Diary: British/Hessian Troops on the Offensive, Going South through Moorestown, December 1776

Longer Excerpt:​​

"The reason for my succesful patrol was probably.....the extremely stormy weather, because the enemy parties which constantly crossed this road -< had avoided doing so. But if Colonel Griffin had gotten the slightest win v^i'of it, I certainly would have been cut oft. 

!§§ In the afternoon of the 2 1st I was ordered to take my post at Bustleton, which was halfway between Bordentown and Burlington. 

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|§§: In the afternoon of the 22d I was reinforced with an officer and fifty #|j^grenadiers and took post at the Bunting house. This post was situated ~ rther on from Black Horse and Bustleton and consisted of a plantation ing upon a hill where the roads coming from Mount Holly and Bur- 

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PLAN OF THE AREA OF BORDENTOWN, BURLINGTON TO MOUNT HOLLY 

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On the left the plan shows Bordentown and the Lewis Mill on Black’s Creek. The lower road from Bordentown leads to the “Miss Wietfield house” (now Fieldsboro) and to the Three Tuns Tavern and Bustleton. The road crosses Hancock sCreek, named for a local landowner, and continues to the Yorkshire Bridge over Assiscunk Creek (not Ankokes Creek, an old spelling of Rancocas Creek, as Ewald has it). Rancocas Creek flows into the Delaware 
River southwest of Burlington. The upper road from Borden- town leads to Black Horse (Columbus) and Slabtown (Jackson- ville), continuing past the Friends Meeting House to Mount Holly at the upper right. Near the center is the Bunting house, where Ewald had his outpost on December 22, 1776. 

FIRST AND SECOND CAMPAIGNS, 1770 AND 1)777 

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lington intersected. Toward the enemy I had woodland, through which these roads ran. and behind me was an extensive meadow. 

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I had scarcely arrived at this post when the enemy appealed m it wood. I took the jagers to reconnoiter him and to earn with whom had to deal. I skirmished with the enemy, who, since I attacked him quit y withdrew toward Burlington with a loss ot several dead and wounded 
pursued him for a short distance, and after I was certain of his retreat 1 returned to my post. One of mv jagers was killed and another severely 

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W °No' toner had this skirmish ended than I heard heavy small-arms fin mixed with cannon fire in the vicinity of Black Horse or Slabtown. Thi firing caused me no little embarrassment because it was in my rear, decided to investigate the firing and to fall upon the enemy s rear dunnj his own attack. I hurried as fast as I could; however the enemy hat already been driven back by the grenadiers with heavy losses. - Colone Donop ordered me not to return to the Bunting house, but to choose 

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Dost in front of Black Horse. 113 ... 

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? During the night I received orders to draw back with the jagers behin, the pickets of the grenadiers to give the men a few hours rest, becaus the colonel intended to seek out and defeat the enemy the next day. 

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On the morning of the 23d at five o’clock Colonel Donop set or toward Mount Holly with the 42d Regiment of Scots, the two grenadie battalions, Linsing and Block, the twelve mounted jagers under Captai Lorey, and my jager company. I formed the advanced guard, supporte 

bv Captain Lorey and a company of Scots. 114 

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In the wood behind Slabtown we ran into an enemy party which took new position at a Quaker church lying on a hill at the end of the woo, behind which the entire enemy corps was deployed. The co mediately ordered the Linsing Battalion to attack the hill on which t 
church stood. The Block Battalion was ordered to the left, and the jag with four companies of Scots under Colonel Stirling, moved to the rig through the wood to cut off the enemy from Mount Holly or to ga mastery of the bridge across the Rancocas Creek, which intersects 

t0 The enemv, discovering this movement, withdrew in the greatest d order through Mount Holly and across the bridge after the grenadie had taken possession of the church. Since the jagers and Scots piess close behind them, a part sought to throw themselves into the ho 
near the bridge, but they were soon dislodged by the fieldpieces. H ever the greater part of the enemy gained the wood lying beyond town, through which the highway ran to Philadelphia, and by which enemy saved himself. The jagers and Scots pursued the enemy for s eral miles through the wood, but he made no further stand. Almost t 

 

FROM HKSSE TO CHESAPEAKE BAY 

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hundred men vvenp captured, two cannon seized, and somewhat over one hundred men may well have been killed on both sides. 116 

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The entire corps under Colonel Donop took up quarters in the town, 117 and I received mine at the exit to Philadelphia. 118 Because of its position, this town is a very excellent trading place and inhabited by many wealthy people. Since the majority had fled and the dwellings had been abandoned, almost the whole town was plundered; and because large stocks of wine were found there, the entire garrison was drunk by eve- ning. Luckily for me, my quarters were in the section most poorly stocked, by which chance the jagers remained fairly sober. Meanwhile, the grenadiers were bringing in so much wine that the majority of the jagers became merry toward midnight, and I had great trouble to keep them together. ... , 

Early on the morning of the 24th I was sent out with twenty jagers and fifty Scots to reconnoiter the road to Moorestown as far as the Long Bridge, to learn if it was occupied by the enemy or destroyed. The road there consisted of a succession of defiles through a thick wood. Toward ten o’clock I arrived unhindered at the bridge and found that it 
was ruined. Presently a few shots came from the other side where the Americans were hidden in several houses, through which a Scotsman was killed. I deployed the jagers along the creek to answer the enemy with brisk rifle fire and to reconnoiter the area more closely, after which I withdrew and rendered my report. 

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I had hardly arrived at my post when I was ordered to patrol as far as Burlington with ten jagers and fifty Hessian grenadiers, in order to re- connoiter the station of the enemy vessels which constantly covered the place. I returned at midnight. The snow had risen so high since yesterday that we could hardly get through. 

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Today a trumpeter arrived in Mount Holly from General Washington, who presented a proposal to Colonel Donop concerning the exchange of & some of his officers who had been captured at Mount Holly. The next two days would show that this was a ruse to find out whether the colonel was still in Mount Holly or was already marching back to Bordentown, 
> which every reasonable man desired, since Trenton as well as Mount < Holly were without any further support. 

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||^vy About two o’clock on the morning of the 25th, I was informed that |&Colonel Reynolds 121 had just arrived at New Mills 122 with two captains were lodged with him at his house, 123 where both captains awaited Ipjheir wives. I reported this at once to Colonel Donop, who permitted me ^pbgjtake a party of Scots for this stroke. 1 hereupon I took eight jagers and 

^^iwenty Scots and arrived at the spot shortly before daylight. I approached B gjiouse quietly, surrounded it with the jagers as it stood apart from all g other houses, and kept the Scots together a short distance from the 

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PLAN OF THE AREA OF MOUNT HOLLY 

lust north of Mount Holly at the junction of the Slabtown 0 ack - sonville) road, the road to Burlington, and Woodpecker Lane is the old Friends Meeting House, which was situated at the base ot the mount where the so-called Battle of Mount Holly occurred on December 23, 1776. Ewald reconnoitered the area across the North Branch of Ankokes (Rancocas) Creek to the Long Bridge (now Hainesport), which is on the South West Branch of the same creek. In the lower right of the plan is New Mills (now Pemberton), where Ewald captured ieutenant Colonel Thomas Rey nolds and two captains early on Christmas morning. 

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FIRST AND SECOND CAMPAIGNS, 1776 AND 1777 

house to defend myself, since the enemy was posted only one hour away from the village. 

Accompanied by two Scots, 1 approached the front door, which I found unlocked, entered the house, and heard several people talking loudly in a room on the right-hand side. I knocked on the door and someone called, “Come in!” I opened the door, stepped into the room, and bid a good morning to the party, which consisted of three officers and four ladies who were drinking tea. I was offered a chair and a cup of tea, which I accepted. They looked at me and did not know what to make of me, for my uniform was covered over with snow which had been falling all night. 

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At the moment when I took the cup of tea, one of the ladies wanted to go out of the room, but she was somewhat rudely pushed back into the room by one of the Scots and returned -with an “Oh! Lord!”, whereupon the entire company was surprised. At this instant I put an end to the affair, identified myself to the gentlemen, and announced the agreeable news that they were my prisoners. The officers drew their swords, and the ladies fell at my knees and begged me to leave them their husbands. 

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The two Scots entered the room, and I advised the men to give me their swords or they would be cut down. They followed my advice, and I permitted them to take a tender farewell of their wives. I left the house with my prisoners, followed by good and bad wishes from the beautiful mouths of the ladies. I made my march back in all haste and arrived at midday in Mount Holly. 124 

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Early on the morning of the 26th Captain Lorey and I roamed over different roads in the country to collect horses and slaughter cattle; for the colonel, who was extremely devoted to the fair sex, had found in his quarters the exceedingly beautiful young widow of a doctor. 125 He wanted to set up his rest quarters in Mount Holly, which, to the misfortune ot Colonel Rail, he was permitted to do. However, our control over this area came to an end today. 

Both parties were occupied with driving off several hundred oxen, cows, pigs, and sheep, amidst the fervent wailings of the inhabitants, who followed us constantly, when a messenger appeared who delivered us orders to come back immediately and leave all the animals behind. 

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In the afternoon both parties returned. The colonel notified us that General Washington had suddenly attacked the three regiments under Colonel Rail at Trenton, and he was awaiting our report at any minute. 

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At the same moment, the second messenger of doom arrived, confirming the report and adding that all had been taken prisoner. 127 Since it was to be assumed now that Washington would occupy the Crosswicks pass in the rear of the Donop Corps, which had always been neglected, and cut it”