French and Indian War Siege of Fort William Henry

The Siege of Fort William Henry took place August 3-9, 1757, during the French Indian War (1754-1763). Though tensions between British and French forces on the frontier had been growing for several years, the French Indian War did not begin in earnest until 1754 when Lieutenant Colonel George Washingtons command was defeated at Fort Necessity in western Pennsylvania. The following year, a large British force led by Major General Edward Braddock was crushed at the Battle of the Monongahela attempting to avenge Washingtons defeat and capture Fort Duquesne. To the north, the British fared better as noted Indian agent Sir William Johnson led troops to victory at the Battle of Lake George in September 1755 and captured the French commander, Baron Dieskau. In the wake of this setback, the governor of New France (Canada), the Marquis de Vaudreuil, directed that Fort Carillon (Ticonderoga) be constructed at the south end of Lake Champlain. Fort William Henry In response, Johnson ordered Major William Eyre, the military engineer of the 44th Regiment of Foot, to build Fort William Henry at the southern shore of Lake George. This position was supported by Fort Edward which was located on the Hudson River approximately sixteen miles to the south. Built in a square design with bastions on the corners, Fort William Henrys walls were approximately thirty feet thick and consisted of earth faced with timber. The forts magazine was located in the northeast bastion while a medical facility was placed in the southeast bastion. As constructed, the fort was meant to hold a garrison of 400-500 men. Though formidable, the fort was intended to repel Native American attacks and was not constructed to withstand enemy artillery. While the northern wall faced the lake, the other three were protected by a dry moat. Access to the fort was provided by a bridge across this ditch. Supporting the fort was a large entrenched camp located a short distance to the southeast. Garrisoned by the men of Eyres regiment, the fort turned back a French attack, led by Pierre de Rigaud in March 1757. This was largely due to the French lacking heavy guns. British Plans As the 1757 campaign season approached, the new British commander-in-chief for North America, Lord Loudoun, submitted plans to London calling for an assault on Quebec City. The center of French operations, the citys fall would effectively cut off enemy forces to the west and south. As this plan moved forward, Loudoun intended to take a defensive posture on the frontier. He felt this would be feasible as the attack on Quebec would draw French troops away from the border. Moving forward, Loudoun began assembling the forces needed for the mission. In March 1757, he received orders from the new government of William Pitt directing him to turn his efforts towards taking the fortress of Louisbourg on Cape Breton Island. While this did not alter Loudouns preparations directly, it dramatically changed the strategic situation as the new mission would not draw French forces away from the frontier. As the operation against Louisbourg took priority, the best units were assigned accordingly. To protect the frontier, Loudoun appointed Brigadier General Daniel Webb to oversee the defenses in New York and gave him 2,000 regulars. This force was to be augmented by 5,000 colonial militia.   The French Response In New France, Vaudreuils field commander, Major General Louis-Joseph de Montcalm (Marquis de Montcalm), began planning to reduce Fort William Henry. Fresh from a victory at Fort Oswego the previous year, he had demonstrated that traditional European siege tactics could be effective against forts in North America. Montcalms intelligence network began providing him with information that suggested that the British target for 1757 would be Louisbourg. Recognizing that such an effort would leave the British weak on the frontier, he began assembling troops to strike south. This work was aided by Vaudreuil who was able to recruit around 1,800 Native American warriors to supplement Montcalms army. These were sent south to Fort Carillon.  Assembling a combined force of around 8,000 men at the fort, Montcalm began preparing to move south against Fort William Henry. Despite his best efforts, his Native American allies proved difficult to control and began mistreating and torturing British prisoners at the fort. Additionally, they routinely took more than their share of rations and were found to be ritually cannibalizing prisoners. Though Montcalm desired to end such behavior, he risked the Native Americans leaving his army if he pushed too hard. The Campaign Begins At Fort William Henry, command passed to Lieutenant Colonel George Monro of the 35th Foot in the spring of 1757. Establishing his headquarters in the fortified camp, Monro had around 1,500 men at his disposal. He was supported by Webb, who was at Fort Edward. Alerted to the French build up, Monro dispatched a force up the lake which was routed at the Battle of Sabbath Day Point on July 23. In response, Webb traveled to Fort William Henry with a detachment of Connecticut rangers led by Major Israel Putnam. Scouting north, Putnam reported the approach of a Native American force. Returning to Fort Edward, Webb directed 200 regulars and 800 Massachusetts militiamen to reinforce Monros garrison. Though this increased the garrison to around 2,500 men, several hundred were ill with smallpox. On July 30, Montcalm ordered Franà §ois de Gaston, Chevalier de Là ©vis to move south with an advance force. Following the next day, he rejoined Là ©vis at Ganaouske Bay. Again pushing ahead, Là ©vis camped within three miles of Fort William Henry on August 1. Armies Commanders British Lieutenant Colonel George Monro2,500 men French Native Americans Marquis de Montcalmapprox. 8,000 men The French Attack Two days later, Là ©vis moved south of the fort and severed the road to Fort Edward. Skirmishing with Massachusetts militia, they were able to maintain the blockade. Arriving later in the day, Montcalm demanded Monros surrender. This request was rebuffed and Monro sent messengers south to Fort Edward to seek aid from Webb. Assessing the situation and lacking sufficient men to both aid Monro and cover the colonial capital of Albany, Webb responded on August 4 by telling him to seek the best surrender terms possible if forced to capitulate. Intercepted by Montcalm, the message informed the French commander that no aid would be coming and that Monro was isolated. As Webb was writing, Montcalm directed Colonel Franà §ois-Charles de Bourlamaque to commence siege operations. Digging trenches northwest of the fort, Bourlamaque began emplacing guns to reduce the northwest bastion of the fort. Completed on August 5, the first battery opened fire and battered the forts walls from a range of about 2,000 yards. A second battery was finished the next day and brought the bastion under crossfire. Though Fort William Henrys guns responded, their fire proved relatively ineffective. In addition, the defense was hampered by a large portion of the garrison being ill. Hammering the walls through the night of August 6/7, the French succeeded in opening several gaps. On August 7, Montcalm dispatched his aide, Louis Antoine de Bougainville, to again call for the forts surrender. This was again refused. After enduring another day and nights bombardment and with the forts defenses collapsing and the French trenches coming closer, Monro hoisted a white flag on August 9 to open surrender negotiations. Surrender Massacre Meeting, the commanders formalized the surrender and Montcalm granted Monros garrison terms which allowed them to keep their muskets and one cannon, but no ammunition. In addition, they were to be escorted to Fort Edward and were prohibited from fighting for eighteen months. Finally, the British were to release the French prisoners in their custody. Housing the British garrison in the entrenched camp, Montcalm endeavored to explain the terms to his Native American allies. This proved difficult due to a large number of languages used by the Native Americans. As the day passed, the Native Americans looted the fort and killed many of the British wounded which had been left within its walls for treatment. Increasingly unable to control the Native Americans, who were eager for plunder and scalps, Montcalm and Monro decided to attempt to move the garrison south that night. This plan failed when the Native Americans became aware of the British movement. Waiting until dawn on August 10, the column, which included women and children, formed and was provided with a 200-man escort by Montcalm. With the Native Americans hovering, the column began moving towards the military road south. As it exited the camp, the Native Americans entered and killed seventeen wounded soldiers that had been left behind. They next fell upon the rear of the column which largely consisted of the militia. A halt was called and an attempt was made to restore order but to no avail. While some French officers attempted to halt the Native Americans, others stepped aside. With Native American attacks increasing in intensity, the column began to dissolve as many of the British soldiers fled into the woods. Aftermath Pushing on, Monro reached Fort Edward with around 500 people. By the end of the month, 1,783 of the forts 2,308-man garrison (on August 9) had arrived at Fort Edward with many making their own way through the woods. In the course of the fighting for Fort William Henry, the British sustained around 130 casualties. Recent estimates place losses during the massacre of August 10 at 69 to 184 killed. Following the British departure, Montcalm ordered Fort William Henry dismantled and destroyed. Lacking sufficient supplies and equipment for pushing on to Fort Edward, and with his Native American allies leaving, Montcalm elected to withdraw back to Fort Carillon. The fighting at Fort William Henry gained increased attention in 1826 when James Fenimore Cooper published his novel Last of the Mohicans. In the wake of the forts loss, Webb was removed for his lack of action. With the failure of the Louisbourg expedition, Loudoun was relieved as well and replaced by Major General James Abercrombie. Returning to the site of Fort William Henry the following year, Abercrombie conducted an ill-fated campaign that ended with his defeat at the Battle of Carillon in July 1758. The French would finally be forced from the area the in 1759 when Major General Jeffery Amherst pushed north.