The Battle of Paoli, also known as the Battle of Paoli Tavern or the Paoli Massacre, was a battle in the Philadelphia campaign of the American Revolutionary War fought on September 20, 1777, in the area surrounding present-day Malvern, Pennsylvania. Following the Continental Army's retreat in the Battle of Brandywine and the aborted Battle of the Clouds, George Washington left a force behind under the command of Brigadier General Anthony Wayne to monitor and resist the British as they prepared to attack and occupy the revolutionary capital of Philadelphia.