THE MARYLAND 400

By Barbara Aiken

During the Revolutionary War, the “Maryland 400” fought at the Battle of Brooklyn on Aug. 27, 1776, just six weeks after the Declaration of Independence was signed. This was the first major battle of the war for independence and the largest battle of the Revolutionary War. These brave soldiers fought with bayonets and muskets to allow General George Washington and the Continental Army to escape the area during a massive attack by the British. 

On Aug. 15, 1776 Thomas Stone sent an alarming message from the Continental Congress in Philadelphia to the Maryland state capital in Annapolis relaying that the British planned a potentially fierce battle in the area of New York City. Additional troops would need to be deployed to help with the American effort to supplant the British forces. Maryland didn’t have the number of men needed for this clash. Finally, nearing the end of August, Maryland was able to march about 1,100 men and boys of the First Maryland Regiment, also known as Smallwood’s Regiment, to New York in order to support General Washington. General William Smallwood commanded the First Maryland and First Delaware Regiments. Due to the haste with which these men were dispatched, they had little training and were no match for the seasoned British soldiers with whom they would tangle. 

George Washington could not determine where the British would land in New York and he made several miscalculations. Washington split his forces of about 19,000 between Manhattan and Long Island unsure of where the British would launch their attack. Under the command of Generals Howe, Cornwallis and Clinton, the British thrust over 15,000 well trained and armed men onto Long Island, attacking American forces from the rear while 5,000 Hessian (German) soldiers, led by General Leopold Philip Von Heister, attacked from the front. With Washington’s army split between two locations, the general surely had misread the situation. 

At the time of the Battle of Brooklyn, also known as the Battle of Long Island, or Battle of Brooklyn Heights, General Smallwood was attending a court martial hearing; General William Alexander, who self-adopted the title of Lord Stirling, took the place of General Smallwood and led the men forward in battle. Lord Stirling volunteered along with his men to hold off the British long enough for General Washington to flee across the East River. In a raging encounter that lasted for over an hour, the enemy led by General Charles Cornwallis, encircled the Americans. Lord Stirling managed to enable a large portion of the Maryland and Delaware troops to retreat across the salt marsh known as Gowanus Creek. Some perished here, bogged down in mud and some unable to swim. Lord Stirling stayed with about 400 soldiers made up of both Marylanders and Delawareans. The British soldiers tightened the noose around them and began to shoot a gale of bullets from a vantage point, the Stone House, originally the Vechte – Cortelyou House (1699), a Dutch farmhouse. The stone construction of the farmhouse provided the British with a strong defense and its location provided a commanding view of the area. Finally, the “Maryland 400” charged the Stone House with bayonets and muskets brandished. Many were killed but they charged the Stone House a total of six times, stepping over the bodies of their dead comrades.

Around 256 Americans were killed and 100 captured only to die in prison; a mere handful escaped. Lord Stirling was among those captured and imprisoned. He was released in a prisoner exchange later in the year and returned to serve General Washington. The 256 fighting men who were killed that day were buried by the British on a knoll within the Gowanus canal in a mass grave. Despite the British triumph at the Battle of Brooklyn, it is believed that the sacrifice and bravery of the “Maryland 400” most likely saved General Washington and his army from capture, allowing them to escape to fight another day. The bravery of these men was instrumental in winning the Revolutionary War for the Americans.

The “Maryland 400,” more accurately about 270 men, are commemorated by a 27-foot-tall marble, Maryland granite and bronze monument located at Prospect Park in Brooklyn, New York. This monument was designed by Stanford White (1853-1906), and unveiled 119 years after the Battle of Brooklyn on Aug. 27, 1895. Funds for the monument were donated by the Sons of the American Revolution at a cost of $3,000 at the time. The front inscription reads, “In honor of Maryland’s four hundred, who on this battlefield Aug. 27, 1776 saved the American army.” On the west face of the monument there is an inscription attributed to George Washington. The inscription reads, “Good God! What brave fellows I must this day lose.” 

Maryland received the moniker of the “Old Line State” from General Washington due to the bravery of the Maryland and Delaware soldiers who fought, and the many who gave their lives that day at the Battle of Brooklyn. The “old line” in military terms means soldiers who fought together in a disciplined and experienced fashion. The line formation was the basic battle formation at the time of the American Revolution. It allowed for a ferocious deployment of firepower.

When you hear Maryland referred to as the “Old Line State” you may want to recall the brave men who fought and died that fateful day in the vicinity of the old Stone House in Brooklyn. If not for their courage and bravery, General Washington and his Continental Army may have been lost to history and perhaps we would not be the United States of America.Barbara enjoys history and is particularly interested in the history of Maryland. Barbara can be reached at: [email protected].