Arnold on Lake Champlain: Crown Point and Washington
Two of the gondolas were so badly injured that they had to be abandoned and sunk. In the afternoon the remainder of the crippled flotilla again got under way; but the wind gradually ceased, and soon a breeze sprung up from the south, retarding their advance, so that very little progress could be made by beating and rowing. The next morning, as the fog rose and the sun came out, the whole British fleet, with every sail set, was seen crowding down upon them. The crippled Congress, with Arnold on board, the Washington, and some gondolas, were in the rear. All the others, with every inch of canvas spread, and urged to the utmost, were flying towards Crown Point. It was but a short time, however, before the enemy came up and opened fire on the Congress, the Washington, and the gondolas. After receiving a few broadsides, the Washington struck her colors; but Arnold had no thought of surrender. He determined with the Congress and the crippled gondolas to fight the whole fleet of the enemy, and so retard their advance that the remainder of his vessels might make good their escape,--to sacrifice himself, if necessary, to their safety. He received the whole fire of the hostile fleet. A ship mounting twelve eighteen-pound guns, a schooner of fourteen six-pounders, and another of twelve sixes, two under her stern and one on her broadside, poured their concentrated fire of round and grape-shot into the already disabled Congress. These vessels kept up an incessant fire for four hours upon this one ship, which Arnold returned as best he could. Thus the English fleet was delayed, and the remainder of his own were making good their escape. The Congress was so disabled she could not fly, and Arnold would not surrender. Her sails, rigging, and hull were shattered and torn to fragments; the lieutenant killed; the crew, many of them, killed and wounded. Still her stern commander had no thought of striking his flag, and continued the contest, until still other vessels of the enemy arrived, and he found himself surrounded with seven sail, each pouring in upon the hapless Congress broadside after broadside; and still, in the openings of the enemy's sails, and of the smoke of their guns, which thickly enveloped him, his flag could be seen still flying.
His ship was now a complete wreck, and as he could fight no more, he managed to break through the vessels which surrounded him, and ran the Congress and the gondolas into a small creek; and, ordering the marines to leap overboard and wade ashore with their small-arms, he then set fire to the ship and the gondolas, and, protected from the approach of small boats by the muskets of the marines, he lingered until the fire had extended too far to be extinguished, and then, his flag still flying, and ordering all his men ashore, he himself the last to leave, leaped from the bowsprit to the beach, and both he and his men, escaping an Indian ambuscade by taking an unusual route, arrived in safety at Crown Point, and passed on to Ticonderoga. Where has there been a braver fight? Well may the sober Mr. Sparks, roused by the magnetism of such conduct, exclaim, "There are few instances on record of more deliberate courage and gallantry than were displayed by him from beginning to end of this action." . .
"Such were the skill, bravery, and obstinate resistance of Arnold and his men against a vastly superior force: the event was hailed as ominous of great achievements when such fearful odds did not exist." [Lossing.]
"General Arnold covered himself with glory, and his example appears to have been nobly followed by most of his officers and men. Even the enemy did justice to the resolution and skill with which the American flotilla was managed, the disparity of force rendering victory out of the question from the first. The manner in which the Congress was fought until she had covered the retreat of the galleys, and the stubborn resolution with which she was defended until destroyed, converted the disasters of this part of the day into a species of triumph." [Cooper's Naval History.]
The above article displays to a certain extent the special pleading of an ardent advocate of General Arnold; yet that the battle was fought with striking bravery, and that Arnold was a man of unusual boldness and intrepidity, is undeniable. Had he been of smaller calibre his subsequent treason would have been of less importance. This action took place after the period fixed for the conclusion of the present volume, but, as it is a direct outcome of the preceding invasion of Canada, we give it here, as a fitting close to that episode. The control of Lake Champlain, gained by it to the British, opened the way to events which were among the most important of the whole war.