The Battle of Monmouth is an American Revolutionary War battle fought on June 28, 1778, in Monmouth County, New Jersey.

The Continental Army under General George Washington attacks the rear of the British Army column commanded by Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton as they leave Monmouth Court House (modern Freehold Borough).

It is also known as the Battle of Monmouth Courthouse.

Unsteady handling of lead Continental elements by Major General Charles Lee has allowed British rearguard commander Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis to seize the initiative, but Washington's timely arrival on the battlefield rallies the Americans along a hilltop hedgerow.

Sensing the opportunity to smash the Continentals, Cornwallis presses his attack and captures the hedgerow in stifling heat.

Washington consolidates his troops in a new line on heights behind marshy ground, uses his artillery to fix the British in their positions, then brings up a four-gun battery under Major General Nathanael Greene on nearby Combs Hill to enfilade the British line, requiring Cornwallis to withdraw.

Finally, Washington tries to hit the exhausted British rear guard on both flanks, but darkness forces the end of the engagement

Both armies hold the field, but the British commanding general Clinton withdraws undetected at midnight to resume his army's march to New York City.

While Cornwallis had protected the main British column from any further American attack, Washington had fought his opponent to a standstill after a pitched and prolonged engagement; the first time that Washington's army had achieved such a result.

The battle demonstrates the growing effectiveness of the Continental Army after its six-month encampment at Valley Forge, where constant drilling under officers such as Major General Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben and Major General Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette have greatly improved discipline and morale.

The battle improved the military reputations of Washington, Lafayette and Anthony Wayne but ends the career of Charles Lee, who will face court martial at Englishtown for his failures on the day.

According to some accounts, an American soldier's wife, Mary Hays, brought water to thirsty soldiers in the June heat, and became one of several women associated with the legend of Molly Pitcher.

By the second phase of the battle the temperature remained almost consistently above 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and heat stroke was said to have claimed more lives than musket fire throughout the battle.