{"chunks_used":7,"query":"At Davenport House, Before Sunrise","report":"**Research Synopsis: The Attack at Davenport House, May 13, 1781**  \n\nThe surprise attack on Colonel Henry Ludington Greene\u2019s headquarters at Davenport House, Croton-on-Hudson, on May 13, 1781, remains a pivotal and tragic event in Westchester County\u2019s Revolutionary War history. According to Lydia Vail\u2019s 1847 interview with John Macdonald, Greene\u2019s death occurred \u201ca little before sunrise,\u201d as British loyalist forces (known as \u201cRefugees\u201d) led by John DeLancey ambushed Greene\u2019s small contingent of soldiers. Vail recounted that Greene, Major Flagg, and a young officer were killed outright, while others were wounded or captured. The attackers, described as \u201cnotorious for rapine and murder\u201d by Bolton (1881), forced Greene to mount a horse during their retreat toward Pines Bridge but abandoned him when he fainted, leaving him to die by the roadside. The house itself was left \u201ccovered with the blood of the dead, wounded and dying\u201d (Macdonald, 1847).  \n\nThe assault was facilitated by a strategic miscalculation by American forces. As detailed in General Heath\u2019s account cited by Bolton (1848), Greene had stationed guards at the ford of the Croton River but removed them after sunrise, assuming the enemy would not attack during daylight. DeLancey\u2019s forces, however, crossed the river soon after the guards were relieved, surrounding Greene\u2019s headquarters before he could react. The route taken by the Refugees\u2014through woods near Davenport House and along a now-obsolete lane\u2014allowed them to evade detection. This route, south of the present-day path to Crompond Road, was critical to their success (Bolton, 1881).  \n\nThe attack\u2019s aftermath left a profound emotional impact on the local community. Vail noted that Greene, \u201cmuch beloved\u201d by the Davenport family, had expressed hope for peace the night before, saying, \u201cI envy you much\u2026 but I hope this unnatural war is drawing to a close\u201d (Macdonald, 1847). His death, along with Flagg\u2019s, was \u201cmuch and long lamented.\u201d The three officers were buried together in a single grave at Crompond, while two enslaved servants of the Davenport household were wounded. The incident also highlighted tensions over British loyalist atrocities, with Colonel Lee\u2019s writings citing the Refugees as responsible for \u201cmost of the cruelties\u201d of the war (Bolton, 1881).  \n\n**Sources consulted**  \n- Macdonald, John. Interview with Vail, Lydia, b.c.1772; (1847-11-19). *John M. McDonald Interviews*, 1844-1851, WCHS item 1353.  \n- Bolton, Robert Jr. *The History of the Several Towns, Manors, and Patents of the County of Westchester, Vol. II* (1881 revised ed.).  \n- Bolton, Robert Jr. *A History of the County of Westchester, Vol. II* (1848).","sources_consulted":["Bolton, Robert Jr. A History of the County of Westchester, from its First Settlement to the Present Time, Vol. II. New York: Alexander S. Gould, 1848.","Macdonald, John. Interview with Vail, Lydia, b.c.1772; (1847-11-19). John M. McDonald Interviews, 1844-1851, WCHS item 1353. Westchester County Historical Society. Transcribed by history.croton.news April 2026.","Bolton, Robert Jr. The History of the Several Towns, Manors, and Patents of the County of Westchester, from its First Settlement to the Present Time, Vol. II. New York: Charles F. Roper, 1881."]}