Glacial Expanse
Although much of North America was heavily wooded in the 18th century, the vast region of mountainous woodlands stretching from New England to the Great Lakes along the northern tier of New York made travel a slow, cumbersome, and often perilous affair. For centuries, however, the native tribes of the region, including the Iroquois, Abenaki, and Huron, navigated the area with relative ease. Generations of knowledge passed down to the tribes turned the faintest break in the woods, footpath, or deer trail into their highway.
However, modern (18th-century) travelers, such as explorers, hunters, trappers, and, of course, armies, needed a better way to navigate the wilderness that seemed, at times, overwhelming. And for this, they turned to nature as well. In this case, the excellent network of waterways was left by the glaciers, which receded at the end of the last great ice age.
Waterways of War
The resulting waterway stretched, with little interruption, from the Saint Lawrence River to Lower New York Harbor and the Atlantic Ocean. This narration will focus on the northernmost waters of Lake Champlain and Lake George. Several forts built to defend the waterways played a significant role in the many clashes between the French, Indians, and the British in the 18th century.
Crown Point
This is a tale of two forts as Britain and France faced off to control Lake Champlain, the largest body of water south of the Great Lakes and west of the Atlantic Ocean. Like an opposing left thumb, a small peninsula jutting into the lake from Champlain's western shore dominates the approach from either direction. As the first "battlespace" between Canada and the colonies, it played a pivotal role in the many 18th-century struggles for a North American Empire.
The French were the first to recognize the strategic location. In 1734, they began constructing a base named Fort St. Frederic, which they used to launch raids against British settlers in central New York and New England (the hated Bostonnais). During the French and Indian War, the British were determined to neutralize the base and ultimately succeeded in capturing it in 1759. They promptly built new defensive structures on the site, which they dubbed "His Majesty's Fort of Crown Point." The new works at Crown Point covered more than seven acres, making it one of the largest in North America.
Between the French and Indian War and the outbreak of the American Revolution, Crown Point (like all the other locations along the waterway) became less significant and was essentially put on hold. However, in 1775, the Americans recognized the value in seizing the unmanned cannons and ordnance for the new Continental Army. It served as a base for American forces invading Canada in 1775 and defending New York in 1776. Crown Point fell back into British hands when General John Burgoyne launched his 1777 campaign to divide the colonies. It remained under British control even after Burgoyne surrendered in October of that year.
Fort Ticonderoga
Fort Ti is the big daddy of forts, the big kahuna, the Gibraltar of the North, and figures largely in my novel, The North Spy. The name "Ticonderoga" comes from the Iroquois word tekontaró:ken, meaning "it is at the junction of two waterways." Situated between Lake Champlain and Lake George, the site dominated the transit route between Canada and the American colonies, making it as strategic a place as any in North America. I visited once when I was very young and twice as an adult and have not begun to scratch the surface of its historical and geographic significance.
French Carillon
Recognizing its strategic significance, the French first fortified the site in 1755 and named it Fort Carillon. It would play a significant role in the upcoming campaigns of the French and Indian War. The power of the place was demonstrated in 1758 when 4,000 French troops defeated 16,000 British troops in a bloody battle aptly called The Battle of Carillon. But all forts are meant to be taken, and in 1759, the British returned. This time, they drove out the small French garrison.
Rebel Pickings
At the start of the Revolutionary War, local leaders acknowledged the fort's significance and its ordnance. In 1775, the American siege of Boston surrounded the British but lacked the necessary guns to conduct a proper siege and the gunpowder to risk an all-out assault.
On May 10, 1775, Colonel Benedict Arnold and Ethan Allen led a mix of Green Mountain Boys and other local militia in a surprise attack, capturing the startled garrison. General George Washington, the new commander in chief of the Continental Army, dispatched Colonel Henry Knox to Ticonderoga to transport the heavy cannons and powder back to Boston. When the captured guns were placed in the battery over the city in March 1776, General William Howe ordered the evacuation of Boston.
Red Deluge
During the summer 1777 campaign led by British General John Burgoyne, Ticonderoga was in the crosshairs. The massive fort was the key to Burgoyne's success as it would provide his logistics base and jump-off point for his final thrust to Albany and a link-up with General Henry Clinton's army in New York City.
Without a Shot
The Americans acknowledged the threat and the importance of defending the fort, but the defenses had been neglected, and the garrison lacked sufficient numbers, munitions, and supplies. Ironically, large fortresses consume resources and are vulnerable if not fully manned. Such was the situation facing the new American commander of the garrison, General Arthur St. Clair. Ticonderoga was surrounded by mountains that, if taken, would place the fort and garrison in jeopardy. St. Clair failed to secure those hills, but the enterprising British did – dragging a gun battery to the crest of Mount Defiance. Recognizing the danger, St. Clair ordered a night withdrawal, abandoning the Gibraltar of the North without firing a shot.
Fort Ann
Nestled in the rugged woodland east of Lake George's southern tip, Fort Ann lies at the edge of the rough terrain and marks the beginning of the lowland approaches to Fort Edward and the Upper Hudson Valley.
French and Indian War
Recognizing its strategic position, the British erected a small fort there in 1757. It was here in 1758 that celebrated French and Indian War leaders Israel Putnam and Robert Rogers led a force of 500 men to screen and scout the French at Fort Ticonderoga. On their return, they were attacked, and Israel Putnam was wounded and taken prisoner.
Revolutionary War
Following the fall of Fort Ticonderoga in the summer of 1777, British General John Burgoyne forced the Continental troops to retreat. They pursued them through the dense, rugged woodlands east of the lakes. The Americans managed a fighting withdrawal, felling trees and setting up ambush points, and regrouped in a defensive perimeter near the last defensible position before the defile that led. to the lowlands – Fort Ann. The British advance guard was on the move and intent on capturing the fort.
Impromptu Battlefield
The Battle of Fort Ann occurred here on July 9, 1777. This was another delaying action, one of many large and small, that characterized the middle phase of the Saratoga Campaign.
The British advance guard, consisting of around 200 men, was confronted at the gorge about a mile north of Fort Ann by Colonel Pierce Long's rear guard, which included 150 men reinforced by 400 New York militia under Colonel Henry van Rensselaer. Long and van Rensselaer launched an attack in two columns when the British paused to wait for reinforcements. One column swung east, threatening the British flank and rear, while the other pushed into the defile.
Gunpowder and War Whoops
The British withdrew to higher ground, and after two hours of intense fighting, the Americans broke contact due to a lack of ammunition and the sound of approaching British reinforcements. However, those reinforcements turned out to be a ruse—a single British officer imitating Iroquois war whoops. While a British victory, the action at Fort Ann delayed the progress of the British Saratoga Campaign.
While the Patriots successfully outnumbered and surrounded the British, they ultimately retreated to Fort Ann and then to Fort Edward after being deceived into believing that enemy reinforcements were about to surround them. Nevertheless, the Patriots effectively delayed British movements toward Saratoga and ensured an American victory there.
Fort Edward
A series of forts was established at the "Great Carrying Place," a portage around the falls on the Hudson used by local Indians before colonial times. Situated on the "Great War Path," later utilized by the Iroquois and other tribes, the French and English colonists recognized its value and used it during the many wars of the eighteenth century.
A French and Indian Fort
During the French and Indian War, General Phineas Lyman constructed Fort Lyman here in 1755. Sir William Johnson, the British Superintendent for Indian Affairs, renamed it Fort Edward in 1756 to honor Prince Edward, a younger brother of the later King George III. After Fort William Henry fell to the French, the famed Major Robert Rogers used it as a base for operations conducted by his Rangers. In 1759, General Jeffery Amherst's army assembled at Fort Edward for his attack on Fort Carillon and Fort St. Frederic. After the British captured the forts, Fort Edward was significantly diminished as the war progressed north.
Revolutionary Days
Fort Edward was destroyed by the rebels shortly after the Revolutionary War began. Although it would never function as a defensive structure, its strategic location made it a base for many military officers who passed through. The commander of the Continental Army's Northern Department, General Phillip Schuyler, utilized it as his headquarters until the British drove him south on their way to Saratoga in the summer of 1777.
Place of Infamy
The most infamous event of the 1777 Saratoga campaign, the case of Jane McCrae, occurred near the fort. The fiancé (or lover) of a Loyalist officer, Jane was captured by an Indian war party while visiting a house close to the fort. Her fiancé sent another Indian war party to negotiate for her release. When it became clear the fiancé's envoy would not pay a ransom, her captor, a Huron named Wyandott Panther, became enraged. During the argument, he allegedly shot her. Jane's bloody scalp was brought to the British camp, where her fiancé identified it by its stark red hair. The rest of her remains were buried near the fort.
Patriotic Outrage
The Americans exploited the incident to incite deep-seated colonial fear and hatred of the Indians. Given the long history of conflict between the tribes, particularly the Mohawks, this was relatively easy to achieve. Soon, hesitant farmers and settlers began to rally to the cause in large numbers. By the time General Burgoyne's Army was north of Albany, the angry rebels outnumbered him by two to one.
Forts of Futility?
