Land of the Brave

Battle of Fort Ticonderoga

Benedict Arnold

Colonial America - Benedict Arnold

Battle of Fort Ticonderoga

Battle of Fort Ticonderoga Definition: The Battle of Fort Ticonderoga was a military conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and its thirteen colonies in North America during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). The year and date that the Battle of Fort Ticonderoga took place on Wednesday, May 10, 1775.

The battlefield in which the British and American Forces fought during the Battle of Fort Ticonderoga was located on the shores of Lake Champlain on the border of New York and the Canadian province of Quebec. The Battle of Fort Ticonderoga ended in a surprise victory for the American colonists. 

Overview and Summary of the Battle of Fort Ticonderoga
The British troops who survived the Battle of Lexington and the Battle of Concord reached a place of safety under the guns of the warships anchored off Charlestown. The American patriots camped for the night at Cambridge and began the siege of Boston. The Battle of Fort Ticonderoga, 200 miles away from Boston would be the next major conflict in the Revolutionary War. The Battle of Fort Ticonderoga took place on Wednesday, May 10, 1775 at Ticonderoga, New York. The siege of Boston had begun but the colonists were acutely aware that they needed firearms, munitions or cannon. The fort at Ticonderoga, New York contained stores of such armaments. The location of Fort Ticonderoga was also very important as its strategic position of control over the waterways to Canada could protect New York and the New England colonies from British invasion from Canada.

 
Battle of Fort Ticonderoga - Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold
Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold both realized that Fort Ticonderoga would be a relatively easy target for the colonists. Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold shared command and with a band of 168 Green Mountain Boys and New England militia,  captured Fort Ticonderoga from the British in an early morning raid on May 10, 1775.
 
The rebels sneaked into the fort of sleeping troops and demanded its surrender. The garrison commander, Captain William DeLaPlace,  surrendered his sword and the fort to the rebels. Not one person was killed in the daring dawn raid. Following the capture of Fort Ticonderoga, Colonel Henry Knox transported more than 60 tons of military supplies including 59 artillery pieces from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston. Ticonderoga’s cannon were placed on Dorchester Heights which had a commanding view of Boston. The threat of the cannon forced the British to evacuate Boston on March 17, 1776 and the Continental Army entered Boston the next day.

The Importance and Significance of the Battle of Fort Ticonderoga
Significance of the Battle of Fort Ticonderoga: The significance of the conflict was that the cannons, munitions and other armaments from Fort Ticonderoga were transported to Boston and used to fortify Dorchester Heights and break the standoff at the Siege of Boston. The position of the fort itself was also very important as it protected New York and New England from British invasion from Canada.

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Updated 2018-01-01

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