Battle of White Plains in the American Revolution

The Battle of White Plains was fought October 28, 1776, during the American Revolution (1775-1783). Part of the New York Campaign, the battle came about after British forces landed at Pells Point, NY and threatened to cut off the American line of retreat from Manhattan. Departing the island, the Continental Army established a position at White Plains where it was attacked on October 28. After sharp fighting, the British captured a key hill that compelled the Americans to withdraw. The retreat from White Plains saw General George Washingtons men move across New Jersey before crossing the Delaware River into Pennsylvania. Background In the wake of their defeat at the Battle of Long Island (August 27-30, 1776) and victory at the Battle of Harlem Heights (September 16), General George Washingtons Continental Army found itself camped at the northern end of Manhattan. Moving tentatively, General William Howe elected to begin a campaign of maneuver rather than directly attacking the American position. Embarking 4,000 men on October 12, Howe moved them through Hells Gate and landed at Throgs Neck. Here their advance inland was blocked by swamps and a group of Pennsylvania riflemen led by Colonel Edward Hand. General Sir William Howe. Public Domain Not wishing to force his way through, Howe re-embarked and moved up the coast to Pells Point. Marching inland, they won a sharp engagement over a small Continental force at Eastchester, before pressing on to New Rochelle. Alerted to Howes movements, Washington realized that Howe was in a position to cut his lines of retreat. Deciding to abandon Manhattan, he began moving the main army north to White Plains where he possessed a supply depot. Due to pressure from Congress, he left around 2,800 men under Colonel Robert Magaw to defend Fort Washington on Manhattan. Across the river, Major General Nathanael Greene held Fort Lee with 3,500 men. Battle of White Plains Conflict: American Revolution (1775-1783)Dates: October 28, 1776Armies and Commanders:AmericansGeneral George Washington13,000 menBritishGeneral William Howe14,500 menCasualties:Americans: 28 killed, 126 woundedBritish: 42 killed, 182 wounded The Armies Clash Marching into White Plains on October 22, Washington established a defensive line between the Bronx and Croton Rivers, near the village. Building breastworks, Washingtons right was anchored on Purdy Hill and led by Major General Israel Putnam, while the left was commanded by Brigadier General William Heath and anchored on Hatfield Hill. Washington personally commanded the center. Across the Bronx River, in line with the American right rose Chattertons Hill. Possessing wooded sides and fields on the hilltop, Chattertons Hill was initially protected by a mixed force of militia. Reinforced at New Rochelle, Howe began moving north with around 14,000 men. Advancing in two columns, they passed through Scarsdale early on October 28, and approached Washingtons position at White Plains. As the British neared, Washington dispatched Brigadier General Joseph Spencers 2nd Connecticut Regiment to delay the British on the plain between Scarsdale and Chattertons Hill.  Arriving on the field, Howe immediately recognized the importance of the hill and decided to make it the focus of his attack.  Deploying his army, Howe detached 4,000 men, led by Colonel Johann Ralls Hessians to make the assault. A Gallant Stand Advancing, Ralls men came under fire from Spencers troops which had taken a position behind a stone wall. Inflicting losses on the enemy, they were forced to pull back towards Chattertons Hill when a British column led by General Henry Clinton threatened their left flank.  Recognizing the importance of the hill, Washington ordered Colonel John Haslets 1st Delaware Regiment to reinforce the militia.   As British intentions became clearer, he also dispatched Brigadier General Alexander McDougalls brigade. The Hessian pursuit of Spencers men was stopped on the slopes of the hill by determined fire from Haslets men and the militia. Bringing the hill under intense artillery fire from 20 guns, the British were able to panic the militia leading them to flee from the area. General George Washington. Public Domain The American position was quickly stabilized as McDougalls men arrived on the scene and new line formed with the Continentals on the left and center and the rallied militia on the right. Crossing the Bronx River under the protection of their guns, the British and Hessians pressed on towards Chattertons Hill. While the British attacked directly up the hill, the Hessians moved to envelop the American right flank. Though the British were repulsed, the Hessians flank attack caused the New York and Massachusetts militia to flee. This exposed the flank of Haslets Delaware Continentals. Reforming, the Continental troops were able to beat back several Hessian attacks but were ultimately overwhelmed and forced retreat back to the main American lines. Aftermath With the loss of Chattertons Hill, Washington concluded that his position was untenable and elected to retreat to the north. While Howe had won a victory, he was unable to immediately follow up his success due to heavy rains the next day few days. When the British advanced on November 1, they found the American lines empty. While a British victory, the Battle of White Plains cost them 42 killed and 182 wounded as opposed to only 28 killed and 126 wounded for the Americans. While Washingtons army began a long retreat which would ultimately see them move north then west across New Jersey, Howe broke off his pursuit and turned south to capture Forts Washington and Lee on November 16 and 20 respectively.  Having completed the conquest of the New York City area,  Howe ordered Lieutenant General Lord Charles Cornwallis to pursue Washington across northern New Jersey.  Continuing their retreat, the disintegrating American army finally crossed the Delaware in to Pennsylvania in early December. American fortunes would not improve until December 26, when Washington launched a daring attack against Ralls Hessian forces in Trenton, NJ.

Mercy Killing - of Mice and Me - 1263 Words

Mercy Killing In the book Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck, two men travel together to escape their pasts. They arrive at a ranch in the Salinas Valley with hopes to achieve their ultimate dream; to buy a place to call their own. Lennie, who is a simple-minded man, and George, who is just a typical guy are brought together and make a lasting friendship out of the loneliness of each man. While spending time on the farm George and Lennie meet some friendly characters, but because of some accidental deaths their dreams drift away. Foreshadowing may create a literary theme. Lennie is a massive and powerful man, but is dull-witted, George on the other hand is scrawnier and not as mighty. Both are hearty individuals†¦show more content†¦That#8217;s nice.#8221; (Steinbeck 91) After a while Curley#8217;s wife told him to stop, #8220;You stop it now, you#8217;ll mess it all up,#8221; (Steinbeck:91) Lennie panicked and instead of stopping he grabbed hold of her hair. She started screaming and yelling and he then covered her mouth and nose and told her to be quiet. Lennie was panicking and did not know what to do, he was scared of getting in trouble from George, #8220;Oh please don#8217;t do that. George#8217;ll be mad.#8221; (Steinbeck:91) #8220;He shook her#8217; and her body flopped like a fish,#8221; (Steinbeck:91) Then all a sudden she was still, he let her go and she fell to the ground not moving, for Lennie had broken her neck. Lennie did not realize what he had done, but he knew it was not good. After the farm hands and Curley found Curley#8217;s wife dead in the barn they all set out in search for Lennie #8220;When you see #8216;um, don#8217;t give #8216;im no chance. Shoot for his guts.#8221; (Steinbeck:97) Lucky for Lennie, George knew where he would be hiding, back at the bush where George told him to go if he got in trouble. George ran ahead of the group and found Lennie in the bush. Lennie told George what he had done an d George tried to tell him that it would be all fine. Lennie gets George to tell him about the future again and then George takes out Carlson#8217;s lugar that he had taken and shot Lennie in the back of the head. He believed he wasShow MoreRelatedThe Best Laid Schemes O Of Mice And Men1657 Words   |  7 Pagesâ€Å"The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men gang aft agley. an’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain, for promis’d joy!† These famous words from Robert Burns’ poem â€Å"To a Mouse† inspired John Steinbeck’s title for Of Mice and Men. Just as it is useless for a mouse to try and protect its home from the blade of a plow, so are the human efforts and dreams for the unattainable in the face of natural and economic calamities. In the midst of the Great Depression, a man like Lennie who is incapable of thinkingRead MoreJohn Steinbeck s Of Mice And Men774 Words   |  4 PagesHaving lived at difficult times, John Steinbeck meets human nature and its flaws, which he successfully encompasses in his novel, Of Mice and Men. Throughout his career, Steinbeck has managed to craftily expose the entrails of humankind in an effort to reflect on its rather capricious psyche. In his novel, for instance, he portrays two wandering men—mentally impaired Lennie, and George—who seem to often get in trouble due to Lennie’s naivety. As the characters develop, it becomes clear that theyRead MoreAnalysis Of Mice And Men 1390 Words   |  6 Pagesfriendless, despondent characters who are sick of their provincial lives. Loneliness is the feeling of isolation and no hope or dreams in your life-which is what Steinbeck achieves by portraying this theme effectively through key fictional characters in Of Mice and Men. 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The difference was that Carlson killed the dog for selfish reasons, while George killedRead MoreAnalysis Of John Steinbeck s Of Mice And Men 799 Words   |  4 PagesUday Sharma Ms. Hunt ENG-3U0 7/19/2015 Lennie Small: Character Analysis What happened to their dream? What went wrong? Of Mice and Men; by John Steinbeck is a novella about George and Lennie. George is a quick and witty person, whereas Lennie is slow and strong. Lennie Small is a child-like character who is innocent, kind-hearted, and short-tempered, these traits are some of the factors to many of the mishaps throughout the novella and relate to the theme that true friendship requires sacrificesRead MoreJohn Steinbeck s Of Mice And Men2577 Words   |  11 Pagesthe evidence of his wrongdoing, and cannot fully understand the cost of his own actions which ultimately results in his death. In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, Lennie’s death is foreshadowed in conversations, Lennie’s tendencies of petting soft things too roughly, and events that happen on the ranch and in his past In the beginning of Of Mice and Men, George and Lennie are on the bank the Salinas River. They talk about what Lennie did in Weed, a town they were run out of where Lennie was accusedRead More Point Of View In Grendel And Beowulf Essay1242 Words   |  5 Pagesmy nose, grinding my fists into my elbow the corpse of the proof that both of us ere cursed, or neither, that the brothers had never lived, nor the god who judged them. ‘Waaa!’ I bawled. ‘Oh what a conversion’†(Gardner 51)! Grendel then cries for mercy from the Danes. He wants their forgiveness as well as unification with them, which represents the good in him. The Danes reject him by confusing his outburst of sorrow as an attack. After visiting with a dragon who tells Grendel a fictional versionRead MoreLennie Essay On Friendship989 Words   |  4 Pagesrightfully are. No doubt, life is simply more pleasant with friends as some speculate. But what if the friendship was no longer the childhood bond that it used to be? John Steinbeck exposes the painful struggle of friendship in his petite novella Of Mice and Men with George Milton and his lifelong best friend, Lennie Small, whom struggles with a mild mental disability. After a series of unfortunate events causes Lennie and George to grow attached to each other, they become stronger together—similarRead More Analysis Of Grendel And Beowulf Essay1228 Words   |  5 Pagesthe corpse of the proof that both of us ere cursed, or neither, that the brothers had never lived, nor the god who judged them. amp;#8216;Waaa!amp;#8217; I bawled. amp;#8216;Oh what a conversionamp;#8217;;(Gardner 51)! Grendel then cries for mercy from the Danes. He wants their forgiveness as well as unification with them, which represents the good in him. The Danes reject him by confusing his outburst of sorrow as an attack. After visiting with a dragon who tells Grendel a fictional versionRead MoreHow Does Steinbeck Show the Importance of Friendship in the Novel Of Mice and Men?1925 Words   |  8 PagesOf Mice and Men is a book about two men and their struggle to achieve their dream of owning a small ranch through their companionship. The two men are completely different, one being a retarded fellow (Lennie), and the other, a typical ranch hand(George) who travels with him. On the path to achieving their dream, they run into obstacles, but stick together, stressing the importance of true friendship. Steinbeck wrote this book to tell us how important it is to have a friend to share your life with

Challenges to Enterprise System Management

Question: Discuss about the Challenges to Enterprise System Management. Answer: Introduction: The case study provided to us, talks about two companies namely the Oil Co., and the Explore Co. Oil Co. is supplier of a wide range of petroleum products and the Explore Co. on other hand focuses on oil and gas production. Recently both the companies have taken up new policies to match-up the global demand and stay ahead in business. The enterprise resource planning strategy (ERP) has been taken up by the company within its business strategy to improve the output produced within the respective companies (Nath and Phookan 2015). The term Enterprise Resource Planning refers to the process taken up by any firm, company or organization to integrate and manage the entire functioning of the business (Amini and Sadat Safavi 2013). The concept of ERP comes from the theory of management where all the basic components of an industrys functioning are co-ordinated (Schniederjans and Yadav 2013). The functioning includes the planning, the decision of purchasing, managing a healthy inventory and looking after the marketing and finance of the company. Through this report the ERP process of the two big oil and petroleum producing companies have been analyzed. Both the companies possess some degrees of similarities and some degrees of dissimilarities between them. These characteristics of the companies have been highlighted to show the ways in the strategy of ERP has been successfully implemented. Background of Oil Co.: Oil Co. is an Australian based company dealing with the marketing of petroleum products within the territory of Australia and other 11 distinguished nations in the Pacific regions. This company with an asset worth of $2 billion provides employment to roughly 2000 people. In order to sustain in the global market, the company had been taking up steps to accomplish assimilation and automation of the business through restricting their existing system. Background of Explore Co.: Explore Co. is an oil and gas producing company of South-West Australia. It is an affiliated under Oil Co. It deals with production and exploration of offshore oil and gas. The company has been facing the need to restructure their entire system and has been planning to implement the ERP strategy. The company is tensed to provide training to its employees as they might leave the job after being trained or charge higher wages for their developed skills. Comparison of Oil CO. and Explore Co.: Similarities: The given case study suggests that both Oil co. and Explore Co. have been trying to restructure their existing business strategies and models and trying to implement the newly developed robust system of ERP. In order to reach their targets the companies have been focusing on the up-gradation of their individual software systems. Dissimilarities: Along with only the basic similarity, there exists a great deal of dissimilarities within these two companies. Firstly, Oil Co. tries to modernize and upgrade a system that was never used before in oil industry. At the same time, Explore Co. was focused with their procedure and techniques of implementation. Secondly, there was lack of continuity in Oil Co.s system whereas the other company has followed the hands-on approach. Thirdly, different system of grading exists in both the companies. This difference in the grading system accounts for the high performance of Explore Co. when compared to Oil Co. Fourthly, meeting deadlines with a strong base and fulfillment of requirement is the forte of Explore CO. and was lacking in the other company. Through this discussion about the two companies, the basic concept of ERP and its existence in the market has been highlighted. The next part of the report highlights the issues that come up with implementation of this dynamic system. Factors relating to implementation of ERP: Few factors influencing the implementation of ERP process can be discussed under following sub-headings namely, the commitment of the top-level management of the company, the integration process, the cost and time of implementation and few other aspects (Ahmad and Cuenca 2013). Commitment of the Top-level management: Any company takes up the decision to implement ERP when they are in their transitioning stage (Dey, Clegg and Cheffi 2013). Whenever the company is trying to adapt to the global system and to expand its business in external environment, there is a need to implement ERP. According to the researchers, it has been found that implementation of the system of IT and ERP requires the existence of a strong management with sustainability of their senior management leaders (Edgar, Rajemi and Nadaranjan 2015). According to theory, it is the responsibility of the top-level management to look after the ways to raise funds for proper implementation of the system of ERP. In addition, they must take into consideration the capability of the MNCs to adapt to the changes in the business culture and develop their system accordingly (Ahmad and Cuenca 2013). Integration: Integration of each unit within an organization is mandatory for the smooth and efficient functioning of the organization. It has been a trend of the companies to follow a common view. According to this view, the effort of the employees in dealing with the consumers has been tried to reduce through ERP. As per the views provided by Zach, Munkvold and Olsen (2014), there have been several cases where there is existence of mismatch between the software and the middleware appliance. This type of unsynchronized tools within the ERP system leads to its failure (Karlson and Flink 2014). Associated Costs: The primary focus of any organization is to reduce its cost of operation. It has been seen that there are multiple costs associated with implementation of software. Initially the soft ware needs to be installed, and then it needs to be maintained. The cost associated with implementation of in-house software is often five times more than the cost of using ERP software (Ram, Corkindale and Wu 2013). Along with it, if the company tries to customize the in-house software according to their demand, then the cost of customization and wages of the experts gets included in their total cost of operation. Time required in implementation of ERP: There is no fixed time within which a company can implement its ERP system with its business. It is obvious that more the time taken for implementation of the software, the greater the cost associated with it. Often the wages per day charged by a single expert goes up to $1850. Usually it is seen, that the average time associated in installing and implementing the ERP software is more than a year with a large team of experts (Marsh et al. 2014). Therefore, Oil Co. and Explore Co. have to consider these factors as well while implementing this new system in business. Concept of Re-engineering: ERP systems are introduced within those companies, organizations and industries, which faces the need for some serious development. Any business usually tries to follow the high standard process within its system of mechanism so that they can remain at par with other competing organizations. This implementation of ERP within the system requires a dramatic change in the form of reengineering through which the company tries to attain the unmatched level of performance. Reengineering also occurs even if the company tries to improve its system of existing ERP into an upgraded version (Nath and Phookan 2015). In our case, the implementation of ERP is new for both Oil Co. and Explore Co. However, the Oil Co. requires more restructuring and reengineering within its system of operation than the company does. Availability of Consultants: The concepts of ERP system have cropped up within the organizations in a drastic way. This sudden rise in the demand thus created a major problem in the in the industry. There has been dearth of skilled consultants in the market. There are various skill components in the system of ERP. Often the problem faced by the company is not scarcity of knowledgeable consultant but mismatch between the particular skill required in the company and that possessed by the hired consultant (Carlson and Flink 2014). Hence, the main issue faced in implementing ERP is of the availability of consultant with the required skill. Employing the deserved candidate: The work culture within the company is ambidextrous in nature. Hence, the people at managerial level remain unwilling to engage their best performer in projects relating to ERP system. This is because by engaging those into ERP projects would mean that they are going to remain occupied for a long duration and would not be available in urgent projects (Gajic et al. 2014). The failure of most of the ERP projects is due to misunderstanding of the exact requirements. The people engaged in this product should be able to focus on the practices within the global industries even while operating within their own company. Morale Loss and revived: The system of ERP being complex in nature requires a huge time in understanding. The employees who are involved or been given the duty to look after the process and working of ERP is often demoralized due to the complexity of the system. They need to devote huge amount of time and effort in order to grasp the doings of the system. The people need to put in extra effort while operating in this system. This is a continuous process as ERP is dynamic in nature. Hence, those engaged in using ERP should be provided with some kind of refreshment and counseling so that they do not get depressed as during implementation of ERP it may so happen that they might not get leave for continuous 7 days or in holidays. Hence, only an efficient and highly focused leader should be given the duty to manage the group and motivate them (Dey, Clegg and Cheffi 2013). Providing suitable training: Abridgement of proper training about the ERP system will result in the mismatch between the requirement and the production. This can result in the collapse of the entire structure and hence there is a need to provide a meticulous and exhaustive training to the people engaged with this process (Esteves 2014). People with sound knowledge of computer can only handle the complexity of this ERP system after attaining an exhaustive training procedure. Conclusion: After going through the case study and constructing this report it can be concluded that there is complexity within the system of ERP. Successful implementation of this system within the domain of management can enhance the economic performance of the company whereas simple missteps taken while implementation can be disastrous for them. In the given cases there have been satisfactory results after implementing ERP in both Oil Co. and Explore Co. Under this system, Oil Co. faced the problem of overboard budget and time constraints whereas Explore Co. was successful in solving both these issues. From the entire study it is recommended that Oil Co. should try to develop a separate team with highly efficient workers trained in the ERP process so that they can deliver service on time. This would in turn give assurance of reduction of the companys cost of operation. Also it is advisable for Oil Co. to strengthen their leadership skills which can enhance in quick decision taking and operation system within the economy. From this basic study the flaws of Explore Co. could not be properly highlighted and hence no such prescribed recommendations can be provided for them in this report. References: Ahmad, M.M. and Cuenca, R.P., 2013. Critical success factors for ERP implementation in SMEs.Robotics and Computer-Integrated Manufacturing,29(3), pp.104-111. Amini, M. and Sadat Safavi, N., 2013. Review paper: critical success factors for ERP implementation.International Journal of Information Technology Information Systems,5(15), pp.1-23. Dey, P.K., Clegg, B. and Cheffi, W., 2013. Risk management in enterprise resource planning implementation: a new risk assessment framework.Production Planning Control,24(1), pp.1-14. Egdair, I.M., Rajemi, M.F. and Nadarajan, S., 2015. Technology Factors, ERP System and Organization Performance in Developing Countries.International Journal of Supply Chain Management,4(4). Esteves, J.M., 2014. An empirical identification and categorisation of training best practices for ERP implementation projects.Enterprise Information Systems,8(6), pp.665-683. Gajic, G., Stankovski, S., Ostojic, G., Tesic, Z. and Miladinovic, L., 2014. Method of evaluating the impact of ERP implementation critical success factorsa case study in oil and gas industries.Enterprise Information Systems,8(1), pp.84-106. Karlsson, R. and Flink, E., 2014.Changes and Challenges of ERP Implementation in the Context of Procurement and Supply Chain Processes. Department of Industrial Management and Logistics, Lund University. Marsh, J.L., Soroka, A.J., Davies, P., Lynch, J. and Eyers, D., 2014. Challenges to sustainable manufacturing resource planning implementation in SMEs: an exploratory study.KES Trans. Sustain. Des. Manuf,1(1), pp.291-302. Nath, U. and Phookan, J., 2015, October. Drill Site Surface Facilities Readiness: Systems Improvement through Use of IT (An Upstream Oil Gas Company's Approach). InSPE/IATMI Asia Pacific Oil Gas Conference and Exhibition. Society of Petroleum Engineers. Ram, J., Corkindale, D. and Wu, M.L., 2013. Implementation critical success factors (CSFs) for ERP: Do they contribute to implementation success and post-implementation performance?.International Journal of Production Economics,144(1), pp.157-174. Schniederjans, D. and Yadav, S., 2013. Successful ERP implementation: an integrative model.Business Process Management Journal,19(2), pp.364-398. Zach, O., Munkvold, B.E. and Olsen, D.H., 2014. ERP system implementation in SMEs: exploring the influences of the SME context.Enterprise Information Systems,8(2), pp.309-335.