Green Mountain Boys Seize Fort Ticonderoga

Context

By spring 1775, the clashes at Lexington and Concord had transformed colonial protests into open armed resistance against British authority. Colonial committees in several colonies began organizing expeditions to seize British military assets before they could be reinforced, while delegates prepared to gather in Philadelphia for what would become the Second Continental Congress.

What Happened

Fort Ticonderoga occupied a commanding position on Lake Champlain, controlling the main water route between the northern colonies and Canada. The old French-built stronghold had fallen into disrepair and was defended by a garrison of fewer than fifty British troops under Captain William Delaplace. Ethan Allen, leader of the Green Mountain Boys—a Vermont militia originally formed to protect local land claims—received support from Massachusetts authorities for an attack on the post.

Aftermath

On the evening of May 9, roughly 150 Green Mountain Boys assembled at Hand’s Cove on the Vermont shore. Benedict Arnold arrived with a Massachusetts commission authorizing him to lead such an expedition; after brief negotiations the two men agreed to joint command. Only about eighty-three men crossed the lake in the available boats before dawn on May 10. Approaching the south gate, the Americans encountered a single sentry whose musket misfired. They rushed inside, roused the sleeping garrison, and secured the surrender of the officers’ quarters without further resistance. One American received a minor bayonet wound; no one was killed.

Legacy

The captured artillery—dozens of cannons and mortars—remained at the fort until Colonel Henry Knox later transported it overland to Boston. There the pieces helped fortify Dorchester Heights and contributed directly to the British evacuation of the city in March 1776. The raid stood as one of the earliest offensive successes for colonial forces and illustrated the effectiveness of militia initiative in the opening phase of the war.