War of 1812

On 18 June 1812, at the height of the Napoleonic conflict (see NAPOLEONIC WARS), the US declared war on Great Britain and struck at the only British possession on the continent: Canada. Most of the battles that followed took place along the international border. The war ended in stalemate. The Treaty of GHENT, signed 24 Dec 1814, solved nothing, since the reasons for the war - British high-handedness on the high seas, including searching American ships during the Napoleonic blockade and impressment - had been rendered academic by France's defeat. Yet Canada owes its present shape to negotiations that grew out of the peace, while the war itself - or the myths created by the war - gave Canadians their first sense of community.

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Wars

The British and Canadians were badly outnumbered by the Americans but better prepared for war, thanks to the prescience of Maj-Gen Isaac BROCK, administrator of UPPER CANADA. If the enemy could move up the traditional Champlain-Richelieu invasion route, seize Montréal and cut the lifeline between Upper and Lower Canada, the war would be as good as over. Brock thought this impossible because his Indian allies, under the Shawnee war chief TECUMSEH, had the American NW frontier in a ferment. The Americans would thus first try to secure their left flank. The bloodless British capture of a key US post at Michilimackinac I in Lk Huron, on July 17, and of Detroit, Aug 16, frustrated that strategy and gave the British control of Michigan territory and the Upper Mississippi.

At this point Thomas Jefferson's remark that the capture of Canada was "a mere matter of marching" returned to haunt Washington. Having lost one army at Detroit, the Americans lost another at Queenston Heights (see QUEENSTON HEIGHTS, BATTLE OF), Oct 13, after their militia stood on its constitutional guarantee and refused to cross into Canada. But Brock was killed - an irreparable loss. A new American army under William Henry Harrison struggled up from Kentucky to try to retake Detroit. One wing was so badly mauled at Frenchtown, 22 Jan 1813, by a force of British, Canadians and Indians under Lt-Col Henry PROCTOR, that further attempts at invasion that winter were abandoned. The only Americans in Canada were prisoners of war.

British strategy was to act defensively and allow the invaders to make mistakes. Gov Sir George PREVOST husbanded his thin forces carefully, a sensible precaution given the US's overwhelming numerical superiority. As the campaign of 1813 opened, the invaders determined to seize Kingston to cut the link between the Canadas. But a weakness of resolve diverted the attack to the lesser prize of York [Toronto]. The Americans briefly occupied the town, burning the public buildings and seizing valuable naval supplies destined for Lk Erie; but the British, by burning their half-completed warship, frustrated the enemy's plan to appropriate it and change the balance of naval power on Lk Ontario. Neither side totally controlled that lake for the balance of the war.

The Americans abandoned York and on 27 May 1813 their fleet seized FT GEORGE at the mouth of the Niagara R. The British army escaped, however, repulsing the advance of the enemy up the Niagara peninsula by winning the battles at Stoney Creek and Beaver Dams (see BEAVER DAMS, BATTLE OF; STONEY CREEK, BATTLE OF), and driving the Americans back into the enclave of the fort. For all of that season the Niagara peninsula was a no-man's-land of marauding parties. Finally, worn down by sickness, desertion, and the departure of short-term soldiers, the American command evacuated Ft George on Dec 10 and quit Canada. On leaving, the militia burned the town of Newark [ NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE ], an act that drove the British to brutal retaliation at Buffalo. These incendiary reprisals continued until Washington itself was burned the following Aug.

The US fared better on the western flank. The British tried and failed to take Harrison's stronghold at Ft Meigs on the Maumee R. A struggle for control of Lk Erie followed. The 2 rival fleets, both built of green lumber on the spot, met Sept 10 at PUT-IN-BAY. The British were hampered by the American seizure of naval supplies at York the previous spring and by the loss, early in the battle, of several senior officers.

American commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, a bold seaman, used unorthodox tactics to turn defeat into victory and become the first man in history to capture an entire British fleet. Erie became an American lake, Detroit was abandoned, and the British retreated up the Thames R. At Moraviantown (see MORAVIANTOWN, BATTLE OF) Harrison defeated Proctor. Tecumseh died in the battle, an event signalling the end of the northwestern Indian alliance. But Harrison, his lines extended, could not follow up his victory; his Kentuckians were eager to get back to their farms at harvest time.

Meanwhile, the US was mounting a 2-pronged attack designed to take Montréal, but this was so halfhearted that it was foredoomed to failure. On the Châteauguay R on Oct 26, a handful of French Canadian VOLTIGEURS under Lt-Col Charles de SALABERRY drove an American army of 4000 back across the border (see CHATEAUGUAY, BATTLE OF). At CRYSLER'S FARM (near Morrisburg, Ont) on Nov 11, Lt-Col Joseph Wanton Morrison's regulars won a resounding victory over James Wilkinson's superior force, which also quit Canada. Thus the 1813 campaign ended with the Americans in possession of Ft AMHERSTBURG on the Detroit R, and the British holding the 2 American forts, Niagara and Michilimackinac.

The following year the Americans again crossed the Niagara, seized Ft Erie on July 3, and defeated the British at Chippawa on July 5, but failed to retake Ft George. The bitter battle of LUNDY'S LANE followed on July 25 within earshot of the Niagara cataract. Fought in the pitch dark of a sultry night by exhausted troops who could not tell friend from foe, it ended in stalemate. The Americans withdrew to Ft Erie. Here they badly mauled the forces of the new British commander, Lt-Gen Gordon Drummond, when he attempted a night attack (Aug 14-15). With both sides exhausted a 3-month standoff followed. Finally, on Nov 5, the Americans again withdrew. Meanwhile, NS Lt-Gov Sir John SHERBROOKE led a force from Halifax into Maine, capturing Castine on Sept 3. By mid-month British forces held much of Maine, which was returned to the US only with the signing of the peace treaty.

In the west, the Canadian voyageurs took Prairie du Chien on the Upper Mississippi and beat off an American attack on Michilimackinac I, capturing 2 warships on Lk Huron. In the east, the story was different. With Napoleon defeated, the British army now outnumbered the thin American force at Plattsburgh on Lk Champlain. Prevost marched S with 11 000 of Wellington's veterans but his hesitancy to attack - he was no Brock - together with the Sept 11 defeat of the hastily built British fleet in Plattsburgh Bay by the American commodore, Thomas Macdonough, caused Prevost to abort the ground attack and withdraw (see PLATTSBURGH, BATTLE OF).

That single action tipped the scales, forcing the British peace negotiators at Ghent to lower their demands and accept the status quo. Had Prevost succeeded, much of upper NY state might be Canadian today. On the other hand, if the Americans had won the battle of Stoney Creek, or taken Montréal, much of Ontario and Québec - perhaps all - might now be under the Stars and Stripes.

Washington had expected the largely American population of Upper Canada to throw off the British yoke as soon as its army crossed the border. This did not happen. Lured northwards by free land and low taxes, the settlers wanted to be left alone. Nor was it wise after such a bitter war to advocate American political ideals, such as democracy and republicanism. Thus the British and LOYALIST elite were able to set Canadians on a different course from that of their former enemy. And the growing belief that they, the civilian soldiers, and not the Indians and British regulars, had won the war - more mythic than real - helped to germinate the seeds of nationalism in the Canadas. See also NIAGARA HISTORIC FRONTIER; FORT HENRY.

War of 1812

Brock, Isaac
Isaac Brock was long remembered as the fallen hero and saviour of Upper Canada (courtesy Library and Archives Canada/C-36181).

Fort York
Fort York was sacked twice by the Americans during the War of 1812 (courtesy Library and Archives Canada/C-40091).

Tecumseh
Tecumseh allied his forces with those of the British during the War of 1812, and his active participation was crucial. Painting by W.B. Turner (courtesy Metropolitan Toronto Library, J. Ross Robertson/T-16600).

Author PIERRE BERTON

Links to Other Sites

Old Fort Erie
This site offers an overview of the many battles that occurred at Old Fort Erie during the War of 1812. Also, check out the living history programs that feature colourful re-enactments of 1814 military skirmishes. From the Niagara Parks Commission.

HMS Detroit Project
This site is devoted to the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812 and the flagship of the British fleet, the HMS Detroit.

Battlefield House Museum
Visit the Battlefield House Museum to learn more about the Battle of Stoney Creek and the War of 1812.

War of 1812
This extensive Galafilm website focuses on the major military battles and combatants in the War of 1812.

The Battle that Saved Canada
This website features an account of the The Battle of Crysler's Farm, a pivotal encounter in the War of 1812. Produced by The Friends of Crysler's Farm.

Fort George National Historic Site of Canada
This Parks Canada website offers a virtual tour of Fort George National Historic Site. Also includes supplementary information about the War of 1812.

Sir John Johnson House National Historic Site
This Parks Canada website features a profile of Sir John Johnson and an illustrated tour of the national historic site in Williamstown, Ontario.

Fort St. Joseph National Historic Site of Canada
This historic site is dedicated to Fort St. Joseph, a fortification constructed by the British to protect fur trading routes. Features interesting facts about War of 1812 military conflicts and more recent archaeological expeditions. From Parks Canada.

Fort Malden National Historic Site
This Parks Canada website commemorates Fort Malden National Historic Site in Ontario.

Fort Wellington National Historic Site
This Parks Canada site is dedicated to Fort Wellington in Ontario. Includes historical notes about War of 1812, 1837 Rebellion, and related topics.

Fort Beauséjour National Historic Site of Canada
This Parks Canada site is dedicated to Fort Beauséjour in New Brunswick. The commemorative intent of Fort Beauséjour National Historic Site of Canada is to commemorate the role of the Fort in the struggle between France and Britain, and subsequently between Britain and the American colonies, for North America, 1751-1783.

Carleton Martello Tower National Historic Site of Canada
This Parks Canada site is dedicated to the fortification built to defend Saint John during War of 1812.

Battle of the Châteauguay National Historic Site of Canada
This Parks Canada website features a detailed chronology of the 1813 battle on the Châteauguay River, historical notes about the War of 1812, and a profile of Charles-Michel d’Irumberry de Salaberry.

Fort Lennox National Historic Site of Canada
This Parks Canada site is dedicated to Fort Lennox, near the Canada-U.S. border in Quebec. Includes background notes about the American Revolution, the War of 1812 and related topics.

Laura Ingersoll Secord
Read about the heroic actions of Laura Secord during the War of 1812. A Niagara Parks Commission website.

The War of 1812
This Archives of Ontario website about the War of 1812 offers brief accounts of major military conflicts near Detroit, Kingston, York and the Niagara region. Features a glossary, letters, illustrations, maps and other archival material.

Canadian Military History Gateway
Search this website for authoritative information about Canadian military history. Provides online access to Canadian museums, libraries, archives, and other heritage organizations. Also features an online glossary of military terminology, educational resources and much more. From the Department of National Defence.

Bloody Exchanges at Chippawa and Lundy's Lane
A brief but fact filled account of military battles at Chippawa and Lundy's Lane (War of 1812). From Canadian Military Heritage, Department of National Defence.

Commemorative Wall
View a series of photos of the Lundy's Lane Commemorative Wall at the historic Drummond Hill Cemetery.

Historic Fort York
News and information about current attractions at historic Fort York. Offers details about the Fort York Squad, the Toronto blockhouses and more. From the “Friends of Fort York.”

The Friends of McNabs Island Society
The website for the Friends of McNabs Island Society, an organization that is dedicated to the preservation of McNabs, Lawlor, and Devils Islands.

Glossary: Privateering
A glossary of terms commonly associated with the history of privateering in Canadian territories. From the website "Pirates or Privateers? Boarding on the St Lawrence," the Virtual Museum of Canada.

Glossary: War of 1812
This glossary provides a series of definitions and pictures that will be of help in grasping the context of the War of 1812. from the website for Parks Canada.

The War of 1812
Excerpts from the book "The War of 1812." From the "Google" website.

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