The Groton–New London port is a major…
September 1781 CE
Fort Trumbull on the New London side is little more than a redoubt open on the inland side, while Fort Griswold in Groton is a more substantial fort.
It is roughly square and bastioned, surrounded by a ditch and some outer earthen defenses.
Both are typically garrisoned by small companies of militia, including a few artillerymen, and overall command of the area's defenses is directed by Lieutenant Colonel William Ledyard.
The forts suffer from continuous shortages of provisions and equipment.
Fort Trumbull is unfinished.
Fort Griswold's infrastructure is complete, but it lacks sufficient gunpowder, cannonballs, food, and troops to conduct an effective stand against the British.
In August 1781, Continental Army Major General George Washington had realizesd that there is an opportunity to strike at the British army of Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis in Virginia.
He had begun moving his forces south from the New York area, using a variety of stratagems to deceive Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton, the British Commander-in-Chief and head of the British forces in New York City.
General Clinton realizes on September 2 that he has been deceived.
He is unable to mobilize quickly enough to assist Cornwallis, and is unwilling to detach a large percentage of his forces in the face of the Continental forces that Washington has left around New York.