Defiance & Independence
The 1777 Capture of Fort Ticonderoga
July 19 & 20, 2014
Reprieved from a siege in 1776 by the onset of winter, the twin Forts Ticonderoga and Independence faced General John Burgoyne’s northern army of British, Loyalist, and German soldiers in July, 1777. General St. Clair’s rearguard of Massachusetts and New Hampshire regulars and militia put up a vigorous defense, skirmishing in the plain around Ticonderoga. Artillery batteries built into the old French Lines seemed to keep the British army at bay. Concealed by forest cover on the back slope of Mount Defiance, British cannon were dragged to the summit. By July 6th British cannon high up on Mount Defiance, aimed at the pontoon bridge between the two Forts, forced the withdrawal of General St. Clair’s rearguard into the New Hampshire Grants (Vermont). In this Brigade of the American Revolution event, we re-enact the key aspects of this battle of position and maneuver around the Continental fortifications at Ticonderoga.
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