Battle+of+Oriskany

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== Nicholas Herkimer joined the Revolution between July and August of 1775. He became the head of the Tryon County Committee of Safety and eventually advanced to Colonel of the district militia. After the loyalist militia members retreated to Canada, he became a Brigadier General in the Tryon County Militia under the Provincial Congress on September 5, 1776.In June of 1776, he led 380 men of the county militia to confront Joseph Brant at Unadilla. Herkimer asked for the Iroquois to remain neutral in the conflict while Brant claimed that the Indians owed their loyalty to the King. After learning of the siege on Fort Stanwix in July 1777, he ordered the Tryon County militia to assemble at Fort Dayton. His force was ambushed by a group of Indians and British Soldiers while entering a ravine. The ensuing battle, Battle of Oriskany, took place and even though he was seriously wounded Herkimer remained calm. He rallied his troops and used his strategy, military skills and organized methods to win the battle. However Herkimer did not receive proper treatment for his infected wound and died ten days later. ==

==In January of 1776, nine months after the beginning of the American Revolution, Sir John Johnson gathered several hundred armed Loyalists at Johnstown. He sent letters to Governor William Tryon through Captain John McDonell, claiming that he and his Loyalists were ready to fight and that he could also rise up 500 Indian troops to help reclaim forts lost to the Americans. Johnson was chosen to be general in the battle of Oriskany due to his strategic skills, his connections with the Indians, his ability to control troops and his military tactics. However after losing the battle of Oriskany, Johnson and his remaining troops retreated. They then began to attempt to recapture other British forts. However on January 20, 1776, General Phillip Schuyler, wit h the Tryon County militia and Continental troops disarmed Johnson and about 300 of his Loyalist supporters. Schuyler paroled Johnson and in May of 1776 another force was sent to arrest him. Johnson decided to flee with his family and supporters to Canada (Montreal, Quebec). Johnson's house and property in the Mohawk Valley was confiscated after the war by the State of New York.==



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==The Battle of Oriskany took place on August 6th 1777. It is considered to be one of the bloodiest battles of the American Revolutionary War and a significant confrontation of the Saratoga campaign. The British had a force of hundred and the Americans had a force of around eight hundred forty. The Americans had the Indian tribe of the Oneidas on their side and the British had the Mohawks and the Seneca. On morning of the 6th the American general Nicholas Herkimer held a war council to let his column know they were going to remain at their current position. However his officers called him a Tory since his brother was serving under the British army. Hekimer was hurt by these accusations and order his troops to continue to march towards [|Fort Stanwix]. About six miles from their current position the road lowered into a marshy ravine (known today as Oriskany Creek). Two Seneca war chiefs chose this area to set an ambush while the King's Royal Yorkers hid behind a nearby ridge. The yorkers planned to attack the front of the column while the Indians attacked the sides.== ==Around 10 am Herkimer and his men entered the ravine, crossed the stream and began ascending on the other side. The Indians however, could not wait any longer and began their assault and taking the column completely by surprise. Herkimer turned to see the action and was hit by a ball, shattering his leg and killing his horse. He was carried by some of his officers who put him next to a beech tree. They urged him to retire from battle but he defiantly replied, "I will face the enemy" and sat calmly smoking a pipe and giving orders to his men. The trap had been set off too early and parts of the column had not yet entered the ravine. Most of Herkimer's men panicked and fled, chased by Indians leaving a trail of dead and wounded men for miles. Between the losses of the fist volley and the side attacks about half of Herkimer's men remained fighting the enemy. The opposing Indians would wait for the Americans to fire and then rush in, striking them with spears and [|tomahawks] before they could reload. Hermiker's men eventually assembled together, fighting their way out of the ravine to the west. Soon after a thunderstorm occurred causing an hour break of the fighting in which Herkimer moved his men to higher ground.== ==The men began to fight in pairs to reduce the effectiveness of the tomahawk attack, letting one an fire while the other reloaded. The British also used the thunderstorm to their advantage. John Butler, leader of the Rangers (British side) was able to interrogate some captured American soldiers and learned the meaning of the three cannon signal. Another tactic was deployed by Sir John Johnson(of the British side) who attempted to disguise his men as a relief party coming from the fort by flipping their jackets in side out. However some of the American soldiers recognized the British and the failed attempt sparked the battle again. General Herkimer managed to get a messenger to Fort Stanwix (around 11 am) and Lieutenant Colonel Marinus Willett lead two hundred fifty men to come to the Americans aide.== ==This large force began to raid the enemy forts and scared off the remaining British and Indians. They also managed to take four prisoners and valuable letters writings from John Johnson's camp during their march to help the Americans. The Indians began to cry "Oonah, Oonah" telling the other Indians to retreat. This caused British to withdraw and the Americans won the battle.==

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==However General Nicholas Herkimer did not survive his injuries, and died on August 16th. After the battle was won his leg was amputated but the doctor was inexperienced and the injury was extremely infected.==

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