Battle of Ticonderoga (1759)

The Battle of Ticonderoga in 1759 was a confrontation during the French and Indian War for the possession of the important forts Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain. She was part of a double attack on the French Canada, whose main thrust General James Wolfe from the sea led to the decisive siege of Quebec, where finally the supremacy of England in Canada was secured.

In the summer of 1758 a large, numerically superior British army had been defeated at the Battle of Carillon at Fort Ticonderoga for later renamed Fort Carillon by the French troops. In the following winter 1758/1759 but the bulk of the French occupation of the fort for the defense of Quebec, Montreal and the western French city of forts had been deducted.

In 1759, Sir Jeffrey Amherst therefore made ​​to the reconquest and pulled from Lake George to the north to cut off the supply routes from Fort Carillon / Ticonderoga. The British learned from their mistakes of the bloody siege failed last year, were in which in a frontal attack alone about 1940 men of the Black Watch ( 42nd Highlanders Infantry Regiment). 11,000 British under Amherst reached Ticonderoga on July 22 and began the siege. On 23 July, the majority of the 3,500 French and Canadians moved into the fort under the command of Colonel François -Charles de Bourlamaque to the Isle aux Noix in Lake Champlain back, leaving only 400 men returned under Captain de Hébécourt. This should hold the fort for as long as possible, but withdrew on July 26, 1759 also back, do not go hunting without advance their powder magazine in the air.

Amherst could not take up the chase because he lacked ships. He built the badly damaged by the explosion of Fort Ticonderoga again and also had two ships built, but then wintered at Ticonderoga and also conquered Fort Crown Point. Delays of this Amherst, however, came in support of Wolfe at Quebec too late. At the same time the siege of Ticonderoga Fort Niagara was besieged, which also had to be surrendered to the English.

For more battles of this name, see: Battle of Ticonderoga