 He rode back and forth across the battlefield for hours as his fellow soldiers were falling, and he organized some semblance of a rear guard. Somehow Washington was able to impose some form of order, allowing the British to retreat and cut their losses. The fighting continued for hours. Bullets were flying all around him, but nothing, whether it was illness, exhaustion, or even musket fire, could stop him. In the midst of the chaos, Washington actually fell violently to the ground. His horse had been shot.