forces on the north side offered stiff resistance to the Hessian attack, but they too were overwhelmed. With the fort surrounded by land and sea, Colonel Magaw chose to surrender. A total of 59 Americans were killed in action and 2,837 were taken as prisoners of war.
After this defeat, a large portion of Washington's army was pursued across New Jersey and into Pennsylvania, while the British consolidated their control of New York Harbor and eastern New Jersey.
^Ketchum pp. 111– "The most disastrous defeat of the entire war"
^Burrows, Edwin G. and Wallace, Mike (1999). Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-195-11634-8., p. 243
^The American Revolution: A Visual History. DK Smithsonian. p. 125.
and 22 Related for: Battle of Fort Washington information
The BattleofFortWashington was fought in New York on November 16, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War between the United States and Great Britain...
Deco mural depicting the BattleofFortWashington scene decorates the lobby of a nearby apartment building at 720 FortWashington Avenue. According to the...
The BattleofFort Stevens was an American Civil War battle fought July 11–12, 1864, in Washington County, D.C. in present-day Northwest Washington, D...
captured and occupied Washington during the War of 1812 via a naval attack. The fort was still incomplete in 1861 when the BattleofFort Sumter occurred from...
of the newly formed regiment surrendered to British and German forces at the BattleofFortWashington on November 16, 1776, the service history of the...
in the aftermath of the battle, but Washington declined to relieve Greene from command. Shortly after the BattleofFortWashington, a British force under...
Fort Necessity National Battlefield is a National Battlefield in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, United States, which preserves the site of the Battle of...
The BattleofFort Sumter (April 12–13, 1861) was the bombardment ofFort Sumter near Charleston, South Carolina by the South Carolina militia. It ended...
The BattleofFort Dearborn (sometimes called the Fort Dearborn Massacre) was an engagement between United States troops and Potawatomi Native Americans...
The Battleof Baltimore (September 12–15, 1814) took place between British and American forces in the War of 1812. American forces repulsed sea and land...
The BattleofFort Henry was fought on February 6, 1862, in Stewart County, Tennessee, during the American Civil War. It was the first important victory...
British successfully captured both forts in the BattleofFortWashington on November 16, 1776, and BattleofFort Lee on November 20, putting the defensive...
American War of Independence. He was at the battlesof Long Island, White Plains, and FortWashington, and figured prominently in the Battleof Trenton. On...
The BattleofFort Pillow, also known as the Fort Pillow massacre was fought on April 12, 1864, at Fort Pillow on the Mississippi River in Henning, Tennessee...
Cumberland (November 10–29) BattleofFortWashington (November 16) BattleofFort Lee (November 20) Ambush of Geary (December 14) Battleof Iron Works Hill (December...
George Washington, who accompanied him on the march, to oversee his burial. The remainder of the British column retreated south-eastwards. Fort Duquesne...
The George Washington Bridge is a double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee in Bergen County, New Jersey, with the...
Fort Necessity in the BattleofFort Necessity and forced Washington to negotiate a withdrawal under arms. The capitulation document that Washington signed...
Global Information
Great Britain 
Hesse-Kassel 
Waldeck and Pyrmont[1]
United States