The French and Indian War, pt. 3: The Siege and "Massacre" at Fort William Henry
- Timothy Dusablon
- Aug 2
- 17 min read
A Turning Point in the French and Indian War
Before we get into the events at Fort William Henry in 1757, I’m going to fast forward three years to the surrender of Montreal and the end of the French and Indian War conflict. Jeffrey Amherst, the British Commander and Chief in North America, had Montreal surrounded on three sides. There was no escape for the few remaining French forces, at that time, less than 3,000. Just as British forces were taking their place on the Island of Montreal, Louis-Antione de Bougainville, a French colonel, approached the British camp under a flag of truce. The irony of this action is that it was Bougainville that approached Colonel Monro at Fort William Henry, also under a flag of truce in 1757, the topic of this episode, strongly urging him to surrender the fort. Back to 1760, Bougainville asked for a truce until they heard back from the French government with official instructions.
Amherst’s next move was a direct result of the events at Fort William Henry three years prior. He was so disgusted by the violation of the terms of surrender by Louis Joseph, Marquis de Montcalm and his First Nations allies, who plundered the fort, stole personal belongings, and proceeded to “massacre” the prisoners of war. Those prisoners of war were promised safe passage under the capitulation agreement. Due to these events at Fort William Henry just three years prior, Amherst showed little leniency to the French command, and refused to give them the “honors of war”. More about this term a little later on.
Amherst specifically cited the massacre at Fort William Henry as his direct reason for not offering the honors of war. Governor Vaudreuil, the Chevalier de Levis, and Bougainville had no choice but to accept these terms, thus resulting in the end of New France and the French and Indian War. But what exactly happened in 1757 at Fort William Henry, and why was the Siege and the following “massacre” such a seminal moment, not just in the French and Indian War, but also in North American history as a whole? And what was behind the events portrayed in the fictional history book and Hollywood movie “The Last of the Mohicans”? To answer this, we have to look at the larger picture.
Social Tensions Set to Explode
Within the context of the larger French and Indian War in North America, several key groups emerged, with varying interests and cultural norms. The relationships amongst these groups was complex, and often confrontational, even if some groups were on the same side of the conflict. These groups included the British Regulars from overseas, the Colonial Americans, the French Regulars, the French Canadians, and the Native Americans. Even amongst the natives, there was conflict amongst the “Christianized” First Nations, who had been in contact with the whites for some time, and the “non-Christianized” First Nations.
These complicated relationships and conflicting cultural norms created the environment in which these tenuous relationships were about to explode. That explosion happened at the southern end of Lake George at Fort William Henry.
As early as 1756, the Governor General of New France, Pierre de Rigaud, Marquis de Vaudreuil-Cavagnial, had set about enlisting every First Nation he possibly could to join the French cause and march against the British. He wanted them to join the commander of French forces, Louis-Joseph, Marquis de Montcalm in his advance against Fort William Henry.
The total force of First Nations Warriors totaled over 1,500. This was composed of over 40 different native nations, some being almost 1,000 miles away. About 900 were “Christianized” Natives, while the remaining 600 had little experience with the French and were not formal allies. They joined the force, not for money, but for prowess, and for the “trophies of war”, or plunder from battle, as proof to their nation that they fought the enemy with bravery.
Some of the warriors were from so far away that they spoke a language that no interpreter could understand. This may very well have been the Iowa First Nation. The warriors were commanded under La Corne St. Luc, a notorious Canadian military aristocrat whose reputation amongst the First Nations was formidable, given he spoke at least four different native tongues.
This large native force joined a large majority of the French regulars in Canada, as well as many Canadians, for a total force of 8,000 .
Meanwhile at the British camp, Daniel Webb at Fort Edward received numerous intelligence reports that a large French force was assembling at Carillon and were preparing for a raid on Fort William Henry. Despite these numerous reports, that information was never shared with Monro, and no defensive changes to the fortifications preceded the siege. 1,300, soon to be 2,300 troops were stationed at Fort William Henry, but more than 2,500 remained at Fort Edward, just 16 miles away. Not sharing the intelligence with Monro was mistake number one, but mistake number two was not consolidating his troops to either Fort William Henry or Fort Edward.
These accounts were largely from French deserters and prisoners, as Monro’s force was unable to gather intelligence. Ever since the March raid on Fort William Henry that destroyed most of the naval vessels and outer works, the woods surrounding Lake George teemed with French-allied First Nations Warriors. Almost every scouting party was repulsed before completing the mission, or never returned. The lack of verified intelligence was a major hindrance for the British forces.
The Battle of Sabbath Day Point
In another attempt at gathering intelligence, a force of 350 men under Colonel John Parker, mostly the New Jersey regiment nicknamed the “Jersey Blues” for the blue uniforms they wore, rowed north on Lake George. They were proceeding right into a trap. 150 First Nations Warriors were waiting near Sabbath Day Point. Parker’s whaleboats anchored overnight, and by morning, were surrounded by Ottawa, Ojibwa, and Menominee warriors in canoes. At daybreak, the warriors took their positions north and set the stage for the trap. The retreat south was effectively cut off by another group of warriors. A fierce and bloody fight ensued, in which more than three quarters of Parker’s force was either killed or captured. Many had looked to surrender, but most of the warriors wanted nothing to do with taking prisoners.
Israel Putnam, the later hero of Bunker Hill during the Revolutionary War, was an officer with Roger’s Rangers. He was on a scouting mission on July 30th when he saw three canoes heading south on Lake George with white flags, presumed to be French. They immediately retreated back to Fort William Henry fearing an ambush and wanting to warn the commanders of their findings.
They shared the news of the French force, which alerted the captain of Fort William Henry, George Monro, as well as Daniel Webb, his superior, who had a, well, lackluster reputation. Lord Loudoun, the commander of British forces in North America, was not a fan of Webb, owing for his reputation of being timid, and his tendency to panic and over-react. But, Webb had a confidant in the Duke of Cumberland, the King’s son, so Loudoun had no choice but to put him in command. Hearing of the French and Native forces that seemed to be heading south, Webb left immediately, perhaps in panic, for Fort Edward. Fort Edward was just 16 miles away, and before departing he promised Monro reinforcements. Those reinforcements did show up, and totalled just a meager 200.
The French and First Nations Embark on Fort William Henry
On July 31st, the large force of more than 8,000 departed Fort Carillon under Montcalm to attack Fort William Henry. An advance force moved on July 30th under Brigadier Francois-Gaston, Chevalier de Levis. They moved overland down the western side of Lake George owing to the fact that the force did not have enough boats. They made their way south, and rendezvoused with the remaining force under Louis-Antoine de Bougainville near Northwest Bay.
The combined French force under Levis arrived just 3 miles north of Fort William Henry on August 1st, and Montcalm joined him the following day. Lookouts at Fort William Henry had seen fires in the distance, and sent two boats to investigate. Neither boat returned to the fort.
At this time, Levis’ forces moved south to cut off the road to Fort Edward with hundreds of the First Nations Warriors. Montcalm landed in Artillery Cove. This would act as his base camp for the upcoming siege. The army of 8,000 was about to launch an offensive against only 2,500 British.
With the Marquis de Montcalm in charge, this siege would be a very traditional European offensive against a well-fortified structure. Thus, a traditional playbook of European siege warfare began with the accompanying ceremony. Before the offensive was to begin, Montcalm sent an aid under a flag of truce to give Monro the opportunity to surrender, and to issue a warning in regards to the upcoming hostilities. The note shared his military superiority, and warned of possible atrocities of the First Nations Warriors if the battle were to proceed. Monro declined, and the siege began.
Monro desperately sent requests to Webb at Fort Edward for reinforcements. However, many of these dispatches were intercepted by the French and Natives. Meanwhile, Webb received even more intelligence from a French prisoner stating that 11,000 troops, an exaggerated number, were about to set siege to Fort William Henry. Because of this, Webb responded to Monro’s request with a no. He did not “think it prudent” to send more reinforcements, and in his response letter, he advised Monro to negotiate the best terms of capitulation that he could. William Johnson, the leader of the Battle of Lake George two years earlier, arrived with 1,500 enforcements to Fort Edward after the siege had begun, but there may have been a conflict with Webb at Fort Edward. What was said is up to debate, but Johnson was not a fan, calling Webb a “coward” in a note to Captain Phillip Schuyler.
The letter that Webb sent to Monro would never make it to him. The messenger was killed by native scouts, and sewn within his jacket was the letter, which was brought immediately to General Montcalm. He rejoiced at seeing the news that Webb was not going to send reinforcements, and set about a more aggressive approach. General Montcalm knew he had the ultimate psychological weapon in his hands, and would wait until the right moment to play his cards and show Monro the letter.
The Siege of Fort William Henry Commences
On the outskirts of Fort William Henry, traditional European siege warfare commenced, with trenches and batteries being erected in a zig-zag pattern, slowly getting closer and closer to the fortification - all well shelling the fort. Two batteries were constructed within the course of a few days, the first completed August 5th, the second completed August 6th. The return fire from the British had some effect, but was limited to those in the trenches. The cannon inside Fort William Henry were largely manned by colonials. In their panic, they did not allow adequate time for the cannon to properly cool down before re-firing. The result was the cast-iron cannon exploding from heat stress, injuring many inside the fort. The number of usable artillery was dwindling for Monro.
Meanwhile, a French cannon ball had shot down the Union Jack. A carpenter who was trying to repair the flag then had his head shot off, which brought a roar from the French and native lines. It was almost scarily symbolic.
On August 7th, with yet a third battery of heavy artillery easily able to breach the walls of the wood fort, Montcalm’s Aide de Camp proceeded under a white flag of truce. His name was Louis-Antoine de Bougainville. Bougainville is one of the most interesting personalities to make his name in the Champlain Valley. He was in his late 20’s at this time, and had already written a two volume book on calculus. He was well-respected in European intellectual circles. After the war, Bougainville became the first Frenchman to circumnavigate the globe. He eventually came back to North America, in 1781, as a member of the French Navy, fighting in conjunction with American land forces during the Battle of Yorktown. He played a pivotal role in that battle as commander of the advanced guard of the naval fleet.
When Bougainville and Monro met under a flag of truce, he showed Monro the blood-stained letter from Webb refusing reinforcements. An accompanying note from Montcalm urged him to surrender, but still Monro refused, and promised to fight to the last extremity. Back to the European warfare playbook, it was not considered “honorable” for a commander to give up his fort without the walls being breached. But without the hope of reinforcements, he knew his time was just about up.
As the next day dawned, he sent his engineer to inspect the state of the fortification. The news was not good. The French were within 250 yards, and were inflicting heavy damage to the Northwest and Southwest Bastions. The former was an imminent threat to collapse and in turn would allow the enemy inside the fort. The force inside the fort was down to just a handful of operational artillery pieces. Monro called a counsel of war, and it was decided that the best move was to surrender.
A white flag rose above Fort William Henry to signal surrender, and the two sides met again to discuss terms of capitulation. The terms of surrender proposed by Montcalm to Monro were very generous. The British and Colonial troops would be allowed to go back home as parolees. Monro and the forces would be given the “Honors of War”. Honors of War were given to the defenders of a fortification or battle if the prevailing general thought their defense was adequate and honorable. Under these honors, they would keep their personal belongings, under the agreement they would not engage in battle against the French for 18 months. They would be allowed to keep their muskets, but could keep no ammunition.
In accordance with the honors of war, as a token of appreciation, one cannon would also be taken as a symbolic gesture of their bravery in the eyes of Montcalm. The French also agreed to escort the British to Fort Edward while the British force marched with colors still flying.
This is where the controversy would begin. The early 19th century histories of the event is that the native warriors helped themselves to the liquor from Fort William Henry and quickly raged out of control, killing over 1,000 in the process. Despite their best efforts, the French were unable to control the unruly natives. But the reality is much more complex than that, and deserves a much deeper look.
The "Massacre"
The First Nations leaders were not consulted until after the surrender agreement was reached. Even then, communication was likely an issue. Ian K. Steele’s work “Betrayals: Fort William Henry & the ‘Massacre’” is without question the best work written on the subject. Steele writes of Montcalm’s communication with the First Nations leaders “He could not know how accurately, how completely, or with what editorial comments these terms were being translated for some sixteen hundred Indians and thirty-three tribes by eight interpreters, four missionaries, and a dozen Canadian irregulars…”
The first nations warriors were completely confused that the enemy was allowed to walk away. The notion seems a bit strange even by today’s standards. There was no parole in the native way of war. They fought for pride, and for the trophies of war; belongings and prisoners, to bring back to their villages as a show of prowess in battle. All of these were promised by the French to the numerous First Nations well before they arrived at Fort William Henry.
So why did Montcalm offer parole? This is because there was a severe food shortage in Canada, and many crop failures from bad harvest. They could barely feed the populous of Canada, let alone feed another 2,000 mouths.
At this point, during the transfer ceremony, some of the natives stormed the fort and killed 17 wounded and sick men who the French were supposed to protect. The French officers were able to intervene and save at least a few of the wounded. One warrior emerged with a severed head. This was collaborated by later archeological studies.
To raise suspicions amongst the natives even more, an attempt was made to evacuate the prisoners under nightfall. La Corne St. Luc had warned against this, stating that it would risk angering the native warriors. He was correct. Many warriors who witnessed this were convinced that the two white groups were working together to screw them over. This seemed even more apparent when Montcalm was invited to dine with Monro at a buffet, and a toast for a gentlemanly victory, for which none of the natives were invited.
Montcalm reports that the liquor inside the fort was destroyed, in an attempt to avoid what had happened at Oswego the prior year. This seems to suggest that the narrative of the natives being on a drunken rage is false.
The First Nations Warriors were now angrier than ever, and lined the military road back to Fort Edward. The French had guaranteed Monro safe passage for all as part of the terms of capitulation. As such, the French regulars led the British regulars as an escort. The First Nations Warriors approached in large numbers from the woods. They began grabbing what they could as their trophies of war. This included clothing, personal items, weapons, seemingly whatever the natives could get their hands on. At the suggestion of some of the French officers, some at the front of the formation started to strip almost completely naked. Back towards the fort, other First Nations Warriors noticed those that had their plunder of war, and were damned if they were going to leave without their trophies.
After all, they had been promised the prizes of war and had travelled, in some cases, over a thousand miles to participate. They had fought bravely for the French, and they were going to take what they were promised and what they deserved.
This is when things spiraled out of control. At some point, a war whoop was let out, which caused a violent reaction among some of the First Nations Warriors. Those in the back of the formation bore the brunt of the violence. There was loss of life among not only soldiers, but civilians as well. Many who were initially believed to be killed were actually taken prisoner and brought back to either Montreal or to their native lands as slaves. Atrocities were committed, however. Many details of this disturbing scene are corroborated with archeological evidence of pre and post-mortem mutilation among the dead. This confirms some of the most disturbing first-hand sources. However, most accounts state that the indiscriminate killing lasted only a short time.
At this point Montcalm had heard of what was going on and proceeded to the scene, over a mile away from his camp. He tried pleading, and even resorted to force to get the natives to stop. However, the worst was already over. It is debatable how much effort the other French and Canadian officers put into saving the victims. By some estimates, between 300 and 500 were saved by the French. Other accounts say there was no effort at all, and even indicate some officers taunting the English.
The Aftermath
Once the natives had their plunder, they took off for either Montreal or their homes. They had what they wanted. However, many of the First Nations warriors were angered by the French and vowed to never join them in war again. This changed the course of the war for New France, as without the native warriors, Montcalm’s traditional European tactics were embraced from this point on. Indeed, this was the last major party of First Nations Warriors that the French would have. Only 300 natives were left of the force of 1,600. Those were the Abenaki and the Nipissing.
Some of them unknowingly had a horrific disease that would ravage First Nations communities the following year. There was a large smallpox outbreak amongst Canadian tribes in 1758. Many experts believe that contaminated clothing taken from Fort William Henry was to blame for this epidemic.
This has been referred to as a massacre, and there was certainly loss of life, but less than two hundred British were killed, at most 8% of those at the encampment. Most reliable estimates put the number of killed between 75 and 185. It was bad, but could have been a lot worse. Some estimates say as few as 65 were actually killed, but nowhere near the 1,000 stated many times in early American history books. Many were taken prisoner back to Canada, and over the proceeding few months officials were able to “purchase” these captives back from the natives. Some escaped in the woods, and likely never returned to Fort Edward fearing the harsh punishments of desertion that included lashes upon bare backs.
When the dust settled, one thing was for sure. The British would use this as a perfect opportunity for propaganda, and would use this to rile up the colonial troops to rally alongside the British regulars. Over 4,000 colonial reinforcements would arrive at Fort Edward, including a 16 year old Benedict Arnold and an 18 year old Ethan Allen, both coming up separately from Connecticut. Until the very end of the French and Indian War, the rallying cry of the British forces was “Remember Fort William Henry.”
Montcalm did not attempt to proceed to Fort Edward, despite Vaudrueil’s desire to do so, and would retreat back to Carillon after destroying Fort William Henry. This drew the ire of Vaudreuil.
Not long after the events at Fort William Henry, Monro died of a stroke shortly after a two hour meeting with Lord Loudon, the British commander of North America. There is no doubt the stress and anger toward Webb played a huge part.
There would be a lot of fallout, including the aforementioned General Amherst during the surrender of Montreal in 1760. The French had violated granted terms of surrender, and Amherst refused to let the French surrender with the honors of war, citing specifically the Fort William Henry incident. The year before, he had ordered Roger’s Rangers to raid the Abenaki village of St. Francis in Canada, using Lake Champlain and Missisquoi Bay for their route to the village. He instructed Rogers not to forget the “atrocities” committed by the Abenaki.
In 1826, James Fennimore Cooper would write a novel based on these events called “The Last of the Mohicans” based on the events of the siege. This would be turned into a few different film adaptations, including the 1992 movie starring Daniel Day Lewis.
The events that took place in August of 1757 shaped the attitudes of the colonials, especially in New England and New York, amplifying hatred towards the Native Americans and towards Catholics which already existed. The British leadership refused to give the “honors of war” to any French force after the atrocities committed at Fort William Henry for the duration of the war. The massacre would be used well into the early 1800’s as a prime example of Native behavior that could not be tamed, and as such would justify Indian removals during this time frame.
There was indeed a great loss of life and atrocities committed in the aftermath of the British surrender on the side of the Native Americans, but these events must be looked at in the larger context of the complex cultural relationships of the time. The following year in 1758, the largest army ever assembled to that time in North America would seek revenge, gathering on the ruins of Fort William Henry.
This is Part Three of a six part series on the French and Indian War. Click here for part two.
Sources:
Anderson, Fred. “Crucible of War: The Seven Years War and the Fate of Empire in British North America, 1754-1766”
Bellico, Russell P. “Empires in the Mountains: French and Indian War Campaigns and Forts in the Lake Champlain, Lake George, and Hudson River Corridor”
Carrier, Roch. “Montcalm and Wolfe: Two Men who Forever Changed the Course of Canadian History”
Cohen, Eliot A. “Conquered Into Liberty: Two Centuries of Battles Along the Great Warpath That Made the American Way of War”
Starbuck, David R. “The Great Warpath: British Military Sites from Albany to Crown Point”
Steele, Ian K. “Betrayals: Fort William Henry & the ‘Massacre’”