Mount Defiance rises 853 feet above sea level and 758 feet over the waters of Lake Champlain, while the waters of Lake George tumble 220 feet down five waterfalls into Lake Champlain just below its base. This promontory was known by many names: the French army that arrived and began building Fort Carillon in 1775 called it Rattlesnake Mountain, the British called it Sugar Loaf Hill because it resembled the cones of sugar sold during the 18th century, and Britain's German auxiliaries translated that as der Zuckerhut. American forces occupied the Ticonderoga area beginning with the May 10, 1775, capture of Fort Ticonderoga, and in 1776, after the 13 American colonies declared independence from Great Britain, the American army called this position Mount Defiance. It overlooks Lake Champlain between New York and Vermont, with Fort Ticonderoga on the New York shore, Mount Independence across the lake on the Vermont shore, Lake George hidden by the ridge to the west, the Adirondack Mountains extending westward, and Vermont's Green Mountains visible to the east. Beginning in 1776, the American army cleared this wooded peninsula and built an extensive network of fortifications during the American Revolution, and over the winter of 1776 into 1777 a floating bridge connected Fort Ticonderoga and Mount Independence across the narrows below. On clear days, many of Vermont's highest peaks, including Mount Ellen, Camel's Hump, and Mount Mansfield more than 50 miles away, can be seen.