On what date did George Washington begin his famous crossing of the Delaware River?

George Washington began his famous crossing of the Delaware River on December 25, 1776.

Washington led the Continental Army across the river from Pennsylvania toward New Jersey during the night of December 25–26. The operation targeted Hessian troops stationed at Trenton, where the Americans won a surprise victory on December 26.

The crossing was extremely difficult. Ice, strong currents, wind, rain, sleet, and snow delayed the movement, and the army’s artillery boats struggled to pass. Washington’s troops began assembling at the river around 4 p.m. on December 25, with the actual crossing beginning after darkness.

The date can cause confusion because the Battle of Trenton took place on December 26, and the crossing was completed in the early morning. Emanuel Leutze’s famous 1851 painting dramatized the event, but it was created decades later and is an artistic interpretation rather than a contemporary eyewitness photograph.