page_title: Battle of Long Island
section_title: Aftermath
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Long Island / Aftermath
caption_attribution_description: English: Painting of the American retreat from Long Island after the battle of Brooklyn
context_page_description: The Battle of Long Island, also known as the Battle of Brooklyn and the Battle of Brooklyn Heights, was a military action of the American Revolutionary War fought on August 27, 1776, at the western edge of Long Island in the present-day borough of Brooklyn, New York. The British defeated the Americans and gained control of the strategically important Port of New York, which they held for the rest of the war. It was the first major battle to take place after the United States declared its independence on July 4, and in troop deployment and combat, it was the largest battle of the entire war.
  After defeating the British in the Siege of Boston on March 17, commander-in-chief George Washington relocated the Continental Army to defend the port city of New York, located at the southern end of Manhattan Island. Washington understood that the city's harbor would provide an excellent base for the Royal Navy, so he established defenses there and waited for the British to attack.
caption: U.S. Army - Artillery Retreat from Long Island 1776 (1899)
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