The Capture of Fort Ticonderoga: British Failures in Intelligence The paper is a battle analysis of the American colonists’ capture of Fort Ticonderoga in the northern New York colony on 10 May, 1775. Colonels Benedict Arnold and Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys captured the fort from Captain William De Laplace and Lieutenant Jocelyn Feltham of the 26th Regiment of Foot (Ward, 1952). It also discuss where the British forces failed to use their contemporary intelligence capabilities to thwart the attack. The “battle” was the first American victory of the American Revolution. The lack of British intelligence capabilities like human intelligence, counterintelligence, Calvary Scouts and key assumptions analysis at Fort Ticonderoga, led …show more content…
The fort allowed the travel of troops from Canada into the American colonies with no resistance. John Brown, another American patriot who carried messages between American sympathizers in Montreal and those in Boston, also commented on both the importance the fort and it condition saying “one thing I must mention to be kept as a profound Secret, the Fort at Tyconderogo must be seised as soon as possible should hostilities be committed by the kings Troops (Phillips, 2012, p. 21).” The colonists were not the only ones who noted that Ticonderoga was of importance. British General Thomas Gage realized after the battles at Lexington and Concord that the fort would be important to the colonists, and wrote to Quebec’s governor, General Guy Carleton, to fortify the fort and make improvements. Unfortunately the letter arrive after the fort was already taken into control by the American colonists. (Gage, …show more content…
He noted that the fort was in disarray as well as the armaments of the fort and its garrison and he took this information to comrade of his (Randall, 1990). The comrade told this information to the Connecticut Committee of Correspondence who commissioned a force to take possession of the fort and its contents. The Massachusetts Committee of Safety later commissioned Arnold as a Colonel and ordered him to take the fort (Nelson, 2000). All while this was happening, Ethan Allen had recruited more than 150 men, known as the Green Mountain Boys, to undertake the capture of Fort Ticonderoga and was nominated as Colonel (Smith, 1907). Arnold met Allen and his Green Mountain Boys at Castleton in the Hampshire Grants, a day’s ride southeast from the opposite shore of Ticonderoga. One of the officers, Captain Noah Phelps performed recon on Ticonderoga. He reported that the fort walls were battered and broken-down, that the garrison commander had informed him they would have reinforcements soon (Randall, 1990). Wanting to beat the reinforcements there, Allen and Arnold formed a plan immediately to take the fort the very next day. Allen had already sent men to commandeer boats for the crossing to Ticonderoga. The British failed to note the indications of an attack on the
He noted that the fort was in disarray, as well as the armaments of the fort and the fort’s walls, and he took this information to a comrade of his (Randall, 1990). The comrade relayed this information to the Connecticut Committee of Correspondence, who commissioned a force to take possession of the fort and its contents. The Massachusetts Committee of Safety later commissioned Arnold as a Colonel and ordered him to take the fort (Nelson, 2000). While this was happening, Ethan Allen had recruited more than 150 men, known as the Green Mountain Boys, to undertake the capture of Fort Ticonderoga, and they nominated him Colonel of the expedition (Smith, 1907). Colonel Arnold met Colonel Allen and his Green Mountain Boys at Castleton in the Hampshire Grants, a day’s ride southeast from the opposite shore of
By march of 1876, the plan to locate and engage the hostile Natives was ready and executed. The plan was for a three pronged movement with each prong converging on the Powder river valley. Because the exact location of the Natives was not known, the plan relied on any one of the prongs to be able to defeat the Natives autonomously. The first of the three prongs left Fort Ellis (near present day Bozeman) in the Montana territory comprised of about 450 soldiers. This first column was commanded by Colonel John Gibbon.
Firstly, the Siege at Fort Ticonderoga was a reflection upon the strengths of the British troops and the Colonist’s armies. Both of the armies were shown in this fight. The British had a powerful defense and would not move. The Colonists planned a smart surprise attack from all Angles (Fort Ticonderoga 1777 1). These striking strengths from both sides were an example of what happens when two great powers go to war.
Henry Knox once said, "Every friend to the liberty of his country is bound to reflect, and step forward to prevent the dreadful consequences which shall result from a government of events." On March fifth 1776 General Washington had a plan to force the British out of Boston. Washington ordered his men to bring captured cannons from Fort Ticonderoga through the snow, so they can be put at Dorchester Heights. Washington wanted to keep it under wraps. If the redcoats were to find out their plan they would easily be able to storm the fort.
In January 1862 the union commander in the district, General William T. Sherman, decided to take the fort. He ordered troops to Tybee Island and constructed defenses on the smaller islands to cut the fort from reinforcements. Sherman then placed Captain Quincy Gillmore of the Engineer Corps in charge of the attack preparations on Tybee, despite comments like "you might as well bombard the Rocky Mountains. Gillmore ordered his engineers to build eleven artillery batteries along the north shore of Tybee Island. Once the batteries were built, the troops had to pull, artillery pieces weighing as much as 17,000 pounds and then get them into position.
(Roark, Johnson, Cohen, Stage, & Hartmann) These troops were kept up in America even after the French had surrendered their possessions in Canada to Great Britain. Their proceeded with vicinity was to shield the settlers from Indian intrusions and also French striking back along the outskirts. On the whole, the English Crown caused $2 million under water while battling against the French and securing the
Pontiac’s War was a notable part of the history of the interaction between Native Americans and Europeans in eastern North America. Chief Pontiac led the first multitribal war against the encroaching Europeans and helped form a balance of power between the British and the Indians. Indians would enter alliances with each other and Europeans for economic transactions. In 1758, the French and Indian War caused many Native Americas to join forces with the French King Louis XV. The British defeated the French on North American soil.
Francis Scott Key was a famous poet as well as a lawyer. He was born on August 1, 1779 to John Ross Key, who was an officer of the Continental Army. He was about 33 years old when he wrote the poem called “The Defense of Fort McHenry.” This popular poem was put to the tune of a very famous drinking song of that time called “Anacreon in Heaven,” and eventually was made into our National Anthem.
In the War of 1812, the young America took on Great Britain, the most powerful naval in the world, in a conflict that would leave a great impact on the country. Causes of the war included British attempts to restrict United States trade, the Royal Navy’s impressment of American Seaman and America’s desire to expand its territory. Over the course of the war, the United States Army suffered many defeats by the British, Canadian, and Native American troops. One of the biggest losses was the capture and burning of the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., in August 1814. Though the forces against the United States were strong, the strength of the Americans put them on top of their enemies and led them to gain new spirit and patriotism.
The War of 1812 waged on for almost 3 years. This was the war that proved that America can stand on its own as an independent country. The two sides of this war were the United States of America and Great Britain. The reason for this war was for maritime rights of neutrals. “The belligerents seized nearly 1500 American vessels between 1803 and 1812, thus posing the problem of whether the U.S. should go to war to defend its neutral rights” (War of 1812).
Washington most likely wouldn’t have won the battle without Espionage. Espionage (spying) during the Revolutionary War was important because they used the Culper Spy Ring, both sides used it, and there are a lot of famous spies. In the Revolutionary War, they had spies that used the Culper Spy Ring. The ring was used for sending private messages to Washington about the British army.
Despite their loss, the inexperienced colonial forces inflicted considerable casualties against the invading British, and the battle provided them with an important confidence boost. Colonel Prescott’s leadership throughout the battle is an excellent example of good mission command. Upon receipt of mission from higher and given limited resources, Colonel Prescott effectively issued orders to his soldiers, which ultimately led to
Was the Colony of Georgia a Success or Failure? The Colony of Georgia was a success. James Oglethorpe and 114 colonists climbed 40 feet up the bluff from the Savannah River on this day in 1733 and founded the colony of Georgia. James Edward Oglethorpe, a philanthropist and an English general, along with twenty-one other men, created a charter to settle a new colony which they named Georgia in honor of King George II.
(Benedict Arnold) Fort Ticonderoga had been in French control before the British later occupied it in the early 1770’s. While in French control the Fort was named Fort Carillon, which is “tower bell” in French, and served as a great outpost along the Hudson River Valley and the southern border of Canada. After the British took the fort they renamed it Fort Ticonderoga, which means “between two waters” in Iriqous, and again used it as a great outpost to control the waters around Northeastern New York. (Capture of Fort Ticonderoga) The early morning of May 10, 1775 Benedict Arnold and Ethan Allen led their troops across Lake Champlain onto the other side to Fort Ticonderoga where they silently snuck into the fort while the British were still sleeping.
In 1776, one of the most popular and well known founding fathers led the fight for independence in the royal colonies. In David Hackett Fischer’s book, “Washington’s Crossing”, he describes the troubles and even the unknowns of Washington’s experiences during the Revolutionary War. Fischer goes into detail about the first approach of the British as their massive naval fleet surrounds the state of New York all the way up to the point when the British became the defensive force rather than the offensive. “Washington’s Crossing” illustrates how the American Revolution wasn’t just pure success as at the beginning of the war, the Americans took many losses that almost completely crushed the revolution entirely. However, eventually the tides would