State House on the Day of the Battle of Germantown

This painting depicts the supposed aftermath of the Revolutionary War Battle of Germantown. During the British occupation of Philadelphia, the State House (now Independence Hall) was used as a command post for prisoners of war and the wounded. On October 4, 1777, George Washington launched an ambitious attack against the British forces that had occupied Philadelphia since September 26. The American army intended a surprise attack at dawn against the British garrison at Germantown, then a small village several miles north of the city. The assault began favorably, but ended with Washington's army in retreat. Amidst confusion and terror, the women of Philadelphia nurse and comfort the wounded and prisoners of war - more than four hundred American soldiers were captured by the British during the battle, who themselves had more than five hundred losses. Produced during the divisive Civil War years, Rothermel’s picture belongs to a popular genre of history painting that used colonial subjects to remind Americans of their heritage of unity and liberty. Initially trained by Bass Otis as a portraitist, Rothermel achieved success for historical subjects such as his 1851 "De Soto Discovering the Mississippi," also in the Academy's collection. He served as a director of the Academy from 1847 to 1855.