The Importance of the Battle of Trenton Argumentative Essay

In the state of New Jersey, a lot of history took place there during the Revolutionary War. One of those events was the Battle of Trenton. During the winter of 1776 George Washington along with a couple thousand revolutionaries crossed the Delaware river and surprised a garrison of Hessians in Trenton. This battle was an American victory that strengthened the revolution.  It is arguably the most important battle of the Revolutionary War. I believe that the Battle of Trenton saved the revolution and helped cement this nation and had outstanding consequences in US history. Mr. Keating said it best during the interview we had when he stated. “Without the success of Trenton it is hard to say if the revolution would have been able to go on.”(Keating interview).

The first reason why the Battle of Trenton historically important is because the battle almost killed James Monroe. In the beginning of the revolution as a young lieutenant in the continental army Monroe served under Captain William Washington, cousin of George Washington, in the third Virginia regiment during the battle. During the battle Monroe was wounded in the solider along with Captain Washington and were taken away from the battle. This is stated in Monroe’s autobiography “The command then devolved upon Lieutenant Monroe, who attacked in like manner at the head of the corps and was shot down by a musket ball which passed through his breast and shoulder. He was also carried from the field” (Monroe 30). Unknown to anyone at the time of the battle the wound that Monroe had sustained in battle had damaged a vital artery in his shoulder which could have killed him. Luckily the doctor that was attending to Monroe was able to fix the damage in advertently saving a future us president. “their wounds were dressed by the army’s surgeon general and Dr. John Riker.  Riker’s prediction of helping “some poor fellow” came true as he repaired a damaged artery in Monroe’s shoulder. What neither man realized at the time was that the intrepid physician had saved the life of a future president.” (Erguest). To understand the major consequences of this event, think on this. If that bullet had killed James Monroe, then he would never be president and an important piece of us foreign policy the Monroe doctrine would never had been finished. 

The second reason the Battle of Trenton is important is because it prevented the British to attack Philadelphia. The main reason for the battle of Trenton even took place was to stop and end the New York and New Jersey campaign which aim was to pacify the two colonies and be able to strike and capture Philadelphia. With the capture of New York harbor and much of New Jersey the British attempted to take Philadelphia. “They controlled New York harbor and much of New Jersey and were in a good position to resume operations in the spring, with the rebel capital of Philadelphia in striking distance” (Stehle). When Washington was able to dislodge and defeat the German garrison at Trenton and later at Princeton the British were not able to capture Philadelphia until later that year. This victory secured rebel control of Pennsylvania for the future “With the British threat no longer imminent, Congress returned to Philadelphia in March 1777 and remained there until Howe captured the city in September of that year.” (Leibiger). With all of this known if the Americans lost the battle it would be easy to assume that the British would be able to openly take Philadelphia and the rest of Pennsylvania a either ending the war or prolonging it further.

The third reason why the battle is so important is because it secured Washington his command. Since the beginning of the British New York and New jersey Campaign Washington saw defeat after defeat until he was able to get to Pennsylvania. Washington up until Trenton was in a constant retreat and it was starting to look like he was about to be removed from command. “the closing months of 1776 were the darkest period of the struggle for independence. Washington slowly doggedly retread from New York and the Jerseys.” (Stryker 731). However, with the success at the battle of Trenton Washington was able to show his military prowess and was able to secure his position as commander and chief of the army. “During the campaign, Washington, along with his officers, demonstrated charismatic leadership and moral courage.  The commander-in-chief also gained confidence in himself, won newfound respect from his men.” (Leibiger) If Washington was defeated at Trenton it was most likely that he would have been relieved of his command and someone else would had been in charge of the war.

The fourth reason why the battle was so important was because it was able to get troops to reenlist. At the time of the Battle of Trenton the troops of the continental army have been fighting for more or less than a year. Due to that many of their service time had been fulfilled and or overdone and droves of soldiers decided to leave the army and not reenlist. This meant that the continental army was shrinking, and this was a problem. “ the soldiers did not believe that they ought to apologize for their departure nor did they consider it any discredit to have left the army.”(Royster 128). This changed at the victory at the Battle of Trenton. With the victory congress was better able to keep men reenlisted and the ability to recruit new soldiers. “The victories lifted American spirits sufficiently to recruit additional forces to carry on the war.” (Leibiger). If however the battle had ended in failure it can be deduced that it would had been harder for the congress and army to keep and recruit new troops. 

The fifth reason why the battle was so important was because it cemented the revolution. Before the Battle of Trenton, the American revolution seemed to be on its last rope. With the string of major defeats in New York and New Jersey and the invasion of Philadelphia imminent it seemed that the revolution was about to be crushed. “the revolution was on the brink of destruction the congress couldn’t agree on anything for the army Washington was in full retreat and it seemed that British could not be stopped.” (Keating) This however changed with the huge success of the battle of Trenton in which the us army was able to stop the advance in doing so securing the revolution and prolonging it. “with victories in Trenton and Princeton the British realized that the revolution was far from over and that it would not be easy to end it.”(Keating). With the revolution secured the continental army can have time to reorganize and expand and prepare for the British defeat.

The sixth and final reason why the battle is so important is because it destroyed the myth of Hessian invincibility. Before the Battle of Trenton, the Hessians were seen as an unbeatable army that could not be stopped. Throughout the colonies these troops were the most feared batch of soldier on the continent. “the Hessians at the time were the best of the best of mercenaries in Europe and were feared by most colonists they didn’t see them as men they saw them as monsters.” (Keating) However with the huge success at Trenton and the complete surprise that the Hessians were taken caused the image to be destroyed.  the fear of the Hessians imposed on the continent was destroyed by Trenton. “The commander-in-chief also gained confidence in himself, won newfound respect from his men, and shattered the belief in hessian invincibility.” (Leibiger).

In the end Trenton was a huge victory for the colonists and a major defeat for the British. The revolution would go on with this victory and in the end the revolution would succeed. America would become an independent nation and would have a huge role in the world for the better. “the success of the Delaware crossing and the battle of Trenton would go down in American history as a defining moment for America and would for as long as time.” (Keating). In the end not a lot of people think of the Battle of Trenton, but they should cause it helped create this nation.