Schenectady massacre
Encyclopedia
The Schenectady Massacre was a Canadien attack against the village of Schenectady
in the colony of New York
on 8 February 1690. A party of more than 200 Canadiens and allied Mohawk nation
, Sault
and Algonquin warriors attacked the unguarded community, destroying most of the homes, and killing or capturing most of its inhabitants. It was in retaliation to the Lachine massacre
, and related to the Beaver Wars
in North America and King William's War
between France and England.
and the colonists of New France
engaged in a protracted struggle
for control of the economically important fur trade
in northern North America. In August 1689, the Iroquois launched one of their most devastating raids
against the French frontier community of Lachine
. This attack occurred after France and England declared war on each other, but before the news reached North America.
New France's governor the comte de Frontenac
organized an expedition from Montreal
to attack English outposts to the south, as punishment for English support of the Iroquois, and as a general widening of the war against the northernmost English colonies. The expedition was one of three directed at isolated northern and western settlements, and was originally aimed at Fort Orange (present day Albany
).
The leaders were Jacques Le Moyne de Sainte-Hélène
and Nicolas d'Ailleboust de Manthet and the second in command was Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville
, who later founded Louisiana. The raiding expedition consisted of about 160 Canadiens, mostly frontier-savvy coureurs de bois, with 100 Indian warriors, primarily Catholic Mohawk
, Sault
and Algonquins. They made their way across the ice of Lake Champlain
and Lake George
toward the English communities on the Hudson River
.
Fort Orange appeared to be well defended, and a scouting reported on February 8 that no one was guarding the stockade
at the small frontier community of Schenectady
to the west. Schenectady and Albany were so politically polarized in the wake of the 1689 Leisler's Rebellion
that the opposing factions had not agreed on the setting of guards.
. In commemoration of this, the mayor of Schenectady repeats the ride every year. Most mayors have done so on horseback, though a few have preferred the comfort of an automobile.
The 60 dead included 38 men, 10 women and 12 children. The raiders departed with 27 prisoners and 50 horses. The community took many years to recover from the attack. John A. Glen, who lived in Scotia
, across the river from Schenectady, had shown previous kindness to the French. In gratitude, the raiding party took the Schenectady prisoners to him, inviting him to claim any relatives. Glen claimed as many survivors as he could, and the raiders took the rest to Canada. Typically those captives who were too young or old or ill to keep up along the arduous journeys were killed along the way. As was the pattern in later raids, some of the younger captives were adopted by Mohawk and other Indian families in Canada; others were ransomed by communities in New England.
of the Dutch Reformed Church
at Albany. Reynier was a surgeon
, who had been appointed Justice at Schenectady by Governor Leisler on December 28, 1689. His wife Catharina Bensing and three other children: Gideon, Bartholomew and Agnietje, survived.
The attack forced New York's political factions to put aside their differences and focus on the common enemy of New France. As a result of the attack, the Albany Convention
, which had until then resisted Jacob Leisler
's assumption of power in the southern parts of the colony, acknowledged his authority. With the assistance of Connecticut
officials, Leisler organized a retaliatory expedition from Albany to attack Montreal. Led by Connecticut militia general Fitz-John Winthrop
, the expedition turned back in August 1689 due to disease, lack of supplies, and insufficient watercraft for navigating on Lake Champlain
.
Schenectady, New York
Schenectady is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 66,135...
in the colony of New York
Province of New York
The Province of New York was an English and later British crown territory that originally included all of the present U.S. states of New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Vermont, along with inland portions of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maine, as well as eastern Pennsylvania...
on 8 February 1690. A party of more than 200 Canadiens and allied Mohawk nation
Mohawk nation
Mohawk are the most easterly tribe of the Iroquois confederation. They call themselves Kanien'gehaga, people of the place of the flint...
, Sault
Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians
The Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Michigan, commonly shortened to Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians or the more colloquial Sault Tribe, is an indigenous community located in what is now known as Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The tribal headquarters is located within the major city in...
and Algonquin warriors attacked the unguarded community, destroying most of the homes, and killing or capturing most of its inhabitants. It was in retaliation to the Lachine massacre
Lachine massacre
The Lachine massacre, part of the Beaver Wars, occurred when 1,500 Mohawk warriors attacked by surprise the small, 375 inhabitant, settlement of Lachine, New France at the upper end of Montreal Island on the morning of August 5, 1689...
, and related to the Beaver Wars
Beaver Wars
The Beaver Wars, also sometimes called the Iroquois Wars or the French and Iroquois Wars, commonly refers to a series of conflicts fought in the mid-17th century in eastern North America...
in North America and King William's War
King William's War
The first of the French and Indian Wars, King William's War was the name used in the English colonies in America to refer to the North American theater of the Nine Years' War...
between France and England.
Background
In much of the late 17th century, the IroquoisIroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
and the colonists of New France
New France
New France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period beginning with the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Spain and Great Britain in 1763...
engaged in a protracted struggle
Beaver Wars
The Beaver Wars, also sometimes called the Iroquois Wars or the French and Iroquois Wars, commonly refers to a series of conflicts fought in the mid-17th century in eastern North America...
for control of the economically important fur trade
Fur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
in northern North America. In August 1689, the Iroquois launched one of their most devastating raids
Lachine massacre
The Lachine massacre, part of the Beaver Wars, occurred when 1,500 Mohawk warriors attacked by surprise the small, 375 inhabitant, settlement of Lachine, New France at the upper end of Montreal Island on the morning of August 5, 1689...
against the French frontier community of Lachine
Lachine, Quebec
Lachine was a city on the Island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is now a borough within the city of Montreal.-History:...
. This attack occurred after France and England declared war on each other, but before the news reached North America.
New France's governor the comte de Frontenac
Louis de Buade de Frontenac
Louis de Buade, Comte de Frontenac et de Palluau was a French soldier, courtier, and Governor General of New France from 1672 to 1682 and from 1689 to his death in 1698...
organized an expedition from Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
to attack English outposts to the south, as punishment for English support of the Iroquois, and as a general widening of the war against the northernmost English colonies. The expedition was one of three directed at isolated northern and western settlements, and was originally aimed at Fort Orange (present day Albany
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
).
The leaders were Jacques Le Moyne de Sainte-Hélène
Jacques le Moyne de Sainte-Hélène
Jacques Le Moyne de Sainte-Hélène was a Canadian soldier who was born on April 16, 1659 in Montréal. He was the son of Charles Le Moyne and Catherine Thierry...
and Nicolas d'Ailleboust de Manthet and the second in command was Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville
Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville
Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville pronounced as described in note] Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville pronounced as described in note] Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville pronounced as described in note] (16 July 1661 – 9 July 1702 (probable)was a soldier, ship captain, explorer, colonial administrator, knight of...
, who later founded Louisiana. The raiding expedition consisted of about 160 Canadiens, mostly frontier-savvy coureurs de bois, with 100 Indian warriors, primarily Catholic Mohawk
Mohawk nation
Mohawk are the most easterly tribe of the Iroquois confederation. They call themselves Kanien'gehaga, people of the place of the flint...
, Sault
Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians
The Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Michigan, commonly shortened to Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians or the more colloquial Sault Tribe, is an indigenous community located in what is now known as Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The tribal headquarters is located within the major city in...
and Algonquins. They made their way across the ice of Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain is a natural, freshwater lake in North America, located mainly within the borders of the United States but partially situated across the Canada—United States border in the Canadian province of Quebec.The New York portion of the Champlain Valley includes the eastern portions of...
and Lake George
Lake George (New York)
Lake George, nicknamed the Queen of American Lakes, is a long, narrow oligotrophic lake draining northwards into Lake Champlain and the St. Lawrence River Drainage basin located at the southeast base of the Adirondack Mountains in northern New York, U.S.A.. It lies within the upper region of the...
toward the English communities on the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
.
Fort Orange appeared to be well defended, and a scouting reported on February 8 that no one was guarding the stockade
Stockade Historic District
The Stockade Historic District is located in the northwest corner of Schenectady, New York, United States, on the banks of the Mohawk River. It is the oldest neighborhood in the city, continuously inhabited for over 300 years...
at the small frontier community of Schenectady
Schenectady, New York
Schenectady is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 66,135...
to the west. Schenectady and Albany were so politically polarized in the wake of the 1689 Leisler's Rebellion
Leisler's Rebellion
Leisler's Rebellion was an uprising in late 17th century colonial New York, in which German American merchant and militia captain Jacob Leisler seized control of the colony's south and ruled it from 1689 to 1691. The uprising took place in the aftermath of Britain's Glorious Revolution and the...
that the opposing factions had not agreed on the setting of guards.
Attack
Finding no sentinels and the gate ajar, the raiders silently entered Schenectady and launched their attack two hours before dawn. The invaders burned houses and barns, and killed men, women and children. Most were in night clothing and had no time to arm themselves. By the morning of February 9, the community lay in ruins — more than 60 buildings were burned. Most of the residents were dead or taken prisoner, with some survivors managing to flee as refugees to the fort at Albany. Symon Schermerhorn was one of these. Although wounded, he rode to Albany to warn them of the massacreMassacre
A massacre is an event with a heavy death toll.Massacre may also refer to:-Entertainment:*Massacre , a DC Comics villain*Massacre , a 1932 drama film starring Richard Barthelmess*Massacre, a 1956 Western starring Dane Clark...
. In commemoration of this, the mayor of Schenectady repeats the ride every year. Most mayors have done so on horseback, though a few have preferred the comfort of an automobile.
The 60 dead included 38 men, 10 women and 12 children. The raiders departed with 27 prisoners and 50 horses. The community took many years to recover from the attack. John A. Glen, who lived in Scotia
Scotia, New York
Scotia is a village in Schenectady County, New York, United States, incorporated in 1904. The population was 7,957 at the 2000 census.The Village of Scotia is part of the Town of Glenville, partly contiguous with Schenectady, New York and is connected by the Western Gateway Bridge over the Mohawk...
, across the river from Schenectady, had shown previous kindness to the French. In gratitude, the raiding party took the Schenectady prisoners to him, inviting him to claim any relatives. Glen claimed as many survivors as he could, and the raiders took the rest to Canada. Typically those captives who were too young or old or ill to keep up along the arduous journeys were killed along the way. As was the pattern in later raids, some of the younger captives were adopted by Mohawk and other Indian families in Canada; others were ransomed by communities in New England.
Aftermath
Reynier Schaets and his son were among those killed in the Schenectady raid. Schaets was a son of Gideon Schaets, dominieDominie
Dominie is a Scots language and Scottish English term for a Scottish schoolmaster or a minister, usually of the Church of Scotland but sometimes of other presbyterian churches in Scotland...
of the Dutch Reformed Church
Dutch Reformed Church
The Dutch Reformed Church was a Reformed Christian denomination in the Netherlands. It existed from the 1570s to 2004, the year it merged with the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Kingdom of the Netherlands to form the Protestant Church in the...
at Albany. Reynier was a surgeon
Surgeon
In medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
, who had been appointed Justice at Schenectady by Governor Leisler on December 28, 1689. His wife Catharina Bensing and three other children: Gideon, Bartholomew and Agnietje, survived.
The attack forced New York's political factions to put aside their differences and focus on the common enemy of New France. As a result of the attack, the Albany Convention
Albany Convention
For the 1754 Congress held in Albany, see Albany CongressThe Albany Convention was an independent governing body led by local civil and military officials centred around Albany, New York during Leisler's Rebellion....
, which had until then resisted Jacob Leisler
Jacob Leisler
Jacob Leisler was a German-born American colonist. He helped create the Huguenot settlement of New Rochelle in 1688 and later served as the acting Lieutenant Governor of New York...
's assumption of power in the southern parts of the colony, acknowledged his authority. With the assistance of Connecticut
Connecticut Colony
The Connecticut Colony or Colony of Connecticut was an English colony located in British America that became the U.S. state of Connecticut. Originally known as the River Colony, it was organized on March 3, 1636 as a haven for Puritan noblemen. After early struggles with the Dutch, the English...
officials, Leisler organized a retaliatory expedition from Albany to attack Montreal. Led by Connecticut militia general Fitz-John Winthrop
Fitz-John Winthrop
Fitz-John Winthrop was the governor of the Colony of Connecticut from 1698 to 1707....
, the expedition turned back in August 1689 due to disease, lack of supplies, and insufficient watercraft for navigating on Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain is a natural, freshwater lake in North America, located mainly within the borders of the United States but partially situated across the Canada—United States border in the Canadian province of Quebec.The New York portion of the Champlain Valley includes the eastern portions of...
.