GREEN MOUNTAIN BOYS

patriot militia in the U.S. War of Independence. The militia was initially organized in 1770 at present-day Bennington, Vt., to confront a sheriff's party sent by New York to evict local residents who had received land grants from New Hampshire. New York, which then claimed present-day Vermont, disputed New Hampshire's right to grant land west of the Green Mountains. The victorious militia gave the New Yorkers whippings with birch rods. The first American act of aggression in the U.S. War of Independence was the capture on May 10, 1775, of Fort Ticonderoga by 100 Green Mountain Boys and 100 others, under the joint command of Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold. On Aug. 4, 1777, General John Burgoyne's British troops invaded Bennington to raid an arsenal and procure food. The patriots resisted, and failure to acquire supplies contributed to Burgoyne's eventual defeat.