The Historiography of Ethan Allen
Ethan Allen is widely celebrated as one of the founding fathers of Vermont, formerly called the New Hampshire Grants until it declared itself an independent republic in 1777. In the decades prior to Allen’s arrival in the Grants, the settlers (the majority of whom owned illegitimate land grants from New Hampshire Royal Governor Benning Wentworth) were at odds with the New York authorities, who claimed ownership of the land from Lake Champlain to the Connecticut River’s western bank. Leaderless by the late 1760s, the settlers cried out for a new and inspiring figure who would lead them in their defense of their land and repel any New York attempts to eject them. Ever the opportunist, Allen spotted the leadership gap early on in his arrival and proclaimed himself leader of the settlers and the head of the Green Mountain Boys. Although he was not in Vermont when it declared independence […]