The Battle of the Clouds (also known as the Battle of Warren, Battle of Whitehorse Tavern, or the Battle of Goshen) was an aborted engagement of the
Philadelphia campaign
The Philadelphia campaign (1777–1778) was a British effort in the American Revolutionary War to gain control of Philadelphia, which was then the seat of the Second Continental Congress. British General William Howe, after failing to draw ...
of the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of ...
on September 16, 1777, in the area surrounding present day
Malvern,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...
. After the American defeat at the
Battle of Brandywine, the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...
remained encamped near
Chadds Ford
Chadds Ford is a census-designated place (CDP) in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Chester County, Pennsylvania, Chester counties, Pennsylvania, United States, comprising the unincorporated area, unincorporated communities of Chadds F ...
. When British commander
William Howe was informed that the weakened American force was less than ten miles (16 km) away, he decided to press for another decisive victory.
George Washington learned of Howe's plans and prepared for battle. Before the two armies could fully engage, a torrential downpour ensued. Significantly outnumbered, and with tens of thousands of
cartridges ruined by the rain, Washington opted to retreat. Bogged down by rain and mud, the British allowed Washington and his army to withdraw.
Background
After Washington's defeat at the Battle of Brandywine, he was intent on accomplishing two tasks. He wanted to protect Philadelphia from British forces under the command of Howe, and he needed to replenish the rapidly dwindling supplies and munitions which were stored at the
Van Leer Furnace in
Reading, Pennsylvania
Reading ( ; Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Reddin'') is a city in and the county seat of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city had a population of 95,112 as of the 2020 census and is the fourth-largest city in Pennsylvania after Phila ...
.
Washington withdrew across the
Schuylkill River
The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It ...
, marched through
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, and headed northwest. Since the Schuylkill was fordable only far upstream starting at Matson's Ford (present-day
Conshohocken), Washington could protect both the capital and the vital supply areas to the west from behind the river barrier. Yet he reconsidered and recrossed the river to face the British, who had moved little since Brandywine, owing to a shortage of wagons to carry both their wounded and their baggage.
Battle of Emery and Hunter
General Howe was alerted that Washington had recrossed the Schuylkill on the afternoon of September 15, and by midnight, his troops were on the march toward the major road junction where the White Horse Tavern stood. The going was difficult because the weather had been rainy and windy, and the troops and wagons turned the roads into muddy quagmires. The next morning, Washington's 10,000 man army was moving west through the
Great Valley, bound by the North and South Valley Hills on either side. He learned from his cavalry, led by
General Pulaski, that the British were advancing on him from the south just a few miles away. Although moving to the North Valley Hills would have given Washington more time to deploy and possibly fortify, he ordered the army south directly toward the enemy to take up a defensive position on the South Valley Hills.
Washington sent an advance force under General
Anthony Wayne
Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his mi ...
to slow the British progress. At about 2:00 pm, his men encountered the advance
jäger units of the Hessian column on one road. These forces began skirmishing, and the Americans very nearly captured Colonel
Carl von Donop when he became separated from his main column with a small company of jägers. The main British column, led by General
Charles Cornwallis
Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis, (31 December 1738 – 5 October 1805), styled Viscount Brome between 1753 and 1762 and known as the Earl Cornwallis between 1762 and 1792, was a British Army general and official. In the United ...
, met with Wayne's Pennsylvania militia on another road at around 3:00, who gave way in a panicked retreat, suffering 10 killed or wounded.
While this went on, Washington, who was trying to organize the line of battle, had a change of heart about the position and ended up withdrawing the army north of the tavern. This withdrawal was just getting underway when it began pouring rain. Hessian jäger Captain
Johann Ewald
Johann von Ewald (20 March 1744 – 25 June 1813) was a German military officer from Hesse-Kassel. After first serving in the Seven Years' War, he was the commander of the Jäger corps of the Hessian Leib Infantry Regiment attached to British ...
described it as "an extraordinary thunderstorm,
..combined with the heaviest downpour in this world."
The British army halted its advance, although General
Wilhelm von Knyphausen
Wilhelm Reichsfreiherr von Innhausen und Knyphausen Some documents produced after 1806 referred to him as Reichsfreiherr Wilhelm zu Innhausen und Knyphausen while some documents after 1919 use Wilhelm Reichsfreiherr zu Innhausen und Knyphausen. ...
ordered the jägers to engage the enemy. Ewald and his men rushed forward, swords drawn since their muskets were inoperable because of the wet powder, and captured 34 men. Ewald reported losing 5 killed, 7 wounded, and 3 captured in this action.
The storm, which historian Thomas McGuire describes as "a classic
nor'easter
A nor'easter (also northeaster; see below), or an East Coast low is a synoptic-scale extratropical cyclone in the western North Atlantic Ocean. The name derives from the direction of the winds that blow from the northeast. The original use ...
", raged well into the next day
The British were forced to construct a makeshift camp (having left their tents behind that day), and Washington managed to form a battle line, but a great deal of his ammunition had been spoiled by the rain and poorly constructed cartridge boxes.
Aftermath
Washington once again withdrew beyond the Schuylkill on September 19 to cover both the capital and his supply area, but he left behind General Wayne's Pennsylvania division of 1,500 men and four guns with orders to harass the British rear. Washington temporarily based his headquarters at the
Reading Furnace. Howe's army found it nearly impossible to follow Washington over the rutted, muddy roads. The decision was made to wait out the storm, then move toward their objective.
Wayne was to be joined by militia, and together they were to strike at the enemy baggage train as the British advanced on Washington's main army. However his force was surprised at the
Battle of Paoli, and the British were free to occupy Philadelphia.
Legacy
As of the 2010s, Chester County's government is working with the local municipalities at the site of the Battle of the Clouds, to preserve key areas in the dense suburban community.
Sources
*
*http://johnsmilitaryhistory.com/clouds.html
*Rickard, J (28 May 2003), Battle of the Clouds, 16 September 1777, http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_clouds.html
*
*
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle of the Clouds
1777 in the United States
Conflicts in 1777
Clouds
In meteorology, a cloud is an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets, frozen crystals, or other particles suspended in the atmosphere of a planetary body or similar space. Water or various other chemicals ma ...
Clouds
In meteorology, a cloud is an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets, frozen crystals, or other particles suspended in the atmosphere of a planetary body or similar space. Water or various other chemicals ma ...
Clouds
In meteorology, a cloud is an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets, frozen crystals, or other particles suspended in the atmosphere of a planetary body or similar space. Water or various other chemicals ma ...
History of Chester County, Pennsylvania
1777 in Pennsylvania
Clouds
In meteorology, a cloud is an aerosol consisting of a visible mass of miniature liquid droplets, frozen crystals, or other particles suspended in the atmosphere of a planetary body or similar space. Water or various other chemicals ma ...