June 24th, 1777
Paper and Printed Ink
Courtesy of Ken Reiss

Three months passed before British citizens heard about the “Danbury Expedition” in the London Gazette. An excerpt of General William Howe’s letter to Lord George Germain, Secretary of State for the Colonies, reporting the success of the raid on Danbury, was printed in the gazette. Howe’s account includes that British forces “finding it impossible to procure Carriages to bring of any Part of the Stores, they were effectually destroyed; in the Execution of which the Village was unavoidably burnt.” Nonetheless, Howe viewed the raid as a victory: Historians today see the Danbury Expedition as a draw for both sides. The Patriots succeeded in driving out the British but failed to protect Danbury town; while the British drove back the colonists for a hasty escape, they failed to procure any provisions to supply their cause, since they were forced to burn them.