Principles Of War - Assignment Example

Principles Of War Washington, which was referred as the Americans, had been observing and applying the best principles of war that enabled them to acquire the advantage during their battle with the British. They had all it could take to win the war only that they were mislead and forgot to apply principles of war that could enable them to advance. For instance, Washington received a message from Major Spear from Hazen's command telling him that there was no British troop movement in the north (History.com 4). This made the Washington leave their advancement and come back to reinforce Knyphausen at Chadds Ford.

In this respect, the Washington command was fooled making them abandon their position. The leadership of Washington made a big mistake by believing whatever statement they received. The statement made them recall their attacking troops back to east hence placing all their eggs in one basket. Therefore, Washington did not apply the principles of taking the advantage and positioning to defeat the enemy (Madmike 1). Instead, they were deceived to advantage the enemy because they got the chance to march toward the south hence enabling them to strip the American defenses.

Secondly, it is interesting how the British applied the principles that place the enemy in a position of disadvantage through the flexible application of combat power and this made them achieve what they wanted leading to their victory (Madmike 1). For instance, the British penetrated the American center that caused panic on the two. The British panicked because of the distance that separated them from the Americans. On the other hand, the Americans were defending their territory but could not do so for the long time since the British troops injured many of their men and suffered casualties (History.com 6). The Americans soldiers were wounded as well as their horses making them fall back to Birmingham meeting house.

Because of the advantage that the British had gained against the Americans, Americans were forced to retreat and formed new lines in a half mile southeastLastly, the British tactically applied the principles that ensured they direct every operation towards a clearly defined and attainable objective (Madmike 1). For instance, they loaded thousands of troops, horses, and ships out of New York and went to capture Philadelphia because of many reasons. One of the reasons is that they knew the Washington would defend the region because of its promising resources.

They include being the largest city in the colony, the seat of rebel Congress as well as the high number of the loyal population (History.com 7). The division of the army into two divisions was also a strategy that the British deployed to confuse Washington that the whole troop was attacking Chadd Ford. The effect of this principle is that the British were able to push back the Americans hence giving them a chance to advance and learn the terrain. In conclusion, the British and Americans troops applied the principles of war at different stages that also had an effect on the war.

The British were keen to learn the weaknesses of the Americans hence recording a victory. On the other hand, Americans were never keen on weighing the information they obtained and failed on the military intelligence leading to their retreat.Works CitedHistory.com The Battle of Brandywine begins. N.d Online Madmike. Principles of war. 2009. Online