“Are these the men with which I am to defend America?”
George Washington to his officers at the Battle at Kip’s Bay
In 1776, having lost humiliatingly to the British at Long Island, George Washington decided, reluctantly, to abandon New York and wait for a better day. He had left a small number of green troops at Kip’s Bay near what is now 40th Street in New York, on the east side of the island.
To the surprise of the Americans, this was the spot where British General William Howe had decided to attack New York and annihilate Washington’s army and the American cause. Washington mounted his horse in north Manhattan and rushed to Kip’s Bay eight miles away to a place called Inclenberg, what is now known as Murray’s Hill.
Unafraid of personal danger, Washington rushed into the middle of the rout of American militia and promptly lost his immense temper. Drawing his sword he swatted at anyone running. He pulled out his pistols and pretended he was going to kill those dashing by his horse. He yelled, he shouted orders, he finally threw his hat on the ground in a disgust so profound he cared not for his own life.
British General Clinton was happy to oblige General Washington and end the American Revolution on the spot, when an aide finally pulled the reins out of the hands of the Father of our Country and led him to safety.
Inclenberg, it turns out, was the home of Quakers Robert and Mary Murray, and as General Howe’s main troops finally reached Murray’s Hill (behind Clinton’s advance party), Mrs. Murray invited General Howe and his officers to tea at their lovely mansion. Daughters Susannah and Beulah were to provide the necessary conviviality. By the time the General had bid his adieu, Washington was long gone and the evacuation of New York eventually successful.
In the long retreat through loyalist New Jersey, with British General William Howe slowly following, many in positions of American authority began to question the selection of George Washington as commander of the Grand Army. In a very short period of time Washington had lost three-quarters of the men under his command, not to mention muskets, cannon, cannon balls, and thousands of prisoners.
Washington’s Adjutant General had been exchanging letters with General Lee disparaging Washington’s leadership. Washington accidentally opened one of them and read with shock of his supposed “cursed indecision.” He had lost Ft. Washington by not stopping General Nathanael Greene from trying to defend it. His army was not re-enlisting; he was down to 1,000 men. He was retreating to Pennsylvania. General Howe was confident the American Revolution was over.
It was at this moment that George Washington took risks. He surprised the Hessians at Trenton. Instead of retreating after victory he forged ahead to Princeton. A second battle at Trenton left his whole army caught between water to the rear and the British army at his front. A tiny bridge, defended to the last man, saved his army. All could easily have been lost.
The British now knew that George Washington’s vanity and temper might be his undoing. British General Howe tried drawing him out into open battle – time and time again. This is the open battle Washington had always wanted. This would end the rumors of incompetence and indecision. By 1777, George Washington decided to change. As proud and aggressive as he was, George Washington changed tactics. His new pattern was defensive. While he could not maintain this new strategy indefinitely, as the battles of Brandywine and Germantown make clear, he finally came to understand what was required to win the first American Revolution.
The question today is: Do the American people now understand what is required to win what we are experiencing as the second American Revolution?
In the first, American rebels were throwing off rule by a monarchy; in the second, American anarchists are throwing off rule by a Constitution. In the first, America’s chosen military leaders were passionate, angry, and ready to fight head-on; in the second, American military leaders are weak, feckless, unconditionally surrendering to terrorists, and deliberately destroying military morale and readiness.
Yes, there were Loyalists in the first American Revolution who did not support the cause and who served as British spies. They were mocked, physically injured, driven from their homes, and their property confiscated.
Today, the equivalent persons who wish the demise of the Constitution and the nation itself, serve without injury as public servants, as commentators, as university presidents, as generals, as student spies and mistresses, as corporate heads of companies, as professional athletes, all selling out their country for 20 pieces of silver. George Soros is the poster child for such as this.
George Washington’s problem, initially, was his fiery temper that led to poor judgment at the beginning of the war. Today, the problem is a complacent, uninformed, passive, spoiled, careless, and weak Sovereign (We the People) that are literally handing over the nation to its enemies.
What will it take to rouse the American people as Washington was roused? Have they not noticed what has been lost to them already?
They have lost their children to poisons manufactured by other countries to destroy the nation’s youth
They have lost their nation-state to unmanned borders, unvetted invaders, and deliberate bankruptcy
They have lost their morals to drag-queens and strippers; they have lost their innocents to debauchery
They have lost their history, their humanity, and their souls
They have lost the respect of George Washington; they have lost the respect of the world
If, as George Washington was required to do, the American People ever wake from their stupor, they need to realize that the second American Revolution against anarchy must be won. This time it must be won with anger and offense, not patience and defense.
In possibly the bravest stand during the Revolutionary War, the surrender of Americans at Ft. Mifflin, PA, prompted Thomas Paine to actually write a letter to British General William Howe. “You are fighting for what you can never obtain, and we are defending what we never meant to part with.”
We need to be the people Washington would have been proud to defend America with.
Ask Miss C
Miss C is taking questions you have about the US Constitution. Simply submit your questions and she’ll reply to you with answers. Great questions may be featured in her blog as well as added to an FAQ page.