This is Bob Myers from the Historical Society of Michigan with a Michigan history moment. It was the morning of July 17, 1812, and the U.S. army garrison at Fort Mackinac was staring into the muzzles of British cannon. The British had built Fort Mackinac on Mackinac island in 1780 and 1781. After the British commander, Lieutenant Governor Patrick Sinclair, decided that the old French fort on the mainland was indefensible, he ordered the mainland fort abandoned and a new fort built on Mackinac Island. Fort Mackinac stood atop the island's 150 foot high limestone bluffs overlooking the Straits of Mackinac. The new fort was impregnable from the harbor below the bluffs, but it had a fatal flaw. The higher ground behind the fort would allow an attacking army to gain a commanding position from the rear. The U.S. army came to occupy Fort Mackinac in 1796, soon after the outbreak of the War of 1812. Captain Charles Roberts led a force of 200 British troops, voyageurs and Native American allies against Fort Mackinac. The American commander, Lieutenant Porter Hanks, was unaware that war had broken out between the United States and Great Britain. Captain Roberts took his force by water to the north side of Mackinac island, where they disembarked at a site still known as the British Landing. They hauled two small cannon to the high ground overlooking the fort. On the morning of July 17, 1812, Roberts fired a cannon round to announce his presence to the surprised American garrison. Lieutenant Hanks met Roberts under a flag of truce. The British commander informed his American counterpart that a state of war existed and that Hanks was outnumbered. After Roberts demanded the fort's surrender, the Americans gave up without a fight. The British paroled the American garrison and Hanks departed for the American post at Detroit. The United States attempted to retake Fort Mackinac in 1814. A force of 700American troops attacked it in July, but the British repulsed the assault. It was not until 1815 that the stars and Stripes again waved over Fort Mackinac. Today, Fort Mackinac is part of the Mackinac Island State Park Commission. As one of the few surviving American Revolutionary War forts, it is a popular heritage tourist destination for people all over the world. This Michigan history moment was brought to you by michiganhistorymagazine.org.