The Forage War of 1777 Saw George Washington Launch Numerous Hit-and-Run Assaults on the British that Crippled the Army

History Unplugged Podcast · May 23, 2023 · 33m

In late December 1776, the American War of Independence appeared to

be on its last legs. General George Washington’s continental forces had

been reduced to a shadow of their former strength, the British Army

had chased them across the Delaware River into Pennsylvania, and

enlistments for many of the rank and file would be up by month’s end.

Desperate times call for desperate measures, however, and George

Washington responded to this crisis with astonishing audacity. On

Christmas night 1776, he recrossed the Delaware as a nor’easter

churned up the coast, burying his small detachment under…