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Weather’s Impact on Military Campaigns Historically, weather events have played key roles in outcomes of battles and entire campaigns. This happened famously during the Revolutionary War when George Washington moved much of his army across the East River under cover of fog after the Battle of Brooklyn (also called the Battle of Long Island). Outnumbered and outgunned by the British, fog allowed Washington to move roughly 9,000 of his Continental Army troops across the East River—a move that many historians claim set the stage for victory over the British, as had fog not emerged and had Washington not used it as a cloak, the British would have destroyed his army. The fog was an unpredicted, serendipitous event, one that Washington utilized to his advantage on the spot. In subsequent years, military environmental forecasts have evolved to become much more tightly involved in planning processes.