The failed British siege of Fort Stanwix denied St. Leger's column a route to Albany, contributing directly to Burgoyne's surrender at Saratoga.
Key Facts
- Siege start date
- August 2, 1777
- Siege end date
- August 22, 1777
- Duration
- 20 days days
- Defending commander
- Colonel Peter Gansevoort
- Besieging commander
- Brigadier General Barry St. Leger
- Related battle
- Battle of Oriskany, August 6, 1777
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
British Lieutenant General John Burgoyne planned a three-pronged campaign to seize the Hudson River Valley. St. Leger's column was tasked with advancing east through the Mohawk Valley as a diversion, requiring the capture or neutralization of Fort Stanwix, the primary Continental Army stronghold blocking that route.
From August 2 to 22, 1777, St. Leger's mixed force of British regulars, Loyalists, Hessians, and Indigenous warriors besieged Fort Stanwix, defended by Colonel Gansevoort's Continental troops. A relief force under Herkimer was ambushed at Oriskany, but Major General Benedict Arnold's advancing reinforcements, combined with a ruse exaggerating his force size, caused the Indigenous allies to desert and St. Leger to abandon the siege.
St. Leger's withdrawal ended any threat to Albany from the west, leaving Burgoyne's northern campaign without the expected diversionary support. Burgoyne subsequently surrendered following the Battles of Saratoga in October 1777, a turning point that helped bring France into the war on the American side.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Colonel Peter Gansevoort, Major General Benedict Arnold, Brigadier General Nicholas Herkimer.
Side B
1 belligerent
Brigadier General Barry St. Leger.