Preparing For His First Meeting With the Count de Rochambeau, An Optimistic Gen. George Washington Arranges For Pilots to Guide Vessels Into New York Harbor For a Planned-On Joint U.S./French Attack on British-Held New York

Letters of Washington mentioning Rochambeau by name are extremely rare, this being our first in all these years

By 1780, the Revolutionary War had been grinding on for five long years. Neither the British Army with their loyalist supporters, nor the Continental Army in conjunction with local militias, were strong enough to attain a final victory. Suffering was widespread on all sides as the conflict degenerated into a vacillating stalemate. Washington’s northern army spent the winter near Morristown, New Jersey. It was one of the worst winters on record. Extreme cold and heavy snow had made life miserable for the Continental troops; and shortages of food, clothing, and pay had brought the ranks to the point of rebellion. In the spring of 1780, the northern army had dwindled to about 3,500 men.

In April, Sir Henry Clinton moved half the British army south from their base in New York City. Washington responded by sending part of his remaining forces to reinforce his southern army. Nevertheless, Charleston fell to the British resulting in the greatest loss of American arms and men at any time during the war. While the British, with the support of their Navy, were able to take and control major cities, they were unable to destroy Washington’s army or break the back of the rebellion. An attempt to penetrate New Jersey and capture Washington’s Headquarters at Morristown in June of 1780 ended in defeat when a combined force of Continental and militia forces routed the British at the battles of Connecticut Farms and Springfield.

On May 4, 1778, the alliance between France and the new United States of America had become effective. The Americans had high hopes for this venture, but those hopes were initially dashed. The French sent a fleet under Admiral d’Estaing in the summer of 1778; but after failing to encounter the British in the Chesapeake Bay and making unsuccessful moves at New York and Newport, it abandoned the offensive. However, the French were determined to play a role in the outcome of the American War, and planned to send a significant number of troops and ships for a future campaign. The experienced General, the Count de Rochambeau, was appointed to command the army that was destined to support the Americans, and on May 2, 1780, he sailed for the US. But Washington, who had been disappointed by the French before, was left to anxiously anticipate their actual arrival. He hoped for a late-summer or fall 1780 campaign; his plan: a joint Franco-American assault against British-held New York. But when would the French arrive? Would they, in fact, arrive at all? Washington believed that the fate of the Revolution would in large part hinge on the answers to these questions.

On July 11, 1780, the French army of 5,300 men and 450 officers with Rochambeau in command landed in Newport, Rhode Island. Washington was overjoyed by their arrival. He would serve as the commander of the allied armies, of course, but he knew that Rochambeau had the military expertise to play a vital role in strategic planning. After the French had settled in, Washington arranged to meet personally with Rochambeau in Hartford, Connecticut, on the 20th of September, to discuss plans of attack and lobby for prompt action. It was known that Rochambeau was reluctant to act against the British without the support of the French Navy, which was being held in the Caribbean to protect French interests. But Washington was an aggressive general, and was hopeful, even confident, that the allies could attack New York before winter set in.

As the meeting approached, Washington set about preparing for the hoped-for attack on New York. On September 13, 1780, he wrote Rochambeau, saying: ”Should the [Admiral] Count De Guichen arrive before the end of this month, I still recommend New York to be our object; and in this view, I cannot forbear repeating to you how essential it is, that the fleet should instantly proceed to take possession of the port, and that your troops should as soon as possible form a junction with ours by way of the Sound. The former is in my opinion the most critical point of the operation, and the advanced period of the season increases the necessity of dispatch in the execution.” That same day he wrote Nehemiah Hubbard in Connecticut, telling him, “I have made an appointment to meet the Count de Rochambeau and the Chevalier de Ternay, who will be accompanied by the commanding officers…in the French Army at Hartford on the 20th…You will be pleased to provide the best quarters which the town affords…”

Captain William Henry Dobbs was a sea captain, privateer, and New York Harbor pilot based at Fishkill, New York. He had lived a colorful life as a mariner in the colonial period, and served Washington as a pilot and informal spy during the Revolution. He also helped enlist other American pilots to guide French vessels in what were, to the French, unfamiliar waters. Daniel Shaw was a pilot based in Connecticut who also assisted Washington. Assuming he would need experienced harbor pilots in the immediate future to guide the French Navy into New York, Washington wrote Dobbs instructing him to be ready to move at a moment’s notice.

Letter Signed, Headquarters, Bergen County, New Jersey, September 13, 1780, to Dobbs, text written in the hand of Robert Hanson Harrison, containing these instructions for both Dobbs and Shaw. “Sir, By a variety of Accounts received through different channels and which from the correspondence between them appear to be probably true—it would seem as if Your & Captain Shaw’s services may be again called for, and in the course of a very few days—if not immediately. I wish You to keep the matter an entire secret; but at the same time that you will be in readiness to proceed to Rhode Island on the shortest notice, either from Myself—Count de Rochambeau—or the Chevalier de Ternay. I inclose a letter for Captn. Shaw to the same effect, which You will be pleased to forward to him. I am Sir With esteem Yr Most Obed. St., G.Washington.”

When Rochambeau met with Washington, the latter again stated his desire to attack New York City. But Rochambeau demurred, insisting on waiting for the French Navy to arrive for a Spring 1781 campaign. Washington had to accept Rochambdau’s opinion that French forces had arrived too late in the campaign season, and with too many sick, to embark on any military action in the immediate future. Neither was the Continental Army ready for large-scale military action. That action occurred in 1781, and led to the the victory at Yorktown.

Letters of Washington mentioning Rochambeau by name are extremely rare. A search of public sale records going back 40 years finds only that, and that sold back in 1993.