men. As part of the larger British army under
Gen. William Howe, Knyphausen formed a
rear guard during the last phases of the suc-
cessful New York campaign. The American
army under Gen. George Washington had been
trounced repeatedly and driven from New
York City save for a large earthwork called
Fort Washington on the northern tip of Man-
hattan Island. On November 16, 1776, Howe
ordered Knyphausen to storm the work,
which was strongly posted upon rugged, ele-
vated terrain and guarded by riflemen. Un-
daunted, Knyphausen formed his men into
two assault columns, one under Col. Johann
Ralland the other under himself, and led
them, sword in hand, up the slopes. Accurate
rifle fire shot down scores of Germans, and the
general worked at tearing down parts of the
palisade with his bare hands before a final
charge carried the outer work. Other British
forces under Gen. Hugh Percy also made
their appearance. At this point the American
commander, Col. Robert Magaw, parleyed for
terms. Knyphausen reputedly displayed no
emotion as he accepted Magaw’s surrender
but calmly took out his pipe and smoked. Hes-
sian troops, however, were angered by their
losses, but the general forbade any atrocities
against the prisoners. The fall of Fort Washing-
ton was one of the biggest disasters to befall
the Americans thus far, for they lost 2,800 pris-
oners, along with vast quantities of supplies.
The Hessians, by comparison, suffered 58
killed and 202 wounded. Howe was so im-
pressed by this performance that he ordered
the post christened Fort Knyphausen to honor
its conqueror.
Knyphausen remained in New York and
played no role in the pursuit of Washington’s
army into New Jersey, which culminated in
the surprise American victory at Trenton
around Christmas. Rall’s Hessian brigade was
surprised and captured, which led General
Howe to press for the retirement of General
Heister. By the summer of July 1777,
Knyphausen had replaced Heister as com-
mander in New York by Gen. Henry Clinton,
and he ventured to Philadelphia as part of
Howe’s army. He bore a conspicuous part in
the victory at Brandywine on October 10,
1777, by pinning Washington’s army frontally
while a detachment under Gen. Charles
Cornwallisturned the American flank. Ever
the disciplinarian, he also took strong mea-
sures to prevent Hessian troops from plunder-
ing the hapless citizenry. His pluck in battle
and competence in management also ren-
dered him one of few foreign generals trusted
and respected by the British. Howe’s army
subsequently occupied Philadelphia, and,
over the winter, Knyphausen occupied the
house of American general John Cadwalader.
By the time the British evacuated the city
eight months later, Knyphausen allowed Cad-
walader’s agent to carefully inventory the
house for missing items prior to his depar-
ture. A thorough check turned up nothing
gone, and the elderly general then compen-
sated his host by paying rent for the time in-
volved. In such a manner did Knyphausen be-
come a respected figure among both his allies
and enemies.
As the British evacuated Philadelphia in
August 1778, a major battle was fought at
Monmouth, New Jersey, but Knyphausen was
not closely engaged. Thereafter, and until the
end of the war, he was headquartered at New
York City as General Clinton’s second in com-
mand. Over the course of the next few
months, he participated in many large-scale
raids against Patriot outposts, and Clinton,
like Howe before him, came to trust his mili-
tary judgment implicitly. Knyphausen was one
of few foreigner leaders allowed to attend
high-level councils of war, and when Clinton
departed for Charleston, South Carolina,
Knyphausen succeeded him as commander of
the New York region. He was the only Hessian
officer of this war so honored.
During his tenure as commander, Knyp-
hausen was bombarded by advice by his sub-
ordinate, former Governor William Tryon,
who convinced him that Loyalist sympathies
in neighboring New Jersey were deeper than
they actually were. In May 1780, the general
was also told that Washington’s army was ex-KNYPHAUSEN, WILHELMVON