The American strongholds of Fort Crown Point and Fort Ticonderoga near the lake's southern end protected access to of the Hudson River. Elimination of these defenses required the transportation of troops and supplies from the British-controlled St. Lawrence Valley to the north. Roads were either impassable or nonexistent, making water transport on the lake the only viable option. The only ships on the lake following the American retreat from Quebec were a small fleet of lightly armed ships that Benedict Arnold had assembled following the capture of Fort Ticonderoga in May 1775. This fleet, even if it had been in British hands, was too small to transport the large British Army to Fort Ticonderoga.