The Battle of the Short Hills (also known as the Battle of Metuchen Meetinghouse and other names) was a conflict between a Continental Army force commanded by Brigadier General William Alexander ("Lord Stirling"), and an opposing British force commanded by Lieutenant General William Howe. The battle took place on June 26, 1777, at Scotch Plains and Edison, New Jersey, during the American Revolutionary War.
Despite the name, no fighting occurred in modern-day Short Hills, a section of Millburn.
In mid-June General Howe marched most of his army into central New Jersey in an attempt to lure George Washington's Continental Army to a place where it might be better attacked than its defensive position in the Watchung Mountains. When Washington refused to abandon his position Howe returned to Amboy on June 22. Washington's forward divisions, including that of Lord Stirling, shadowed this British movement, and Washington moved his main army out of the hills. Howe seized this opportunity, and on June 26 marched two columns of troops out in an attempt to cut Washington off from the high ground. These troops skirmished with Lord Stirling's troops, and eventually engaged in a pitched battle in Scotch Plains. Stirling's outnumbered force retreated, but Washington, alerted to the British movement, had by then retreated back into the hills.
Background
In March 1776 the British forces of Lieutenant General William Howe withdrew from Boston after Major General George Washington fortified high ground threatening the city and its harbor. With this army augmented by reinforcements from Europe, General Howe captured New York City, forcing Washington to retreat all the way across New Jersey. At the end of 1776, Washington crossed the Delaware River and defeated Hessian forces at the Battle of Trenton on December 26, 1776, and eventually regained control of most of New Jersey. The two armies then settled into winter quarters, and engaged in a war of skirmishes during the winter months of early 1777.
General Howe spent the winter planning a campaign to capture the seat of the rebel Congress, Philadelphia. The constant skirmishing throughout the winter had taken its toll on his troops stationed in New Jersey, and even a major attack on the Continental Army outpost at Bound Brook in April had not been entirely successful. Howe apparently did not divulge his plans or his intended route to Philadelphia to many people, and General Washington did not know what his intentions were, although Philadelphia was one target he suspected Howe was interested in. On May 29, Washington moved most of his army from its winter quarters near Morristown to a strong position at Middlebrook in the Watchung Mountains from which he could observe and interfere with British moves toward Philadelphia.
Historians who mention this battle only occasionally give it a name. It is often called "Short Hills", even though the battle took place primarily in present-day Edison and Scotch Plains, New Jersey. Historians also give the battle other names; David Martin calls it "Flat Hills" or "Metuchen Meeting House"; one British regimental history refers to it by "Westfield".
Prelude
On June 9, Howe began moving troops from Staten Island to Perth Amboy. On June 11, almost his entire army moved up the roads along the Raritan River to New Brunswick. Washington's intelligence reports indicated that Howe had left behind equipment needed for crossing the Delaware River and was unlikely to be heading for Philadelphia; Washington, as a precautionary measure, called out the militia in southern New Jersey. On June 14, Howe's army marched again, its destination Somerset Court House (present-day Millstone). Apparently seeking to draw Washington into battle on open terrain, Howe remained there five days. Washington refused to move out of the hills, and on June 19, Howe began the march back to Perth Amboy, which he reached on June 22, having completely evacuated New Brunswick.