The Patriots Daily Bites of American History Series 17 : Battle of Bennington

THE COUNTRY

THE PATRIOT

THE HISTORY

PEARL LEONA STURGIS·FRIDAY, Febuary 19, 2016
The Patriots Daily Bites of American History Series # 17

US History by Gregory Dixon 1956 Burgoyne’s Expedition:

 Battle of Bennington:

In the summer of 1777 the British made a new move. General Burgoyne, who had gone to Canada, marched down with 8,000 picked men by way of Lake Champlain and took fort Ticonderoga. He then pressed forward to reach the Hudson River with the expectation that part of General Howe’s army would meet him there. Meanwhile another British expedition starting from Oswego was to raise a force of Iroquois Indians and unite with Burgoyne.

The three English armies expected to get the entire control of the state of New York and the Hudson River and so carry out their favorite plan of cutting off New England, the head of the rebellion from the other colonies. The Oswego expedition accomplished nothing but all went well with Burgoyne until he struck into the wilderness south of Lake Champlain. Then his troubles began.

General Schuyler had broken down all the bridges and felled trees across the only road there was through the woods and did everything to make Burgoyne’s life a burden to him. To add to his misfortune the British General’s provisions and his horses began to give out.

He sent an expedition of a thousand men to Bennington Vermont to get more provisions. Colonel John Stark, one of the heroes of Bunker Hill, started to meet the enemy with a small force. Pointing to the “Red Coats” he said, “There they are Boys! We will beat them today or Molly Stark will be a widow.” Mrs Stark had no occasion to mourn, for her husband with his men whipped the British, August 16, 1777, so badly that less than a hundred out of a thousand ever returned to their British General Burgoyne. 

(to be continued)

 Battle of Brandywine:  

To be Continued in the Next Daily Bites of History Series 

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