Battle of Oriskany

Overview

The Battle of Oriskany was a major engagement of the Saratoga campaign during the American Revolutionary War. On August 6, 1777, an American column of Tryon County militia and Oneidas marching to relieve the siege of Fort Stanwix was ambushed by a contingent of Britain's Indigenous allies and Loyalists. It was one of the few battles of the war in which most non-Indigenous participants were settlers born in the Thirteen Colonies. The Americans suffered heavy casualties during the battle.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Battle of Oriskany formed part of the Saratoga campaign, in which British forces sought to isolate New England by advancing along multiple axes, one of which moved through the Mohawk Valley toward Fort Stanwix. The American column — drawn from Tryon County militia and Oneida warriors — was moving to relieve the British siege of Fort Stanwix when it was ambushed by Loyalist and Indigenous forces allied with Britain. American casualties were heavy, with roughly 385 of an 800-strong force killed or wounded. The engagement was notable for the composition of its combatants: most non-Indigenous participants on both sides were settlers born in the Thirteen Colonies, giving the battle the character of a civil and intertribal conflict as much as a conventional revolutionary one. The relief column's severe losses meant Fort Stanwix remained under pressure, though the wider Saratoga campaign ultimately ended in British defeat, a turning point that brought French entry into the war.

Tactics

Forces & casualties

Commanders (8)