THE BATTLE OF STONY POINT (1779)
Anthony Wayne (Pastel by James Sharples, Sr., c. 1795)
WAYNE’S APPROACH TO STONY POINT
The year is 1779, the heat is intense, we’re two years from the end of the war and the colonists are starting to grow weary over whether this fight is worth it.
On July 16th, A group of highly trained men, hand-selected from Washington’s Continental Army are preparing to execute a coordinated & daring assault on a British outpost in Stony Point, NY— 30 miles north of current day New York City. Under the command of Brigadier General “Mad Anthony” Wayne, four regiments from the Corps of Light Infantry dispersed into various tactical positions to prepare for the nighttime attack— in addition to the four regiments, an artillery detachment was to man capture British field pieces. According to military doctrine at the time, the 1350 men was certainly not enough to take on a well-prepared defensive position like the British outpost they prepared to take.
Now, it is said that Washington gave Anthony Wayne specific instructions in order to achieve victory, but also allowed him permission to modify the plan as necessary. For Washington, it was unusual to do such a thing— this is a major indicator to how much faith he had in Wayne’s ABILITIES to command this attack. The men in the Corps of Light Infantry knew this was going to be a difficult attack. They had to scale the rocky sides of Stony Point while maintaining their element of surprise— all this in the dead of night while carrying unloaded muskets— YUP, EMPTY. To maintain silence, Americans would utilize only their bayonets. This was a tactic often used by the British Army— specifically against Anthony Wayne’s army at Paoli two years prior.
There was one exception to loaded weaponry— Two companies of the North Carolina light infantry were to stage a demonstration attack where the Brits expected an attack to come— Commanded by Maj. Hardy Murfee, this battalion was to lay down heavy fire as a diversionary tactic.
Prior to the attack, the men were given a rum ration and their orders— in addition, they were given pieces of white paper to keep pinned to their hats to tell each other from the British. The men began to move at 11:30 pm to their jump-off points, immediately dispersing to begin the assault at midnight. These men were led by groups of volunteer soldiers (nicknamed the “forlorn hope”) whose primary responsibility was to break holes in enemy defenses— along with their primary weapons, they were also armed with axes and picks. Bad weather on the night of the 16th proved helpful for the Continental Army. When cloud cover cut off the moonlight, high winds forced the British ships to leave their posts and move down river. The attack began at midnight— Unfortunately, Murfee’s force of men were spotted by the British after attempting to cross what they thought was much shallower water— they were then fired upon.
Wayne’s detachment, however, was successful in getting inside the British line of defenses even under hellfire. Wayne himself was struck in the head by a spent musket ball where he fell to the ground— this left his second in command, Col. Febiger to take over Wayne’s position. The two detachments of men penetrated the British line almost simultaneously. The stealth in which the Americans approached the Brits defenses proved successful— with the speed of men advancing up the slopes of the hill, the British cannons could not be lowered at enough of an angle to sufficiently assault them. The American victory at the Battle of Stony Point provided very little in tactical advantage, BUT it was a major victory for morale in the Continental Army.
When Wayne regained consciousness, and with a bullet still lodged in his HEAD, he insisted he write a dispatch to Washington— it read “The fort and garrison, with Colonel Johnston, are ours. Our officers and men behaved like men who are determined to be free”
The story of stony point has always inspired me. but the contents of that short letter has always served as a reminder to me— The spirit of those men isn’t dead, it’s been lingering for a long while— it’s INGRAINED into all of us. in every american home, and in every american heart. as we wind down the week long celebration that is the 4th of July, seriously take a second to read that & understand just how powerful it is.
“our officers and men behaved like men who are determined to be free.”
