<P> During the night, Washington called a council of war and asked his officers whether they should stand and fight, attempt to cross the river somewhere, or take the back roads to attack Princeton . Although the idea had already occurred to Washington, he learned from Arthur St. Clair and John Cadwalader that his plan to attack Princeton was indeed possible . Two intelligence collection efforts, both of which came to fruition at the end of December 1776, supported such a surprise attack . After consulting with his officers, they agreed that the best option was to attack Princeton . </P> <P> Washington ordered that the excess baggage be taken to Burlington where it could be sent to Pennsylvania . The ground had frozen, making it possible to move the artillery without it sinking into the ground . By midnight, the plan was complete, with the baggage on its way to Burlington and the guns wrapped in heavy cloth to stifle noise and prevent the British from learning of the evacuation . Washington left 500 men behind with two cannon to patrol, keep the fires burning, and to work with picks and shovels to make the British think that they were digging in . Before dawn, these men were to join up with the main army . </P> <P> By 2: 00 AM the entire army was in motion roughly along Quaker Bridge Road through what is now Hamilton Township . The men were ordered to march with absolute silence . Along the way, a rumor was spread that they were surrounded and some frightened militiamen fled for Philadelphia . The march was difficult, as some of the route ran through thick woods and it was icy, causing horses to slip, and men to break through ice on ponds . </P> <P> As dawn came, the army approached a stream called Stony Brook . The road the army took followed Stony Brook for a mile farther until it intersected the Post Road from Trenton to Princeton . However, off to the right of this road, there was an unused road which crossed the farmland of Thomas Clark . The road was not visible from the Post Road, and ran through cleared land to a stretch from which the town could be entered at any point because the British had left it undefended . </P>

Who were the leaders of the battle of princeton