[ horse neighs ] at daybreak, the continental army mobilizes for battle. still, only a handful of officers are given the details. these our christm sir? these are for tonight. don t forget them or your weapon. the old fox wants to hold a review on christmas? not a review. a mission. a mission? where we marching off to? they haven t told me yet. all i know is, keep your cartridges dry and follow me. and one more thing the password is victory or death. pass it on. there s gonna be a fight tonight. [ coughs ] washington has a narrow
surprise and timing. they ve already blown their timetable, and they still have to march nearly 10 miles before they reach trenton. what often gets forgotten is that the march to trenton is actually worse than crossing the delaware. the blizzard intensifies. the troops must navigate steep hills and flooded ravines in the predawn darkness. poorly dressed and drenched from the snow and sleet, two soldiers actually die from exposure before they even reach the battleground. some christmas, eh? [ horse neighs ] der feind! der feind! the enemy! stand! alarm! alarm! stand! alarm! the myth is that the hessians
is facing near certain defeat unless he can find a way to strike back. monsters! [ woman screams, musket fires ] [ musket fires, horse neighs ] rally the militia. go warn colonel griffin. go! when new jersey militiamen rally, under the command of colonel samuel griffin, it gives washington the opportunity he s looking for. it s impossible to imagine a more challenging time for george washington. he was being urged by other officers, who perhaps wanted his job, hunker down and hold off, because a loss could finish us. he says no, i m doubling up, picking up the pace, and we re taking the fight to them.
washington benefits from the sheer indifference of commanders on the other side. the hessian commander in trenton is made aware of the encroaching american army and pockets the message without even reading it. colonel rall s indifference is a stroke of luck for washington. but elsewhere, his operation s luck is running out. downriver, massive ice jams force his two defensive units to abandon their mission. instead of enveloping trenton with a three-pronged attack, washington must go it alone. if he s able to make it across the river. [ horse neighs ] what is that? it s the hessians! they re coming!
[ horse neighs ] at daybreak, the continental army mobilizes for battle. still, only a handful of officers are given the details. these our christmas present, sir? these are for tonight. don t forget them or your weapon. the old fox wants to hold a review on christmas? not a review. a mission. a mission? where we marching off to? they haven t told me yet. all i know is, keep your cartridges dry and follow me. and one more thing the password is victory or death. pass it on. there s gonna be a fight tonight. [ coughs ] washington has a narrow