On July 16, 1776, as the young American republic celebrated its newly declared independence, the elite soldiers of the 1st Maryland Regiment under Colonel William Smallwood marched through Philadelphia on their way to reinforce General George Washington in New York. Pausing briefly during their grueling trek from Annapolis, these disciplined troops captivated the city’s residents. Observers noted the sharp style of the officers’ tailored dress and the men’s burnished weapons — a striking testament to Maryland’s military excellence. While the independent Baltimore companies had adopted elegant scarlet and buff uniforms, most of the rank‑and‑file wore practical hunting frocks suited to frontier campaigning.
The hidden, heartbreaking dimension of this proud July march was that these men were walking straight into the crucible of the Battle of Long Island. Just weeks later, when the American line collapsed under overwhelming British pressure, Smallwood’s Marylanders launched a series of desperate bayonet counterattacks to buy Washington precious minutes to escape. Their stand — later remembered as the valor of the “Maryland 400” — cost the regiment dearly, with heavy casualties that transformed these citizen‑soldiers into enduring symbols of sacrifice in the Revolution.
Image: Col. William Smallwood leading the Maryland Regiment out of Annapolis during the Revolutionary War, painting by Alfred Wordsworth Thompson. Public domain
