The Green Mountain Boys

The Green Mountain Boys
Mysid at en.wikipedia, revised version first uploaded by Lexicon. · Public domain · source
Unit name	The Green Mountain Boys
Caption	Ethan Allen, prominent leader
Active	1769–1777 (de facto militia)
Country	Province of New Hampshire; Province of New York; Vermont Republic
Allegiance	Province of New Hampshire, Province of New York, Vermont Republic
Type	Irregular militia
Size	Several hundred at peak
Garrison	Bennington, Vermont
Notable commanders	Ethan Allen, Remember Baker, Seth Warner

The Green Mountain Boys were an irregular militia formed in the late 1760s in the contested region between the Province of New Hampshire and the Province of New York, later central to the Vermont Republic. Composed largely of settlers, landholders, and frontiersmen, they resisted New York authorities over land titles and policed local disputes while becoming significant actors during the American Revolutionary War. Their actions influenced events such as the capture of Fort Ticonderoga and the Battle of Bennington, and figures from their ranks engaged with leaders like George Washington and Benedict Arnold.

Origins and Formation

The organization emerged amid competing land grants issued by New Hampshire Grants advocate Benning Wentworth and claims by New York officials represented by William Shirley and Cadwallader Colden. Settlers who settled under New Hampshire Grants formed associations to defend their holdings against New York's surveyors and magistrates like Judge Philip Schuyler and Governor George Clinton. Early skirmishes and legal confrontations involved local leaders including Ethan Allen and Remember Baker, whose actions intersected with incidents at Pownal, Bennington, Vermont, and the settlements along the Otter Creek. The group used town meetings in places such as Rutland, Vermont and Manchester, Vermont to organize resistance and to coordinate with contemporaneous groups like the Sons of Liberty.

Leadership and Organization

Prominent captains such as Ethan Allen, Seth Warner, and Remember Baker provided charismatic and pragmatic leadership, often coordinating with committees from New Haven, Connecticut and representatives from Boston, Massachusetts. The Boys' structure was informal, relying on local committees, militia rolls kept in towns like Arlington, Vermont, and oral orders delivered by couriers between homesteads. They operated alongside formal entities including the Continental Congress and the Continental Army; figures from the group negotiated with delegates like John Adams, Samuel Adams, and Richard Henry Lee. Their rank-and-file included farmers, surveyors, and tradesmen who had previously dealt with land disputes involving men such as Ephraim McDowell and Philip Skene.

Role in the American Revolution

As tensions escalated into open conflict, members played key roles in Northern theater operations, cooperating with officers from Massachusetts Bay and commanders such as General Philip Schuyler and General Israel Putnam. The Boys participated in operations that undermined British Army control in the region, including joint efforts with forces from Quebec and militias from New Hampshire (state) in raids and sieges. They engaged in political as well as military activities, aligning with the Green Mountain Boys' allies in petitions to the Continental Congress and corresponding with regional leaders like Thomas Chittenden and Thomas Jefferson. Their capture of strategic positions influenced campaigns by generals including Horatio Gates and had implications for the Saratoga campaign.

Military Actions and Campaigns

The Green Mountain Boys are best known for the surprise operation that seized Fort Ticonderoga and Crown Point in May 1775, actions coordinated with leaders such as Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold and later supplying artillery used by Henry Knox to lift the siege of Boston, Massachusetts. Elements fought at the Battle of Bennington in 1777, contributing to the victory credited with weakening British General John Burgoyne’s advance during the Saratoga campaign. Members engaged in skirmishes and raids across the Lake Champlain corridor and in frontier actions at locations like Fort St. Johns and Quebec City. They also took part in defensive operations around Burlington, Vermont and supported expeditions organized by commanders such as John Stark and Nathaniel Folsom. Not all operations were successful: expeditions including those toward Montreal and elements taken prisoner at actions involving officers like Guy Carleton highlighted the volatility of irregular warfare in the northern colonies.

Postwar Activities and Legacy

After the Revolution, veterans from the militia influenced the founding governance of the Vermont Republic and later the State of Vermont; leaders such as Thomas Chittenden and Seth Warner participated in framing policies and land laws that addressed prior disputes with New York (state). The Boys' legacy entered popular memory through biographies of Ethan Allen and accounts by historians like Benedict Arnold's contemporaries; monuments erected in Bennington Monument and historical markers across Vermont commemorate battles and figures. Their role in shaping regional identity affected legal settlements between New York (state) and Vermont and contributed to narratives invoked during debates over westward expansion and militia traditions that later involved namesakes in War of 1812 commemorations. Scholarly assessments by historians including Bernard Bailyn and Ronald Formisano place the group within broader studies of colonial resistance, frontier society, and the transition from colonial provinces to sovereign states.

Category:Vermont history