PA, USA
Benjamin Chew
1722–1810 · Chief Justice · Loyalist · Property Owner
1722–1810
Chief Justice · Loyalist · Property Owner
Benjamin Chew was one of colonial Pennsylvania's most distinguished legal minds, having served as attorney general and then chief justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in the decades before the Revolution. Born in Maryland in 1722, he trained in law in London and built an influential career in Philadelphia, earning a reputation for legal precision and conservative temperament. He constructed Cliveden, his summer estate in Germantown, beginning in 1763 — a handsome Georgian stone mansion that reflected his wealth and standing in provincial society. When the Revolution came, Chew attempted to remain politically neutral, a position that satisfied neither side and ultimately led to his arrest and brief exile to New Jersey in 1777.
Chew was absent from Germantown when the battle took place on October 4, 1777, but his home became one of the most consequential sites of the engagement. As Washington's four columns advanced through the early morning fog, approximately 120 soldiers of the British 40th Regiment of Foot under Colonel Thomas Musgrave retreated into Cliveden and barricaded its thick stone walls against the oncoming Americans. The mansion's construction made it nearly impervious to the artillery Washington could bring to bear on it. American forces spent precious time and suffered significant casualties attempting to storm and reduce the strongpoint, diverting men and momentum from the main attack. The debate among Washington's officers over whether to bypass or assault the house — a decision ultimately made against bypassing it — consumed critical minutes and contributed directly to the battle's failure.
After the war, Chew was allowed to return to Philadelphia and Cliveden, though he never fully recovered the political standing he had enjoyed before the Revolution. He resumed a quieter legal and civic life and lived until 1810. Cliveden passed through the Chew family for generations and survives today as a National Historic Landmark, preserved by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The battle fought around its walls is reenacted annually, ensuring that the stone mansion remains one of the most tangible reminders of the complex, costly engagement at Germantown.
In Germantown
- Oct 1777Battle of Germantown(Chief Justice)
Washington launched a dawn attack on the British encampment at Germantown with four converging columns. The initial assault drove in British pickets and achieved surprise, but dense fog caused confusion among the American columns. The decision to assault the fortified Chew House (Cliveden) with artillery diverted troops and time, while General Stephen's column wandered off course and fired on General Wayne's men. The battle ended in an American retreat after roughly two hours of fighting. American casualties were approximately 1,100 killed, wounded, and captured, compared to about 530 for the British. Despite the defeat, the aggressiveness of the attack impressed European observers and contributed to French willingness to enter the war as an American ally.
- Oct 1777Defense of the Chew House(Chief Justice)
Colonel Musgrave's 40th Regiment fortified Benjamin Chew's stone mansion, Cliveden, as the American attack swept past their position. Henry Knox convinced Washington to reduce the strongpoint rather than bypass it, and American troops spent critical time firing cannon at the thick stone walls and attempting to storm the building. The decision to attack the Chew House remains one of the most debated tactical choices of the war. Military convention held that an enemy strongpoint in your rear should be neutralized, but the delay cost momentum at a moment when the American attack was succeeding elsewhere. Cliveden still stands today, its walls bearing scars from the cannonballs.