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For centuries, central New York had been a strategic location in New York. Both Great Britain and France had earlier fought over this area during the French and Indian War. Through this region ran a major route of travel and commerce from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes. Also, the Mohawk Valley had rich agricultural fields. This area yielded great quantities of food and is often referred to as the "Bread Basket of the Revolutionary War."

In 1777, an ambitious plan for the conquest of New York and to divide the colonies was conceived. This plan called for a three prong attack into the heart of the New York with all three invading forces meeting in Albany. The first prong was to invade New York from Canada through the Lake Champlain - Hudson River corridor. This force was commanded by General John Burgoyne. The second prong, to be commanded by General Howe, was to move up the Hudson River valley from New York City. And the third prong, commanded by Colonel Barry St. Leger, moved down Lake Ontario from Canada to Oswego, NY and then down the Mohawk Valley. This plan counted on the perceived belief that the large loyalist population in New York would take up arms in support of Great Britain.

Questions for Map 3

1. Locate Fort Stanwix (Schuyler) on the maps. The Oriskany Battlefield is located 6 miles east of the fort on the south side of the Mohawk River.

2. The colonial settlement of German Flats was known during the American Revolution as Fort Dayton. Today it is known as Herkimer. What cultural changes took place that would possibly explain the name changes?

3.  What would motivate the Loyalists and Indian Allies with St.Leger to travel faster than the British regulars under Howe? Why were they eager to return to the Mohawk Valley in force?

4.  If  you were planning the invasion of New York, how would you do it differently? How could St. Leger acted differently toward his allies and the people of the Mohawk Valley to win himself victory?

* The map on this screen has a resolution of 72 dots per inch (dpi), and therefore will print poorly. You can obtain a high quality version of Map 3, but be aware that the file may take as much as 25 seconds to load with a 28.8K modem.