After the Battle of Brandywine, British Gen. Howe managed to outflank Gen. Washington and make his way into Philadelphia. Nevertheless, Washington was not willing to allow Howe to remain in Philadelphia unmolested. Early on the morning of October 4th, Washington's troops attacked the British troops in Germantown. There were 8,000 troops bivouacked there, and Washington's plans called for a simultaneous attack by four converging forces. The Americans planned to attack without firing, but shooting broke out very quickly from both sides. The air around Germantown that early October morning was laden with a fog so thick that American troops soon began firing on each other. Coordination between the various attacking forces became impossible. As American forces fired on one another, Howe counterattacked. The initiative moved to the British and the American forces were forced to withdraw.
