admin CHAPTER VII
THE RESULT OF POUR ENGLISH EXPEDITIONS AGAINST THE FRENCH – MONTCALM’S SUCCESSFUL CAMPAIGNS.
THOUGH England and France were nominally at peace, the frontier was desolated by savage hordes let loose upon the settlements by the French. While the English ministry were hesitating, the Duke of Cumberland, who at that time was captain -general of the armies of Great Britain, sent over, early in 1755, General Braddock, with a detachment from the army in Ireland. Braddock, soon after his arrival, met the colonial governors in a conference at Alexandria, to devise measures for repelling the encroachments of the French. Four separate expeditions were there resolved upon: the first against Nova Scotia; the second, under Braddock himself, for the recovery of the Ohio valley; the third against Fort Niagara, and the fourth against Crown Point, on Lake Champlain. The first resulted in the complete reduction of Nova Scotia. The second and most important, under Braddock, from which much had been expected, was, through the folly of that officer, disastrous in the extreme. Washington had repeatedly urged the necessity of sending scouts in advance, but Braddock, obstinate and imperious, would listen to no warnings of danger from Indian ambuscades. When within a few miles of Fort Duquesne, the army was surprised by the lurking foe, and only saved from total destruction by the bravery of Washington, who, upon the fall of Braddock, assumed command, and conducted a retreat, but not until more than half the force had been sacrificed. The expedition against Fort Niagara, under General Shirley, governor of Massachusetts, was also unsuccessful. His troops hearing of Braddock’s defeat, soon after leaving Albany, were so disheartened that many of them deserted. At Oswego he was detained by having to wait for the completion of boats. When these were completed, he was further detained by heavy storms and other casualties, until the lateness of the season rendered it imprudent to proceed. Leaving a garrison at Oswego, under Colonel Mercer, he led the residue of his army to Albany, and returned, to Massachusetts.
The expedition against Crown Point was entrusted to General Johnson. The greater part of the troops were sent forward under General Lyman, of Connecticut, to the head of boat navigation on the Hudson, which, being the nearest point on the river to Lake Champlain, was called the carrying place, where they erected a fortification, which was afterward called Fort Edward. Here they were joined late in August by Johnson, who, advancing with the main body of the army to the head of Lake George, established a camp, and began to make some arrangements for an attack on Crown Point, but apparently was in no hurry to prosecute the enterprise. Meanwhile Dieskau, the French commander, was approaching by way of Lake Champlain, with the intention of surprising Fort Edward, cutting off Johnson’s retreat, and capturing his army; but being misled by his guides, he found himself on the way to Johnson’s camp on Lake George Abandoning his first intention of attacking Fort Edward, he continued his advance on Lake George. Johnson, learning that the French were advancing to the Hudson, sent out Colonel Williams with a thousand troops, and Sachem Hendrick with two- hundred Indians, to intercept them and aid Fort Edward. They had advanced only a few miles when they fell into an ambuscade, in which both Williams and Hendrick were slain, and the force hurriedly retreated, closely pursued by the enemy until they reached the camp, when the Canadian militia and’ Indians, who were in the advance, perceiving the artillery they would have to confront, skulked into the surrounding woods, and left the regulars to begin the attack, thereby giving the English time to recover from the confusion into which they had been thrown, and undoubtedly saving them from defeat. A severe struggle ensued, in which the French at length began to give way, upon observing which the English leaped over their breastworks and dispersed them in all directions. The French leader, Dieskau, was severely wounded and taken prisoner. Johnson was wounded in the commencement of the action and retired from the field, and the whole battle was directed by General Lyman, who proposed and urged a vigorous continuation of efforts by following up the routed enemy, preventing their escape down Lake Champlain, and attacking Ticonderoga and Crown Point; but Johnson, through fear or some other cause, not easily explained, withheld his consent, and allowed the French to intrench themselves at Ticonderoga, while he spent the residue of the autumn erecting Fort William Henry, on the site of his camp. On the approach of winter he garrisoned it, disbanded the remainder of his army and returned to Albany.
On the 3d of September, 1755, Sir Charles Hardy arrived in New York as governor. He was an admiral, and unacquainted with civil affairs. Being conscious of his deficiencies in executive ability, he soon surrendered all but nominal duties into the hands of De Lancey, and in 1757 resigned the government and returned to his former profession, and De Lancey again became governor. At a meeting of the provincial governors, held at Albany in December, the plan discussed for the campaign of 1756 consisted of movements against Fort Niagara with six thousand men. Fort Duquesne with three thousand, Crown Point with ten thousand, and two thousand were to advance on the French settlements on the Chaudiere, and onward to Quebec at this time (1756) the population of the province of New York was 96,775. In March, De Levy, with three thousand French troops from Montreal, penetrated the forests to the Oneida portage, took and destroyed the fort at that point and returned to Canada with the garrison as prisoners. Although active hostilities had been carried on for two years in the colonies, the English ministry did not arouse from their imbecility enough to issue a formal declaration of war against France until the 17th of May, 1756. Lord Loudoun was appointed commander-in-chief and governor of Virginia and General Abercrombie was placed second in command. General Winslow, who had been intrusted with the expedition against Crown Point, finding that he had not sufficient force for the undertaking, waited for reinforcements from England. Late in June Abercrombie arrived with troops, but at the same time blighted any hopes that might have arisen regarding a vigorous prosecution of the war, by showing his contempt for the provincials in announcing that the regular officers were to be over those of the same rank in the provincial service. On this announcement all harmony for a united effort was dispelled. The men began to desert, and some of the officers declared they should throw up their commissions if the obnoxious rule was enforced. This difficulty was finally adjusted by an agreement that the regulars should remain to do garrison duty, while the provincials should advance under their own officers against the enemy. Then, instead of making any effort for the relief of Oswego, which was in danger, Abercrombie ordered his troops to be quartered on the citizens of Albany.
De Villiers had encamped with 800 Frenchmen at the mouth of Sandy creek, on Lake Ontario, whence he could send out detachments to infest the water passes leading to the Oswego fort, and intercept supplies or reinforcements on the way thither. Colonel Bradstreet, however, succeeded in throwing some provisions into the fort. On his return he fell in with a party of De Villiers’s men in ambush, and gained a decisive victory over them. Hearing that a large force was already on its way to attack Oswego, he hastened to Albany and informed Abercrombie of the contemplated attack and the necessity of immediate reinforcements. But it was all in vain, as the general could not be induced to move before the arrival of Lord Loudoun. It was nearly August before Loudoun made his appearance, and affairs were not improved by this event. Instead of making an immediate effort to avert the threatened blow at Oswego, he began slowly to make preparations for a descent on Ticonderoga and Crown Point Reinforcements were sent to forts Edward and William Henry. This procrastination proved fatal, for the opportunity of relieving Oswego was now lost. The Marquis de Montcalm, successor of Dieskau, had cut off communication with Albany, and on the 12th of August opened his artillery on Fort Ontario, nearly opposite Oswego. The fire was returned by the garrison till their ammunition was exhausted, when, spiking their guns, they retreated across the river to Fort Oswego. Montcalm immediately occupied the deserted fort and turned such guns as were yet serviceable against Fort Oswego. Colonel Mercer was killed, and a formidable breach effected in the walls. Montcalm was making preparations for storming the intrenchments when, seeing that the defense was no longer practicable, the garrison surrendered themselves prisoners of war. By this affair sixteen hundred men, one hundred cannon, a large quantity of provisions and stores, and the vessels in the harbor, all fell into the hands of the victors, and were safely conveyed to Montreal. Montcalm demolished the forts, much to the satisfaction of the Six Nations, who afterward sent a delegation from each castle to make peace with the governor of Canada. The French sent their emissaries among them, who now succeeded in seducing them from the English interests.
The fall of Oswego did not awaken the energies of Lord Loudoun– if it can be said that he possessed any – but on the contrary he abandoned all offensive operations that had been contemplated, and contented himself with doing nothing. Having wasted the season in shameful idleness, he on his arrival in the city of New York billeted a part of his force for free winter quarters on the citizens, regard less of the remonstrance of the authorities against this invasion of their rights. Overawed by his profane threats, the colonists found themselves obliged to support the British soldiers, who had done nothing in their behalf. In June of the following year he made an ineffectual effort to capture Louisburg. Before leaving New York he rendered himself still more detestable to the colonists by laying an embargo upon the seaports from Massachusetts to Virginia, and impressing four hundred men from the city of New York alone. He went to Halifax, where he was largely reinforced, but instead of making any advance upon Louisburg contented himself with drilling his troops in mock battles, till the complaints of his inactivity became so numerous that he finally gave orders to embark for that place. Almost as soon as the orders were given, receiving intelligence that Louisburg had been reinforced, and that the French fleet contained one more vessel than his, he countermanded his orders and came back to New York, having accomplished nothing.
While Loudoun was thus trifling, Montcalm, watchful of his movements, proceeded with a large force of French and Indians against Fort William Henry, then in command of Colonel Monroe with about twenty-two hundred men. General Webb, the English commander in that quarter, was at Fort Edward with a force of four thousand men. Montcalm landed with his men and artillery at a point about two miles from Fort William Henry, where he was entirely sheltered from its guns; beleaguered its garrison, and sent a summons to Monroe to surrender, which he defiantly disregarded, confident of being relieved by Webb. The French then opened fire on the fort, which was spiritedly returned by the garrison. Expresses were sent to Webb imploring aid, but that coward remained inactive, terrified at the distant roar of artillery. Finally, after repeated solicitations, he allowed Generals Johnson and Putnam, with his rangers, to march to the aid of Monroe; but they had proceeded only a few miles when he recalled them, and sent a letter to Monroe, advising him to surrender. This letter was intercepted by Montcalm, who forwarded it to Monroe, requesting him to follow Webb’s advice and save further loss of life. Still the intrepid colonel held out, until his ammunition was nearly exhausted, part of his guns disabled, and all hopes of assistance abandoned, and under these discouraging circumstances he was forced to capitulate on the 9th of August, and the sixth day of the siege. By the terms of surrender the garrison was allowed to leave the fort with all the honors of war, and furnished with an escort to Fort Edward. On the next morning, when they began their march, the Indians, who had spent the night in debauch, began an indiscriminate massacre and robbery of the English troops. Despite the efforts of Montcalm, many of the disarmed and defenseless soldiers were slain, and only a thousand reached Fort Edward. Fort William Henry was demolished. General Webb, paralyzed with terror, prepared to retreat, although reinforced until his army was more than double that of the enemy.
SOURCE: History of Wyoming County, N.Y., with Illustrations, Biographical Sketches and Portraits of Some Pioneers and Prominent Residents; F. W. Beers & Co.; 1880