Battle of Brooklyn celebration closes with Green-Wood ceremony
A week-long celebration of the 239th anniversary of the Battle of Brooklyn came to a close on Sunday with crowds of people on hand at the Green-Wood Cemetery to watch a reenactment before they paraded to the top of Battle Hill for a memorial ceremony.
“Today we are here to honor the heroes of the Battle of Brooklyn where 239 years ago, the United States of America fought its first battle as a new nation,” said Eric Kramer of the Battle of Brooklyn Memorial Society. “The Declaration of Independence had been signed, the British had been chased out of Boston a little bit early, but right in late August things didn’t look good for the new republic.”
The Battle of Brooklyn was the largest battle of the American Revolutionary War. The patriots ultimately lost the battle, but the Maryland 400 was able to hold off the British troops long enough at the Old Stone House so that George Washington could escape and live to fight another day.