Battle of Groton Heights - Aftermath

Aftermath

The massacre at Fort Griswold marked one of the largest tragedies in the history of Groton and Connecticut, and was one of the last British victories in North America before the end of the war. Damage to New London was substantial: one estimate placed the value destroyed at nearly $500,000. The battle left nearly 100 families homeless, destroyed nine public buildings, and much of the town's waterfront. The state in 1792 identified losses that totaled more than £61,000, or $200,000 Continental dollars. Some who lost homes or property were awarded land in the Western Reserve.

The slaughter at Fort Griswold left dozens of Americans dead. The Groton Gazette reported that casualties numbered about 150. Some survivors, such as George Middleton, escaped, but others, including Stephen Hempstead, were taken prisoner. He stated, "After the massacre, they plundered us of everything we had, and left us literally naked..." Hempstead, who was among the wounded, reported how he was placed on a wagon with others to be taken down to the fleet. The wagon was allowed to run down the hill, where it stopped when it struck a tree, throwing some of the men off the wagon and aggravating their injuries. General Arnold reported that 85 men "…were found dead in Fort Griswold, and sixty wounded, most of them mortally."

Benedict Arnold later issued a report stating that 48 British soldiers were killed and 145 wounded. General Clinton praised Arnold for his "spirited conduct", but also complained about the high casualty rate; about 25 percent of the troops sent against Fort Griswold were killed or wounded. One British observer wrote that it had been like "a Bunker Hill expedition," and many British soldiers blamed Arnold for the events at Fort Griswold, even though he had not been in a position to prevent the reported slaughter. Arnold next proposed a raiding expedition against Philadelphia, but the surrender of General Charles Cornwallis at Yorktown in late October ended that idea.