America's First D-Day: Washington's Crossing

In a world filled with larger-than-life media action heroes, the guy on the one dollar bill can sometimes get lost in the shuffle. America's First D-Day tells the story of the general who would become the first president of the United States of America. Combining dramatic re-enactments with interviews of historians, the documentary centers on George Washington's crossing of the Delaware—a military maneuver that helped turn the tide in the fight for American independence. America's first “D-day” turns out to be a tale of intrigue, seduction, controversy, strategy, politics, and death. Banking on British overconfidence, Washington plans, executes, and leads a bold move to attack Hessian troops in Trenton, NJ, regardless of the odds stacked against the ragtag Continental Army (already suffering a drop in ranks from many deserters) as they march through a full-on nor'easter storm in the middle of the night and into the history books. Is it true that Betsy Ross plied her feminine charms on the Hessian leader to distract him and allow the colonists the upper hand? The answers to this and other questions are found in this informative and entertaining documentary centering on a man who continues to split historians regarding his military prowess and efficacy but one who was certainly a leader. Highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (C. Block)