It was a week before Christmas day in the year 1776. The wind was cold and hard as it brushed past my face. I felt a chill run through my spine, but for the glowing sun, the cold would have been unbearable. “Why won’t God give me a break? “, I thought. I was thinking about something, how the problem we were faced with would be solved, even if only temporarily. As the wind rushed by and I stood there thinking deeply, it came to me all of a sudden. After that, I pondered over and over a plan until I had it perfected to the last detail, then I simulated the results in my head.
Ninety-nine times out of hundred it failed, but that one time it didn’t fail provided me with enough hope. Moreover, you don’t undergo a revolution without taking some risks. I thought about how my plan would diminish British and Hessian power and cause them to take us, the Revolution and I, seriously. Just in August I remembered, my army had being exhausted, demoralized and uncertain of its future. We had been invaded by British and Hessian troops and we hadn’t been ready for them. We were forced to desperately escape to the island of Manhattan.
However, the British had followed us to Manhattan and compelled us to retreat again, this time across the Hudson River to New Jersey. The British had followed in hot pursuit, chasing us through New Jersey and by December had forced us to abandon the state and cross the Delaware into Pennsylvania. They believed they had won, they believed they had crushed the revolution. In my head, I had accepted defeat but in my heart the American pride was hurt. It didn’t want to accept defeat, at least not like, by cowering away from our enemies.
We needed to stand up, dust ourselves off and give it another go, facing the problem head on, no more running and no more escaping. It was our time to attack! They needed to know that the revolution was more than just an annoyance or small pest. We were the real deal, I thought to myself. Hence I had to mobilize the army fast. A majority of my army were mercenaries and their contracts were to expire at the end of the month to return to their homes. An additional problem was that two of my armies had not made it back yet. I quickly devised a plan.
We were going to attack the Hessian-held town of Trenton just across the Delaware River. We planned all week. I had five to six thousand men at my disposal, though many of them were unfit for battle. Even though this was a large number, we had a lot of men who deserted us and left the army and the remaining soldiers were low on morale. Something drastic needed to happen to life the hearts of the soldiers unless the cause was lost, because only I still had the passion and desire burning, and I so desperately wanted to ignite there flames of passion too.
Three days before our departure date, a man named Thomas Pain wrote this in his pamphlet called The Crisis; “These are the times that try men’s souls; the summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. ” 1 I read text this to the army as a motivation.
I was grateful towards the people who were still remaining, the last three months had been difficult and the weather wasn’t much help either. From then on, things were on the rise. One of my troops were able to find they’re way back so I had two thousand more soldiers. This was a boost to everyone. We needed as much people as possible for this revolt to be successful. We decided to set out for Trenton on Christmas day. On Christmas eve, in the evening, we had a big feast to celebrate.
During the day we let the men spend time with their families. Late that night, we travelled to the departure location and set up a camp there. In the morning the weather was horrendous and the river treacherous. Raging winds combined with snow, sleet and rain to produce almost impossible conditions. To add to the difficulties, many of the troops no longer had shoes, and we still needed to cross 9 miles of ice-swollen Delaware to get to Trenton. Definitely it was going to be a long day, and a vicious battle still awaited us.
That said, I was convinced we would be victorious. Before we set out, I looked around at all the men who had joined me, and felt a sense of humility. All these men had trusted and believed in me, and I was determined I wasn’t going to let them down. I turned back to focus on the assignment ahead. As the ships were set afloat, I held my head high, gazing forwards. The sun breaking the clouds allowed its light rays into my eyes and its warmth overwhelmed me, and again I felt reassured. It was a new day!
Bibliography
“Washington’s Crossing of the Delaware River.” Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 12 Oct. 2010. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington’s_crossing_of_the_Delaware_River>.
Leutze, Emanuel. Washington’s Crossing of the Delaware River. 1851. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Art History. Web. <http://0.tqn.com/d/arthistory/1/0/k/f/pa_neh_07.jpg>.
‘The Crisis’. Paine, Thomas. <Http://www.ushistory.org/paine/crisis/c-01.htm>. December 23 1996. Web. 10 Oct. 2010.
