Fort Oswego

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Fort Oswego around 1727.

Fort Oswego was an 18th century British fortification at the confluence of the Oswego River in Lake Ontario in what is now the US state of New York .

The area around Lake Ontario has been the scene of the activities of French fur traders and missionaries since Samuel de Champlain's trip in 1616. At the beginning of the 18th century, the British expanded into this region in order to participate in the lucrative trade with the Indians . In 1722 they set up a fortified trading post at the mouth of the Oswego on the east bank of the river. Over the years, other fortifications with changing names have been added, which have repeatedly caused confusion. In total there were three contiguous forts in this area (Fort George, Fort Ontario, and Fort Oswego); the name Fort Oswego has become established for the entire complex . It served primarily as a trading post, but also as a military base for clashes with the French. It was used for the first time during the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–1748).

The French viewed the construction of Fort Oswego as an intrusion into the area they claimed and suffered noticeable losses from the trading activities from there. Therefore, plans for a military strike against the fort had been in place since the end of the war in 1748, but they were never carried out. After the outbreak of the French and Indian War (Seven Years War) (1755–1763), the British used Fort Oswego as a base for military operations in the Great Lakes area. The fortifications were renewed and expanded, and Fort Ontario was built on the west bank of the river as an outpost of the main fort . The British troops stationed here - mostly militias from New England - sometimes suffered considerably from a lack of supplies and illnesses.

Fort Oswego 1750

In August 1756, General Louis-Joseph de Montcalm and an army of 3,000 men consisting of line troops, Canadian militia and Indians advanced from Fort Ticonderoga against Fort Oswego, whose sick and starving garrison was in poor condition and its defenses were not were completed. The British initially evacuated Fort Ontario and withdrew to Fort Oswego, leaving the French with an elevated position from which they could fire their artillery into the interior of Fort Oswego. The British commander Colonel Mercer was killed in the following French bombardment - partly with cannons captured in the Battle of Monongahela . The defenders, discouraged by this, surrendered shortly afterwards on August 15, 1756, given their hopeless situation. Montcalm rewarded his Indian allies by allowing them to sack the fort; then the fortifications were destroyed and the French withdrew with 1,700 prisoners and captured British flags to Canada, where the latter were displayed in the churches of Montréal and Québec . The victory of Oswego prompted a number of Indian tribes that had previously been neutral or had been allied with the British to join the French. This also included the Seneca and Oneida, who belong to the Iroquois tribal union .

After the British had finally expelled the French from the Great Lakes area in 1759, they began to rebuild a fort at the better military location of Fort Ontario, which was subsequently referred to as "Fort Oswego". It survived the Pontiac uprising of 1764 undamaged; In 1766, its leader Pontiac submitted to the British under Sir William Johnson .

In the American War of Independence (1775–1783) Fort Oswego served as a British military base and, together with Fort Niagara, secured the supply lines to Canada. In the Peace of Paris , the borders between the United States and British North America were redefined; hence it was now on American territory. The evacuation was delayed due to various disagreements between Great Britain and the USA until these were resolved in the Jay Treaty and the British garrison withdrew in the summer of 1796.

Fort Oswego last gained military importance during the British-American War . The Americans stored extensive equipment and supplies for their fleet on the Great Lakes here. On May 5, 1814, British warships bombed the fort and landed troops who captured the fortification after a tough battle. The British recorded 15 dead and 62 wounded, the Americans about 25 dead, 25 prisoners and an unknown number of wounded. Shortly after their victory, the British withdrew, taking with them extensive supplies stored there.

In the 19th century, the area of ​​the fort, which was no longer used by the military, was built over with houses from the city of Oswego . At the site of Fort George is now the Montcalm Park .

Literary setting

Parts of the novel The Boy Scout by James Fenimore Cooper play in the fort. Cooper was stationed at the fort from August 1808 to October 1809.

Web links

Coordinates: 43 ° 27 ′ 57 ″  N , 76 ° 30 ′ 29 ″  W.