Forage War

Forage War
Part of the American Revolutionary War
New Jersey militia commander Philemon Dickinson
Date January–March 1777 Location New Jersey Result Indecisive American psychological victory
Belligerents
United States New Jersey militia	Great Britain Hessians
Commanders and leaders
George Washington William Maxwell Philemon Dickinson and others...	Charles Mawhood Johann Ewald and others...
Strength
Thousands of militia, several companies of regulars	10,000 (New Jersey garrison size)
Casualties and losses
Unknown	at least 954 killed, wounded or captured

 Great Britain

The Forage War was a partisan campaign consisting of numerous small skirmishes that took place in New Jersey during the American Revolutionary War between January and March 1777, following the battles of Trenton and Princeton. After both British and Continental Army troops entered their winter quarters in early January, Continental Army regulars and militia companies from New Jersey and Pennsylvania engaged in numerous scouting and harassing operations against the British and German troops quartered in New Jersey.

The British troops wanted to have fresh provisions to consume, and also required fresh forage for their draft animals and horses. General George Washington ordered the systematic removal of such supplies from areas easily accessible to the British, and companies of American militia and troops harassed British and German forays to acquire such provisions. While many of these operations were small, in some cases they became quite elaborate, involving more than 1,000 troops. The American operations were so successful that British casualties in New Jersey (including those of the battles at Trenton and Princeton) exceeded those of the entire campaign for New York.

In August 1776 the British army began a campaign to gain control over New York City, which was defended by George Washington's Continental Army. Over the next two months, General William Howe quickly gained control of New York, pushing Washington into New Jersey. He then chased Washington south toward Philadelphia. Washington retreated across the Delaware River into Pennsylvania, taking with him all the boats for miles in each direction. Howe then ordered his army into winter quarters, establishing a chain of outposts across New Jersey, from the Hudson River through New Brunswick to Trenton and Bordentown on the Delaware River. The occupation of New Jersey by British and German troops caused friction with the local communities and led to a rise in Patriot militia enlistments. As early as mid-December, these militia companies were harassing British patrols, leading to incidents like Geary's ambush, in which a dragoon leader was killed, and increasing the level of tension in the British and German quarters.

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