George Washington - Crossing the Delaware December 25, 1776

 After driving the British from Boston in March 1776, George Washington then faced the refurbished British in New York City and surrounding areas.  The continentals were handed several humiliating defeats and were then themselves forced to abandon the NYC area, seeking in neighboring New Jersey. 

Washington then devised a daring attack on Hessian mercenaries in winter camp in Trenton, New Jersey set to take place on Christmas day 1776.  The bold move paid off, and Washington's continental forces took the Hessians by surprise in the early morning, winning a resounding, morale boosting victory.

To pull off this attack, Washington's forces had to cross the Delaware River, overnight on Christmas Eve, so very much in winter conditions with ice flows crowding the river making the crossing all the more risky. This event has been dramatically depicted in several highly recognized pieces.

Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

While this painting strikingly shows this crossing, it suffers from many historical inaccuracies. Notably, the boat is of the wrong shape, the craft used were called "Durham" boats which are long, double ended, and canoe shaped.  (Visit the Washington Crossing Historic Park article titled "Where Did Washington Get the Durham Boats Used in the Crossing?" for more information on this type of craft.) The Stars and Strips flagged shown was not yet authorized by Congress. And Washington's cinematic pose would have been impractical given the icy conditions of the crossing.

Source: Museum of Fine Arts Boston

For Clark Kinnaird, the above painting, by Thomas Sully, produced in 1819, is a better representation of this stirring event. Several engravings have been made of this painting as well, shown below.

Source: Library of Congress

Source: Library Company of Philadelphia

Commemorative print after Thomas Sully's 1819 painting "Washington's Passage of the Delaware." Depicts General Washington astride his horse atop the barren bank of the Delaware River. He tips his hat and acknowledges his troops below, who cross the river by barge. To the left of Washington, white men soldiers move a cannon. In the right are several soldiers on horseback, including Prince Whipple, enslaved African American man and bodyguard to Washington Aide, General William Whipple.