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Face of War
Fort Ticonderoga's new exhibit shows a unique side to the elderly fort
Imagine yourself at Fort Ticonderoga, circa 1758.
A re-creation of how a Mohawk warrior stood; circa 1758. |
All around you, the sound of cannon and musket fire rattles your senses as the French and Indian War rages around you.
If you are French, you are bravely defending against a seemingly insurmountable opponent, but an opponent that undeniably has a weak spot.
On the British side, you are charging the French lines in front of Fort Ticonderoga, desperately trying to clamber over branches and obstacles placed by the defenders the night before. People from the Mohawk tribe charge beside you, as well as Scottish Highlanders and high ranking redcoat generals.
And although history tells the story of a British loss in 1758, the year 1759 spells certain defeat for the French defenders.
And in the face of defeat, the French, unbeknownst to them, began a chain of events that would end up creating a museum where they once stood.
That is because over 200 years ago, the King's Warehouse, or the current residence of Fort Ticonderoga's newest exhibit, was destroyed by the French occupiers in order to avoid having supplies fall into British hands.
The structure itself, which was a gunpowder and firearm warehouse, was burned to the ground. Two and a half centuries later, the exhibit was rebuilt, and a new aspect of an extremely old part of history was created.
"The exhibit is attempting to achieve an unbiased view of why each side joined the war, and what they could benefit."
"The Face of War: Triumph and Tragedy at Ticonderoga, 1758-1759." exhibit tells all the sides of this incredibly in-depth story, with many different points of view, and vaious characters spinning thier tales of war. All three sides, the French, the British, and the Natives, had different motives for taking part in this bloody skirmish.
"The exhibit is attempting to achieve an unbiased view of why each side joined the war, and what they could benefit," Christopher D. Fox, the exhibit's curator says. "It tells the same story three times, narrated by a few different people."
A French defender fires his musket over the walls of "Fort Carillon." |
Walking through the museum, you get a sense of the enormous impact not only the battle, but the Fort itself had on the many great people that passed through the once impregnable fortress.
In fact, walking through the front gates of Fort Ticonderoga, one notices a black plaque, listing the names of a few famous people that waltzed through the stone-arch gateway.George Washington, Benidict Arnold, and Benjamin Franklin, to name a few. Not to mention the countless military personnel that were stationed there at one point or another.
The exhibit begins with a high-definition presentation on a big-screen televison. In the presentation, a general overview of each side's perspective is given. But it is not until you enter the main room, see the figures, and read the walls, that you get a full understanding of the impact of "Fort Carillon."
"People are astonished at the amount of artifacts. It brings the action to life."
The exhibit shows how on the British side, numerous blunders and random acts of misfortune added up to create a one sided battle for the French. For example, the opening presentation explains how in one instance, a shipment of British cannons that were meant to flank the French defenders ended sailing too far up river, enabling the French guns to open fire from Ticonderoga. This virtually left the attackers without any heavy artillery, vastly increasing the French morale. Not to mention that a British General, Lord Howe, had been killed the day before in a small skirmish with French scouts.
The French are illustrated as rag-tag, yet determined and proud defenders, who successfully kept thier ground, only to be ran out a year later, by an organized and insurmountable British force.
The Native allies in the battle have a unique yet critical role in the battle. For the French, a sense of pride halted them from calling on thier allies, which eventually helped to deteriorate the relationship between the French and the Iroquoi nation. The British used almost 400 native warriors in the charge alongside thier redcoat regulars.
The new exhibit hopes to illustrate all of these sides through various methods, including interactive elements, informational reading, visual artifacts and figures, and paintings.
And it also explains why the museum is where it is now.
Some interactive elements, pictured above, include a recording of a less familiar version of "Yankee Doodle Dandee." |
"The building has been in various states of dis-repair over the past 250 years," Marcy Hall,an official at Fort Ticonderoga says. However, a recent, and very generous private contribution by one of Fort Ticonderoga's "friends" allowed the new exhibit to be constructed.
The new building allows for a new aspect of Fort Ticonderoga to be viewed by the general public. Not only does it tell a new story about the Fort, it tells the story in a fresh, new way. The interactive and technological elements not available elsewhere in the Fort allow for a unusually modern experience in a structure that is over two and a half centuries old.
"People are astonished at the amount of artifacts," Bev O'Neil, a museum interpreter says. "It brings the action to life."
Throughout the exhibit, it is clear, however, that the battle, and the fort itself, saw quite a bit of human suffering, and the cost of life is clear. Over 2,000 men lost thier lives on July 8th, 1758. The British lost 1,967 men, and the French lost 554 men.
Whatever, the outcome, Fort Ticonderoga's place in history is sealed, but not over.
Fort Ticonderoga Interesting Facts:
Fort Ticonderoga was built in 1755 by the French
Ticonderoga means "Land Between two waters,"; which is the bottom of Lake Champlain and Lake George.
The triumphant French defenders at the Battle of Carillon were outnumbered 4 to 1.
The British General, Abercrombie, was poked fun at after the battle not only by the French, but by his own army and the natives as well.
The second time around, the French did not stick around to fight against an even British larger force, because they were needed for a battle in Montreal.
Fort Ticonderoga rests close to Lake Champlain's thinnest area; Vermont seems touchable from the Fort's walls.
The Natives who were allied with the French were not informed of a British attack, which bothered the Indians so much, they said that they would not aid the French so long as Montcalm was thier General.