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Content about the Battle of Oriskany is taken from the pamphlet Historical Guide to the Battle of Oriskany by
Allan Foote, and from other material found in the Oriskany Museum.
January, 1777, British General John Burgoyne is suggesting a plan to divide and conquer the American colonies; a plan
which would bring him into the state of New
York. The proposal is basically valid, though quite complex
in timing and coordination. His proposal is approved by the Crown, and in May, 1777, his ship arrives in Montreal. With a strong force, Burgoyne will sweep south from Canada,
capture Fort Ticonderoga and lead a drive
on Albany. Any significant American
military presence in the colony of New York will be decimated, and New
England, considered the hotbed of the Revolution, will be sealed off from the rest of the revolt. In Albany he will come under the command of General William
Howe, then based in New York City.
Burgoyne's plan also calls for a second column composed of British regulars, Hessians, Loyalists and Indians to come
down the Mohawk River from the base at Oswego on Lake
Ontario. This secondary force will
capture the rich farmland of the Mohawk Valley
in New York and link up with Burgoyne in Albany. By 1777 the Mohawk Valley,
where Oriskany NY is, was considered the "Breadbasket of
the Revolution", a main supplier of food for George Washington's army.
To command the western wing of his invading army, Burgoyne chooses Lieutenant Colonel Barry St. Leger who had gained
a reputation during the French and Indian War as a solid leader in frontier fighting.
On June 2, 1777, St. Leger took command of his soldiers, including
Sir John Johnson. They were joined by 100 Tory rangers under the leadership of
Colonel John Butler. Around June 21, St. Leger's command began its movement down
the St. Lawrence River to Lake Ontario. Upon reaching Fort Oswego,
St. Leger's troops were met by about 1000 warriors of the Six Nation Confederacy, who were to join the British on its eastward
march against the colonists. On August
3, 1777 St. Leger and nearly 2000 fighting men reached Fort Stanwix
in what is now Rome, NY.
At three o’clock in the afternoon, Sunday,
August 3, 1777, Barry St. Leger formally invades Fort Stanwix,
sending Captain Gilbert Tice to visit the garrison’s commandant, the young Peter Gansevoort. On the same day, 40 miles away at Fort Dayton,
another soldier is also answering his country’s call. It is here that Brigadier
General Nicholas Herkimer has mustered 800 men of the patriot Tryon County Militia to march to the relief of their compatriots
at Fort Stanwix.
On the morning of August 4 the rebel militia sets out on their mission. Most
of the men are farmers, and most are descended from the original Palatine settlers of the Mohawk
Valley.
They spend their first night at Staring Creek.
The second night finds the men of Tryon County
encamped near the Oneida Indian Bear Clan village of Oriska. Earlier in the day, General Herkimer had sent three scouts to Peter Gansevoort at
Fort Stanwix with a proposal for disrupting
the enemy siege. His plans in proper order, the Brigadier slumbers. However, others in the camp are not so restful.
On the fateful morning of August 6, Herkimer calls a conference of his officers to discuss his plan. When the
sound of three cannons booming in succession are heard from Fort Stanwix, the militia are to advance westward. At around
the same time, Peter Gansevoort will launch a major sortie from the fort. Squeezed between the two forces, the enemy
siege will be severely disrupted. Some junior officers and members of the political Tryon County Committee of Safety
with the column are impatient. They insist upon an immediate advance. Finally the conspirators go too far when
they accuse Herkimer of cowardice and disloyalty. In a rage, Herkimer strides to his white horse, gives the order to
march, and the column is on its way westward from the Oriska village toward Fort Stanwix. A new group joins - sixty
warriors of the Oneida Indian Nation led by their war chief Han Yerry Doxtader. The presence of the Oneida braves fighting
alongside the patriots gives America its first ally in war. It also marks the end of the three-century "great peace"
of the Iroquois Confederacy.
Perhaps moments after issuing his command,
General Herkimer regrets it. He knows the Military Road
they now march along quite well. As captain of militia he had helped to build
it 19 years before. The men of Tryon
County are at risk, for at this moment, 700 of the enemy lie concealed in the tangled
woods ahead, waiting in ambush. About two miles west of Oriska, the Crown forces
now wait in ambush. They are positioned in a fishhook pattern. The bulk of the Iroquois warriors and Tory rangers are on the high ground, south of the King’s Highway. A detachment of the King’s Royal Regiment of New York blocks the road to Fort
Stanwix. The Mohawk leader, Joseph
Brant, has selected this place wisely. His
plan is to attack the militia as they enter an upcoming ravine, and the patriots will be trapped in the marshy lowground.
The Tryon County Militia and Oneida allies march into the trap unaware, led by General Herkimer and Colonel
Ebenezer Cox. The advance guard is the first to be attacked while they were resting
by a stream. Exhilarated by this swift victory, the Mohawk and Seneca head down
the Military Road directly into the path of the militia, and another bloody battle ensues.
Ebenezer Cox is killed, along with other militia and Indians, and the militia
panics. Viewing this confusion, Joseph Brant now strikes from his position on
the eastern heights, leading to more slaughter.
Oriskany Battlefield Monument, Oriskany New York
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| Commemoration of the battle takes place each year on August 6 at the Oriskany Battle Monument |
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Wounding of General Herkimer and continuation of the battle
Viewing the crisis in the rear area from his
position on the western heights, General Herkimer spurs his horse, plunging back down into the eastern ravine to rally his
beleaguered men. An enemy ranger takes careful aim and lets loose a musket blast, killing the Brigadier's steed and
shattering Herkimer's leg six inches below the knee. Nearby militiamen including a fourteen year old drummer boy from
Schenectady named Jan Van Epps, assist in easing the wounded General into an upright position, perched on his saddle under
a beech tree.
His junior officers beg Herkimer to allow them
to move him to a place of safety, for even now the enemy is attempting to penetrate the ragged circle of citizen soldiers
and Oneida warriors protecting him, but he refused to move and continued to direct the battle operations.
It is now late morning and perhaps divine providence intercedes
as the heavens open up and a terrific rainstorm begins. The gunfire slackens as the gunpowder is now useless.
This buys the weakened Tryon County Militia valuable time to consolidate on the high ground of the western heights.
By noon the rain begins to taper off and combat is about to resume.
At three o'clock the Iroquois call for a retreat and the
Crown forces begin a gradual withdrawal. Miraculously the Tryon County Militia and their Oneida allies hold the field,
but it is to no advantage as they are too weak to continue the march to relieve Fort Stanwix. 820 of their number had
entered this lethal arena five hours before and now only 150 are left standing on the slopes. Barely a household remains
in the Mohawk Valley which will not have a vacant chair. The gravely wounded General Herkimer is transported to his
home on the banks of the Mohawk River where ten days later he passed away, believing he failed his friends and his country.
Time will reveal that he did not fail because the demoralization
of the Crown's Indian allies due to their losses at Oriskany contributes to the eventual lifting of the siege at Fort Stanwix.
Barry St. Leger's failure to secure the valley weighs heavily upon John Burgoyne.
The Battle of Oriskany is thus known as one of the turning
points of the American Revolution and is regarded as one of America's bloodiest battles ever, due to the losses.
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| Oriskany Battlefield Monument |
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