The Birth of America's Light Infantry occurred on the moonless night of July 15, 1779, just past midnight. Brigadier General "Mad" Anthony Wayne commanded four regiments of Continentals drawn widely from all over the Colonies to assemble a brigade of special fighting forces. His midnight assault on the British stronghold of Stony Point seven miles south of West Point on the west side of the Hudson River was a most audacious maneuver, and one which was executed almost exactly as it was planned. It was an incredible feat for an army of the time. The garrison slept secure in the feeling that General Clinton's "Little Gibraltar" was safe from attack. 

The natural rock fortess atop a promontory jutting into the river was improved with an outer and an inner line of abatis protecting its western-facing landward side. The surrounding river, steep rock faces, night sentries, and a number of batteries of large guns all conspired to render the rock impregnable, or so they mistakingly believed. The weeks of preparation, stealthy reconnaissance, and local intelligence-gathering paid off. An overwhelming and victorious surprise bayonet attack by Wayne's elite unit insured that Washington's Continental Army would never again be taken for granted. 

It was a simple, but clever plan. A small detachment of men led by Major Hardy Murfree created a diversionary attack across a causeway over the only road into the position, while two large columns forded the marsh to the north and south. With muskets unloaded, Wayne and three regiments, axe parties to the front, attacked the British right, while Colonel Richard Butler and the rest of Murfree's battalion assaulted the left. As the sappers of both columns broke through the abatis, the twenty odd, handpicked men of each of the two "Forlorn Hopes" crashed through the breaches completely overwhelming any forces in their path. The hand-to-hand combat lasted less than two hours, and by 2 am Colonel Henry Johnson surrendered what was left of his mixed force of 500 to 600 defenders that included the 17th Regiment of Foot, a detachment of the 71st Grenadiers, an assortment of guns of the Royal Artillery, and a contingent of 60 Loyal Americans. Wayne's Light Infantry was comprised of about 1100 to 1200 men and a couple of small field pieces which never entered the fray. Except for Murfree's center column feint, not a musket was fired by the Continentals. It was truly a proud and brilliant victory at a time when America's rebel army was in dire need of a boost in morale. 

A PLAYING TIP: Be aware of Campaign 1776's limitations regarding "night fighting." Designer's note: Historically the battle was concluded in two hours employing only melee tactics with the exception of Murfree's diversion. In game terms the Americans must take a number of objectives and therein lies their points and ability to win despite the British firepower. The British have the capability to win by both exacting a high body count and preventing the Americans from reaching the heights. And this despite the fact that their cannon were less than fully effective because of a restriction in their ability to traverse or move. It is a race against time essentially for the Continentals. The British goal is to simply prevent victory within the time frame. It is, however, not the cake walk that was history. The game's night conditions, visibility restriction not-withstanding, actually penalizes the American's more than the British, as the Brits are difficult to flank and the Americans must fight the game essentially in column formation because of the night-time effect of disruption when changing formation from column to line. Some of the British begin fixed and/or disrupted in order to simulate the confusion upon surprise and the amount of time it would take to get themselves oriented or to their artillery posts. 
