In early September, troops under Henry Bouquet's command began construction of a fort near present-day Loyalhanna Township that eventually came to be known as Fort Ligonier. Bouquet was handling the forward activities of the expedition because Forbes was sick with dysentery. On September 11, Bouquet authorized Major James Grant to lead a reconnaissance in force to investigate the strength of Fort Duquesne's defenses. Grant took this opportunity to launch an assault on the fort, and was decisively beaten and taken prisoner along with one third of his 800-strong detachment. Although Washington was not involved, men from his regiment acquitted themselves well in the debacle; 62 of them died in the battle, and others were among the prisoners. The French at Fort Duquesne, whose supply line had been cut by the British victory in the August Battle of Fort Frontenac, made an unsuccessful attack against Fort Ligonier in the hopes of either stopping the expedition or at least acquiring some of its supplies.