"Good God, what brave fellows I must this day lose!" The Battle of Brooklyn at 250
- Stephen Gould
- 9 hours ago
- 4 min read
Joseph Reed, General George Washington's aide-de-camp, recalled these anguished remarks by Washington as the general watched the Continental Army retreat from Gowanus Heights in Brooklyn on August 27, 1776. The fighting that day was Washington’s first significant battle as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army and a total disaster.
Following the British evacuation of Boston in March 1776, Washington was convinced that the British would return and New York City, with its magnificent harbor, would be their objective. Sure enough, the Howe brothers, General William (commanding the British army in North America) and Admiral Richard (commanding the British navy’s North America Station) began to arrive at New York on June 29, 1776. Their massive combined force would eventually total over 32,000 soldiers, 12,000 sailors, and roughly 400 ships. It was the largest British amphibious assault force assembled prior to the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944.
Despite the intimidating show of force, the Howe brothers came in peace, hoping to resolve the conflict between England and the Colonies. Those attempts at reconciliation failed, setting the stage for the Battle of Brooklyn, also known as the Battle of Long Island or the Battle of Brooklyn Heights.
While peace talks occurred, Washington prepared a series of forts and redoubts in Brooklyn to protect New York City. These defensive lines extended for several miles along the hilly terrain known as Gowanus Heights, running through modern day Brooklyn and Queens. Four important passes ran through the Heights and had to be defended: Gowanus Pass, Flatbush Pass, Bedford Pass and Jamaica Pass. However, Washington's small army was stretched thin and could only adequately defend three of the passes. The Jamaica Pass, five miles from Brooklyn, was considered too far for concern and was only lightly defended by militiamen.
On August 22, 1776, Howe was unopposed when he landed an assault force on the shore of Long Island's Gravesend Bay. Initially Washington believed the landing might be a diversion for a main attack on Manhattan and did not fully reposition his forces to meet the new threat. On the evening of August 26th, General Howe split his army. While General Grant's British and General Heister's Hessian troops approached the Gowanus and Flatbush Passes, Howe took his main army on an all night march and in the early morning hours of August 27th, the Redcoats, were in position to launch an attack on the Americans.
At Gowanus Pass, 7,000 troops under General James Grant attacked 2,000 Colonial troops under Lord Stirling. At Flatbush Pass (now known as "Battle Pass") 5,000 Hessians led by General Heister skirmished with 1,00 Americans under John Sullivan. At the same time, General Howe, with 10,000 fast moving soldiers, came through Jamaica Pass. Many of the militiamen assigned there, including the Southampton Militia, had been sent away to escort cattle towards Hempstead. General Howe’s trained Redcoats easily overpowered the small remaining American force.
With no opposition, Howe fell upon the American left and rear, causing the American defensive line to collapse, threatening to entrap General Sullivan's and Lord Stirling's divisions. As the Americans retreated toward Brooklyn Heights, one of the battle’s bloodiest actions occurred. Lord Stirling ordered all of his troops, except a contingent of Maryland troops under the command of Major Mordecai Gist, to escape across Gowanus Creek. Stirling and Gist then led those Maryland soldiers, now known as the Maryland 400, in a desperate rearguard action. At one point Lord Stirling and the “Maryland 400” charged towards the Vechte–Cortelyou House (also known as the Old Stone House), trying to buy time for their comrades to escape. More than 256 Maryland men were killed and 100 captured, but the rest of Washington's army managed to retreat to safety. It was this fighting that inspired Washington to exclaim, "Good God, what brave fellows I must this day lose!".
By the nightfall of August 27th the Americans were trapped on Brooklyn Heights with the East River behind them. At this critical moment, Washington’s army could have been captured and the fight for independence lost in a single day. Although the Continental Army faced certain defeat, General Howe, fearful of a repeat of the bloody assault on Bunker Hill the year before, overruled his subordinates who argued for a renewed assault. Instead, he ordered his troops to dig in and prepare to lay siege to Washington's army. Washington, however, did not intend to remain in his exposed position. Two nights later, under the cover of a dense fog, he coordinated the army's retreat across the river to Manhattan, without the loss of a single soldier.
When the British approached the American lines the next morning, they found that the Americans were gone. It was a disastrous defeat for Washington in his first significant battle. However, he managed, through leadership and a lot of luck, to keep his army intact to fight another day.
Blog co-authored by Jack Metcalf, 2026 Southampton History Museum Intern.
The Southampton History Museum is commemorating the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence with an exclusive new exhibition, Stephen Sayre's American Revolution, along with special blog posts, lectures, gallery talks, and more! To learn more about Joseph Reed and his friendship with Southampton's Stephen Sayre, please visit the Southampton History Museum's exhibit.
On view June 12, 2026-January 2, 2027
