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A History | Revolutionary War Timeline | Timeline: 1777
Timeline: 1777
January of 1777
January 1, 1777
- Hessian prisoners taken at Trenton marched through Philadelphia on this day.
- Cornwallis, who had been about to leave for England, rode 50 miles from New York to take command at
Princeton, NJ. The total troops camped there numbered 8,000; Washington at Trenton, commanded 5,000.
- Benjamin Franklin was appointed Commissioner to Spain, in addition to his duties in France.
January 2, 1777
- Cornwallis marched toward Trenton to attack Washington with 6,000 men. Washington's troops were in
great danger, backed up against the Delaware River. Their saving grace was Cornwallis' decision to wait
until the next day to finish the battle.
January 3, 1777
- During the early morning hours of this day, Washington and his troops attacked the British rear
guard at Princeton. Forty patriots and 275 British soldiers were killed during the battle. The Battle of
Princeton was vital to boosting Washington' prestige and American morale.
January 5, 1777
- General Leopold von Heister writes to Lord George Germain describing the defeat at Trenton.
January 6, 1777
- Georgia adopts its State Constitution.
- Washington moves into winter quarters at Morristown, NJ.
January 7, 1777
- Royal Governor to East Florida, Patrick Tonyn, wrote to Lord Germain that the estates of Sir James
Wright (Royal Governor of Georgia and South Carolina) and others had been seized in Georgia. A Battery
was also being built at Tybee Island, GA.
January 8, 1777
- British withdrew all forces from NJ except posts at W. Brunswick and Perth Amboy.
January 10, 1777
- An American shore battery drove away the British ship, HMS Cerberrus.
January 11, 1777
- The British Admiralty orders a convoy of ships with seven infantry battalions and a hospital ship to
the St. Lawrence River to establish British authority in Quebec.
January 12, 1777
- In Baltimore, Maryland, a public notice announces: "The necessity of taking all imaginable care
of those who may happen to be wounded in the country's cause, urges us to address our humane ladies,
to lend us their kind assistance in furnishing us with linen rags and old sheeting, for bandages...
January 13, 1777
- In anticipation of the departure of the British from Boston, the general order for the day in Cambridge
reads: "If upon the retreat of the enemy any person whatsoever, is detected in pillaging,... the severest
punishment will be his lot. The unhappy Inhabitants of that distress'd town have already suffer'd too
heavily from the Iron hand of Oppression!their Countrymen surely will not be base enough to add to
their misfortunes.
January 14, 1777
- British raid Prudence Island, Rhode Island.
January 15, 1777
- Congress requests authorities in Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey to hold their militias in readiness
to march in defense of New York.
January 16, 1777
- The Admiralty informs British Admiral Shuldham that American vessels are loading military supplies in three
Spanish ports: Corruna, St. Andro, and Bilbao.
January 17, 1777
- The British begin their evacuation of Boston.
January 18, 1777
- Washington visits Boston where he is impressed by the strength of the fortifications in the city. He writes
"that [t]he town, although it has suffered greatly, is not in so bad a state as I expected to find it."
January 19, 1777
- Washington's Quartermaster General estimates that the amount of booty recovered by the British
evacuation of Boston amounted to 25,000 or 30,000.
January 20, 1777
- General Clinton informs Georgia Governor Wright that he cannot protect loyalists in the province.
January 21, 1777
- General Howe reports that a combination of adverse factors led to the British evacuation of Boston: the
fortifications on Dorchester Heights, a lack of supplies and tonnage, the need to preserve his army,
and the non-strategic value of the city.
January 22, 1777
- The Acting Governor of the Bahamas writes that a rebel fleet removed the militia stores from two local
forts and kidnapped the Governor.
January 23, 1777
- The South Carolina Provincial Congress instructs its delegation in Philadelphia "to concert, agree
to, and execute, every measure," which it and the Continental Congress shall "judge necessary,
for the defence, security, interest or welfare of the Colony in particular, and America in general."
January 24, 1777
- In Paris, the Count de Vergennes, French Foreign Minister, directs his ambassador in London to deny
charges that French agents had met with Washington and the Continental Congress. In fact, two French
"merchants" had met Washington on December 14 and Congressional delegates on December 30, 1775.
January 25, 1777
- Congress votes to present their thanks and those of the colonies to Washington and his troops for their
"wise and spirited conduct in the siege and acquisition of Boston," and to give the General a gold
medal commemorating the event.
January 26, 1777
- The Provincial Congress of South Carolina approves a new constitution and government for the province.
The legislature is now the General Assembly of South Carolina; the group elects John Rutledge as
President, Henry Laurens as Vice President, and William Henry Drayton as Chief Justice.
January 27, 1777
- Upon the final departure of the British from Boston, Washington decides to send a brigade under
General Sullivan to New York.
January 28, 1777
- Congress appoints Jeremiah Dugan to command 300 rangers in Canada.
January 29, 1777
- Washington appoints Major General Putnam commander of the troops in New York; he is to concentrate on
the execution of all plans for the defense of the city and its waterways.
January 30, 1777
- In Jamaica, attorneys claim that American vessels and their crews captured by British warships prior to
January 1, 1776, when the Trade Prohibitory Act became effective could not be detained.
January 31, 1777
- Abigail Adams urges her husband John to "Remember the Ladies" in making laws for the new nation,
an important early plea for women's rights.
February of 1777
February 2-9, 1777
- Local patriots engage in skirmishes with Tories at Fort McIntosh, Georgia, and are forced to surrender the
fort following a two-day siege.
February 4, 1777
- Georgia adopts a new constitution.
February 27, 1777
- In Baltimore, Congress adjourns and makes plans to return to Philadelphia now that General Washington
has eliminated the British threat to the city.
March of 1777
March 8, 1777
- American troops under the command of Brigadier General William Maxwell defeat the British at Amboy,
New Jersey.
March 12, 1777
- Congress convenes in Philadelphia.
March 13, 1777
- Congress issues a call for qualified foreign military experts through its agents in Europe.
March 23-24, 1777
- American troops under the command of Brigadier General Alexander McDougall failed to stop British
raiders from destroying magazines and storehouses in Peekskill, New York. Lieutenant Colonel Marinus
Willett arrives with reinforcements from Fort Constitution and force a British withdrawal.
April of 1777
April 13, 1777
- A British expedition led by Cornwallis surprises American troops at Bound Brook, New Jersey. American
Major General Benjamin Lincoln and most of his 500 troops escape capture, although the artillery
detachment and its guns are seized by the British.
April 14, 1777
- Congress authorizes the establishment of what will become the Springfield Arsenal at Springfield,
Massachusetts.
April 16, 1777
- Congress encourages the state of Rhode Island to assemble troops to drive the British out of Newport.
April 17, 1777
- The Congressional Committee of Secret Correspondence becomes the Committee for Foreign Affairs.
April 20, 1777
- New York adopts a new constitution.
April 21-28, 1777
- British troops under the command of General William Tryon attack Danbury, Connecticut, where they
destroy houses, barns, storehouses, and more than 1,500 tents. As the British withdraw, they are
attacked by American forces under Generals Benedict Arnold, David Wooster, and Gold Silliman.
The outnumbered American troops are unable to stop the British who march through Ridgefield
and Compo Hill, Connecticut, en route to their ships at Long Island Sound.
May of 1777
May 1, 1777
- Arthur Lee replaces Benjamin Franklin as the United States' representative to the Spanish court.
May 2, 1777
- Patriots at Fort Henry, Virginia on the western frontier gladly receive 98 barrels of gunpowder courtesy of
Lieutenant William Linn who arrives from New Orleans.
May 6, 1777
- With his orders for an invasion of New York in hand, General Burgoyne arrives in Quebec to assume
command of British forces.
May 7, 1777
- Ralph Izard replaces Benjamin Franklin as the commissioner to the Grand Duke of Tuscany.
May 9, 1777
- Congress appoints William Lee as the United States' representative to Vienna and Berlin.
May 10, 1777
- The 42nd Highlanders repulse a surprise attack by American troops under the command of Major General
Adam Stephen at Piscatawy, New Jersey.
May 15, 1777
- American Colonel John Baker retrieves stolen horses from Indians at Sawpit Bluff, Florida.
May 17, 1777
- Almost one third of Colonel John Baker's 109 men are captured after Baker's troops are attacked by
Indians and British regulars at Thomas' Swamp, Florida. The Indians kill 15 of the captives before British
Colonel Augustine Prevost intervenes to stop the massacre.
May 23, 1777
- At Sag Harbor, New York, American troops under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Return Jonathan
Meigs capture several British vessels and burned supplies.
May 28, 1777
- In the opening move of the campaign of 1777, Washington marches from Morristown to Middlebrook
Valley.
June of 1777
June 14, 1777
- Congress adopts the "stars and stripes" flag composed of thirteen stars and thirteen stripes,
one for each of the original states, as the American flag.
June 17, 1777
- At Millstone (Somerset Courthouse) in New Jersey, a former prisoner-of-war Colonel Daniel Morgan and
his regiment harass entrenching British forces.
June 18, 1777
- Sir Henry Clinton and 16,000 men depart for New York City. Lafayette pursues him based on Washington's
previously arranged plan.
June 30, 1777
- General John Burgoyne's army begins to arrive near Fort Ticonderoga.
- British General William Howe leaves New Jersey for New York City and Staten Island. He intends to carry
out the plan to begin an offensive attack against Philadelphia.
July of 1777
July 1-4, 1777
- After a defeat by frontier militia, Cherokee Indians relinquish contested lands to North Carolina and
Virginia in the Treaty of Long Island.
July 5, 1777
- American Brigadier General Arthur St. Clair is not able to continue holding defense of Fort Ticonderoga
and evacuates leaving substantial supplies behind. During this time, the British occupy an undefended
Mount Defiance, which overlooks Fort Ticonderoga.
July 6, 1777
- The British now occupy Fort Ticonderoga and endanger the flight of St. Clair's army.
July 7, 1777
- Hessians and the British under command of German General Friedrich von Riedesel and British General
Simon Fraser defeat the retreating Americans at Hubbardton, Vermont. St. Clair is able to escape
British pursuit.
July 8, 1777
- Vermont (formerly New Connecticut) approves a written constitution as an independent republic, which
provides for manhood suffrage and the abolition of slavery.
- At Fort Anne, New York British forces capture boatloads of supplies as well as invalids of the
American rear guard retreating from Skenesboro. However, the British do not achieve their main
objective, which is to cut off the retreating American forces.
July 9, 1777
- New York elects its first governor George Clinton.
July 9-10, 1777
- William Barton, a militia officer, captures British General Richard Prescott in Newport, Rhode Island.
July 16, 1777
- A two-year operation against British shipping in European and eastern Atlantic waters begins when
American Captain Gustavus Conyngham ("The Dunkirk Pirate") departs from Dunkirk.
July 23, 1777
- British General William Howe departs from New York with 15,000 troops. This move perplexes
Washington due to his understanding of orders that British General Germain has given to John Burgoyne
as well as Howe.
July 26, 1777
- British Colonel Barry St. Leger's forces advance from Oswego to Albany to meet John Burgoyne's troops.
875 British, Tory, and Hessian troops as well as 1,000 Indians under the supervision of Joseph Brant are
involved in this advance.
July 27, 1777
- An advance party of Burgoyne's Indians near Fort Edward, New York, captures Loyalist Jane McCrea,
fiance of Lieutenant David Jones of Burgoyne's army. McCrea's death created an anti-British sentiment
among settlers in the region.
- Marquis de Lafayette and Baron Johann de Kalb arrive in Philadelphia. These men eventually become two
of the best of the foreign officers in the Continental army.
July 29, 1777
- General Philip Schuyler retreats down the Hudson River from Fort Edward, New York.
July 31, 1777
- To Congress's delight the Marquis de Lafayette volunteers to serve the Continental Army without pay.
August of 1777
August 2, 1777
- The HMS Renown is driven from Dutch Island Harbor by a Rhode Island battery.
August 4, 1777
- Horatio Gates replaces Phillip John Schuyler as Commander of the Northern Army.
August 6, 1777
- 800 of General Nicholas Herkimer's militiamen are ambushed as they attempt to relieve Fort Stanwix.
Herkimer is mortally wounded during this attempt.
August 10, 1777
- General Benedict Arnold offers to lead an expedition of 900 men from Stillwater to Fort Stanwix.
August 16, 1777
- British and Hessian forces are defeated at the Battle of Bennington, Vermont, which is fought entirely
in New York.
August 22, 1777
- British Colonel Barry St. Leger abandons Fort Stanwix for Canada as Arnold's forces approach.
August 25, 1777
- Washington marches toward Wilmington, Delaware, in an attempt to block the British advance
on Philadelphia.
September of 1777
September 1, 1777
- In what becomes known as McCulloch's leap, American Major Samuel McCulloch rides his horse down a
150-foot cliff to escape Fort Henry, Virginia, which is under siege by Indians. McCulloch escapes
across Wheeling Creek and leads reinforcements back to the fort, forcing the Indians to flee.
September 3, 1777
- At Iron Hill, Delaware, German jagers drive back American Brigadier General William Maxwell's Light
Infantry Brigade, which has been sent to delay Howe's advance.
September 11, 1777
- Howe outmaneuvers Washington at the Battle of Brandywine. Washington withdraws
toward Philadelphia.
September 13, 1777
- Burgoyne moves to the west bank of the Hudson.
September 15, 1777
- Congress offers a commission of major general to Baron de Kalb, who had threatened to sue Congress
for breach of contract after Congress failed to fulfill a contract between Kalb and Silas Deane
promising such a commission.
September 16, 1777
- A major battle is averted after torrential rain soaks the powder supplies of both American and British
troops at Warren Tavern, Pennsylvania.
September 17, 1777
- Congress prepares to leave Philadelphia as the British approach and grants Washington dictatorial powers
with full responsibility for conducting the war.
September 18, 1777
- Members of Congress flee west toward York, Pennsylvania, where they will remain until June, 1778.
- The Liberty Bell is relocated from Phildelphia to Allentown, Pennsylvania.
September 18-24, 1777
- American troops under the command of Colonel John Brown capture 300 British troops on the west
shore of Lake George, New York.
September 19, 1777
- At the First Battle of Saratoga, Bourgoyne's forces are repulsed largely thanks to efforts by Benedict
Arnold and Daniel Morgan. When General Gates and Benedict Arnold clash over strategy, Gates
removes Arnold as second-in-command.
September 20-21, 1777
- British troops under the command of Major General Charles Grey defeat General Anthony Wayne in a
surprise attack at Paoli, Pennsylvania in what becomes known as the "Paoli Massacre."
September 24, 1777
- Colonel John Brown leads his troops on a raid against a British post south of Fort Ticonderoga, and
although the Americans fail to recapture the fort, they do obtain important information regarding
Burgoyne's provisions.
September 25, 1777
- Brigadier General Thomas Conway complains to Congress about his commanding officer, General William
Alexander, Lord Stirling.
September 26, 1777
- British forces occupy Philadelphia.
September 30, 1777
- Congress convenes for one day at York, Pennsylvania, then adjourns.
October of 1777
October 3, 1777
- In an attempt to help General Burgoyne, General Clinton begins an expedition up the Hudson River
towards Albany.
October 4, 1777
- Although the Americans suffer high casualties and their attack is repulsed, Washington's assault on
Howe's encampment at Germantown, Pennsylvania, is considered a psychological success because
of its boldness.
October 6, 1777
- As the proceed up the Hudson, British forces under General Clinton capture Forts Clinton
and Montgomery.
October 7, 1777
- Benedict Arnold assumes command of the troops in spite of Gates's orders and repulses Burgoyne in the
Second Battle of Saratoga.
- Congress decides that each state will have one vote in the new national legislature under the Articles
of Confederation.
October 8, 1777
- Desperate for food and ammunition, Burgoyne retreats.
October 9, 1777
- General Clinton receives Burgoyne's appeal for help but makes not attempt to fight through to Saratoga.
October 11, 1777
- Continuing his pattern of disparaging his commanding officers, Thomas Conway sends Gates a letter
suggesting that Washington should be relieved of his duties as commander-in-chief and Gates
should be appointed as his replacement.
October 13, 1777
- Gates accepts Burgoyne's request for a cessation of hostilities.
October 16, 1777
- Clinton's troops burn the town of Esopus, New York, thinking the action will divert American attention
away from Bourgoyne.
October 17, 1777
- Burgoyne surrenders. The American victory at Saratoga assures French aid to the American cause.
- Congress establishes a Board of War consisting of three individuals who were not members of Congress.
October 22, 1777
- An American garrison at Fort Mercer, New Jersey, repels an attack by Hessian troops.
- After failing to receive requested reinforcements, General Howe asks that he be relieved of command.
October 23, 1777
- American artillery at Fort Mifflin, Pennsylvania, inflicts severe damage on the British fleet as it moves up
the river from Delaware Bay.
November of 1777
November 2, 1777
- The USS Ranger, under the command of John Paul Jones, leaves Portsmouth, New Hampshire for France.
November 3, 1777
- Washington is informed that a conspiracy is afoot to discredit him with Congress and have him replaced
by General Gates.
November 6, 1777
- A British ship runs aground at Point Judith, Rhode Island, and is captured by American forces.
November 15, 1777
- American troops evacuate Fort Mifflin, Pennsylvania, following a six-day bombardment by the British fleet.
- Congress adopts the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union.
November 17, 1777
- Congress submits the Articles of Confederation to the states for ratification.
November 20-22, 1777
- American forces at Fort Mercer, New Jersey, evacuate as the British fleet prepares to begin a naval
bombardment. The Delaware River is now open to the British as far as Philadelphia.
November 22, 1777
- In its first fiscal requisition, Congress requests that the states submit payments to support the war effort in
paper money.
November 25, 1777
- Lafayette and his 300 troops win a skirmish with a larger force of Hessians at Gloucester, New Jersey.
November 27, 1777
- Congress recommends that the states confiscate the estates of loyalist sympathizers noting that such
residents had "forfeited the right to protection."
November 28, 1777
- After the judgement and loyalty of Silas Deane is called into question, Congress appoints John Adams to
succeed Deane as the commissioner to France.
December of 1777
December 2, 1777
- The USS Ranger, under the command of John Paul Jones, arrives in Nantes, France.
December 5-8, 1777
- Howe withdraws to Philadelphia after briefly following a British raiding force to Whitemarsh, Chestnut Hill,
and Edge Hill.
December 6, 1777
- French Foreign Minister Comte Charles G. de Vergennes responds positively to the American suggestions
of a military alliance in the wake of the American victory at Saratoga.
December 10, 1777
- An American raid by Colonel Samuel B. Webb and his regiment on Long Island, New York, is foiled by
British ships. Webb and his regiment are captured.
December 11, 1777
- Washington begins moving his troops from Whitemarsh to Valley Forge for the winter.
- Cornwallis clashes with the main American army, en route to Valley Forge, and then captures over 2,000
sheep and cattle at Gulph's Mill, Pennsylvania.
- Washington delays the march to Valley Forge for several days.
December 13, 1777
- In response to the "Conway Cabal," an action by the followers of Brigadier General Thomas Conway,
Congress establishes the Inspector General Department in the Continental Army.
December 14, 1777
- Congress names Thomas Conway Inspector General.
December 15, 1777
- American representatives in Paris begin negotiations with British agent Paul Wentworth, whom Ben
Franklin considers unsavory and two-faced. The negotiations with Wentworth prove fruitless, although
the motivate the French conclude an alliance with the Americans.
December 19, 1777
- Washington and the Continental Army set up winter quarters at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.
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