The Life and Wars of John Stark

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The Battle of Saratoga and the surrender of Burgoyne on 17 October 1777 was the turning
point of the American Revolution, but the Battle of Benningtonon 16 August set the stage.

At Bennington John Stark commanded a force of militia and Green Mountain Boys,
everyday men from Vermont and New Hampshire facing professional European soldiers.
In a daring and complicated attack, Stark routed an entrenched enemy and almost entirely
destroyed it. It was the beginning of the end of the British invasion from Canada-until
then a juggernaut that could not be stopped.

Burgoyne's nemesis was no gentleman. Stark was the quintessential
citizen soldier-proud, resourceful, independent. He was unschooled and rough around
the edges, a New Hampshire frontiersman. Captured by Indians in 1752, he earned their
respect by fighting his way out of their gauntlet. Congress and commanding officers didn't
always like him, but they relied on him.

French and Indian War Ranger
Stark enlisted for the French and Indian War along with a friend, Robert Rogers. When
Rogers was ordered to form a corps of rangers, one of the first he chose was John Stark,
who rose to captain of rangers and fought in many of the legendary battles along Lake
Georgeand Lake Champlain,including the Battle of Ticonderogaand the First Battle
on Snowshoes.

Revolutionary War General
Stark's ranger experience taught him tactics he would use effectively in the Revolution
as he rose through the ranks to brigadier general, fighting at Bunker Hill, Trenton,
Princeton, Springfield, Bennington, and Saratoga (Stark's Knob). He crossed the
Delaware with Washington, covered the retreat of the army from Canada, defended Fort
Ticonderoga, and sat on the Board of General Officers that convicted Major John Andre,
Benedict Arnold's British contact.

At war's end, John Stark quietly returned to his farm and lumber mill. He departed
the spotlight and remains largely unheralded to this day except in New Hampshire, where
he is best known for some words he penned in a letter to the Bennington Committee on
31 July 1809 in response to an invitation to celebrate the anniversary of the Battle of
Bennington. He regretted that he could not attend, but he offered them this toast:
Live free or die-death is not the worst of evils.