Battle of Bound Brook
Bound Brook, United States
Hessian Jaeger Captain Johann Von Ewald wrote the following account of the action on April 13, 1777.<br><br><b><i> “At daybreak I came upon an empty picket on this side of the stone causeway which led to Bound Brook through a marsh along the Raritan River for five or six hundred paces over two bridges.<br><br>The picket received us spiritedly and withdrew under a steady fire. I tried to keep as close as possible to the enemy to get across the causeway into town at the same time.<br><br>This succeeded to the extent that I arrived at the second bridge at a distance of a hundred paces from the redoubt which covered it and the flying bridge (Queen’s Bridge).<br><br>The day dawned and I was exposed to murderous fire. When I looked around for men, I saw that no one had followed me except the brave Lieutenant Trautvetter, my hornblower Muller, Corporal Doernickel and the Jaegers Reichmeyer, Meister, Mergel, Hachell, Gurkel, Buchwald and Ruppel: the last two being severely wounded.<br><br>We had no choice but to lay down on the ground before the Bridge, whereupon I ordered “forward” sounded constantly. Luckily for us Colonel Donop’s column appeared after a lapse of eight or ten minutes whereupon the Americans abandoned the Redoubt.<br><br>We arrived in town with the garrison of the redoubt amidst a hard running fight and the greater part were either cut down or captured.”</b></i>