When reenacting or acting as a historical interpreter, its good to have a few historical dates and stories to share. This series will publish a few.
May 10, 1775 – BATTLE OF FORT TICONDEROGA: Benedict Arnold joined Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys in a dawn attack on the fort, surprising and capturing the sleeping British garrison.
Fort Ticonderoga was located directly across Lake Champlain from Vermont, where the Green Mountain Boys–a militia organized in 1770 to defend the property rights of local landowners–joined the revolutionary effort without hesitation. On the morning of May 10, 1775, fewer than a hundred of these militiamen, under the joint command of their leader, Ethan Allen, and Benedict Arnold, crossed Lake Champlain at dawn, surprising and capturing the still-sleeping British garrison at Fort Ticonderoga.
As the first rebel victory of the Revolutionary War, the Battle of Fort Ticonderoga served as a morale booster and provided key artillery for the Continental Army in that first year of war. Cannons captured at Fort Ticonderoga would be used during the successful Siege of Boston the following spring. Because of its location, the fort would also serve as a staging ground for Continental troops before their planned invasion of British-held territory in Canada.
Michael Carver -- Historical Interpreter/Reenactor 