Council of War, 1 April 1780
Council of War
[Morristown, 1 April 1780
At a Council of War held at Head-Quarters at Morris Town the 1st of April 1780.
| Major Generals | Brigadier Generals | |
| Lord Stirling | Clinton | |
| St Clair | Maxwell | |
| De Kalb | Knox | |
| Hand | ||
| Huntington | ||
| Gist |
The General states to the Council that since they met on the 27th of last month,1 he has received further accounts from New York, which appear authentic, that Lord Rawdon’s Brigade, said to consist of his own Regiment & of Brown’s, Fannings & another Corps; also Two Hessian Regiments & the 42d & another British Regiment, estimated at about 2500 rank & file, were preparing to embark and it was generally believd to reinforce the Army under Sir Henry Clinton at the Southward.2 Under this information, and supposing that this embarkation should actually take place—The General requests the Council to advise him, whether a Detachment & to what amount should be sent from this Army to re-info⟨rce in⟩ the Southern States & at what period they should commence their march.
We would advise under a further & a full consideration of all circumstances, in case the above mentioned detachment of the Enemy is made from New York or one nearly equal to it, that about Two Thousand Men should be sent from hence to reinforce the Southern States. Their movement to be proceded by the sailing of the Enemy’s detachment.3
| James Clinton B. Gl | Stirling M.G. | |
| Wm Maxwell B.G. | Ar. St Clair M. Gl | |
| H. Knox B.G. Artillery | The Baron de Kalb M. Gl | |
| Edwd Hand B.G. | ||
| J. Huntington B.G. | ||
| M. Gist B.G. |
DS, in Robert Hanson Harrison’s writing, DLC:GW; Varick transcript, DLC:GW. Obscured material on the signed document has been supplied in angle brackets from the Varick transcript.
1. See Council of War, 27 March.
2. For an instance of this intelligence, which accurately placed Lt. Col. Francis Rawdon-Hastings with an enemy reinforcement sailing south, see Johann Kalb’s second letter to GW, 29 March, found at Kalb’s first letter to GW, same date, source note. Edmund Fanning and Montfort Browne, British officers who commanded Loyalist units, did not accompany this contingent.
3. GW acted on the council of war’s recommendation to seek authorization from Congress to dispatch the Maryland division and Delaware Regiment to the southern department (see GW to Samuel Huntington, 2 April; see also GW to Mordecai Gist, same date, and the notes to that document, and GW to Kalb, same date, and the source note to that document). For approval from Congress, see Huntington to GW, 6 April, and n.2 to that document.