On August 9, 1777, British General John Burgoyne dispatched Lieutenant Colonel Friedrich Baum and 700 troops from Fort Edward to march on Bennington, VT to capture badly needed supplies, erroneously believing the area to be lightly defended. After several days of heavy rain, in which both sides had great difficulty keeping their powder dry, a fierce battle ensued on August 16. The mostly German troops under Baum had been reinforced over the previous days, as had been General John Stark's New Hampshire militia by Seth Warner's Green Mountain Boys and Parson Thomas Allen's Massachusetts militiamen. Rallying his men with the famous cry, "They are ours, or this night Molly Stark sleeps a widow," Stark's men routed the British forces, killing Baum in the battle. Over 900 of Burgoyne's troops were killed or captured. The victory in the Battle of Bennington severely depleted Burgoyne's troops and supplies and was a major factor in his surrender at Saratoga several months hence. August 16[SUP]th[/SUP], to this day, remains a legal holiday in Vermont.
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