Causes
The war had started badly and by 1776 Washington’s troops had to retreat from New York to Pennsylvania. They also had to survive through the winter with very little food and shelter. The morale was low so the Americans had to organize a new attack. The colonists were expecting many more troops but the snowstorms prevented the other groups of men from supporting Washington. However, Washington knew that his men needed a victory for morale and supplies. He continued his attack with only 2,400 men. Many men were also allowed to leave the army on December 31st. If Washington had waited for a few days to get reinforcements many of his own troops would have left. After the victory and a speech from George Washington, the troops stayed.
How it affected the war.
The victory forced the British to abandon New Jersey and the crossing provided supplies for the colonists. The victory resulted in more people enlisting as minutemen to help the colonial army. Before the 3 consecutive victories the colonists thought that they couldn’t win the war and the British were very confident. The new recruits made up a larger army, which was used in the Battle of Saratoga. The Battle of Saratoga convinced the French to help the colonists and the 15,000 men in the colonial army were almost all enlists.