Part 29

General Burgoyne arrived at Quebec in the beginning of May; and being seconded by General Carleton, immediately prepared himself to push forward the business of his mission. The regular force of General Burgoyne consisted of upwards of seven thousand British and German troops, exclusive of a corps of artillery of five hundred. Seven hundred rangers, under Colonel St. Leger, were added, designed to make an incursion into the country of the Mohawks, and to seize Fort Stanwix, otherwise called Fort Schuyler. It was expected, also, that two thousand Canadians, including hatchmen and other workmen, would join the army. And, finally, one thousand Indians were induced to unite in the expedition. A train of artillery seldom equalled, either in numbers, or in the skill of those who managed it, also accompanied the army. Able and experienced officers had been selected to direct its movements. The principal were, Major-general Philips, of the artillery, who had distinguished himself in the wars of Germany; the Brigadier-generals Frazer, Powel, and Hamilton, with the Brunswick Major-general Baron Reidesel, and Brigadier-general Specht. The whole army shared in the ardor and hopes of its chiefs; not a doubt was entertained of an approaching triumph, and the conquest of America.

Thus prepared, General Burgoyne proceeded to encamp near the little river Bouquet, upon the west bank of Lake Champlain, at no great distance to the north of Crown Point. Here having addressed his army in a speech calculated to excite their highest ardor, and issued a proclamation warning the Americans against any attempt to resist his progress, upon pain of savage fury, devastation, famine, and kindred calamities--he moved upon Crown Point, whence soon after he proceeded with all his force to invest Ticonderoga.

This fortress at the time was under command of General St. Clair. Believing his garrison, only three thousand men, one-third of which were militia, inadequate to resist the attack of so formidable a force as was making its approach, he ordered its evacuation and the retreat of his army, having first burned or destroyed every thing which might prove important to the invading foe.

The night of the 5th of July was appointed for the evacuation. The British army was near, and peculiar caution was to be observed, in order to effect their retreat in safety. General St. Clair led the van-guard, and Colonel Francis the rear. The soldiers had received orders to proceed with silence. St. Clair drew out the van-guard at two in the morning; Francis with the rear left at four. The baggage, furniture, military stores, and provisions, had been embarked on board of two hundred batteaux, and five armed gallies. The general rendezvous was appointed at Skenesborough; the batteaux proceeding up Wood creek, and the main army taking its route by way of Castleton.

Under the animating prospect of affecting their retreat in safety, the army and batteaux were proceeding on their respective routes, when suddenly flames burst forth from a house which had taken fire on Mount Independence, and discovered by their glare, to the surprise of the royalists, the retreating patriots.

Immediate orders were issued to the English to pursue. General Frazer, at the head of a strong detachment of grenadiers and light troops, proceeded by land along the right bank of Wood creek. General Reidesel rapidly followed with his Germans, to aid him if required. General Burgoyne embarked on board of several vessels, and gave chase by water.

"By three in the afternoon, the van of the British squadron, composed of gun-boats, came up with, and attacked the American gallies, near Skenesborough falls. In the mean time, three regiments which had been landed at South bay, ascended and passed a mountain with great expedition, in order to turn the enemy above Wood creek, to destroy his works at the falls of Skenesborough, and thus to cut off his retreat to Fort Anne. But the Americans eluded this stroke by the rapidity of their flight. The British frigates having joined the van, the gallies, already hard pressed by the gun-boats, were completely overpowered. Two of them surrendered, three were blown up. The Americans now despaired; having set fire to their works, mills, and batteaux, and otherwise destroyed what they were unable to burn, they escaped as well as they could up Wood creek, without halting till they reached Fort Anne. Their loss was considerable; for the batteaux they burned were loaded with baggage, provisions, and munitions, as necessary to their sustenance as to military operations. The corps which had set out by land was in no better situation. The van-guard, conducted by St. Clair, had arrived at Castleton, thirty miles distant from Ticonderoga, and twelve from Skenesborough; the rear, commanded by Colonels Francis and Warner, had rested the night of the 6th, at Hubbardston, six miles below Castleton, towards Ticonderoga.

"At five o'clock in the morning of the 7th, the English column, under General Frazer, made its appearance. The Americans were strongly posted, and appeared disposed to defend themselves. Frazer, though inferior in point of numbers, had great confidence in the valor of his troops. He also expected every moment to be joined by General Reidesel; and being apprehensive that the enemy might escape if he delayed, he ordered the attack immediately. The battle was long and sanguinary. The Americans, being commanded by valiant officers, behaved with great spirit and firmness; but the English displayed an equal obstinacy. After several shocks, with alternate success, the latter began to fall back in disorder; but their leaders rallied them anew, and led them to a furious charge with the bayonet; the Americans were shaken by its impetuosity. At this critical moment, General Reidesel arrived at the head of his column, composed of light troops and some grenadiers. He immediately took part in the action. The Americans, overpowered by numbers, fled on all sides, leaving their brave commander, with many other officers, and upwards of two hundred soldiers, dead on the field. About the same number, besides Colonel Hale, and seventeen officers of inferior rank, were made prisoners. Above six hundred were supposed to be wounded; many of whom, deprived of all succor, perished miserably in the woods. The loss of the royal troops, in dead and wounded, amounted to about one hundred and eighty."[48]

Upon receiving intelligence of the foregoing disasters, St. Clair proceeded by a circuitous route to Fort Edward, in order to strengthen General Schuyler, in anticipation of an attack upon that fortress. With the accessions thus made, the troops at Fort Edward amounted to but little more than four thousand, including the militia. The losses of the Americans had been great, and were severely felt. No less than one hundred and twenty-eight pieces of artillery, besides a great quantity of warlike stores--baggage, provisions, particularly flour--had either fallen into the hands of the enemy, or had been destroyed. Added to these losses, a general panic had seized upon the inhabitants, especially on account of the Indians attached to the British army, and against whose merciless and savage spirit there was felt to be no security.

While General Burgoyne was detained at Skenesborough, General Schuyler was actively engaged in increasing his means of defence. Trenches were opened, and the roads leading to the fort were in every possible way obstructed. The militia from various quarters were summoned to the American standard, and artillery and warlike stores were forwarded from various points.

At length, General Burgoyne moved towards Fort Edward; but such were the obstacles which impeded his movements, that he did not reach the banks of the Hudson, near Fort Edward, till the 30th of July.

In the mean while, under a conviction that, after all the efforts made to render that fort defensible, it could not be maintained against so formidable a force as was approaching, General Schuyler abandoned it, and returned lower down to Stillwater, where intrenchments were thrown up.

Unexpectedly, General Burgoyne now found himself nearly destitute of provisions, and from the 30th of July to the 15th of August, the time was spent in procuring the means of supporting the army, which were obliged to be brought from Ticonderoga, at the expense of vast toil and labor. This, it was afterwards alleged, was the great mistake of General Burgoyne, that he suffered himself, after the occupation of Skenesborough, and the discomfiture of the enemy's army, to have attempted the reduction of Fort Edward. Had he then made his way directly to Albany, he might have secured the possession of that important place to himself, before the Americans could have rallied.

While thus posted at Fort Edward, General Burgoyne received intelligence that large stores of live cattle, corn, and other necessaries belonging to the Americans, had been deposited at Bennington, a village situated about twenty miles from the Hudson, in Vermont. Impelled by necessity, as well as desirous of adding to his military fame, he resolved to attempt their seizure, the accomplishment of which plan, he entrusted to Colonel Baum, a German officer of great bravery, and well versed in this sort of partisan war.

Accordingly, with a force of five hundred men and two light field-pieces, Baum set forth, in proud anticipation of success. The roads, however, were so heavy, that the detachment was fatally retarded. The intelligence of their approach preceded them in time to allow Colonel Stark--a brave, active man, who was in command at Bennington, with a corps of New Hampshire militia--to assemble a considerable rëinforcement of Green-mountain Boys from the neighboring towns. Before Baum made his appearance, the number of Americans had swelled to about two thousand. On learning the numbers of the enemy, Baum dispatched an express to Colonel Breyman, who had been detached to support him if necessary, to urge his march. In the mean while, Baum took post on the banks of the Walloon creek, to await the arrival of his auxiliaries.

Stark, however, was not disposed to accommodate his foe by any such delay; but, taking up his line of march, on the morning of the 6th of August, advanced towards the place of Baum's encampment. Dividing his forces into several corps, he gave orders to attack the British on all sides at once. On their approach, Baum strangely mistaking them for loyalists coming to his aid, held still. Judge his surprise when they poured in from all sides a deadly fire upon him! Rallying his men in the best possible manner, for a time he made a brave resistance; but before the impetuous charge of the Americans, the English were obliged to yield.

The fortune of the day had already been decided, when Colonel Breyman appeared. He was, in fact, perfectly ignorant of the engagement, and the fate of his pioneers. What was his consternation, on reaching the intrenchments of Baum, to find, instead of friends ready to receive him, the place in possession of an enemy ready to give him battle! Perceiving his mistake, his troops, though greatly fatigued, were ordered to the combat; and bravely for a time they fought, and not without some prospect of success, a part of the Americans being employed in pillaging. But the momentary advantage which he seemed to have gained was soon lost; and, leaving all their baggage and one thousand muskets in the hands of the conquerors, they made a rapid retreat. The loss of the British in the two engagements, was about two hundred killed, and five hundred wounded and prisoners. The loss of the Americans did not much exceed one hundred.

The exploit of Bennington redounded not only to the credit of General Stark and his brave troops, but to the good of the country at large. It roused the drooping spirits of the Americans, it inspired the troops with confidence, and presented an earnest of still nobler conquests. In consequence of this defeat, the situation of General Burgoyne was still more perplexing. The hope of supplying his army with provisions from the stores of Bennington, was annihilated, and to other quarters he must look for supplies, without a considerable stock of which, it would be presumption to attempt offensive operations.

While these events were transpiring, congress appointed General Gates to take command of the Northern army, in place of General Schuyler. The latter was a soldier of great bravery, but was not universally acceptable to the troops, especially to those from Massachusetts and other provinces of New England. The former enjoyed a high military reputation, and his appointment was hailed by the army with joy. Gates made his appearance at Stillwater on the 21st of August, and took the command.

"Meanwhile," says Botta, "General Burgoyne continued in his camp, on the left bank of the Hudson, where he used the most unremitting industry and perseverance in bringing stores and provisions forward from Fort George. Having at length, by strenuous efforts, obtained about thirty days' provisions, he took a resolution of passing the river with his army, in order to engage the enemy, and force a passage to Albany. As a swell of water, occasioned by great rains, had carried away his bridge of rafts, he threw another, of boats, over the river at the same place. Towards the middle of September, he crossed with his army to the right bank of the Hudson, and encamped on the heights and in the plain of Saratoga, Gates being then in the neighborhood of Stillwater, about three miles below. The two armies of course faced each other, and a battle was expected soon to follow."

On the morning of the 19th, it was reported by Colonel Colburn, who was watching the enemy, that they were beginning to ascend the hill towards the American left. General Gates sent Colonel Morgan to oppose them, and the firing began about noon. The action extended, and, in three hours, was general, and continued without interruption till dark. The American troops engaged amounted to three thousand; the British to three thousand five hundred.

"For four hours," says General Wilkinson, "the battle fluctuated, like the waves of a stormy sea, with alternate advantage, without one moment's intermission. It was truly a gallant conflict, in which death, by its familiarity, lost its terrors, and certainly a drawn battle, as night alone terminated it." The British army kept possession of the field; but they had nothing of which to boast. Their loss was more than five hundred men, and, among others, Captain Jones, of the artillery, an officer of great merit; the loss of the Americans, in killed and wounded, was from three to four hundred; among the former, were Colonels Adams and Colburn.

From September 19th to October 7th, was devoted, by the English, to strengthening their fortifications. The army of Gates, in the mean while, was continually increasing, and, on a single occasion, was added to by the arrival of General Lincoln with two thousand men, well trained and disciplined, from the New England provinces. Attacks on the British pickets took place almost every night.

For some time, General Burgoyne had been daily and ardently waiting for news from General Howe, as to the cöoperation he intended. On the 20th of September, he received a letter from that general, informing him that, about the 20th of the month, he should attempt the reduction of Fort Montgomery, situated on the right bank of the Hudson, and near the Highlands.

The situation of Burgoyne was now becoming so critical, that he immediately despatched an express to General Howe, entreating him to hasten his attack on the fort, if there was any prospect of delay, as he was provided with necessaries for his army only to the 12th of October, at which time he would be obliged to move from his present position.

Near the 1st of October, General Burgoyne found it necessary to lessen the rations of his soldiers--a measure to which they cheerfully submitted. The 7th arrived, and no further tidings had reached him of the movements of General Howe.

In this situation, General Burgoyne resolved, as the last resort, to make a bold and, if possible, a decisive attack.

The battle occurred on the 7th, and a most severe and sanguinary contest it proved; we have space only for the results. The loss of the British, in killed, wounded, and prisoners, was about six hundred; that of the Americans, three hundred and nineteen. Of the British, Brigadier-general Frazer, a gallant officer, was mortally wounded, and Colonel Breyman killed. General Arnold, of the Americans, was badly wounded, in the same leg which had already been shattered under the walls of Quebec.

Many pieces of artillery, all the baggage of the Germans, and many warlike stores, fell into the hands of the republicans, who needed them greatly. They were impatient for the return of day, to renew the battle. But deplorable and perilous, beyond expression, was the situation of the British troops; they bore it, however, with admirable temper and firmness. It was evidently impossible to continue in their present position, without submitting to a certainty of destruction on the ensuing day. The Americans, invigorated and encouraged, would take advantage of the access they had already opened to themselves on the right, and of other untenable points, to carry every part of the camp, and completely surround the British army. Burgoyne, therefore, determined to operate a total change of ground. He executed this movement with admirable order, and without any loss. The artillery, the camp, and its appurtenances, were all removed, before morning, to the heights above the hospital. The British army, in this position, had the river in its rear, and its two wings displayed along the hills, upon the right bank. The English expected to be attacked the following day. But Gates would not expose to the risk of another battle, that victory of which he was already certain. He intended that time, famine, and necessity, should complete the work which his arms had so fortunately commenced. There were frequent skirmishes, however, occurring in the course of the day, but of little importance. Towards night, the obsequies of General Frazer were celebrated in the British camp; a ceremony mournful of itself, and rendered even terrible by the sense of recent losses, of future dangers, and of regret for the deceased. The darkness and silence of the night aided the effect of the blaze and roar of the American artillery; while, at every moment, the balls spattered the earth upon the face of the officiating chaplain.[49]

The situation of General Burgoyne, after the battle, was gloomy and critical in the extreme. The fortunes of war were obviously against him, and no safe alternative presented itself but in retreat. Orders were accordingly issued for the army to return to Saratoga, six miles up the river. "The retreat began at nine o'clock; but such was the badness of the roads, rendered still more difficult by a heavy rain, which fell that night, and such was the weakness of the teams, for want of forage, that the English did not reach Saratoga till the evening of the ensuing day; the soldiers were harassed with fatigue and hunger. The hospital, with three hundred sick and wounded, and a great number of wheel-carriages, were abandoned to the enemy. The English, as they retired, burned the houses, and destroyed whatever they could use no longer."

From the moment that General Gates learned the movements of the enemy, his plan was formed--to follow up his success by a vigorous pursuit, pushing the contest until they should surrender their arms as a conquered foe.

Accordingly, putting his army in motion, as early as was practicable, he followed. The only hope which now inspired Burgoyne was, that he might effect a passage to Fort Edward, and in that fastness sustain himself till succor could arrive from the south. But when the intelligence arrived, as it did at the moment of his deepest perplexity, that that fortress was in possession of the Americans, he saw he must relinquish all hope of saving himself by his own efforts.

The condition of the British army was indeed deplorable. "The troops, worn down by a series of hard toil, incessant effort, and stubborn action, abandoned by Indians and Canadians, the whole army reduced by repeated and heavy losses of many of their best men and most distinguished officers, from ten thousand combatants to less than five thousand fighting men, of whom little more than three thousand were English. In these circumstances, and in this state of weakness, without a possibility of retreat, they were invested by an army of four times their own number, whose position extended three parts in four of a circle round them--who refused to fight from a knowledge of their own condition--and who, from the nature of the ground, could not be attacked in any part. In this helpless situation, obliged to be constantly on their arms, while a continued cannonade pervaded all the camp, and even rifle and grape-shot fell in every part of their lines, the troops of Burgoyne retained their ordinary constancy, and, while sinking under a hard necessity, they showed themselves worthy of a better fate. Nor could they be reproached with any action or word, which betrayed a want of temper or fortitude.

"At length, no succor appearing, and no rational ground of hope of any kind remaining, an exact account of the provisions was taken on the morning of the thirteenth, when it was found that the whole stock would afford no more than three days' bare subsistence for the army. In such a state, it was alike impossible to advance or to remain as they were; and the longer they delayed to take a definite resolution, the more desperate became their situation. Burgoyne, therefore, immediately called a council of war, at which not only the generals and field-officers, but all the captains of companies were invited to assist. While they deliberated, the bullets of the Americans whistled around them, and frequently pierced even the tent, where the council was convened. It was determined, unanimously, to open a treaty, and enter into a convention with the American general."

On the night of the 15th, the articles of capitulation were settled. The morning of the 17th was appointed as the time on which they were to be signed.

That night (15th) intelligence, by a special messenger, reached the English camp, that General Clinton had reduced Fort Montgomery, and was then rapidly marching to their relief. This added to the suffering of the conquered Burgoyne. Forthwith, he summoned a council of war, and to his discredit--the only apology for which is to be found in the deep mortification felt by a proud and ambitious soldier to surrender--proposed to retreat, and once more try the fortunes of combat, in the hope that Clinton might arrive in season to their relief. But his officers, with stricter notions of propriety, were of the opinion that, as their faith had been pledged, the honor of the English character required a fulfillment of the articles of capitulation.

Meanwhile, Gates, apprised of the nature of the intelligence received, calmly waited for the arrival of the 17th, on the morning of which he proceeded to form his troops in the order of battle; which done, he dispatched a messenger to General Burgoyne, to inform him that the appointed hour had arrived, and he must either sign the articles, or prepare himself for battle.

Deeply as the latter regretted submission, he was fully sensible that circumstances demanded it, and therefore proceeded to sign the articles, which, in substance, were as follows: