The plan was beset by difficulties from the start . The Irish expedition , originally supposed to depart at the beginning of December 1775 , was delayed by logistical difficulties , and its 2 @,@ 500 troops did not depart until February 13 , 1776 , escorted by 11 warships under the command of Admiral Sir Peter Parker . Clinton left Boston on January 20 with two companies of light infantry , and first stopped at New York City to confer with William Tryon , New York 's royal governor . Major General Charles Lee , sent by Major General George Washington to see to the defense of New York , coincidentally arrived there the same day as Clinton . New York was at that time extremely tense ; Patriot forces were beginning to disarm and evict Loyalists , and the British fleet anchored there was having difficulty acquiring provisions . Despite this , Clinton made no secret that his final target was in the south . Lee observed that this was " certainly a droll way of proceeding ; to communicate his full plan to the enemy is too novel to be credited . " This was not even the first notice of the expedition to the colonists ; a letter intercepted in December had already provided intelligence that the British were planning to go to the South .