The 9th Virginia Regiment was authorized in the Virginia State Troops on January 11, 1776. It was subsequently organized between February 5 and March 16, 1776 and comprised seven companies of troops from easternmost Virginia. The unit was adopted into the Continental Army on May 31, 1776. The regiment participated in the Battle of Brandywine and the Battle of Germantown. At Germantown, under the command of Colonel George Mathews, the unit became separated from the remainder of General Nathanael Greene's division and over 400 men were taken prisoner by the British. The regiment penetrated so deeply into the British lines that it was isolated. Four retreating companies of the 1st British Light Infantry Battalion found themselves in the rear of the Virginians and attacked. Surprised, the 9th