Battle of Bennington
The Battle of Bennington was a battle of the American Revolutionary War, part of the Saratoga campaign, that took place on August 16, 1777, on the John Green farm in Walloomsac, New York, about from its namesake, Bennington, Vermont. An American force of 2,000 men, primarily New Hampshire and Massachusetts militiamen, led by General John Stark, and reinforced by militiamen from the independent Vermont Republic led by Colonel Seth Warner and members of the Green Mountain Boys, decisively defeated a detachment of General John Burgoyne's army led by Lieutenant-Colonel Friedrich Baum, and supported by additional troops under Lieutenant-Colonel Heinrich von Breymann.
Baum's detachment of 700 men consisted of Hessian and British Army troops, Canadian and Loyalist irregulars and a number of Iroquois warriors. He was sent by Burgoyne to raid Bennington in the disputed New Hampshire Grants area for horses, draft animals, provisions, and other supplies. Believing the town to be only lightly defended, Burgoyne and Baum were unaware that Stark and 1,500 American militiamen were stationed there. After a rain-caused standoff, Stark's men enveloped Baum's position, taking many prisoners, and killing Baum. Reinforcements for both sides arrived as Stark and his men were mopping up, and the battle restarted, with Warner and Stark driving away Breymann's reinforcements with heavy casualties.
The battle was a major strategic success for the American cause and is considered one of the turning points of the war; it reduced Burgoyne's army in size by almost 1,000 men, led his Native American allies to largely abandon him, and deprived him of much-needed supplies, such as mounts for his cavalry regiments, draft animals and provisions, all factors that contributed to Burgoyne's eventual defeat at Saratoga. The victory galvanized colonial support for the Patriot cause, and played a key role in bringing France into the war on the American side. The battle's anniversary is celebrated in the state of Vermont as Bennington Battle Day.
Background
With the American Revolutionary War two years old, the British changed their plans. Giving up on the rebellious New England Colonies, they decided to split the Thirteen Colonies and isolate New England from what the British believed to be the more loyal Southern Colonies. The British command devised a grand plan to divide the colonies via a three-way pincer movement towards Albany. The western pincer, proceeding eastward from Lake Ontario under the command of Barry St. Leger, was repulsed when the Siege of Fort Stanwix failed, and the southern pincer, which was to progress up the Hudson valley from New York City, never started since General William Howe decided instead to capture Philadelphia.The northern pincer, proceeding southward from Montreal, enjoyed the most success. After British victories at Fort Ticonderoga, Hubbardton, and Fort Anne, General John Burgoyne proceeded with the Saratoga campaign, with the goal of capturing Albany, New York and gaining control of the Hudson River valley, where Burgoyne's force could meet the other pincers, dividing the colonies in two.
British forces
Burgoyne's progress towards Albany had initially met with some success, including the scattering of Seth Warner's men in the Battle of Hubbardton. However, his advance had slowed to a crawl by late July, due to logistical difficulties, exacerbated by the American destruction of a key road, and the army's supplies began to dwindle. Burgoyne's concern over supplies was magnified in early August when he received word that Howe was going to Philadelphia, rather than advance up the Hudson River valley. In response to a proposal first made on July 22 by the commander of his Hessian troops, Baron Riedesel, Burgoyne sent a detachment of about 800 soldiers under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Friedrich Baum from Fort Miller on a foraging mission to acquire horses for Prince Ludwig's Dragoon Regiment, draft animals to assist in moving the army, and to harass the Americans. Baum's detachment was primarily made up of dismounted dragoons from Prince Ludwig's Dragoon Regiment. Along the way, 150 local Loyalists, 58 Canadian irregulars, around 100 Iroquois warriors, and 48 soldiers from the British Army's Company of Select Marksmen joined the detachment. Baum was originally ordered to proceed to the Connecticut River valley where they believed horses could be procured for the dragoons. However, as Baum was preparing to leave, Burgoyne changed the goal to be a supply depot at Bennington, having received intelligence reports that the town was defended only by 400 demoralized militia from Warner's command.American forces
Unknown to Burgoyne, the citizens of the New Hampshire Grants territory had appealed to the states of New Hampshire and Massachusetts for protection from the invading army following the British capture of Ticonderoga. New Hampshire responded on July 18 by authorizing John Stark to raise a militia for the defense of the people "or the annoyance of the enemy". Using funds provided by John Langdon, Stark raised 1,500 New Hampshire militiamen in the space of six days, more than 10% of New Hampshire's male population over the age of sixteen. They were first marched to the Fort at Number 4, then crossed the Connecticut river border into the Grants and stopped at Manchester, where Stark conferred with Warner. While in Manchester, General Benjamin Lincoln, whose promotion in preference to Stark had been the cause for Stark's resignation from the Continental Army, attempted to assert Army authority over Stark and his men. Stark refused, stating that he was solely responsible to the New Hampshire authorities. Stark then went on to Bennington with Warner as a guide, while Warner's men remained in Manchester. Lincoln returned to the American camp at Stillwater, where he and General Philip Schuyler hatched a plan for Lincoln, with 500 men, to join with Stark and Warner in actions to harass Burgoyne's communications and supply lines at Skenesboro. Baum's movements significantly altered these plans.Prelude
Baum's troops left Burgoyne's camp at Fort Edward on August 9 and marched to Fort Miller, where they waited until they were joined by the Iroquois and the Company of Select Marksmen. The company marched off toward Bennington on August 11. In minor skirmishes along the way they learned from prisoners taken that a sizable force was in place at Bennington. On August 14 Baum's men encountered a detachment of Stark's men that had been sent out to investigate reports of British-allied Indians in the area. Stark's men retreated, destroying a bridge to delay Baum's advance. Stark, on receiving word of the approaching force, sent a request to Manchester for support, and then moved his troops out of Bennington toward Baum's force, setting up a defensive line. Baum sent a message to Burgoyne following the first contact indicating that the American force was larger than expected, but that it was likely to retreat before him. He then advanced a few miles further until he neared Stark's position. He then realized that at least part of his first message was incorrect, so he sent a second message to Burgoyne, requesting reinforcements.It rained for the next day and a half, preventing battle. During this time, Baum's men constructed a small redoubt at the crest of the hill and hoped that the weather would prevent the Americans from attacking before reinforcements arrived. Stark sent out skirmishers to probe the Hessians lines, who killed thirty British-allied Iroquois warriors in spite of the difficulties of keeping their gunpowder dry. Reinforcements for both sides marched out on the 15th; travel was quite difficult due to the heavy rains. Burgoyne sent 550 men under Heinrich von Breymann, while Warner's company of about 350 Green Mountain Boys came south from Manchester under Lieutenant Samuel Safford's command.
Late on the night of August 15, Stark was awakened by the arrival of Parson Thomas Allen and a band of Massachusetts militiamen from nearby Berkshire County who insisted on joining his force. In response to the minister's fiery threat that his men would never come out again if they were not allowed to participate, Stark is reported to have said, "Would you go now on this dark and rainy night? Go back to your people and tell them to get some rest if they can, and if the Lord gives us sunshine to-morrow and I do not give you fighting enough, I will never call on you to come again." Stark's forces again swelled the next day with the arrival of some Stockbridge Indians, bringing his force to nearly 2,000 men.
Stark was not the only beneficiary of unexpected reinforcements; Baum's force grew by almost 100 when a group of local Loyalists arrived in his camp on the morning of August 16.
Battle
On the afternoon of August 16, the weather cleared, and Stark ordered his men to be ready to attack. Stark is reputed to have rallied his troops by saying they were here to fight for their "natural born rights as Englishmen" and he added "There are your enemies, the Red Coats and the Tories. They are ours, or this night Molly Stark sleeps a widow." Upon hearing that the militia had melted away into the woods, Baum assumed that the Americans were retreating or redeploying. However, Stark had decided to capitalize on weaknesses in the widely distributed position of the Hessians, and had sent sizable flanking parties to either side of his lines. These movements were assisted by a ruse employed by Stark's men that enabled them to get closer safely without alarming the opposing forces. The Hessians, most of whom spoke no English, had been told that soldiers with bits of white paper in their hats were Loyalists, and should not be fired on; Stark's men had also heard this and many of them had adorned their hats with white paper.When the fighting broke out around 3:00 PM the Hessian position was immediately surrounded by gunfire, which Stark described as "the hottest engagement I have ever witnessed, resembling a continual clap of thunder." The Loyalist and Iroquois positions were quickly overrun, causing many of them to flee or surrender. This left Baum and his dragoons trapped alone on the high ground. The Hessians fought valiantly, even after their ammunition wagon was destroyed. As their powder ran low, they resorted to hand-to-hand combat. In desperation, Baum ordered the dragoons to remount their horses and charge the Americans hoping to break through and escape. The Americans held fast and fired on the charging Hessians, killing many and shattering their morale. The remaining Hessians surrendered, while Baum soon died from a mortal wound.
After the battle ended, while Stark's militiamen were busy disarming the prisoners and looting their supplies, Breymann arrived with his reinforcements. Seeing the Americans in disarray, they immediately pressed their attack. After hastily regrouping, Stark's forces tried to hold their ground against the new Hessian onslaught but began to fall back. Before their lines collapsed, Warner's men arrived on the scene to reinforce Stark's troops. Pitched battle continued until dark, when both sides disengaged. Breymann began a hasty retreat; he had lost one quarter of his force and all of his artillery pieces.