It was Christmas, 1776, a desperate time for General George Washington and what was left of his Continental Army. From a high point of 30,000 men he had only 2,500 left.
The decline began in August when the British and the mercenary Hessian troops had routed Washington from Long Island and then pushed them out of Manhattan as well. Washington was forced to retreat to New Jersey and by December they had given that up and crossed into Pennsylvania. The British occupied New Jersey, Rhode Island, and New York. To the British is appeared that the rebellion had been crushed and the remnants would soon be rounded up.
Washington’s troops were demoralized and battered. Many of them didn’t even have shoes and instead had burlap sacks wrapped around their feet to try to keep them warm. Washington knew that he had to act quickly before the remnants of his forces fell apart or were killed by the harsh winter so, on Christmas night, he and his forces attempted the most daring attack that they had ever tried, they crossed the ice swollen Delaware river nine miles north of Trenton, New Jersey to attack the Hessian forces that occupied the town.
The weather during the crossing was horrendous; raging winds, snow, sleet and rain created almost impossible conditions, but they crossed anyway and then marched the nine miles south to Trenton. Remember, many of these men, if not most, had no shoes and they marched through blizzard like conditions. These were men who knew what they were fighting for and were willing to suffer the hardships that came with it.
The next morning, December 26th, Washington’s troops attached and overran the Hessian troops who surrendered when their commanding officer was killed. The Continental army then retraced their path and withdrew back across the Delaware taking their prisoners with them.
This was the turning point in the revolution. In its darkest hour when all hope seemed lost and defeat was inevitable, rough men stood forth and grabbed victory for all of us and galvanized the spirit of the Colonies by showing the people that they could win. After this battle the ranks of the Continental swelled and the stunned British army realized they had a fierce opponent who would not go down in defeat quietly.
I write this because it reminded me that while we now face a different enemy that is attempting to rewrite our Constitution and slowly strip us of our right to self determination and freedom from government dictates, mandates and meddling, all is not lost. They may seem to have the upper hand now by controlling Congress and the White House but if we hold strong and fight on we can, and will, be victorious.
Out here on the left coast I encounter so many people on the left who hate anyone or anything that is different than they are. But there is one thing about hate that I have learned, it eats you up and burns you out. The far left tries to claim ownership of the crown of acceptance and diversity because they talk about it all the time, but I learned something from my old martial arts instructor on this matter. Those who practice what they preach don’t need to talk about it because their example will show.
We will win because the left’s ideas are hollow, their compassion false, and we have a better way. Keep the faith my brothers and sisters in God and in the military. We are Americans and we will not go quietly. Don’t despair and don’t be afraid. That’s their weapons, that’s what they want. Look at their ads, look at how they attack anyone who disagrees – hate, fear, cries of racism. No, we are better than this and we will win.
God bless you all.
