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The Groton Monument is a granite obelisk dedicated to the defenders who fell during the Battle of Groton Heights. It was built between 1826 and 1830 and stands 135 feet (41 m) tall with 166 steps.
The adjacent Monument House Museum features exhibits about the Revolutionary War and is operated by the Daughters of the American Revolution. Visitors can climb the monument and visit the museum from Memorial Day through Labor Day.
The Ebenezer Avery House sheltered the wounded after the Battle of Groton Heights. It is a Revolutionary-period historic house museum that is open for tours on summer weekends.[9]
Battle of Groton Heights
The Battle of Groton Heights (also known as the Battle of Fort Griswold, and occasionally called the Fort Griswold massacre) was a battle of the American Revolutionary War fought on September 6, 1781, between a small Connecticut militia force led by Lieutenant Colonel William Ledyard and the more numerous British forces led by Brigadier General Benedict Arnoldand Lieutenant Colonel Edmund Eyre.
Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton ordered Arnold to raid the port of New London, Connecticut, to divert General George Washington from marching against Lord Cornwallis's army in Virginia. The raid was a success, but the Connecticut militia stubbornly resisted British attempts to capture Fort Griswold across the Thames River in Groton, Connecticut. New London was burned along with several ships, but many more ships escaped upriver.
Several leaders of the attacking British force were killed or seriously wounded, but the British eventually breached the fort. As the British entered the fort the Americans surrendered, but the British continued firing and killed many of the defenders. However, the high number of British casualties in the overall expedition against Groton and New London led to criticism of Arnold by some of his superiors. The battle was the last major military encounter of the war in the northern United States, preceding and being overshadowed by the decisive Franco-American Siege of Yorktown about six weeks later.
Fort Griswold on Groton Heights, across the Thames River from New London.
Date September 6, 1781 Location
New London and Groton, Connecticut
41°21′13″N72°04′46″W Result British victory -Belligerents United States Great Britain
Hesse Hesse-Kassel
Commanders and leaders
William Ledyard †
William Latham
Benedict Arnold
Edmund Eyre
John Bazely
Strength
New London: Unknown
Fort Griswold: 150 regulars[1]
1,700 regulars (800 engaged at Fort Griswold)[2]
Casualties and losses
Total Losses: 145
85 killed
60 wounded (many mortally)[3]
Total Losses: 197
52 killed
145 wounded[3]
(See the monument in the background)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Groton_Heights
During the American Revolutionary War, the Groton–New London port was a major center of American naval operations, including highly successful privateering operations against British shipping,[6] yet it was poorly protected. Fort Trumbull on the New London side was little more than a redoubt open on the inland side, while Fort Griswold in Groton was a more substantial fort. It was roughly square and bastioned, surrounded by a ditch and some outer earthen defenses.[7] Both were typically garrisoned by small companies of militia, including a few artillerymen, and overall command of the area's defenses was directed by Lieutenant Colonel William Ledyard.[8] The forts suffered from continuous shortages of provisions and equipment.[9] Fort Trumbull was unfinished; Fort Griswold's infrastructure was complete, but it lacked sufficient gunpowder, cannonballs, food, and troops to conduct an effective stand against the British.[9]
In August 1781, Continental Army Major General George Washington realized that there was an opportunity to strike at the British army of Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis in Virginia. He began moving his forces south from the New York area, using a variety of stratagems to deceive Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton, the British Commander-in-Chief and head of the British forces in New York City. Clinton realized on September 2 that he had been deceived.