A Brief Narrative of the Ravages of the British and Hessians at Princeton in 1776-1777

A Brief Narrative of the Ravages of the British and Hessians at Princeton in 1776-1777; a Contemporary Account of the Battles of Trenton and Princeton.

by Collins, Varnum Lansing, 1906

A Brief Narrative of the Ravages of the British and Hessians at Princeton in 1776-1777: A Contemporary Account of the Battles of Trenton and Princeton is an **early 20th-century edition (originally published in 1906) of a Revolutionary War eyewitness account edited by Varnum Lansing Collins. The work is a short, primary-source narrative (about 56–68 pages depending on the edition) that compiles an anonymous contemporary manuscript describing the damage, plundering, and hardships inflicted on local inhabitants by British and Hessian troops during the Trenton and Princeton campaigns of the winter of 1776-1777.

The narrative was first printed by The University Library in Princeton, N.J., and documents both the military engagements at Trenton and Princeton and the civilian experience of occupation and property loss in New Jersey, offering vivid—if sometimes partisan—descriptions of the “ravages” committed by regular and Hessian soldiers as observed by a contemporary resident. Although the author’s identity remains uncertain, the account provides valuable firsthand insight into the social impact of these pivotal Revolutionary War battles beyond strictly military details.