Wednesday, June 26 (7:00 pm) – Saturday, June 29, 2019 (5:00pm)
Led by: Mark Edward Lender & Garry Wheeler Stone
HQ: East Windsor, New Jersey
Tour Registration: $495.00
The year 1778 was a pivotal turning point in British strategy as London revised its effort to crush the American rebellion. The British decided to abandon Philadelphia, which they had occupied since September 1777, and de-emphasize the war in the northern colonies. Instead the British would redeploy much of its army to other parts of the empire and to the American South, where they hoped the local Loyalist population would rally to support the redcoats. First, however, the British needed to get their army from Philadelphia to New York. The Royal Navy lacked the shipping to transport all of Lt. Gen. Henry Clinton’s troops, animals, and equipment as well as throngs of fearful Tories—so on 18 June Clinton and some 20,000 British, Hessian, and loyalist troops, along with many civilians, prepared to march across New Jersey to New York City. Emerging from Valley Forge, George Washington’s Continental Army gave chase, and on 28 June the rival forces clashed on a blistering hot day at Monmouth Court House (now Freehold) in central New Jersey. The Battle of Monmouth was the longest single day of combat of the war—an engagement with profound political implications for the patriot cause and for General Washington personally.
On Day One we will explore some lesser known but nonetheless important sites associated with the marches of the American and British armies. The Continentals had crossed into New Jersey at Coryell’s Ferry, modern Lambertville, and on 24 June had arrived at Baptist Meetinghouse, now the town of Hopewell. It was at Hopewell that Washington convened one of the most important councils of war of the entire struggle for independence. Out of it came the decision to move south to confront Sir Henry Clinton, then some forty miles away at Freehold. And out of it also came the seeds of discord between Washington and his second-in-command, Maj. Gen. Charles Lee. The original Baptist church is still here, as is the house in which the council took place. The Signer John Hart, who arranged campsites for the Continentals, is buried in the churchyard. Next, we follow the army south with stops in Rocky Hill, Princeton, Bordentown and Crosswicks—both of which saw vicious skirmishing between patriots and redcoats—and on through the British march to Allentown and back to Freehold.
Day Two we will spend on the battle itself. The action began on the morning of the 28th as Charles Lee led the rebel vanguard forward, only to meet a massive British counter-attack. Our first stop will be the new Visitor Center atop Comb’s Hill (where Nathanael Greene posted his artillery later in the day) to get an overview of the action. Then the bus will take onto the field itself, where we will see the approximate site of Washington’s famed encounter with Lee, following which we will walk to the Hedgerow, the scene of Lee’s delaying action and some of the most brutal fighting of the war. Later we will visit the Tennent Church, the churchyard of which served as a patriot filed hospital and now holds the grave of Lt. Col. Henry Monckton of the British Grenadiers, the senior British officer killed in action. We will walk the American artillery positions on Perrine’s Hill, survey the terrain of Washington’s afternoon counter-attacks, and visit the local spring linked to the Molly Pitcher legend. A final stop in Freehold will take us to the battle monument.
Day Three will focus on the British retreat from Freehold to Sandy Hook. After leaving some forty wounded men in an Anglican church in Freehold, Clinton led his men to Nut Swamp, now the site of revealing battlefield archaeology, where he met his baggage train and the troops of Hessian Lt. Gen. Wilhelm von Knyphausen. The reunited army then moved on to Sandy Hook, and we will follow its march. The Hook was a haven for loyalists throughout the war, and we will see the original lighthouse (one of the oldest in the country) that Tories maintained during the conflict. In addition to its role in the Revolution, however, Sandy Hook played a military role from the War of 1812 through the Cold War—the various facilities of old Fort Hancock are fascinating.
Tour participants are encouraged to read Fatal Sunday: George Washington, the Monmouth Campaign, and the Politics of Battle by Mark Edward Lender and Garry Wheeler Stone prior to the tour.
What’s included: motor coach transportation, three lunches, beverage and snack breaks, a map and materials package, all admissions and gratuities, and the services of two experienced tour guides and historians. Tour participants are responsible for transportation to the headquarters hotel, and securing a room reservation, if necessary. Dinner is on your own. Tour goes out rain or shine. Please see our policy page for information about cancellations
Hotel: We have arranged with the headquarters hotel for a group rate of $159.00 per night plus tax (double or single occupancy) which includes a complimentary hot and cold buffet breakfast. Our hotel will be the Hampton Inn and Suites, 384 Monmouth Street, East Windsor, NJ 08520. To make a reservation, please call the hotel at 609-426-1600 and tell them you are with America’s History LLC. This rate is guaranteed until May 25. If you have any problems, please contact Bruce Venter at 703-785-4373.
Our Tour Guides/Historians: Dr. Mark Edward Lender and Dr. Garry Wheeler Stone are retired academic and State Park Service historians respectively and co-authors of the multi-award-winning Fatal Sunday: George Washington, the Monmouth Campaign, and the Politics of Battle. The book is now recognized as the definitive history of the Battle of Monmouth. Both historians are widely published and recognized as authorities in early American history. Lender is professor emeritus of history at Kean University, from which he retired as vice president for academic affairs in 2011. Stone served as a historian in the New Jersey State Park system from 1990 to 2015, including many years conducting historical, cartographical, and archaeological research at Monmouth Battlefield State Park. His is currently writing a volume on the Battle of Gloucester (1777) for Westholme Press. Lender has recently completed Cabal! The Plot against General George Washington: The Conway Cabal Reconsidered, also for Westholme. Both Stone and Lender are recipients of the Richard J. Hughes Award, the highest distinction conferred by the New Jersey Historical Commission.
Register Online: $495.00
Register by phone, e-mail or postal mail:
- Phone: 1-703-785-4373
- Email us at: info@AmericasHistoryLLC.com
- Postal mail: America’s History LLC, P. O. Box 1076, Goochland, VA 23063
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