There was perhaps no harm in this little bit of sentiment, though if the Americans remembered that two months before, in demanding the surrender of Detroit, General Brock had threatened to let loose a horde of savages upon the garrison and town, if he were compelled to capture it by force, they must have seen that their minute-guns were supremely illogical, not to say silly.[35]
One who has any reason to know how much basis Washington had for his sweeping remark that most of the trouble the United States had with the western Indians was due to the demeanour of British officers to them, could only with difficulty become prejudiced in favour of any British officers who had actual dealings with the Canadian Indians and actually led them in person to battle. And yet the present writer has found sufficient ground in Brock's correspondence for holding that Brock was above reproach personally on this score—that he was a gentleman here as elsewhere, a true nobleman. We cannot here enter into a lengthy discussion of such a difficult problem. A letter extant, written by Brock to General Prevost, shows his attitude in this delicate matter during those desperate days when Harrison was fighting the wily Tecumseh:
My first care, on my arrival in this province, was to direct the officers of the Indian department at Amherstburg to exert their whole influence with the Indians to prevent the attack which I understood a few tribes meditated against the American frontier. But their efforts proved fruitless, as such was the infatuation of the Indians, that they refused to listen to advice.
It will always be an open question how much control the responsible men, either American or British, had over their red-skinned "brothers" compared with their half-renegade, forest-running underlings who dispensed the powder, blankets, and fire-water and directed affairs much as they pleased.
Before the outbreak of the war Brock wrote to his superiors concerning his province as follows:
The first point to which I am anxious to call your excellency's attention is the district of Amherstburg. I consider it the most important, and, if supplied with the means of commencing active operations, must deter any offensive attempt on this province, from Niagara westward. The American government will be compelled to secure their western frontier from the inroads of the Indians, and this cannot be effected without a very considerable force. But before we can expect an active co-operation on the part of the Indians, the reduction of Detroit and Michilimakinack must convince that people, who conceive themselves to have been sacrificed, in 1794, to our policy,[36] that we are earnestly engaged in the war. The Indians, I am made to understand, are eager for an opportunity to avenge the numerous injuries of which they complain. A few tribes, at the instigation of a Shawnese, of no particular note, have already, although explicitly told not to look for assistance from us, commenced the contest. The stand which they continue to make upon the Wabash, against about two thousand Americans, including militia and regulars, is a strong proof of the large force which a general combination of the Indians will render necessary to protect so widely extended a frontier.
Again, Brock was in a very different position from the British commanders during the Revolution; his province was being invaded and the Indians who had settled under the auspices of the British Government in that province were threatened with destruction as seriously as the loyalists or the native Englishmen transplanted from the mother-country. Surely, no one would expect Indians whose homes lay in the upper province to remain neutral when that province was invaded. Indeed, in February, 1812, we find Brock complaining to his superior of the lax attention that was paid by the Government to the Indians settled in the province he had been sent to govern.
Divisions are thus uninterruptedly sowed among our Indian friends [he wrote, meaning, of course, sowed by Americans], and the minds of many altogether estranged from our interests. Such must inevitably be the consequence of our present inert and neutral proceedings in regard to them. It ill becomes me to determine how long true policy requires that the restrictions imposed upon the Indian department ought to continue; but this I will venture to assert, that each day the officers are restrained from interfering in the concerns of the Indians, each time they advise peace and withhold the accustomed supply of ammunition, their influence will diminish, till at length they lose it altogether.
Nothing shows better the activity of the American officers in seeking to line the Indians up on the side of the fighting Republic than Brock's letters to his superiors. We have already seen that Brock had, as late as July 3d, little hope of keeping the Indians of the Grand River true to him because of the American influence exerted over them by active agents. And we have seen, in his counter-proclamation answering that issued by General Hull, that Brock places the employment of the Indians on the ground of territorial rights: "By what new principle," he asks, "are they to be prohibited from defending their property?"
The ominous words used by General Brock in his summons to Hull to surrender have, it must be admitted, all the ring of a threat; but, for one, I do not take them to be that primarily, but rather the honest, frank words of a gentleman. In case of the sacking of Detroit Brock could not have controlled those redskins of his, and he knew it. In like circumstances what general had been able to control the Indians attached to him? In the single instance of Sir William Johnson at the fall of Fort Niagara, we find an illustration of approximate control, yet nothing in the world but the power of that great man would have answered under the circumstances. I would believe that Brock knew he could not control his Iroquois allies,[37] whether in victory or in defeat, and made a plain statement to Hull to that effect. That he told the truth I think no one can doubt after examining the situation; whether he would have told the truth if the truth had not carried a threat may be questioned. The truth usually answers a gentleman's purposes, and Brock was that to the marrow of his bones.
Brock had not overestimated the effect and influence of his bloodless victory upon the English, but, by strange caprice of Fate, was not permitted to live to receive the high honours bestowed upon him. On the thirteenth of the following October, in the battle of Queenston Heights, elsewhere described, while reforming the broken British ranks for a second time, a bullet in the breast cut short a life that promised very high attainment. As was his custom the General had arisen before daybreak on this fatal day and had left Fort George at the first sound of the battle on the heights. His conspicuous presence, bright uniform, and animated deportment in attempting to reform the broken lines, made him a plain target for Wool's heroic men, who had climbed up a pathway steeper than any Wolfe's troops ever saw at Quebec. "Push on the York volunteers," were the words of the brave man's last order; but as he lay in the arms of his aides he begged that his injury might not be noticed by the troops or disconcert their advance; and with one half-understood wish concerning a token of love to be given to his sister, Isaac Brock fell dead.
It is not given to many notable men to fall in the very midst of spectacular success; it can easily be believed that General Brock, being the man we know him to have been, would have made the best use of his triumph, and that it would have been but a stepping-stone to enlarged opportunities where each duty in its turn would have received the same decent, earnest attention that the man gave to his work throughout those half-unhappy days when he felt marooned in the wilds of a dreary ocean, where no one could prove his merit, calibre, or knowledge. And so, after all is said for this fine man, I, for one, like best to go back to those days of impatient longing for opportunity amid the dull grind of routine at Fort George, and see the real spirit of Brock who, in all truth, deserves the honourable title of "Hero of Upper Canada"; and when you have caught the spirit displayed by him in those dispiriting days, realise his careful faithfulness in the humdrum life he was asked to live, while his schoolmates of war were winning great glory on the epoch-making European battlefields, join to it that sudden burst of splendid grit and heroism that provoked the Detroit attack despite the advice of the staff officers, and you have a combination that thrills the heart of friend and enemy—of all who love patient doing of duty and real displays of undiluted heroism.
Some of the best tributes to Brock, were, as should have been the case, those paid by persons who knew of his place in the hearts of the people of his adopted land of service:
The news of the death of this excellent officer [observed the Quebec Gazette] has been received here as a public calamity. The attendant circumstances of victory scarcely checked the painful sensation. His long residence in this province, and particularly in this place, had made him in habits and good offices almost a citizen; and his frankness, conciliatory disposition, and elevated demeanour, an estimable one. The expressions of regret as general as he was known, and not uttered by friends and acquaintances only, but by every gradation of class, not only by grown persons, but young children, are the test of his worth. Such, too, is the only eulogium worthy of the good and brave, and the citizens of Quebec have, with solemn emotions, pronounced it on his memory. But at this anxious moment other feelings are excited by his loss. General Brock had acquired the confidence of the inhabitants within his government. He had secured their attachment permanently by his own merits. They were one people animated by one disposition, and this he had gradually wound up to the crisis in which they were placed. Strange as it may seem, it is to be feared that he had become too important to them. The heroic militia of Upper Canada, more particularly, had knit themselves to his person; and it is yet to be ascertained whether the desire to avenge his death can compensate the many embarrassments it will occasion. It is indeed true that the spirit, and even the abilities, of a distinguished man often carry their influence beyond the grave; and the present event furnishes its own example, for it is certain notwithstanding General Brock was cut off early in the action, that he had already given an impulse to his little army, which contributed to accomplish the victory when he was no more. Let us trust that the recollection of him will become a new bond of union, and that, as he sacrificed himself for a community of patriots, they will find a new motive to exertion in the obligation to secure his ashes from the pestilential dominion of the enemy.
A Montreal newspaper of the day also contained the following observations:
The private letters from Upper Canada, in giving the account of the late victory at Queenstown, are partly taken up with lamentations upon the never-to-be-forgotten General Brock, which do honour to the character and talents of the man they deplore. The enemy have nothing to hope from the loss they have inflicted; they have created a hatred which panteth for revenge. Although General Brock may be said to have fallen in the midst of his career, yet his previous services in Upper Canada will be lasting and highly beneficial. When he assumed the government of the province, he found a divided, disaffected, and, of course, a weak people. He has left them united and strong, and the universal sorrow of the province attends his fall. The father, to his children, will make known the mournful story. The veteran, who fought by his side in the heat and burthen of the day of our deliverance, will venerate his name.
And the sentiments of the British Government, on the melancholy occasion, were thus expressed in a despatch from Earl Bathurst, the secretary of state for the colonies, to Sir George Prevost, dated December 8, 1812:
His Royal Highness the Prince Regent is fully aware of the severe loss which his Majesty's service has experienced in the death of Major-General Sir Isaac Brock. This would have been sufficient to have clouded a victory of much greater importance. His Majesty has lost in him not only an able and meritorious officer, but one who, in the exercise of his functions of provisional lieutenant-governor of the province, displayed qualities admirably adapted to awe the disloyal, to reconcile the wavering, and to animate the great mass of the inhabitants against successive attempts of the enemy to invade the province, in the last of which he unhappily fell, too prodigal of that life of which his eminent services had taught us to understand the value.
The body of the fallen hero lay in state at the government house until the 16th of October, when, with that of Colonel McDonell, it was buried with due honours in a cavalier bastion of Fort George, at the spot now marked by the tablet indicating the first burial-place. On the 13th of October, 1824, the remains were moved to the summit of the heights, whereon a beautiful monument had been erected by the Provincial Legislature, 135 feet in height, bearing this "splendid tribute to the unfading remembrance of a grateful people":
UPPER CANADA
HAS DEDICATED THIS MONUMENT
TO THE MEMORY OF THE LATE
MAJOR-GENERAL SIR ISAAC BROCK, K.B.
PROVISIONAL LIEUT.-GOVERNOR AND COMMANDER OF THE FORCES
IN THIS PROVINCE
WHOSE REMAINS ARE DEPOSITED IN THE VAULT BENEATH
OPPOSING THE INVADING ENEMY
HE FELL IN ACTION NEAR THESE HEIGHTS
ON THE 13TH OCTOBER, 1812
IN THE 43D YEAR OF HIS AGE
REVERED AND LAMENTED
BY THE PEOPLE WHOM HE GOVERNED
AND DEPLORED BY THE SOVEREIGN
TO WHOSE SERVICE HIS LIFE HAD BEEN DEVOTED.
Brock's Monument.
The following description of this interesting pageant portrays the genuine feeling of devotion felt for the "Hero of Upper Canada" that filled the hearts of his countrymen:
There is something so grand and imposing in the spectacle of a nation's homage to departed worth, which calls for the exercise of so many interesting feelings, and which awakens so many sublime contemplations, that we naturally seek to perpetuate the memory of an event so pregnant with instruction, and so honourable to our species. It is a subject that in other and in older countries has frequently exercised the pens, and has called forth all the descriptive powers of the ablest writers. But here it is new; and for the first time, since we became a separate province, have we seen a great public funeral procession of all ranks of people, to the amount of several thousands, bearing the remains of two lamented heroes to their last dwelling on earth, in the vaults of a grand national monument, overtopping the loftiest heights of the most magnificent section of one of the most magnificent countries in the world.
The 13th of October, being the anniversary of the battle of Queenstown, and of the death of Brock, was judiciously chosen as the most proper day for the removal of the remains of the general, together with those of his gallant aide-de-camp, Lieutenant-Colonel M'Donell, to the vaults prepared for their reception on Queenstown Heights.
The weather was remarkably fine, and before ten o'clock a very large concourse of people, from all parts of the country, had assembled on the plains of Niagara, in front of Fort George, in a bastion of which the bodies had been deposited for twelve years.
One hearse covered with black cloth, and drawn by four black horses, each with a leader, contained both the bodies. Soon after ten, a lane was formed by the 1st and 4th regiments of Lincoln militia, with their right on the gate of Fort George, and their left extending along the road towards Queenstown, the ranks being about forty paces distant from each other; within this line was formed a guard of honour of the 76th Regiment, in parade order, having its left on the fort. As the hearse moved slowly from the fort, to the sound of solemn music, a detachment of royal artillery began to fire the salute of nineteen guns, and the guard of honour presented arms.
On moving forwards in ordinary time, the guard of honour broke into a column of eight divisions, with the right in front, and the procession took the following order:
A Staff Officer.
Subdivision of Grenadiers.
Band of Music.
Right Wing of 76th Regiment.
THE BODY.
Aide-de-Camp to the late Major-General Sir Isaac Brock.
Chief Mourners.
Commissioners for the Monument.
Heads of Public Departments of the Civil Government.
Judges.
Members of the Executive Council.
His Excellency and Suite.
Left Wing of the 76th Regiment.
Indian Chiefs of the Five Nations.
Officers of Militia not on duty—Junior Ranks—First Forward.
Four deep.
Magistrates and Civilians.
With a long Cavalcade of Horsemen, and Carriages of every description.
On the 17th of April, 1840, a miscreant by the name of Lett laid a train to a quantity of gunpowder secreted beneath the monument to General Brock and fired it, partially wrecking both the base and the pillar. The criminal had been compelled to flee the country during the rebellion then just over, and, returning, took this outrageous method of gratifying his malice. As we look upon the beautiful monument that stands above Brock's remains to-day it is with a feeling almost of pleasure that such a wretched deed was necessary to result in the fine pillar that is one of the scenic beauties of the Niagara country to-day. This fine shaft bears the following inscription:
The Legislature of Upper Canada has dedicated this Monument to the very distinguished, eminent, civil, and military services of the late Sir Isaac Brock, Knight of the Most Hon. Order of the Bath, Provisional Lieutenant-Governor, and Major-General commanding the Forces in this Province, whose remains are deposited in the vault beneath. Having expelled the Northwestern Army of the United States, achieved its capture, received the surrender of Fort Detroit, and the territory of Michigan, under circumstances which have rendered his name illustrious he returned to the protection of this frontier; and advancing with his small force to repel a second invasion of the enemy, then in possession of these heights, he fell in action, on the 13th of October, 1812, in the forty-third year of his age, honoured and beloved by the people whom he governed and deplored by his Sovereign, to whose service his life had been devoted.
Chapter XI
The Second War with England
We have explained the influence of the life and death of General Brock in the upper province sufficiently for the reader to conceive, perhaps, an unusual interest in the course of the war that soon was raging, in reality or in burlesque, as it sometimes appeared, along the northern border; no one can take any interest in Brock's career without wondering whether his province was invaded or conquered despite the sacrifices of this undefeated but dead hero.
Upon Brock's return from Detroit he found General Stephen Van Rensselaer commanding the American shore of the river, preparing, according to report, to begin the conquest of the upper province. There was much cause for delay, which in turn provoked criticism and unrest, but as October of 1812 drew near it was considered necessary and possible to execute the advance upon Brock's positions along the river and on Queenston Heights and Fort George. The first attempt to advance on the night of the 10th proved abortive through the treachery of an irresponsible lieutenant. Instead of quieting the ardour of the army this disgusting mishap made the troops the more eager for the conflict, and a new plan was very secretly arranged, with such success that it is pretty sure that General Brock was in doubt up to the last moment where the attack was to be made. A strong force had been kept at Fort Niagara, and this, with the stationing of Colonel Chrystie's troops at Four Mile Creek, caused Brock to believe that the attack was to be made on Fort George.
The night of the twelfth was set as the time for the second attempt to cross the Niagara. Soon after dark, Chrystie with his three hundred men marched from Fort Niagara by interior routes to Lewiston, reaching his destination before midnight. Re-enforcements had also come from the Falls, as well as Colonel Scott who had just arrived at Schlosser, aroused by the information that a battle was soon to be fought and glory to be won. Scott presented himself to the General asking permission to take part in the engagement, and though Van Rensselaer could not change his plans he offered to let Scott take position on Lewiston Heights and co-operate with the rest of the army as he saw fit.
Solomon Van Rensselaer was again placed in command but Colonel Chrystie was allowed to lead an equal force, thus recognising his rank. Three o'clock in the morning, October 13th, was the time set for crossing the river. The night was very dark. The plan was for Chrystie and Van Rensselaer to cross and storm the heights, when the rest of the army should follow on the second trip and attack Queenston. The boats, however, would not carry more than half the desired number; these with their leaders landed on the Canadian shore not more than ten minutes after leaving Lewiston landing, at the very spot aimed at, at the foot of the cliff under Lewiston suspension bridge. The British were found very much on the alert and opened fire from the heights the moment the boats touched land. Lovett's battery on Lewiston Heights immediately opened fire in answer, and this, with a charge by the regulars of the Thirteenth under Wool, soon drove the enemy backward toward Queenston. Wool took position just above Queenston when orders were given him to storm the heights. Eager and anxious for the struggle, his troops were immediately put in motion, but he soon received orders countermanding the first just as he was moving rapidly toward the heights. No sooner had his men taken position in accord with it than the right flank was fiercely attacked by Dennis's full force. At the same moment the British opened fire upon the little body from the heights. Wool immediately, without tarrying for orders, faced about and poured such a fierce fire into Dennis's command that it was compelled to fall back. In the meantime Van Rensselaer had come up with his command and taken position on Wool's left. In this short engagement, the Americans suffered most severely. Van Rensselaer was so severely wounded that he was forced to relinquish the command, and Wool had been wounded though refusing to leave the field.
The British on the heights kept up a continual fire on the Americans, which from their position could not be returned with effect, and the little invading army fell back to the shore below the hill where they occupied a more sheltered position.
Daybreak had now come, and a storm which had raged all morning had ceased with the retreat of the Americans; but the storm of lead was soon to break more furiously than before, although the little army was in a sorry plight. Wool was only twenty-three years old. The commanding officer, Solomon Van Rensselaer, was forced to retire. What was to be done? Wool had asked for orders. The heights must be taken or the enterprise abandoned; Wool was ordered to storm the heights and Lush commanded to follow and shoot the first man that wavered—for signs of disaffection were already showing themselves. No sooner did Wool receive his orders than, fired by the frenzy of the battle, forgetting wounds and all else, he sprang forward to its execution. Up the ascent the men rushed, protected from fire to a degree by bushes and rocks. Many parts of the hill were so steep that there was nothing for it but to pull themselves along by the roots and shrubs. General Brock, in the meantime, hardly knew what to expect. He was at Fort George and seems to have had a determined suspicion that the main attack would be made upon Fort George from Fort Niagara. He heard the early cannonading but supposed that it was only a feint to conceal the point of real movement. However, the true soldier mounted his horse and raced away immediately to the scene of action and death. On arriving and taking a view of the field Brock considered affairs favourable to the British; however, he had hardly dismounted at the redan battery than Wool's men scrambled upon the heights and opened up a galling fire. So hot was the attack that the Canadians were immediately forced from their stronghold; a few moments later the flag of the Union waved there.
"Queenston or Landing near Niagara."
A drawing on bark by Mrs. Simcoe.
Brock immediately sent to Fort George for re-enforcements, rallied the disorganised force, and with Williams's and Dennis's commands attempted to turn the American right flank; Wool perceived the move and tried to anticipate it by sending fifty men to its protection. These were forced back by superior numbers, and the whole command was compelled to give ground until the edge of the precipice was reached with the rushing river flood two hundred feet below. It seemed that they must either surrender or perish; one captain attempted to raise a white flag but was stopped by Wool, who, having addressed a few hurried words to his men, led them to the charge with such fierce zeal that the British in turn gave back. The brave Brock saw this movement in dismay; with a stinging rebuke, which called every man back to a realisation of his duty, the General placed himself at the head of the column to lead it back to victory. His tall form, towering above that of the soldiers around him, made a conspicuous mark for the American sharpshooter, and he was soon struck in the wrist but bravely pressed on; shortly after a ball entered his breast and passed out of his side, inflicting a death wound. He scarcely had time to make a few last requests when he died. As soon as the soldiers knew of their commander's death, they became infuriated. The column charged up the hill toward the Americans. Wool's little command, doubtful of victory, spiked the cannon in the redan. The struggle was fierce for a few moments; but the British were again made to retire, leaving Wool master of Queenston Heights.
Re-enforcements were slowly crossing the river. Colonel Scott had arrived early in the morning and had placed his cannon to protect the crossing as far as possible. Later he received permission to cross over as a volunteer. Having met with Wadsworth of the New York militia, that officer unselfishly waived his rank on account of Scott's superior military experience, and allowed him to take command of regulars and militia, amounting in all to some six hundred. While Scott was superintending the unspiking of the cannon in the redan his command on the heights was assailed by a band of Indians under John Brant, son of the famous Mohawk chieftain. So furious and unexpected was their attack that the pickets were driven in immediately and the main body began to draw back. This was shortly after one o'clock in the afternoon. The militia, unused to being under fire, were beginning to break away when Scott appeared and by his commanding presence and steady nerve led the men back to order. A charge was immediately ordered, which was executed so fiercely that the Indians retired; however, they kept up a fire on the Americans from sheltered positions until Scott ordered a general assault and drove them from the heights. Lieutenant-Colonel Chrystie then appeared on the field for the first time and ordered Wool to the American shore to have his wounds dressed.
General Sheaffe now arrived from Fort George with re-enforcements and took command of the British forces; these now numbered about thirteen hundred while the Americans could not count over six hundred. Sheaffe marched to the east to St. Davids and by brilliantly counter-marching gained the rear of the American army. Van Rensselaer was on the heights at this time; seeing these movements he returned to send over re-enforcements. But to his surprise, and their own eternal disgrace, the American militia, which had been crying out so long for action, refused to budge. He, as well as others, threatened, entreated, and implored; all in vain. The men who but a few hours before had demanded to be led to the war, now, at sight of blood and the smell of gun-powder, refused to help their comrades threatened with destruction on the heights across the river. Van Rensselaer transmitted this information to Wadsworth and promised boats if he wished to retreat, but he could not even make this promise good, as the frightened boatmen refused to raise an oar. Nothing was left for the little band on the heights but surrender or death! It has been offered in extenuation of the action of the militia that there had been gross mismanagement of the boats, only one or two being at hand, necessitating their being sent across the river in dangerously small parties. Wherever the blame should be placed, there was enough of it to go around and to make any patriot blush. The militia were within their legal rights in refusing to pass beyond the boundaries of their State, and may have been entirely right in refusing to attempt the crossing if it could not be made in force.
The final engagement of the battle of Queenston Heights was inaugurated about four o'clock in the afternoon by General Sheaffe directing a large body of Indians and regulars against the American right. The superior numbers, together with the impetuous advance, threw the Americans into confusion. Sheaffe ordered an advance along the whole line and the American ranks were soon broken, most of those fleeing toward the city being cut off by the Indians; some few escaped by letting themselves down the steep hill by roots and bushes. Several attempts were made to surrender, but it is said that even those bearing the flag were shot down by the Indians. Colonel Scott was attacked by two savages while on this mission, but was valiantly rescued by a British officer. On reaching headquarters terms were soon agreed upon by which all the Americans on the Canada side became prisoners of war.
Thus ended this, the spectacular battle of Queenston Heights. In many ways it was typical of so many battles in American military annals; the eagerness of hot-headed militia to hear the guns popping, the daring attack, the heroism of cool, undaunted officers, the loss of enthusiasm as the struggle wore on, the final conflict of regular and militia, the seemingly inexcusable lack of interest on the part of the non-combatants, the flight and surrender—all are typical.
The death of the noble Brock has thrown a halo over the Niagara frontier for Briton and American alike. As you wander to-day across the pleasant commons at Niagara-on-the-Lake to the site of old Fort George, or scramble up the steep sides of beautiful Queenston Heights, you will find yourself thinking of the heroic leaders at the battle of Queenston—Brock, Wool, Chrystie, and the impetuous Scott; to one rambler, at least, amid these striking scenes, the battle, as such, quite faded out of the perspective, leaving the fine military figure of the British commander looming up alone beside that of the twenty-three-year-old boy Wool, who had jumped from his law books down in New York to come here as captain of militia and give the world another clear picture of absolute daring not surpassed in any point by Wolfe's at Quebec; the young Scott appears too, so willing to be in the fracas across the river that he crosses as a private soldier. Had the faltering militia caught his spirit there would have been, perhaps, another story to tell of the outcome of the battle! It is to be hoped that the year 1912 will not pass without seeing raised on Lewiston Heights a monument to these noble men equal in point of beauty to the splendid shaft raised across the river to the memory of Brock.
On the 17th of November, a bombardment was opened on Black Rock from batteries which had been constructed across the river. The firing was kept up all day; but little damage was done to the Americans, and almost none to the British, as few cannon were mounted against them. On the 21st of November a fierce cannonade was opened from a number of batteries which had been erected opposite Fort Niagara. At the same time the guns of Fort George, and all those of the vicinity which could be brought to bear, directed their fire against Fort Niagara, and kept up all day. The fort was fired several times by red-hot shot as were also the works of the enemy. Two Americans were killed and two by the bursting of a cannon, while four were wounded; night ended the fight and it was not renewed.
General Smyth had succeeded in the command of the American forces in Van Rensselaer's place after the engagement at Queenston. He had given it as his opinion that the invasion should have taken place at some point between Black Rock and Chippewa Creek and was now in position to carry out his own plans. After a number of boastful proclamations, orders were given the army on the 25th to be ready to march at a moment's notice. The line of advance was planned and the whole campaign marked out. Boats sufficient for men and artillery were provided, and Lieutenant-Colonel Boerstler was to cross in the darkness and destroy a bridge about five miles below Fort Erie, capture all men and supplies possible, and return to the American shore. Captain King was to cross higher up the river and storm the batteries. But the enemy was not to be caught napping; Smyth's idle boasts and proclamations, together with his statements as to the proper place for crossing, had put the British on their guard with the result that the whole upper river was well guarded.
The advance parties embarked at three o'clock on the morning of the 29th. Of King's ten boats only four were able to effect a landing. His small command jumped ashore into the very thickest of the fire and almost immediately captured two batteries. Angus and his seamen who had accompanied King rushed upon the Red House, captured the field-pieces stationed there, spiked them, and threw them and the caissons into the river. Angus returned to the river, and, not knowing that the other six boats had been unable to land, supposed King had either returned or been taken prisoner. It being too dark to reconnoitre, he struck away to the American shore in the four boats, leaving King and his handful of men helpless in Canada. King, on the other hand, not receiving re-enforcements, returned to the landing and found all the boats gone, and passing down the river about two miles he discovered two boats in which he placed his prisoners and half his command, and started them for the American shore. Only a few moments later he and all with him were taken prisoners.
Lieutenant Pierie's Sketch of Niagara, 1768.
From an old print.
The firing had roused the British all along the line. A number of Boerstler's boats were not able to find the point designated as their landing-place, and of those that did all were driven off but Boerstler's own. In the face of a hot fire, he landed, forced back the enemy to the bridge, but when he attempted to destroy that structure he found that in the excitement the axes, militia-like, had been left behind, so that his work was only partly accomplished. While thus engaged he received the interesting intelligence that the whole force at Fort Erie were only five minutes distant. In the darkness the enemy could not be seen; but their advancing tramp could be easily heard. Boerstler, addressing his subordinates as field officers, succeeded in deceiving the British as to the size of his command. The Americans fired one volley and then charged with such spirit that the British fell back, and the little command recrossed the river without being further molested.
It was late in the afternoon before all was in readiness for a general advance and the enemy were on the alert ready to give a warm reception. Smyth had not been seen all day. When finally all was prepared orders came to disembark and dine and, as nothing could be done, the soldiers retired to their quarters.
A council was called, but no agreement could be reached. Smyth ordered another advance on the 30th which never took place. Disagreements between officers and insubordination among the soldiers soon led to the abandonment of the plan entirely. General Porter openly attributed the failure to Smyth, which shortly led to a duel in which neither was injured and each one's honour was vindicated.
While these absurd pantomime war measures were transpiring on land the little American navy covered itself with glory. By hard work Lieutenant Oliver H. Perry had gotten ready nine vessels and fifty-five guns at Erie, Pennsylvania, to oppose six vessels and sixty-three guns under the English commander Barclay. After a careful cruise of the Lake, Perry met the enemy in ill condition for a battle near Put-in-Bay on the 10th of September, 1813. The completeness of his victory was described in his famous despatch to Harrison: "We have met the enemy and they are ours; two ships, two brigs, one schooner, and one sloop."
Shortly before the victory on Lake Erie, Gen. W. H. Harrison, who now commanded the North-western army, accompanied by Johnson and his Kentucky rifles, crossed into Canada and during the last week of August and the first week of September was kept busy by the enemy. Proctor did not, however, seem anxious to fight but kept falling back before the Americans, much to the disgust of the famous Shawanese chieftain Tecumseh, who was anxious for a battle. The army at last took position on the Thames River on the 5th of August. Here they were attacked by Harrison's forces, Johnson's Kentuckians leading the successful charge. In a few minutes the British army with its Indian allies was routed and Tecumseh killed. The North-west was relieved of further danger; and much that was lost by Hull was regained with something in addition.
The Army of the North under General Dearborn, during the year of 1813 was to co-operate in the invasion of Canada, and on the 27th of April, 1813, the American army crossed Lake Ontario to York, now Toronto, and were entirely successful in capturing that point, as more fully noted in our chapter on that city.
It was part of Dearborn's plan on capturing York to press on over the thirty miles to the River Niagara and take Fort George. On account of unfavourable weather the army did not leave York until the 8th of May, the fleet being under command of Chauncey and being joined in the evening of the 25th by Perry, who had come hastily from Erie. The attack was to be made on the morning of the 27th. Dearborn was himself sick, being confined to his bed most of the time, but his orders were faithfully carried out by his under officers. An attempt to launch several boats on the evening of the 26th brought on a cannonade from the batteries along both shores as well as from Fort George and Fort Niagara. Darkness, however, came on and the preparations were made by the Americans under its cover without further molestation. The morning was somewhat foggy but a light breeze soon dissipated this and revealed a fine sight for friend and foe alike. The waters of the lake were covered with boats large and small, crowded with guns and soldiers, all advancing bravely on the British position.
As soon as the fog lifted the batteries of both sides began a brisk fire. Colonel Scott was in command of the landing party, assisted by Chauncey with four hundred seamen to be used if necessary. Lieutenant Brown directed such a hot fire against the battery at the landing that it was finally silenced and Perry then, being in command of the boats, rushed in despite a somewhat rough sea, to effect a landing, many of the troops in their eagerness leaping into the water before the boats touched land. The landing party was assailed by a heavy, well-directed musketry fire from a neighbouring ravine, which caused them to scurry for shelter under the bank. Perry seemed everywhere present, urging the gunners on the boats to greater efforts and cheering on the landing parties with words of confidence. In attempting to scale the bank, the Americans were several times hurled back to the beach, but Scott was finally successful in gaining a sheltered position in a neighbouring ravine where a sharp conflict ensued for several minutes, but between the execution of the American rifles and a well-directed cannonade from one of the vessels the doughty British were compelled to retreat.
General Vincent, being persuaded that Fort George could not be saved, ordered its destruction, which information reached Scott by two escaped prisoners. He immediately attempted to save it if possible, but a short distance from its walls one magazine blew up, though he reached his destination in time to extinguish two other fuses and save the remainder of the fort. He then continued his pursuit but was ordered to return and had to give up what he thought half the glory of the contest.
Hearing that Colonel Proctor was coming from the West to help regain the Niagara region, General Winder was sent in pursuit of Vincent. On the 5th he was joined by Chandler with five hundred men, who took the chief command. At Forty-mile Creek they encountered a body of the enemy and drove them off; twice now they drove the pickets in on the main body of the army, causing no little alarm, but finally on account of treacherous negligence in the American camp the British effected a night attack so well planned and brilliantly executed that the force was in the heart of the American camp while the soldiers were still sleeping. In the confusion that followed, the Americans several times attacked their own men. The British loss was the heavier, and they were compelled to retire, but the victory was felt to be a decided one from the fact that they captured two American generals.
The Americans, fearing a renewal of the attack, began to retreat. Near Forty-mile Creek they were joined by Colonel Miller with reinforcements, and retreat was continued with a fleet watching them from the lake and a small army of regulars and a body of savages following in the rear. The army finally reached Fort George after having lost several prisoners who had been picked up in the rear. For several days the vessels were a continual menace to the passage of American supplies, but on the 20th the squadron sailed for Oswego. Not daring to make an attack here, they again turned westward and took position off Niagara River.
While the operations were going on against the Niagara frontier, a British squadron appeared against Sacketts Harbour. On the morning of May 29th the attack was made, but so vigilant a defence was made by General Brown with his raw militia that the enemy were forced to withdraw.
General Dearborn, now at Fort George, sent a force to attack the enemy at Beaver Dam and Ten-mile Creek, by way of St. Davids, on June 23d. It was annoyed for a greater part of the way by Indians, and when near the enemy's camp, having been deceived as to the opposing force, the whole command was surrendered. The British, emboldened by this success, suddenly retook Queenston and shortly after invaded Fort George, General Dearborn being relieved of command by the still more incompetent General Wilkinson.
The British, encouraged by their success, now began to make raids into the American territory. One of these expeditions was directed against Black Rock on July 11th. The expedition put to flight the American guards with almost no fighting, took the city and supplies, and obtained a large amount of booty. General Porter, however, rallied a small body of the retreating militia and with these and reinforcements which had arrived from Buffalo and about fifty citizens he fell with such force upon the invaders that they retreated precipitately to their boats. During the remainder of the summer little fighting was done in the vicinity of Fort George except by foraging parties.
Most of the troops had been withdrawn from the fort in the early winter, leaving only about sixty men within its walls; news was being continually received of forces marching to the Niagara region and, fearful of losing the fort, McClure, its commander, determined to destroy it and retreat to Fort Niagara. The fort was partially demolished, December 10th, but Newark was wantonly fired, leaving hundreds of people homeless in the severest weather and rousing the British to a revenge which they now visited on the Americans.