Page:The Hessians and the other German auxiliaries of Great Britain in the revolutionary war.djvu/132

 114 began in consequence of which Lieutenant-general von Heister was recalled from the command of the Hessian troops, and Lieutenant-general von Knyphausen succeeded him. The recall was insisted on by Lord Suffolk on the ground that Sir William Howe was not satisfied with Heister. How far Sir William's dislike may have been caused by purely personal reasons, or how far the suspicion may be justified that Heister was too “regardful of the preservation of the troops under his command,” it is perhaps now impossible to determine. But we know that Howe was dissatisfied with Heister before the affair at Trenton, at a time when the English losses had been decidedly heavier than the Hessian. Heister had, by the treaty between the King of England and the Landgrave, a right to the immediate command of about one half of Sir William Howe's army. The stipulations of the treaty were sufficiently indefinite to have given rise to many questions. Heister is said to have been unruly. At any rate, he did not get on well with his commanding officer. This should have been a sufficient reason for recalling him.

The English government preferred not to appear openly in the matter, and the recall was made by the Landgrave on the ground of Heister's health and age, and only “for a time.” It was well understood, however, that the old general was going off in disgrace. To Knyphausen the Landgrave writes: “Nothing but the entire neglect of all order and discipline can have brought this shame [of Trenton] upon us. I think it very necessary to speak with Lieutenant-general von Heister on the subject, and his health is, moreover, not