Page:The Hessians and the other German auxiliaries of Great Britain in the revolutionary war.djvu/295

 Rh of the second battalion of English guards, and two 6-pounders were taken. The First Maryland regiment and Colonel Washington's cavalry charged the guards, drove them back in confusion, and recaptured the guns. Then Lieutenant Macleod of the British artillery opened fire with two 3-pounders on friend and foe alike. Washington's dragoons were checked, Webster advanced again and was supported by a part of Leslie's division, and General Greene drew off his army, abandoning his artillery, whose horses had been shot.

The Hessians engaged in this battle were a detachment of chasseurs and the Regiment von Bose. This regiment was on the right of the British line. It was opposed throughout the action to the riflemen under Lee and Campbell, who attacked it with great determination, both in front and rear. In this position the regiment behaved with great valor, and, at one time, relieved the first battalion of English guards, which had been thrown into confusion. A decisive share in the victory is claimed for the Hessian regiment by Eelking and Bancroft. This share can hardly be conceded to it, but the soldiers, and Lieutenant-colonel du Puy, who commanded them, deserved the favorable mention in despatches which they obtained from Lord Cornwallis.

The whole engagement lasted about two hours. The total loss of the British was five hundred and thirty-two, of whom eighty belonged to the Regiment von Bose. Cornwallis was so crippled by his victory