Battle of Oriskany 1777
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 6 August 1777 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1777 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | Early modern (1500–1799) | derived from year |
| Location | United States | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | North America | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | American Revolutionary War | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | Kingdom of Great Britain, United States | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 43.1772, -75.3694 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Oriskany ( or ) 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.
Under the command of Brigadier General Nicholas Herkimer, the American relief column came up the Mohawk Valley and initially consisted of about 800 militiamen and between 60 and 100 Oneida warriors. In response to news of the column's advance, Brigadier General Barry St. Leger dispatched a force of roughly 500 men under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Sir John Johnson to intercept them. Most of Johnson's force were Mohawk, Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, and Mississauga warriors led by Sayenqueraghta, Cornplanter, and Joseph Brant (Thayendanegea).
Johnson's men successfully ambushed Herkimer's column in a small valley about 6 miles (10 km) east of Fort Stanwix, near the Oneida village of Oriska.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Oriskany (revision 1370452315), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Siege of Fort Stanwix 1777 · 8 km
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- Battle of Klock's Field 1780 · 57 km
- Cherry Valley massacre 1778 · 66 km
- Battle of Johnstown 1781 · 83 km
- Battle of Big Sandy Creek 1814 · 88 km
Other battles of the American Revolutionary War
- Battle of Valcour Island 1776
- Battle of White Plains 1776
- Battle of the Rice Boats 1776
- Fortification of Dorchester Heights 1776
- Landing at Kip's Bay 1776
- Battle of Bennington 1777
- Battle of Bound Brook 1777
- Battle of Brandywine 1777
- Battle of Cooch's Bridge 1777
- Battle of Fort Anne 1777
All 190 battles of the American Revolutionary War →
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