Charles Grey
(1729–November 14, 1807)
British General
In terms of bald-faced results, redoubtable “No Flint” Grey was the best British tactician of the American Revolution. His stunning victories at Paoli and Old Tappan caught the rebels by surprise and ensured his reputation for ruthlessness on the battlefield. The derision was undeserved, however, for Grey was simply the war’s most successful exponent of surprise attacks.
Charles Grey was born in Howick, England, in 1729, the son of Sir Henry Grey, baronet of Northumberland. Charles joined the army in 1748 by obtaining an ensign’s commission, and by December 1752 he was serving as a lieutenant in the Sixth Regiment of Foot. An enterprising young officer, he subsequently raised a company of men on his own and was allowed to join the famous 20th Regiment, in which James Wolfe served as lieutenant colonel. Grey then ventured to Germany during the Seven Years’ War (1756–1763) and was selected to serve as an aide-de-camp to Ferdinand, the Duke of Brunswick. He distinguished himself in this capacity at the 1757 Battle of Minden and was wounded again at Campen in 1760. Consequently, Grey was elevated to lieutenant colonel of the 98th Foot in January 1761, and he accompanied the successful reduction of Belle Isle off the coast of Brittany. He subsequently fought with distinction during the 1762 capture of Havana before being put on half-pay the following year. Grey still enjoyed a reputation for daring and efficiency and seemed destined for high appointment. Accordingly, in 1772 he reentered the service as a full colonel and aide-de-camp to King George III.
Grey’s exemplary services at the court caused him to miss the early stages of the American Revolution, and it was not until June 1777 that he reported for duty at New York. He then joined the army of Gen. William Howe in preparation for an advance upon Philadelphia and was appointed commander of the Third Brigade with a local rank of major general. Howe also introduced him to his celebrated aide-de-camp, Maj. John Andre. Grey subsequently accompanied Howe’s army during its amphibious descent upon Elk River, Maryland, as the march overland began. His troops remained in reserve during the Battle of Brandywine, in which the American army under Gen. George Washington was outflanked and rolled back, and they saw little combat. As Howe resumed his advance upon Philadelphia, he was closely followed by an observation corps commanded by Gen. Anthony Wayne. The British leader was wary of crossing the Schuykill River with Americans forces to his front and rear, so he directed Grey to eliminate Wayne as a threat. He made his choice on the basis of Grey’s reputation as an outstanding tactical leader. Events would bear out this judgment.
On September 20, 1777, local Tories informed Grey as to the exact location and composition of Wayne’s force at nearby Paoli, Pennsylvania. The following evening, he gathered together a strike force consisting of light infantry culled from the 42nd and 44th Regiments, as well as a detachment of the 16th Light Dragoons. En route to his objective, Grey demanded complete tactical silence to ensure that his approach remained undetected. As a further precaution, he ordered the removal of all musket flints to prevent an accidental firing. This rendered them useless as firearms, but Grey intended to settle the issue by cold steel and steady nerves alone. The British departed at 10 p.m. and stealthily approached their quarry. Grey was not aware of it, but Wayne had been forewarned of a night attack, and several regiments were on alert. He also anticipated being reinforced that evening by the Delaware Continentals. During his approach, Grey eliminated several knots of sentries, some of whom fired their guns and fled. The Americans ignored these warning shots until the British were literally upon them—when Grey sounded the charge. His men then fell on the unsuspecting enemy with a yell, bayoneting their way through the entire camp. Wayne, to his credit, overcame his initial surprise and managed to get off his entire artillery train, although the bulk of his army fled and abandoned their camp to Grey. At the cost of a few lives, the British inflicted an estimated 200 American casualties, the majority of them killed. An additional 70 prisoners, grievously injured, were also taken.
The encounter at Paoli was brief and lopsided. Grey achieved near complete tactical surprise, and Wayne’s force had been eliminated as a threat to Howe’s rear. The Americans deemed the entire affair a “massacre” owing to the ruthless behavior of Grey’s men, but in essence it was a well-planned attack, decisively delivered. It also garnered Grey the infamous nickname “No Flint.” Afterward, Howe successfully captured Philadelphia on September 26, 1777. Washington then sought to engage him at Germantown on October 4, 1777, with an overly complex attack that went awry. During the confusion, Grey’s brigade came up, and he personally led a counterattack down Germantown Avenue that rescued British soldiers trapped in Chew House. The Americans then drew off for a miserable winter at Valley Forge, while the British enjoyed the relative comfort of Philadelphia. During his stay, Grey occupied the former dwelling of noted scientist Benjamin Franklin. He also criticized Howe for being too circumspect in his treatment of the rebels. Grey firmly believed that only through the direct and severe application of military force could the rebellion be crushed.
In the spring of 1778, Howe was replaced by Gen. Henry Clinton, who declined to remain in Philadelphia. Fearful of being trapped there by the French fleet, he directed an overland withdrawal back to New York City that was intercepted by Washington at Monmouth in June 1778. Grey saw little action in this, the last major engagement of the war in the north, and was subsequently posted at Bedford, Long Island. That September his brigade was committed to a series of raids along the New England coastline. During September 6–8, Grey’s command hit and ravaged their objectives, burning 70 vessels, destroying upward of $300,000 worth of property, and seizing 10,000 sheep on Martha’s Vineyard alone. At the end of the month, while operating under Gen. Charles Cornwallis, Grey marched north into the New York highlands on a foraging raid. A cavalry force under Col. George Baylor continually shadowed their movements, and Cornwallis tasked Grey with eliminating them.
On the night of September 28, Grey took his light infantry, the Second Grenadiers, the 33rd and 44th Regiments, and about 50 dragoons toward Old Tappan, New Jersey. Baylor’s command consisted of 103 men from his Third Continental Dragoons. As at Paoli, security was somewhat lax, and Grey’s men swooped upon the unsuspecting Americans before they could rally. The Third Dragoons were literally wiped out to a man, and Baylor was fatally wounded and captured. The American later claimed that no quarter had been granted to prisoners; as proof of Grey’s excesses, the rampaging British even bayoneted 70 horses to death! In retrospect, the charges originated from being on the receiving end of a viciously efficient bayonet attack. “No Flint” Grey had again confirmed his reputation as a peerless tactician.
In the fall of 1778 Grey was recalled to England, where, four years later, he became a knight of the Order of Bath and a lieutenant general. He also received an appointment as commander in chief of North America, but the war ended before he could arrive to take charge. Historians pale to think of the outcome of events had a man of Grey’s single-minded ferocity been in charge at the onset of hostilities. He subsequently soldiered on during the wars against revolutionary France in the 1790s and led a successful expedition to relieve Nieupoort, Holland, in 1793. After similar success in the West Indies, Grey returned to England in 1794, where he obtained the rank of general and privy councilor.
He continued in service by commanding the defenses of England’s southernmost districts before retiring in 1799. In 1801, he was awarded the title Baron Grey de Howick, and five years later he became Viscount Howick and the first Earl Grey. This resolute and highly capable soldier finally mustered out of life at Howick on November 14, 1807. In terms of formulation of strategy, tactical preparation, and battlefield execution, “No Flint” Grey was perhaps the greatest warrior of the American Revolution.
Bibliography
Brownlow, Donald G. A Documentary History of the “Paoli Massacre.” West Chester, PA: H. F. Temple, 1952. Frey, Sylvia P. The British Soldier in North America: Social History of Military Life in the Revolutionary Period. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1980; Houlding, J. A. Fit for Service: The Training of the British Army, 1715–1795. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999; Jackson, John W. With the British Army in Philadelphia. San Rafael, CA: Presidio Press, 1979; Lynn, Robert A. “Paoli Massacre.” Military Heritage 1, no. 3 (1999): 60–67; May, Robin.
The British Army in North America, 1775–1783. New York: Hippocrene Books, 1997; McGuire, Thomas. The Battle of Paoli. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2000; McGuire, Thomas. The Surprise of Germantown, or, the Battle of Clivedon, October 4, 1777. Gettysburg, PA: Thomas Publications, 1994; Nelson, Paul D. Sir Charles Grey, First Earl Grey: Royal Soldier, Family Patriarch. Madison, NJ: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 1996; Railton, Arthur D. “Grey’s Raid: The Island’s Biggest Historical Event.” Dukes County Intelligencer 38 (1997): 107–143; Starkey, Armstrong. “Paoli to Stoney Point: Military Ethics and Weaponry During the American Revolution.” Journal of Military History 58 (1994): 7–27; University of Durham. List of Papers of the 1st Earl Grey. Durham, UK: N. p., 1974.
