CIVIL HISTORY OF VERMONT. 



Part II. 



PROVINCIAL UNION. 



EXPEDITION PLANNED. 



BRADDOCK DEFEATED. 



tuting a grand legislative council, to be 

 composed of delegates from the several 

 leo"islative assemblies in the colonies, and 

 subject to the negative of a president gen- 

 eral appointed by the crown. But this 

 plan of union had the singular fortune to 

 be rejected both by the colonies and the 

 mother country. By the colonies it was 

 supposed to give to the crown preroga- 

 tives which would endanger their liber- 

 ties, and by the king it was supposed to 

 concede to the colonial assemblies rights 

 and powers, which he v^as by no means 

 prepared to acknowledge. 



It was on the 4th of July, 1754, that 

 the above plan of American union was 

 agreed to by the convention, and it is 

 worthy of remark that this plan was con- 

 summated, July 4th, 1776, just 22 years 

 froi» that day, by the declaration of Amer- 

 ican Independence. During the delib- 

 erations of the convention, and the inter- 

 change of views and opinions between 

 the colonies and the mother country, the 

 colonies themselves were making every 

 preparation for the defence of their fron- 

 tiers. In the beginning of the year 17rw, 

 Governor Shirley convened the assembly 

 of Massacliusetts, and communicated to 

 them a plan, whicli he had formed, for the 

 reduction of the French fortress at Crown 

 Point. The assembly readily concurred, 

 and commissioners were sent to the neigh- 

 boring provinces to request their assist- 

 ance and co-operation. 



Col. Johnson, of tlie province of New 

 York, was appointed to command this ex- 

 pedition, and all the northern colonies 

 were engaged in making preparations for 

 it, when Gen. Braddock arrived in Vir- 

 ginia with two Irish regiments. A con- 

 vention of tlie several governors and 

 commanders in the Englisli colonies, was 

 therefore immediately assembled at Alba- 

 ny, in which it was determined that, 

 during the summer, four different expedi- 

 tions should be undertaken against the 

 French ; namely ; — one under the direc- 

 tion of Braddock against fort Du Quesne, 

 — one under Shirley against Niagara, — 

 one under Johnson against Crown Point, 

 and one under Cols. Monckton and Wins- 

 low against the French settlements in 

 Nova Scotia. 



Braddock set out for fort Du Quesne on 

 the 20th of April, with 2200 men and 

 marched forward confident of victory and 

 fame, but, disregarding the advice of his 

 officers and unaccustomed to American 

 warfare, he fell into an ambuscade of 

 about 400 French and Indians, by whom 

 he was defeated and slain. The regular 

 troops were thrown into the utmost con- 

 fusion by the unexpected onset and fiend- 



like yells of the savages, but the Virginia 

 militia, which Braddock had disdainfully 

 placed in the rear, being trained to Indian 

 fighting, continued unbroken and, by the 

 prudent management of George Wash- 

 ington, then a Colonel of the militia and 

 Aid to Braddock, so efi'ectually covered 

 the retreat as to save a part of the army 

 from destruction. 



The army, designed for the reduction of 

 the fort at Niagara, effected nothing, ex- 

 cept the strengthening of the fortifications 

 at Oswego. Johnson, having collected 

 five or six hundred provincial troops at 

 Albany for the expedition against Crown 

 Point, sent tlicm forward, under the com- 

 mand of Gen. Lyman, to the carrying 

 place between the Hudson and lake 

 George, where they erected fort Edward. 

 Johnson did not leave Albany till the 10th 

 of August, and the latter part of that 

 month he advanced 15 miles beyond fort 

 Kdward and encamped near the south 

 end of lake George. 



Shortly after his arrival at this place, he 

 received intelligence from his scouts tliat 

 the French liad taken possession of Ticon- 

 deroga, which commanded the communi- 

 cation between lake George, and lake 

 Champlain. Johnson was aware of the 

 importance of this post, and hastened hia 

 preparations that he might move forward 

 and dislodge the enemy. But before his 

 batteaux and artillery were in readiness, 

 the French had erected fortifications suf- 

 ficiently strong to defend themselves 

 against surprise, or an easy conquest. 



Alarmed by the exaggerated account 

 of the English force assembled at lake 

 George, and designed for the reduction 

 of the fort at Crown Point, Baron Dieskau 

 hastened forward to it;; defence with a 

 considerable army of French and Indians. 

 But having ascertained that an immediate 

 attack from the English was not to be ex- 

 pected, he resolved to move forward and 

 attack the English in their camp, and if 

 successful, proceed further and perhaps 

 get possession of Albany and Schenecta- 

 dy. He embarked his army, consisting 

 of 1800 men, in batteaux and landed at 

 South bay, which is near the south end of 

 lake Champlain. Here he learned from 

 an English prisoner tliat fort Edward was 

 almost defenceless, and that Johnson's 

 camp at lake George was protected nei- 

 ther by entrenchments, nor by cannon. 



Dieskau, therefore, directed his march 

 towards fort Edward, and wlien within 

 three or four miles of the place, commu- 

 nicated to his army his design of attack- 

 ing the fort, and expressed to them entire 

 confidence of success. His army, which 

 consisted mostly of Canadians and In- 



