British Forces Occupy Fort Ticonderoga in American Revolution

Context

By the summer of 1777 the British government had adopted a plan to isolate New England by driving a wedge southward from Canada to the Hudson River. Lieutenant General John Burgoyne received command of the main column, which was to move down Lake Champlain, capture Albany, and link with other British forces operating from New York City. Success would sever rebel supply lines and, officials hoped, end the war within a single campaign season.

Fort Ticonderoga, located at the narrow southern end of Lake Champlain, formed the principal American obstacle on this route. Originally constructed by the French and seized by colonial forces in 1775, the stone star fort had been reinforced with additional works on the adjacent height known as Mount Independence. Its position controlled waterborne movement between Canada and the upper Hudson Valley, making its retention a priority for the Continental Army’s Northern Department.

Major General Philip Schuyler, the department commander, assigned roughly three thousand Continentals and militia under Brigadier General Arthur St. Clair to hold the post. Although the Americans had improved the defenses, they had not secured every dominating height around the lake narrows, a vulnerability British engineers would soon exploit.

What Happened

Burgoyne’s army of approximately eight thousand British, German, Canadian, and Loyalist troops reached the vicinity of Ticonderoga in late June. By July 2 his advance guard had begun probing actions against the American outposts. British and Brunswick soldiers quickly identified the lightly defended summit of Mount Defiance, which overlooked both Fort Ticonderoga and Mount Independence. Working parties dragged artillery pieces to the crest and began emplacing guns that could fire directly into the American works.

St. Clair recognized that the new British batteries rendered his position untenable. With British columns also moving to sever the garrison’s land and water escape routes, he ordered a nighttime withdrawal on July 5–6. The Americans slipped away in darkness, abandoning substantial stores of cannon, powder, and provisions. British advanced elements followed closely but did not intercept the main column.

On the morning of July 6, Burgoyne’s troops occupied Fort Ticonderoga and Mount Independence without resistance. Only a handful of skirmishes occurred, producing roughly two dozen total casualties for both sides.

Aftermath

News of the uncontested British victory reached American leaders and the public within days, producing widespread dismay and accusations of negligence. Congress ordered formal inquiries into the conduct of both St. Clair and Schuyler. After lengthy proceedings both officers were exonerated, though Schuyler was replaced in command of the Northern Department by Horatio Gates.

Burgoyne used the captured fort as a temporary base while he continued southward. His army soon encountered lengthening supply lines, difficult terrain, and growing American resistance that would culminate in his surrender at Saratoga three months later.

Legacy

The fall of Ticonderoga illustrated the decisive effect of terrain and artillery in eighteenth-century siege warfare and exposed the difficulties of defending isolated strongholds with limited manpower. Although a tactical success for Britain, the episode formed an early chapter in Burgoyne’s failed campaign; his eventual capitulation helped persuade France to conclude a formal alliance with the United States in 1778.

Later historians have viewed St. Clair’s decision to evacuate as a prudent preservation of his small force rather than a blunder, noting that holding the fort would likely have resulted in its destruction and the loss of most of its garrison.