Capture of Fort William and Mary | |||||||
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Part of the American Revolutionary War | |||||||
![]() Surrender of Fort William and Mary by Howard Pyle | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Militia of the Province of New Hampshire | ![]() | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
John Langdon John Sullivan Alexander Scammell | Captain John Cochran ![]() | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
300+ | 6 |
The Capture of Fort William and Mary took place in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on December 14, 1774, when local Patriots led by John Langdon stormed Fort William and Mary guarding the mouth of the busy seaport. They overcame a six-man caretaker detachment and seized the garrison's powder, which was distributed through several towns in the colony for potential use in the looming struggle against Great Britain. On December 15, 1774, patriots led by John Sullivan again raided the fort, this time seizing numerous cannons, later used in the pivotal Battle of Bunker Hill.
The incident is significant as one of the first overt acts of the American Revolutionary War [1] and the only battle to take place in the state of New Hampshire. [2]
As tensions increased before the American Revolutionary War, British Prime Minister Lord North's government became concerned that the profusion of arms in New England would lead to bloodshed. On October 19, 1774, King George III issued a confidential Order in Council forbidding the export of arms and powder to America. [3] [4] Word of the order reached operatives in New England's patriot movement. [5]
The port at Boston had been closed in punishment for the Boston Tea Party, and the Portsmouth Committee of Correspondence kept in close contact with friends of liberty in Boston. Tensions in Massachusetts nearly erupted into violence in the fall of 1774 when redcoats seized provincial gunpowder during the so-called Powder Alarm. Upon learning of the Order in Council, patriots feared that the British military would make another attempt to seize colonial stores. Patriots in Rhode Island moved munitions from the fort at Newport inland for safekeeping without incident. In Massachusetts, rumors flew that troops from Boston were headed to reinforce Fort William and Mary and seize its powder and arms. On December 13, 1774, four months before his more famous ride in Massachusetts, Paul Revere rode to Portsmouth to sound the alarm. Once he arrived in Portsmouth, Revere met with Samuel Cutts, a local merchant, and together they worked with local Patriots on a plan for the fort. [6]
On the morning of December 14, Patriots from the town of New Castle unsuccessfully attempted to take the gunpowder at Fort William and Mary by trickery. Meanwhile, John Langdon made his way through Portsmouth with a drummer, collecting a crowd to descend on the fort. Several hundred men responded to his call, setting out for the Castle by way of the Piscataqua River. Only one provincial officer, Captain John Cochran, and five provincial soldiers were stationed at Fort William and Mary. Despite the odds against them, they refused to capitulate to Patriot demands. When Langdon's men rushed the fort, the defenders opened fire with three cannons and a volley of musket shot. [7] Patriots stormed the walls and Cochran's men engaged in hand-to-hand fighting before being subdued by an overwhelming number of raiders. Langdon's volunteers not only broke open the powder house and absconded with about 100 barrels of gunpowder but, to three cheers, hauled down the fort's huge British flag and stomped upon it. Several injuries but no deaths occurred in the engagement, and Cochran and his men were released after about an hour and a half of confinement.
The next day, additional rebel forces arrived in Portsmouth from across the colony, as well as from Maine. Led by John Sullivan, who was accompanied by Major Alexander Scammell, the rebels returned to the fort late on the night of December 15. [8] The post was overrun without gunfire and muskets, military supplies and 16 cannons marked as the property of the King were removed. British authorities declared the raids—for which Sullivan later received a stipend from the Continental Congress—high treason. Striking the British colors at Fort William and Mary was the first time British citizens had every shown such disdain for their country by striking its flag, and having done so in such a contemptuous manner, so infuriated King George III that he forbad further negotiations with the Colonies over their grievances and the American Revolutionary War became inevitable. The battle of Fort William and Mary is known in New Hampshire as "The Shot Not Heard Around the World."
In response to a call for aid from Boston by British Governor John Wentworth, the armed hydrographic survey sloop Canceaux arrived to keep the peace in New Hampshire on December 17, [9] followed by the twenty-gun frigate Scarborough on December 19, with numerous Royal Marines aboard. The Governor and his family were driven from their home in Portsmouth in the summer of 1775 and forced to take refuge in the fort, guarded by the guns of British warships. Britain finally gave up on the colony of New Hampshire in order to focus attention on the military situation in Massachusetts and abandoned the fort, removing its remaining equipment to Boston along with Governor Wentworth. The abandonment of New Hampshire by the British and departure of it royal governor prompted the citizenry to declare, with wily dismay, this abandonment forces New Hampshire to establish self rule as necessary to end this lawless state of affairs on January 5, 1776. While this action was not a forthright declaration of independence since such action would constitute high treason, the effect was the same. New Hampshire did not unequivocally declare its independence from Great Britain until June 15, 1776, two months after Rhode Island became the first state to make such declaration and was one of three former colonies to already be independent states when the Continental Congress voted to declare independence on July 2, 1776.
The supplies captured by Patriots in December 1774 were later used by New Hampshire's forces against the British military, including in the Siege of Boston and at the Battle of Bunker Hill. [10] [11] Conversely, supplies (including numerous cannon) left in the fort by Patriots following the raids were subsequently put to use by the British forces. After the British abandoned the fort in the Revolution, the Patriots probably renamed it Fort Hancock. [12]
The plaque currently on the fort is dedicated "In commemoration of the first victory of the American Revolution. The capture, on this site of Fort William and Mary, 14–15 December 1774." [13]
Paul Revere was an American silversmith, military officer and industrialist who played a major role during the opening months of the American Revolutionary War in Massachusetts, engaging in a midnight ride in 1775 to alert nearby minutemen of the approach of British troops prior to the battles of Lexington and Concord.
New Castle is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,000 at the 2020 census. It is the smallest and easternmost town in New Hampshire and the only one located entirely on islands. It is home to Fort Constitution Historic Site, Fort Stark Historic Site, and the New Castle Common, a 31-acre (13 ha) recreation area on the Atlantic Ocean. New Castle is also home to a United States Coast Guard station, as well as the historic Wentworth by the Sea hotel.
The Siege of Boston was the opening phase of the American Revolutionary War. In the siege, American patriot militia led by newly-installed Continental Army commander George Washington prevented the British Army, which was garrisoned in Boston, from moving by land. Both sides faced resource, supply, and personnel challenges during the siege. British resupply and reinforcement was limited to sea access, which was impeded by American vessels. The British ultimately abandoned Boston after eleven months, moving their troops and equipment north, to Nova Scotia.
The capture of Fort Ticonderoga occurred during the American Revolutionary War on May 10, 1775, when a small force of Green Mountain Boys led by Ethan Allen and Colonel Benedict Arnold surprised and captured the fort's small British garrison. The cannons and other armaments at Fort Ticonderoga were later transported to Boston by Colonel Henry Knox in the noble train of artillery and used to fortify Dorchester Heights and break the standoff at the siege of Boston.
Fort William and Mary was a colonial fortification in Britain's worldwide system of defenses, defended by soldiers of the Province of New Hampshire who reported directly to the royal governor. The fort, originally known as "The Castle," was situated on the island of New Castle, New Hampshire, at the mouth of the Piscataqua River estuary. It was renamed Fort William and Mary circa 1692, after the accession of the monarchs William III and Mary II to the British throne. It was captured by Patriot forces, recaptured, and later abandoned by the British in the Revolutionary War. The fort was renamed Fort Constitution in 1808 following rebuilding. The fort was further rebuilt and expanded through 1899 and served actively through World War II.
Nathaniel Folsom was an American merchant and statesman. He was a delegate for New Hampshire in the Continental Congress in 1774 and 1777 to 1780, signing the Continental Association. He served as major general of the New Hampshire Militia during the American Revolutionary War.
The MassachusettsPowder Alarm was a major popular reaction to the removal of gunpowder from a magazine near Boston by British soldiers under orders from General Thomas Gage, royal governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, on September 1, 1774. In response to this action, amid rumors that blood had been shed, alarm spread through the countryside to Connecticut and beyond, and American Patriots sprang into action, fearing that war was at hand. Thousands of militiamen began streaming toward Boston and Cambridge, and mob action forced Loyalists and some government officials to flee to the protection of the British Army. A similar event, also called The Powder Alarm, occurred in Virginia in April, 1775.
The Boston campaign was the opening campaign of the American Revolutionary War, taking place primarily in the Province of Massachusetts Bay. The campaign began with the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775, in which the local colonial militias interdicted a British government attempt to seize military stores and leaders in Concord, Massachusetts. The entire British expedition suffered significant casualties during a running battle back to Charlestown against an ever-growing number of militia.
The Gunpowder Incident was a conflict early in the American Revolutionary War between Lord Dunmore, the Royal Governor of the Colony of Virginia, and militia led by Patrick Henry. On April 21, 1775, two days after the Battles of Lexington and Concord, Lord Dunmore ordered the removal of the gunpowder from the magazine in Williamsburg, Virginia to a Royal Navy ship.
The Raid of Nassau was a naval operation and amphibious assault by American forces against the British port of Nassau, Bahamas, during the American Revolutionary War. The raid, designed to resolve the issue of gunpowder shortages, resulted in the seizure of two forts and large quantities of military supplies before the raiders drew back to New England, where they fought an unsuccessful engagement with a British frigate.
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. During the American Revolution, it was one of the Thirteen Colonies that revolted against British rule. One of the smallest U.S. states in area and population, it was part of New England's textile economy between the American Civil War and World War II. Since the 20th century, the state has been known for its presidential primary, outdoor recreation, its educational boarding schools, and being part of the biotech industry.
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HMS Canceaux was a sloop active in both the hydrographic exploration of the Atlantic Canada and New England coastline and in the American Revolutionary War. She played an integral role in the battle for control of Maine, in particular at the Burning of Falmouth. She began her life as a merchant vessel and would eventually be transformed to a military vessel for the Royal Navy, equipped to command the razing of major settlements. After leaving the Saint Lawrence River estuary in 1771, Canceaux actively shaped the maritime history of the American Revolution.
Henry Mowat (1734–1798) was an officer of the Royal Navy commanding ships in northern New England during the American Revolutionary War. He was the son of Captain Patrick Mowat of the post ship HMS Dolphin. He was born in Scotland and went to sea at the age of 18.
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