mishandled his assignment that defeat had to
be literally snatched from the jaws of disaster.
Percy himself was also taken aback by the
sheer ferocity of the colonial militia. “Who-
ever looks upon them as an irregular mob will
find himself much mistaken,” he wrote. “For
my part, I never believed, I confess, that they
would have attacked the King’s troops or have
had the perseverance I found them in yester-
day.” Having concluded a masterful retreat
under fire, Percy was roundly praised by Gage
in his official reports, and he was promoted to
major general as of July 11, 1775. However,
Percy proved less amiable toward Gage’s new
subordinate, Gen. William Howe, and was ei-
ther ill or unwilling to participate in the Battle
of Bunker Hill that June. There the Fifth Regi-
ment was badly shot up during a series of
frontal assaults against militia in prepared po-
sitions. In the wake of that disaster, Percy fur-
ther distinguished himself by the humanity he
displayed toward his wounded soldiers. Fur-
thermore, he paid for all transportation to
ship the regiment’s widows home and granted
them a small cash endowment to resettle
back in England. It was a kindness seldom
seen in this war.
Percy subsequently accompanied Howe,
who had succeeded Gage, to Halifax following
the evacuation of Boston. Once reinforced,
Howe invaded Long Island, New York, and
Percy was entrusted with a division of the
army’s right wing. Apparently, he agreed with
the decision not to assail the formidable colo-
nial defenses on Brooklyn Heights and favored
the less costly strategy of maneuver. At length
the Americans under Gen. George Washington
were entirely driven out of New York, save for
Fort Washington on Upper Manhattan. On No-
vember 16, 1776, Percy commanded a division
that helped capture Fort Washington in concert
with Hessian forces under Col. Wilhelm von
Knyphausen. He helped overcome desperate
resistance and was allegedly the first man of his
division in the American works. For this action
he received a promotion to lieutenant general.
Despite these successes, Percy remained
at odds with Howe over the conduct of the
war. Not surprisingly, he next found himself
sent away on an expedition to Rhode Island
with another unpopular figure, Gen. Henry
Clinton, in December 1776. He then assumed
command of Newport when Clinton returned
to England for the winter. In January 1777, an-
other dispute with Howe arose over the ques-
tion of available forage for his army in New
Jersey. Percy was highly offended when
Howe took the word of a logistics officer over
his own and then officially admonished him.
As it turned out, the major was incorrect in
his estimates, and the reprimand was unwar-
ranted. Percy, perhaps suffering from gout,
was irascibly disposed toward his superior
and requested permission to leave. Howe was
more than willing to rid himself of a difficult
subordinate, and Percy departed America in
May 1777, never to return. Considering his ob-
vious military talents, his premature removal
was a genuine loss to the British war effort.
Back home, Percy settled in as the new
Duke of Newcastle following the death of his
father in 1784, and he began dabbling in poli-
tics. He also pursued military affairs part-
time, and in 1784 he accepted command of
the Second Troop of Horse Grenadier Guards,
the future Second Life Guards Regiment. By
1793, he had advanced to full general and
commander of the Percy Tenantry, a militia
regiment raised from his sprawling estates.
However, he was beset by health problems
and an irritable temperament, both of which
limited his participation in political and mili-
tary circles. For the most part, Percy took sol-
ace in his role as a benevolent landowner who
was very generous with his subjects, treated
them kindly, and enjoyed great local popular-
ity. He died in Northumberland on July 10,
1817, the hero of Concord and one of the most
underrated British commanders of the Ameri-
can Revolution.Bibliography
Babinski, Mark. Notes on C.J. Sauthier and Lord Percy.
Garwood, NJ: Krinder Peak, 1997; Birnbaum, Louis.
Red Dawn at Lexington: “If They Mean to Have aPERCY, HUGH