Martin Antonenko
A Fixture
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2008
- Messages
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The "Epic Battle" which doesn't exist...
There is much talk of "epic battles" in the historical myths surrounding the American Revolutionary War.
Here is the front page of a US school book ...:
But if you strip the story of these myths, then many of these "battles" did not even exist, or rather they were mere maneuvers in which no shot was fired and no one was injured (from blisters on the feet of some soldiers perhaps once apart).
So it was with the "Battle of Fort Ticonderoga" in 1777!
At the end of the spring of 1777, 2,500 American soldiers and members of the militia...
... had the old fort occupied. They were led by "General" Arthur St. Clair.
I deliberately write "General" in quotation marks, because the gentleman wore thick gold epaulettes with two general stars, but in truth he was a doctor, anatomist - and his main job was a politician.
And apart from the well-oiled mouth that is typical of politicians, he had no clue about military matters!
Well, under St. Clair's command, his men toiled obsessively for two months to get the fort ready for defense!
They put up new buildings, new fortifications - and even a whole new bastion - Fort Independence - on the opposite side of Lake Champlain - and built a pontoon bridge over there too!
The great strategist St. Clair had overlooked only one small thing:
Close to Fort Ticonderoga, a hill called "Sugar Loaf" (now "Mount Defiance") towers over both forts; a possible attacker who brings long-range heavy cannons into position there can calmly shoot the whole glory together without exposing himself to any danger.
Because you cannot shoot back with the cannons of the fort, because the elevation angle of the pipes cannot be increased that much!
That's the view of Fort Ticonderoga when you stand on top of the hill! At the bottom on the other side of the lake you can see the place where Fort Independence stood. In between the bridge spanned ...:
When the news spread that the highly professional British General Sir John Borgoyne (nichnamed "Gentleman Johnny") ...
... came with more than 5,000 British regulars ...
... and several Indian allies ...
... sends the American commander-in-chief for this section of the front "General" Philip Schuyler (in reality landowners and - of course! - politician)...
... his colleague St. Clair hurriedly still 3,500 militia men as reinforcements.
On July 2, 1777, Borgoyne and his troops appeared before Ticonderoga - and it didn't take long for the British commander to assess the situation correctly.
The very next day the British began to set up positions for heavy artillery on the "Sugar Loaf". The redcoats had been able to occupy the hill itself without a fight, because the American "general" had not even thought of stationing at least one detachement there.
On July 4th, the Americans celebrate the first anniversary of the Declaration of Independence - and when they peek over their fortifications the next morning, hungover, they realize that the British have meanwhile positioned several heavy artillery on the hill ...:
The Americans also observe the British putting more cannons on the hill all day.
"General" St. Clair now has two options:
First of all, he can wait for the British to open fire and shoot himself, the fort and his troops to lumps. And secondly, he can retreat as quickly as possible before he is trapped.
Because on the other side of the Champlain Lake, almost 4,500 men Brunswick troops, allied with the British, are already advancing...
... and their commander General Friedrich Adolph von Riedesel...
... may not have an oiled politician's mouth, but he is just as skilled as General Borgoyne.
General von Riedesel has orders to close the Ticonderoga mousetrap!
"General" St. Clair of course opts for the second option (his own life is dear to him) and on the night of July 6th, 1777, he and his men move across the pontoon bridge.
He leaves everything behind, including artillery, ammunition reserves, supplies and food. And the fort has a lot of cannons, which will now be a nice morning gift for the British ...:...:
The sick, wounded and other soldiers who cannot march are left behind. And a couple of men as "rearguard" - what for?
They later explain that they had orders to destroy the pontoon bridge after the main power had withdrawn (and thus cut off their own escape route).
When the British realized on the morning of July 6th that Fort Ticonderoga was deserted, they approached cautiously.
They find the entire American rearguard asleep and heavily drunk. The soldiers had discovered a wine barrel that had not yet been emptied and apparently continued the celebration of the anniversary of the declaration of independence in a small group.
So the British conquer Fort Ticonderoga completely bloodless!
Borgoyne sends his Under-General Simon Fraser ...
... immediately set off with a detachment to pursue the fleeing Americans ...:
That was the "Epic Battle of Fort Ticoderoga" ...!
Incidentally, it had an aftermath:
As the circumstances become known, the American Continental Congress forces Philip Schuyler to resign as commander of the "Northern Department of the Continental Army".
He will be replaced by General Horatio Gates, a professional who learned his trade from scratch (as a Leftenant) in the British Army - including as a captain during the War of the Bavarian Succession in Germany ...:
"General" St. Clair, who stubbornly insists that his actions were "honorable", is brought before a court martial - and acquitted. He is even allowed to return to duty - but never again gets an independent command.
However, he will be there - as one of the riders in the picture on the right - when General Sir Charles Cornwallis has to surrender on October 19, 1781 in Yorktown and the Americans have finally won the war.
There is much talk of "epic battles" in the historical myths surrounding the American Revolutionary War.
Here is the front page of a US school book ...:
But if you strip the story of these myths, then many of these "battles" did not even exist, or rather they were mere maneuvers in which no shot was fired and no one was injured (from blisters on the feet of some soldiers perhaps once apart).
So it was with the "Battle of Fort Ticonderoga" in 1777!
At the end of the spring of 1777, 2,500 American soldiers and members of the militia...
... had the old fort occupied. They were led by "General" Arthur St. Clair.
I deliberately write "General" in quotation marks, because the gentleman wore thick gold epaulettes with two general stars, but in truth he was a doctor, anatomist - and his main job was a politician.
And apart from the well-oiled mouth that is typical of politicians, he had no clue about military matters!
Well, under St. Clair's command, his men toiled obsessively for two months to get the fort ready for defense!
They put up new buildings, new fortifications - and even a whole new bastion - Fort Independence - on the opposite side of Lake Champlain - and built a pontoon bridge over there too!
The great strategist St. Clair had overlooked only one small thing:
Close to Fort Ticonderoga, a hill called "Sugar Loaf" (now "Mount Defiance") towers over both forts; a possible attacker who brings long-range heavy cannons into position there can calmly shoot the whole glory together without exposing himself to any danger.
Because you cannot shoot back with the cannons of the fort, because the elevation angle of the pipes cannot be increased that much!
That's the view of Fort Ticonderoga when you stand on top of the hill! At the bottom on the other side of the lake you can see the place where Fort Independence stood. In between the bridge spanned ...:
When the news spread that the highly professional British General Sir John Borgoyne (nichnamed "Gentleman Johnny") ...
... came with more than 5,000 British regulars ...
... and several Indian allies ...
... sends the American commander-in-chief for this section of the front "General" Philip Schuyler (in reality landowners and - of course! - politician)...
... his colleague St. Clair hurriedly still 3,500 militia men as reinforcements.
On July 2, 1777, Borgoyne and his troops appeared before Ticonderoga - and it didn't take long for the British commander to assess the situation correctly.
The very next day the British began to set up positions for heavy artillery on the "Sugar Loaf". The redcoats had been able to occupy the hill itself without a fight, because the American "general" had not even thought of stationing at least one detachement there.
On July 4th, the Americans celebrate the first anniversary of the Declaration of Independence - and when they peek over their fortifications the next morning, hungover, they realize that the British have meanwhile positioned several heavy artillery on the hill ...:
The Americans also observe the British putting more cannons on the hill all day.
"General" St. Clair now has two options:
First of all, he can wait for the British to open fire and shoot himself, the fort and his troops to lumps. And secondly, he can retreat as quickly as possible before he is trapped.
Because on the other side of the Champlain Lake, almost 4,500 men Brunswick troops, allied with the British, are already advancing...
... and their commander General Friedrich Adolph von Riedesel...
... may not have an oiled politician's mouth, but he is just as skilled as General Borgoyne.
General von Riedesel has orders to close the Ticonderoga mousetrap!
"General" St. Clair of course opts for the second option (his own life is dear to him) and on the night of July 6th, 1777, he and his men move across the pontoon bridge.
He leaves everything behind, including artillery, ammunition reserves, supplies and food. And the fort has a lot of cannons, which will now be a nice morning gift for the British ...:...:
The sick, wounded and other soldiers who cannot march are left behind. And a couple of men as "rearguard" - what for?
They later explain that they had orders to destroy the pontoon bridge after the main power had withdrawn (and thus cut off their own escape route).
When the British realized on the morning of July 6th that Fort Ticonderoga was deserted, they approached cautiously.
They find the entire American rearguard asleep and heavily drunk. The soldiers had discovered a wine barrel that had not yet been emptied and apparently continued the celebration of the anniversary of the declaration of independence in a small group.
So the British conquer Fort Ticonderoga completely bloodless!
Borgoyne sends his Under-General Simon Fraser ...
... immediately set off with a detachment to pursue the fleeing Americans ...:
That was the "Epic Battle of Fort Ticoderoga" ...!
Incidentally, it had an aftermath:
As the circumstances become known, the American Continental Congress forces Philip Schuyler to resign as commander of the "Northern Department of the Continental Army".
He will be replaced by General Horatio Gates, a professional who learned his trade from scratch (as a Leftenant) in the British Army - including as a captain during the War of the Bavarian Succession in Germany ...:
"General" St. Clair, who stubbornly insists that his actions were "honorable", is brought before a court martial - and acquitted. He is even allowed to return to duty - but never again gets an independent command.
However, he will be there - as one of the riders in the picture on the right - when General Sir Charles Cornwallis has to surrender on October 19, 1781 in Yorktown and the Americans have finally won the war.
