Battle of Fort Bull The Battle of Fort Bull was a French attack on the British - held Fort Bull on 27 March 1756 , early in the French and Indian War . The fort was built to defend a portion of the waterway connecting Albany , New York to Lake Ontario via the Mohawk River . Lt . Gaspard - Joseph Chaussegros de Léry led his command consisting of forces from the Troupes de la Marine , Canadian militia , and Indian allies on an attack against Fort Bull on 27 March 1756 . Shielded by trees they sneaked up to within of the fort . Léry ordered a charge at the fort with bayonets . They stuck their muskets into the narrow openings in the fort and shot the defenders . Léry repeatedly asked for their surrender . Finally , the gate was crashed in and the French and Indians swarmed in , killing everyone they saw . The French soldiers looted what they could and set the powder magazines on fire . The fort was burned to the ground . Background . Following the failure of aggressive British campaign plans in 1755 , a chain of forts along the Mohawk River riverway connecting the Hudson River to Lake Ontario were garrisoned during the winter of 1755 – 1756 . The largest garrison was left at Fort Oswego , at the end of the chain , which depended on the others for its supplies . Two forts along the Oneida Carry were a key element of this supply chain . The Oneida Carry traversed an unnavigable section between Rome , New York and Wood Creek that was between one and six miles long , depending on seasonal water levels . Fort Williams , on the Mohawk , was the larger of the two , while Fort Bull , several miles north of Fort Williams on Wood Creek , was little more than a palisade surrounding storehouses . Fort Bull was garrisoned by a small number of men from Shirley ' s Regiment under William Bull , and held large quantities of military stores , including gunpowder and ammunition , destined for use in the 1756 campaign . In early 1756 French military leaders in Canada decided to send a raiding expedition to attack Oswego ' s supply line . On March 12 , a company of men left Fort de La Présentation and began an overland trek toward the Oneida Carry . Under the command of Lieutenant Gaspard - Joseph Chaussegros de Léry , a Canadian - born seigneur , the force consisted of 84 troupes de la Marine , 111 Canadian militiamen , and 110 natives , mostly Iroquois but also some Hurons . After nearly two weeks of difficult winter travel , they arrived near the carry on March 24 . Battle . Early on March 25 , Léry ' s men captured twelve British men near Fort Bull , while others escaped capture and ran toward Fort Williams . Learning from the prisoners of Bull ' s minimal defenses , he decided to immediately attack . As he had no field piece s , the only possibility was to attempt storming the fort by surprise . The fort ' s defenders managed to get its gate closed just before the French force arrived . The attackers managed to fire through loopholes in the fort ' s walls to distract the garrison , which responded by throwing rocks and grenades over the walls . After Bull refused several calls to surrender , the gate was taken down by the use of axes , and the attackers stormed into the fort . Nearly all of the small garrison was killed and scalped , according to a report by Sir William Johnson , who inspected the carnage when he eventually arrived at the head of a relief column . Léry ' s men set fire to the works , which included 45 , 000 pounds of gunpowder . The resulting conflagration destroyed the wooden fort . Aftermath . A star - shaped wood stockade with four interior buildings was built in May – August 1756 as Fort Wood Creek . Fort Wood Creek was destroyed by the British in August 1756 when reports of another French force was received . Léry was promoted to captain for his successful command . The loss of the supplies at Fort Bull effectively ruined any British plans for military campaigns against French forts on Lake Ontario , and may have contributed to the French capture of Fort Oswego in August 1756 .