In 1777, the British planned to isolate New England by controlling New York's Hudson River Valley. This involved a three-pronged attack converging on Albany. Lieutenant Colonel Barry St. Leger was to lead a western expedition through the Mohawk Valley, a crucial area for agriculture, trade, and the Iroquois Confederacy. Fort Stanwix, an abandoned British fort, became strategically vital as it guarded the Oneida Carrying Place, connecting the Mohawk River to Lake Ontario. The Americans, recognizing the threat, sent Colonel Peter Gansevoort to rebuild and garrison the fort with about 550-600 men. They worked to repair the fort's defenses under harassment from enemy parties and pressure from the impending British advance. St. Leger's force, numbering 1600-1900 men, was a diverse group of British regulars, Loyalists, Canadian militia, and Iroquois warriors from the Mohawk, Seneca, Cayuga, and Onondaga nations. However, the Oneida and Tuscarora nations sided with the Americans, causing a split within the Iroquois Confederacy. This division created weaknesses within St. Leger's coalition. Upon arriving at Fort Stanwix, St. Leger attempted to intimidate the Americans into surrendering, but Colonel Gansevoort refused. St. Leger's bombardment proved ineffective due to inadequate artillery. The initial days of the siege saw minor skirmishes. St. Leger's miscalculation regarding the fort's condition and the garrison's resolve hindered the British efforts. Works cited The Siege of Fort Stanwix - Americana Corner, accessed April 22, 2025, https://www.americanacorner.com/blog/fort-stanwix Battle of Oriskany and Siege of Fort Stanwix - Revolutionary War Journal, accessed April 22, 2025, https://revolutionarywarjournal.com/battle-of-oriskany-and-siege-of-fort-stanwix-brutal-civil-war-that-helped-save-a-nation/ 2>r?H/l3S'73b - NPS History, accessed April 22, 2025, http://npshistory.com/publications/sara/drr-saratoga-campaign.pdf British Begin the Saratoga Campaign - Americana Corner, accessed April 22, 2025, https://www.americanacorner.com/blog/saratoga Battles of Saratoga - Wikipedia, accessed April 22, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battles_of_Saratoga Saratoga Campaign 1777 | American Revolutionary War, accessed April 22, 2025, https://revolutionarywar.us/campaigns/1777-saratoga-campaign/ SARATOGA - NPS History, accessed April 22, 2025, http://npshistory.com/handbooks/historical/4-1950.pdf The Saratoga Campaign | American Battlefield Trust, accessed April 22, 2025, https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/saratoga-campaign Saratoga campaign - Wikipedia, accessed April 22, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saratoga_campaign The Battle of Fort Stanwix - ArcGIS StoryMaps, accessed April 22, 2025, https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/61487a224f784512acd60dda17ecfb8f The Impact of the Saratoga Campaign of 1777 Upon the Communities of Upstate New York During the American Revolution, accessed April 22, 2025, https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1022&context=le_etds Episode 151 St. Leger Expedition - American Revolution Podcast, accessed April 22, 2025, http://blog.amrevpodcast.com/2020/05/episode-151-st-leger-expedition.html Fort Stanwix - American Battlefield Trust, accessed April 22, 2025, https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/fort-stanwix Fort Stanwix - Wikipedia, accessed April 22, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Stanwix Foundation Document Overview - Fort Stanwix National Monument - NPS History, accessed April 22, 2025, http://www.npshistory.com/publications/foundation-documents/fost-fd-overview.pdf History & Culture - Fort Stanwix National Monument (U.S. National Park Service), accessed April 22, 2025, https://www.nps.gov/fost/learn/historyculture/index.htm Fort Stanwix National Monument - The Past, accessed April 22, 2025, https://the-past.com/review/museum/fort-stanwix-national-monument/ Cycle the Erie: At Fort Stanwix, Rome, Time Travel Back to America's Colonial, Native American Past | Going Places, Far & Near, accessed April 22, 2025, https://goingplacesfarandnear.com/cycle-the-erie-at-fort-stanwix-rome-time-travel-back-to-americas-colonial-native-american-past/ The Story Behind the “Story of the Fort That Never Surrendered ..., accessed April 22, 2025, https://researchingtheamericanrevolution.com/2024/12/27/the-story-behind-the-story-of-the-fort-that-never-surrendered/ Siege of Fort Stanwix - Wikipedia, accessed April 22, 2025, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Fort_Stanwix The Battle at Oriskany - Oneida Nation, accessed April 22, 2025, https://oneida-nsn.gov/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/12.1-09.08.10-The-Battle-at-Oriskany.pdf Park Archives: Fort Stanwix National Monument - NPS History, accessed April 22, 2025, https://npshistory.com/publications/fost/index.htm FORT STANWIX - NPS History, accessed April 22, 2025, http://npshistory.com/publications/fost/cmh-hfs-hsr.pdf Fort Stanwix - NPS History, accessed April 22, 2025, https://npshistory.com/publica
