The Battle of Bennington and why it mattered

On a foggy morning in August of 1777 about 2,000 men broke camp and prepared for battle. These members of the New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts militias were mostly farmers, not trained soldiers. The enemy they went to meet was a combination of regulars from the British Army, hired German soldiers, Native Americans, and even some of their own neighbors who remained loyal to the British crown. By mid-afternoon they would be fighting what we now call the Battle of Bennington.

This group of novice soldiers was led by two men who had in the past few years learned and practiced the art of war – Seth Warner and John Stark. Warner, whose home stood not far from the Henry Bridge that now straddles the Walloomsac between Bennington and North Bennington, had been an active member of the Green Mountain Boys. The military skirmishes the Green Mountain Boys engaged in while defending their land from New York and British authorities provided valuable training for these citizen soldiers. Warner was respected for his military experience and leadership, having also taken part in Ethan Allen’s successful capture of Fort Ticonderoga in 1775. In July of 1777 Warner had solidified his reputation as a courageous leader in the Battle of Hubbardton.

New Hampshire’s John Stark was a committed patriot and a veteran of the French and Indian War who had more recently distinguished himself at the Battle of Breed’s Hill. If Warner was a soldier’s soldier, Stark was a rebel’s rebel. When the New Hampshire legislature, having been warned by Ira Allen of an impending British invasion of New England via Vermont, called him out of retirement to lead its militia in the upcoming battle, Stark placed one important condition on his acceptance of the command – that it be independent of the Continental Army. Still smarting from the insult of being passed over for promotion in that army, Stark said he would report directly to the legislature.

Immediately Stark began gathering volunteers and soon commanded nearly 1,500 troops. They arrived in Vermont in early August and met up with Warner in Manchester on the seventh. Warner’s intimate knowledge of the area where the battle would eventually take place helped these men plan what would be a winning strategy.

General Benjamin Lincoln of the Continental Army was also in Manchester, having been sent there to bring the New Englanders to New York’s Hudson Valley, where the American and British were preparing for battle. Stark, confident in his independent command, refused; he instead planned to march south. He reasoned, correctly it turned out, that the British would be after the supplies and ammunition stored in Bennington. He and his men aimed to deny them.

The Battle of Bennington started around 3 p.m. on August 16 in Walloomsac, where British Lieutenant Colonel Friedrich Baum and some 600 troops had set up their defenses. The multi-pronged attack Stark and Warner had planned worked perfectly and an American victory seemed certain. Then the German reinforcements Baum had been waiting for arrived and the battle began to turn.

Just as it seemed the Americans would be defeated after all, Warner arrived with the reinforcements he had marched down from Manchester the day before. These fresh and eager soldiers beat back the Germans and secured victory. The Battle of Bennington was a resounding success for the Americans, who lost 30 men and suffered 40 wounded. The British saw 200 killed with 700 captured, almost their entire force. As Stark wrote in his report to the New Hampshire legislature “Had sunlight lasted another hour we would have beat them all.”

Thomas Jefferson later visited the Catamount Tavern in Bennington where much of the last-minute planning for the battle had taken place. He wrote “This success was the first link in the chain of events which opened a new scene in America.” British historian G.M. Trevelyan observed the Battle of Bennington “…proved to be the turning point of the Saratoga campaign, which was the turning point of the Revolutionary War.”

The question remains why these men fought. As the British approached New England many of their neighbors had accepted protection, some turning from patriots to loyalists in a matter of hours. The American forces had suffered mostly defeat at the hands of the British up to that point and with the recent loss of Fort Ticonderoga there was little cause of future optimism. What kept these men, these citizen soldiers, fighting for what appeared to be a lost cause?
Perhaps the answer is found in the New Hampshire state motto, which is itself a product of the Battle of Bennington. Poor health forced General Stark to decline an invitation to an anniversary reunion of the battle but he sent this toast: “Live free or die: Death is not the worst of evils.”

Liberty Trivia

Q: Who is known as "The Father of Liberalism'?

Answers:  

A. Thomas Hobbes

B. John Locke

C. Karl Marx

D. Jean-Jacques Rousseau

E. Some other dead white guy

An Evening at Bernie's

I attended one of Bernie's Town Hall Meetings in Woodstock the other night. Here's my report:

Bernie's 'Town Hall' meeting was a bit one-sided. There was one conservative vs. 100+ plus sycophants in the audience. The usual parade of 'gimme groups' was represented. At the table were 5 or 6 talking heads from the Windsor County Poverty Center (needs more funding) , Head Start (needs more funding), Insufferable Woodstock (needs more funding), Health Care is a Human RIght (needs Single Payer system), etc. They gave a short spiel which basically centered around the government being parsimonious, especially at a time when so many people need help during the recession. Bernie would cap their presentations with his normal well-honed spiel. Jerry from the Senior Center was on the panel, he wasn't too bad, and seemed a little uncomfortable being up there with the rest of the gimme girls. 

Questions were asked from the crowd which were basically half plants from people who were with Bernie's travelling road show (most of whom were wearing the red Health Care is a Human Right tee-shirts); and half from Woodstock. 

Our townspayer's questions were generally good and interesting, the stooge questions the regular soft-ball pablum. Bob Williamson asked Bernie to join his anti-gun violence group, one person (Ola) suggested we support the troops, then asked Bernie if it was time to bring back the draft. This brought on a lot of sucked-in breaths and muttered under the breath comments "She must be a Republican". I don't know, is she?

I wish I had started to record how many times Bernie brought up the word 'Bush". It was at least 12 times, Cheney even got mentioned. Obama's name came up a couple of times. He ragged on free-trade, on how the US buys goods manufactured by Bangladeshis for 11¢ an hour and bemoaned the loss of union jobs. He extolled Keynesian economics and generally denigrated capitalism. 

Amazingly I heard something new: he actually said that the deficit is something to be concerned about. But that didn't stop he and the crowd from seeking to increase spending on every pet project or special interest they could possibly think of settling their thoughts on. 

A few interesting comments I jotted down:

Bernie called the Democratic party 'centrist' as opposed to the extremely right-wing GOP. I laughed out loud at that one. 

He spoke long and often on the decline of the middle class. Not seeming to realize that high taxation and loss of small business jobs is the primary reason for this economic shift.

He warned that there would be a lot of out-of-state money coming in to fight off the Single Payer plan that leftists in Vermont are fighting for. I found that pretty ironic, considering the audience was stacked with mysteriously funded and organized out-of-state Health Care is Human Right activists.

There was a moment of levity when Bernie called Harry Reid, 'the least charismatic guy' in the Senate.

An alarming occurrence was the number of people who were seeking the Senate to change it's rules to change from a 60 vote majority for passage of bills to a simple majority. They complained about the Republican filibusters blocking their very important legislation. Seemingly oblivious to the fact that they might not have a majority in Congress come November when they'll surely be filibustering the bejeesus out of everything and declaiming the horror of the Tyrannical Rule of the Majority.... but of course, they're not known for long range thinking. 

Bernie complained about some conservative's plan for raising the Social Security retirement age to 70, a move I've personally believed in for the last 30 years, and asked if anyone thought it was a good idea. I chickened out and didn't raise my hand. Considering I was within choking distance of ten or twenty seasoned citizens, it didn't seem too 'politic'. It was not my finest hour.

There were many calls from the crowd to 'ration and sacrifice' in the cause of global warming. Many comparisons on how we won World War Two in two years by a national effort, and why can't we do the same thing to save the planet? Bernie pointed out how the world's scientists were all agreed on the threat to the earth from rising temperatures, and how the opposition was only represented by arch-conservative talk show hosts like Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh. The crowd jeered and booed at those references, as you might expect, but they seemingly never heard of the Midland scandals of false science that came out to discredit their position last fall. Much easier to ignore reality for these deluded souls. Oh, there was much talk of the coming utopia of green jobs, a seemingly surefire way to save the Vermont economy if only we would open the taps and pour in enough government money. I couldn't help but think as I watched the optimistic, wide-eyed true believer faces, 'Hey if it's such a good idea, why don't you people go invest in windmills and photocells down in the Arizona deserts'? With all this untapped free power all around us, why is it that the government has the only keys to unlock the natural nirvana? 

There were the usual rallying cries of rolling back the estate tax breaks, and to increase taxes to even higher levels upon the 'rich'. Not much talk about how to make people rich. Same old same old.

The night was capped for me when one of the red shirts stood up and asked Bernie when he was going to get a government waiver (whatever that is) since he has a very rare form of undiagnosed depression that prevents him from doing anything constructive. (Other than following Bernie around). He said he came from Michigan and now lives in Rutland, where I guess someone gave him a shirt. I chickened out again when I didn't stand up and tell him I had the simple prescription for his mental problem: a job.

Don't Treat the Symptoms, Cure the Cause!- part 2: A friend visits

The door to Bo DePaulotic's apartment slowly opened and in trudged Bo. His face was empty of emotion and his eyes a blank stare. However, inside his head, his mind was a racing as it tried to deal with the news that he just heard. While his mind was thus occupied, his body went into auto pilot and the habits of so many years just took over.

His keys found their usual place on the entry way table. His coat was hung on the coat rack without thought or attention from its owner. His feet walked the oft travel path through his apartment, first to the kitchen and then to the living room. His body positioned himself on the couch located there and flopped into it. His right hand did as it always did in such a position and grabbed the remote, turning on the television. His eyes, seeing, but not perceiving, looked toward the images before him. In some distant corner of his occupied brain, the thought "this is my favorite show", floated up for a second or two and then died in the maelstrom around it.

For what could have been several minutes or hours, Bo sat deep in thought while his electronic companion attempted to distract him with trivialities and non-sense. Yet, through his deep meditations, something before him finally caught Bo's attention.

"New, improved, give it a try!"

These words led Bo out of his contemplations and caused him to focus on the image on his television. On the screen was a tall, thin man with an usually huge grin. His large hands emphasizing the words uttered by his dark, sonorous voice. "You have tried Change!" he said with a big smile, "for the original trial offer, but you want it to work better. Well, I am Dr. Ohamamama, and though I am not a real doctor, I play one on the campaign trail, and have I got the thing for you. It's the new and improved Change with Extra Benefits!!! That's right, with Change with Extra Benefits all you do is take it, nothing more, and let me do the rest. Soon, your problems will all be gone. All of your responsibilities and worries will be a thing of the past. Just select Change with Extra Benefits and your life will be changed forever! So take it today! Here's how......"

Bo heard a loud, different voice from behind him. "Bo? Bo? Can I come in?" The voice, familiar but not heard in a long time, broke the spell casted by the television and brought Bo back to his apartment. He turned to look in the direction of the voice and found the smiling face of an old friend.

"Doctor Ben!" Bo cried as the friendly old man entered his living room and sat on the chair across from the couch.

"I hope you don't mind me coming over uninvited?" The silver haired man said with a small smile.

"Of course not, you are always welcomed." Bo said. Doctor Ben had helped give birth to him and saw him through his first few years in life. The Doctor then retired, which was many years ago. Yet despite his age, his mind, if not his body, was as sharp and as engaged as always.

"What brings you here?" Bo asked.

"Well, I know that you had an appointment today and I came to talk to you about it." The old man said in a pleasant voice.

Bo started to relate what happened at the doctor's office and his recommendations. Old Doctor Ben stopped him in mid explanation, "I know what the doctor found and what he prescribed."

Bo was startled, "You do!?!?"

"Of course I do," Ben replied. "It is obvious what is the problem and what is solution."

Just then the pseudo-doctor Ohamamama came back on the television. Dr. Ben turned to look at the tv and gave it a look of disgust. Bo, seeing the reaction of his guest, immediately turned off the television.

"That is exactly what you don't need!" the Doctor said with some irritation.

Turning toward Bo, the Doctor leaned in, "But you tried it, didn't you? Of course you did and all the other lame-brained promises of other false prophets. So many others too, I am sure. Did you understand what it was all about? Did you ask any questions? Did you think about what would be the consequences?"

The Doctor looked sternly at his friend and for several seconds let the weight of his questions sink into his companions head. Slowly, his severe expression mellowed and his pleasant smile returned to its rightful place.

"Listen my son, to change your ways is hard. But so are good habits, at first. It requires consistency and practice to make them part of your life. After a while, they become second nature and requires little to engage in them." The Doctor got up and sat down next to Bo.

"When you were born, your mother asked me would you live and be happy. I told her that you would, if she could keep you that way. But her job is over and it is your turn to fend for yourself." Ben placed a reassuring hand on Bo's shoulder.

"The best way to change is to become involved in your health. Ask questions, learn more, demand better of those who wish to serve you. Don't just take their recommendations and words for it. Make sure you know what it is that they are suggesting and think about the long term consequences of their actions and ideas." The Doctor straightened out his posture and his voice lowered a little.

"It has been a long time since I have practiced my art and offered advice. I am only fondly remembered as of late, but rarely listened to. You want everything to be all right, but you leave it to others to make it right. Never questioning, never wondering, never trying to be involved, even when it is your health that they were playing with."

For the next several minutes, Old Doctor Ben delivered an impassioned lecture to his young patient. He told Bo that to change his ways means first he must get educated about his health and the ways to maintain it. The Doctor emphasized that Bo needed to learn about how things worked. How plans and ideas were applied by his servants and how to monitor, guide and evaluate them. He urged Bo to go where his servants work, understand the work they do, and be intimately involved in their workings. The good Doctor words drove home the point that to improve his health, Bo had to understand the process and involve himself.

"Knowledge is power. If your servant acts with such knowledge withheld from his master or the master acts in ignorance, then it will not be long before their roles are reversed." The Doctor concluded.

The old man stared for a minute at his young charge observing the effect of his lecture and then let his eyes roam the apartment. As his eyes settled on the clock hanging on the wall, he bolted up right.

"Oh my! It's late! I have to go." Doctor Ben arose. "I have a date and I don't want to make her wait." Dr. Ben moved quickly toward the door, Bo followed with a thinly veiled smile. Dr. Ben had the reputation of being a ladies man despite his age. Bo wasn't able to suppress the urge to ask, "But Dr. Ben, you are a man of retiring age, isn't your dating age a little behind you?"

The Doctor stopped his rush to the door, turned on his companion, and said, "Sir, I am retired, but not dead. As for being too old, you are never too old nor is it ever too late to see to your needs and wants, regardless of whether it is the love life or the health of Bo DePaulotic."

The old man turned and stepped out of the door with a wave of good-bye. Bo returned to the living room and by habit more than volition, turned on the television again. A fat, ruddy face popped into existence and filled the screen. "I told you that change wouldn't work, but you didn't listen to me." The face said with a small scowl. "I'm Rushford Limpbomb, and have I got an answer to all of your problems!"

Bo reached out with his remote and turned off the television. As he did so, Bo said, "We'll see about that!"

To be continued.