Invasão do canadá - Em formação

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A invasão do Canadá em 1838

Era uma manhã fria de novembro no Rio Saint Lawrence em 1838. O tenente da Marinha Real Britânica William Fowell estava no convés do navio a vapor de Sua Majestade, de olho na costa americana. No Experimentar, mantendo-se nas primeiras horas da manhã, os invasores falharam na tentativa de pousar em Prescott, Ontário. Mas Fowell sabia que a invasão havia sido apenas adiada, não impedida.

A Guerra de 1812 já havia passado há décadas, mas nem tudo estava tranquilo ao longo da fronteira americano-canadense. A ameaça ao Canadá não veio do governo dos Estados Unidos, mas de uma organização clandestina chamada Patriot Hunters. A situação ao longo do Saint Lawrence era inquietante. Nathaniel S. Benton, promotor distrital do norte de Nova York, informou ao presidente dos Estados Unidos Martin Van Buren que a situação estava se tornando explosiva: “A fronteira inteira está cheia de pessoas ... que parecem estar prontas a qualquer momento para qualquer movimento ou atos de violência ”dirigida contra o Canadá. O presidente Van Buren concordou que as tensões crescentes eram motivo de preocupação, referindo-se às "ocorrências mutuamente perturbadoras e irritantes decorrentes da rebelião canadense e da participação não autorizada de cidadãos [americanos] em seu processo".

A Grã-Bretanha não desejava outro conflito com os Estados Unidos, mas parecia não haver maneira de proteger o Canadá sem a guerra. Oficiais britânicos informaram aos líderes dos EUA que eles se arrependeriam de ter que perseguir os "Rebeldes ou Piratas" em território americano, mas que "um pouco de ultrapassagem da fronteira" pode ser necessário. O risco era que qualquer “ultrapassagem da fronteira” levasse à própria guerra que os dois países esperavam ardentemente evitar. Mas as alternativas pareciam limitadas.

Os Caçadores estavam convencidos de que os canadenses desejavam se livrar do jugo da tirania britânica. Eles acreditavam que a presença de uma força bem organizada e bem armada forneceria a centelha para fomentar uma revolta em grande escala. No momento em que a bandeira dos Caçadores fosse plantada em solo canadense, as massas oprimidas se reuniam em defesa da causa e se uniam para derrubar seus opressores. Os Caçadores logo descobririam o quão mal eles haviam calculado mal.

A invasão não começou de forma auspiciosa. Os insurgentes planejavam usar duas escunas, Charlotte de Oswego e Charlotte de Toronto, para desembarcar uma força em Prescott na manhã de 12 de novembro. Os pilotos rapidamente perceberam que não poderiam pousar em seu destino principal - o cais foi rasgado para reparos - então eles moveram seus barcos para o próximo pouso. Mas uma tentativa de amarrar lá falhou quando a corda se quebrou. No momento em que um terceiro desembarque foi tentado, o tenente-coronel Plomer Young havia chegado à orla com tropas, ameaçando abrir fogo a menos que os barcos se identificassem. Perceber que um pouso era impossível agora, as duas embarcações deram meia-volta, desapareceram na névoa e navegaram de volta para o lado americano.

O amanhecer não revelou nenhuma melhora na sorte dos Caçadores após o pouso abortado. Na névoa e escuridão, Charlotte de Oswego e Charlotte de Toronto encalharam em um banco de lama ao largo de Ogdensburg, N.Y., e ficaram presos nas linhas um do outro. O único consolo dos Caçadores: as escunas estavam em águas americanas.

William “Bill, o Pirata” Johnston adquiriu uma artilharia em Ogdensburg e dirigiu artilharia e armas de Charlotte de Toronto descarregado no barco menor. Isso iluminou a escuna o suficiente para libertá-la do banco de lama e ela logo se moveu rio abaixo, com o cuidado de permanecer nas águas americanas. Seu navio irmão, no entanto, não teve tanta sorte. Nenhuma quantidade de esforço poderia liberar Charlotte de Oswego. Ele precisava de um reboque. John Ward Birge liderou uma força para Ogdensburg e comandou o navio a vapor Estados Unidos, cujo novo capitão, Oliver B. Pierce, foi descrito como um "frenologista bêbado".

Enquanto Charlotte de Toronto e a carreta carregando as munições desceu o rio até o local de pouso acordado, Estados Unidos foi resgatar Charlotte de Oswego. Por causa do banco de lama, no entanto, o navio não conseguiu chegar perto o suficiente da escuna encalhada e, portanto, voltou a Ogdensburg para um cabo de reboque mais longo. Quando Estados Unidos chegou para uma segunda tentativa de resgate, deu ao banco de lama um amplo espaço para não ficar encalhado. No processo, o vaporizador surgiu CharlotteLado norte. Isso foi um erro - Estados Unidos estava agora em águas canadenses.

A bordo Experimentar, Fowell estava bem ciente de que se aventurar em águas americanas era proibido. Embora o governo dos EUA não apoiasse os Hunters, o general americano Winfield Scott deixou claro que não toleraria que nenhum navio britânico entrasse nas águas de seu país. Com as memórias da Guerra de 1812 ainda frescas, qualquer coisa parecida com uma invasão britânica não seria permitida. O general Scott informou aos britânicos que pretendia "proteger nosso próprio solo ou águas de violação" e seria "obrigado a considerar um lançamento de bala ou granada de ou em nossas águas, das escunas armadas de sua Majestade, um ato seriamente comprometedor a neutralidade de nossas duas nações. ”

Com o erro cometido por Estados Unidos'Capitão, no entanto, Fowell estava livre para atacar. Seu navio era um navio de guerra britânico improvável. Uma antiga embarcação civil movida a um motor de 30 cavalos, ela montava dois canhões de 3 libras e uma carronada de 18 libras. Por mais improvável que seja, Experimentar era então tudo o que existia entre o Canadá e uma invasão. Fowell estava determinado a se manter firme. Ele estava esperando a chance de um dos navios dos Caçadores cometer um erro, e suas tripulações de armas estavam preparadas para agir contra qualquer um que acabasse em águas canadenses.

Como Estados Unidos aproximou-se Experimentar, Caçadores no convés abriram fogo de rifle. Fowell respondeu ao fogo com a carronada e as canetas de 3 libras. Os tiros atingiram o casco de Estados Unidos mas não causou nenhum dano. Charlotte de Toronto já havia alcançado seu ponto de aterrissagem com a carranca. Homens e munições estavam sendo descarregados e a invasão estava em andamento. Após a breve briga com Experimentar, Estados Unidos movido rio abaixo para apoiar o ataque.

Fowell, com medo de que Prescott ainda fosse o verdadeiro alvo e que os Caçadores pretendessem atraí-lo, voltou-se Experimentar. Ao fazer isso, ele viu que o vaporizador Paul Pry veio para resgatar Charlotte de Oswego, libertando-o do banco de lama. Ao fazer isso, os dois navios se aventuraram em águas canadenses. Fowell agora tinha um novo alvo.

Experimentar abriu fogo à queima-roupa. Paul Pry soltou a corda de reboque e foi rápido para Ogdensburg. Naquela época, os homens a bordo Charlotte chamou que eles queriam se render. Mas com o tempo Experimentar surgiu, Charlotte havia alcançado a segurança das águas americanas. Os que estavam a bordo rapidamente retrataram seu pedido de rendição. Fowell teve que deixar a escuna partir. Para Experimentar, entretanto, a batalha não acabou. Estados Unidos estava caindo sobre ele em alta velocidade.

Experimentar deslocou 100 toneladas, enquanto Estados Unidos deslocou 450 toneladas. Assim, do ponto de vista dos americanos, o movimento agressivo deve ter parecido uma boa ideia na época. Se Estados Unidos não poderia afundar a embarcação menor por abalroamento, parecia provável que infligisse danos suficientes para mantê-la Experimentar fora de qualquer ação posterior.

Caçadores a bordo Estados Unidos zombou do pequeno navio britânico que parecia tão vulnerável. Fowell abriu fogo, mas mais uma vez os tiros não surtiram efeito. A nave menor não teve dificuldade em evitar uma tentativa de colisão e disparou novamente quando Estados Unidos passado. Desta vez, um tiro atingiu o motor de estibordo e outro estilhaçou a casa do leme, decapitando o piloto. As zombarias dos Caçadores rapidamente morreram enquanto um dos tripulantes conseguia guiar a embarcação danificada de volta para Ogdensburg.

Charlotte de Toronto, que vinha seguindo Estados Unidos rio acima, vi o que aconteceu e desviou para as águas americanas. Com todos os navios americanos em segurança do lado americano, Fowell voltou a Prescott e relatou a ação.

A incursão dos Caçadores, no entanto, ainda não terminou. A Batalha do Moinho de Vento no dia seguinte, a leste de Prescott, foi o último suspiro. Os regulares britânicos e a milícia canadense local venceram decisivamente. Longe de se juntar à bandeira dos Caçadores, os canadenses pegaram em armas para resistir à invasão.

A invasão do Canadá pelos Patriot Hunters foi um fracasso terrível. Os insurgentes não mortos foram capturados. Alguns foram perdoados ou enviados para o exílio na Tasmânia. Onze foram executados.

Depois de lutar em um dos combates mais estranhos da Marinha Real Britânica, pouco galante Experimentar poderia retirar-se com dignidade, tendo mantido o orgulho daquele serviço ilustre.

Invasão do Canadá - História

Por Earl Echelberry

Recém-saído de sua captura do Forte Ticonderoga, o coronel Benedict Arnold no verão de 1775 fez um forte lobby junto ao Congresso Continental para obter autorização para liderar uma expedição ao baixo rio São Lourenço e atacar a cidadela inglesa em Quebec. Ele estava preparado, disse Arnaldo, "para colocar o plano em execução e, com os sorrisos do Céu, responder pelo sucesso dele." No entanto, após cuidadosa consideração, o Congresso deu a ordem ao major-general Philip Schuyler, um proeminente proprietário de terras de Nova York, com o Brig. Gen. Richard Montgomery, um ex-capitão britânico, servindo como seu segundo em comando.
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Enfurecido, Arnold correu para Cambridge, Massachusetts, e solicitou uma entrevista imediata com o general George Washington, comandante-chefe das forças americanas. Washington ficou tão impressionado com a postura e o fogo de Arnold que o autorizou a liderar uma segunda invasão complementar do Canadá. De acordo com as melhores informações disponíveis para Washington, os britânicos tinham apenas uma companhia em Quebec, mas podiam atrair 1.100 soldados adicionais de Montreal e outros fortes. Washington temia que mesmo a força fraca sob a liderança do general Sir Guy Carleton pudesse prevalecer contra um ataque de Schuyler-Montgomery. Para aumentar a chance de sucesso da invasão, Washington modificou seu plano original de ataque para incluir a força diversionária de Arnold. Ele raciocinou que se Carleton seguisse a força de Arnold, isso deixaria o caminho aberto para Schuyler, ou se ele bloqueasse a expedição Schuyler-Montgomery, isso permitiria que Quebec caísse nas mãos de Arnold.

Washington & # 8217s Invasão do Canadá

As dificuldades logísticas por trás do plano de Washington eram formidáveis. Primeiro, uma força de cerca de 1.100 homens, o equivalente a um batalhão incluindo três companhias de fuzis, seria necessária para a expedição diversiva. Eles deveriam pousar no Maine, onde subiriam o rio Kennebec em barcos de fundo chato (bateaux) e, em seguida, negociariam um transporte pesado para o rio Dead. De lá, seguiriam para Height of Land e finalmente subiriam o rio Chaudiere até sua foz, em frente ao Quebec. Esta jornada parecia viável em um mapa. No entanto, os planos, mapas e levantamentos falharam em levar em consideração as fortes cachoeiras, corredeiras ferventes, portagens mortais em cumes íngremes e a sequência normal de acidentes que os homens podem encontrar ao viajar de bateaux. Acima de tudo, o plano não levou em consideração o clima implacável que os homens teriam que enfrentar.

Seguindo o conselho de Washington de “usar todas as execuções possíveis, já que a temporada de inverno está avançando”, Arnold se lançou de cabeça na tarefa de recrutar voluntários das tropas estacionadas ao redor de Cambridge. Como resultado de seu zelo e promessa de ação, Arnold foi capaz de reunir 10 companhias de homens das colônias da Nova Inglaterra. A esses números, Washington acrescentou três empresas adicionais de fuzis, duas da Pensilvânia e a outra da Virgínia, sorteadas. Os homens estavam vestidos como típicos do sertão, com peles de gamo, camisas de caça e mocassins. Na frente de seus chapéus de abas largas, eles costuraram as palavras: LIBERDADE OU MORTE.

O comando de Arnold agora estava pronto para marchar. A velocidade era o principal requisito - a marcha deve começar antes que o verão acabe. Washington escolheu sabiamente ao selecionar Arnold para liderar a expedição. Ele era um homem de energia, iniciativa, ambição e ousadia, um líder nato, mas não um motorista, um homem com total confiança em sua habilidade nativa.

Organizando o Exército

Benedict Arnold em Coronel vestido azul.

Arnold colocou os capitães William Hendricks e Matthew Smith no comando das duas empresas de rifles da Pensilvânia e o capitão Daniel Morgan ficou no comando dos virginianos. O primeiro batalhão era chefiado pelo tenente-coronel Roger Enos, com o major Jonathan Meigs servindo como seu assistente. O primeiro batalhão compreendia quatro companhias chefiadas pelos capitães Thomas Williams, Henry Dearborn, Oliver Hanchet e William Goodrich. O segundo batalhão era liderado pelo tenente-coronel Christopher Greene e pelo major Timothy Bigelow. Os comandantes da companhia do segundo batalhão eram os capitães Samuel Ward Jr., Simeon Thayer, John Topham, Jonas Hubbard e Samuel McCobb. Um destacamento de 50 artífices liderados pelo Capitão Reuben Colburn juntou-se à expedição antes da subida do rio Kennebec. A expedição também teve um cirurgião, Dr. Issac Senter, junto com um companheiro do cirurgião, dois assistentes, dois ajudantes, dois contramestres e um capelão, Samuel Spring. Havia também cinco “voluntários independentes”, incluindo Aaron Burr de 19 anos (que estava acompanhado por uma princesa Abenaki adolescente apelidada de “Coxas de Ouro”), Matthias Ogden, Eleazer Oswald, Charles Porterfield e John McGuire.

Uma vez que Carleton retirou as tropas para reforçar o General Thomas Gage em Boston, as perspectivas de sucesso pareciam excelentes quando Washington se dirigiu aos homens de Arnold e os ordenou a respeitar os direitos de propriedade e liberdade de consciência. Ele também escreveu um discurso aos canadenses: “A causa da América e da liberdade é a causa de cada americano, seja qual for sua religião ou sua descendência. Venham, então, cidadãos generosos, ponham-se sob o padrão da Liberdade Geral, contra a qual toda a força e artifício da tirania nunca serão capazes de prevalecer. ” Para Arnold, Washington aconselhou: “Do sucesso desta empresa, sob a direção de Deus, a segurança e o bem-estar de todo o continente podem depender”.

Uma jornada desafiadora do rio acima

Na data perigosamente tardia de 19 de setembro, Arnold partiu de Newburyport com aproximadamente 1.100 homens. Eles desembarcaram três dias depois em Gardinerstown, onde Arnold providenciou uma pequena frota de montanhas-russas e barcos de pesca para transportar seus homens até a foz do rio Kennebec. No dia seguinte, a frota de barcos subiu o rio sinuoso e problemático por 49 milhas até o estaleiro de Reuben Colburn. Quando os homens da terra desembarcaram, muito felizes por terem terra firme sob eles novamente, eles viram os bateaux que seriam seu transporte rio acima do Kennebec. Acima da baía de Fort Western, os homens e suprimentos de Arnold foram transferidos para os bateaux. Arnold passou os próximos dias organizando seu exército para seu mergulho de 385 milhas no deserto. No dia 25, duas patrulhas de reconhecimento avançado foram enviadas rio acima para abrir caminho. Um dia depois, o segundo batalhão, liderado por Greene e Bigelow, seguiu com três companhias de mosqueteiros. Meigs seguiu com parte do primeiro batalhão, enquanto Enos e o restante dos homens formavam a retaguarda. Cada empresa carregava 45 dias de provisões.

Desde o início, o andamento foi difícil. O corpo principal levou dois dias para cobrir as primeiras 18 milhas rio acima até o Forte Halifax. Em Taconic Falls, os homens enfrentaram seu primeiro desafio, um porte de meia milha ao redor das cataratas. Em ombros doloridos e feridos, os homens carregaram mais de 65 toneladas de suprimentos, antes de içar cada bateaux (pesando 400 libras cada) e carregá-los para o outro lado das cataratas. As corredeiras ferventes de Five Miles Falls vieram em seguida, seguidas pela perigosa aproximação de oitocentos metros até Skowhegan Falls.

Com roupas molhadas e congeladas, eles continuaram. Viajando sob a forte chuva, eles chegaram a Skowhegan Falls em 1 ° de outubro. Levar os barcos para cima parecia impossível, pois a fenda que dividia a face da rocha era íngreme e traiçoeira. Mesmo assim, os homens seguiram em frente, arrastando seus desajeitados bateaux. No topo, os barcos foram remendados e recarregados, e o exército se preparou para avançar. Em 4 de outubro eles passaram pelos últimos vestígios de civilização. Deixando os assentamentos e casas em Norridgewock, eles passaram os três dias seguintes navegando nas cataratas de Norridgewock.

Remando, arrastando e às vezes carregando sua embarcação, eles passaram por corredeiras e cataratas e por pântanos e montanhas escarpadas. Com cada transporte, mais e mais suprimentos eram arruinados. Verificando sua posição, Arnold descobriu que havia gasto o dobro do tempo alocado para a viagem e ainda estava no rio Kennebec. Percebendo que metade das provisões já haviam sido gastas, Arnold reduziu as rações diárias para meia polegada de carne de porco crua e meio biscoito. Não demorou muito para que o Dr. Senter começasse a notar disenteria e diarreia galopantes entre os homens.

Em 9 de outubro, a coluna avançou em direção às Cachoeiras Curritunk, o próximo grande porte. Tendo alcançado o Grande Local de Transporte, um grupo avançado de sete homens foi enviado para marcar o menor porte do Kennebec para o Rio Morto. Depois de treze quilômetros de transporte por florestas de pinheiros, abetos balsâmicos, cedros, ciprestes, cicutas e bétulas amarelas e seis quilômetros de remo por três lagoas, eles alcançaram as águas marrons do Rio Morto no dia 11. O resto dos homens o seguiu, carregando seus barcos, bagagens, provisões e munições, e no dia seguinte a expedição alcançou o Rio Morto.

Reduzindo a Força de Invasão

Arnold determinou que a distância da foz do Kennebec até Quebec era de apenas 180 milhas, exigindo 20 dias de viagem. Embora ele tivesse fornecido comida por 45 dias, seu exército estava na jornada sete dias a mais do que ele havia calculado durante toda a marcha e havia chegado menos da metade do caminho. As provisões estavam acabando, e seus homens agora estavam reduzidos a ferver couro cru e velas em uma sopa gelatinosa. Um infeliz cão que alguém trouxera como mascote foi morto e “imediatamente devorado” pelos famintos trekkers.

Em 2 de dezembro, Montgomery se uniu a Arnold, trazendo roupas limpas, artilharia, munição e provisões de vários tipos capturadas em Montreal.

Em 24 de outubro, percebendo que algo precisava ser feito, Arnold ordenou que Greene e Enos, comandando as duas divisões da retaguarda, enviassem de volta “tantos dos homens mais pobres de seu destacamento que deixassem provisão de quinze dias para o restante”. Greene e Enos reuniram seus oficiais para determinar se deveriam voltar. “Aqui estava um conselho de caretas”, disse Senter, “aspectos melancólicos que haviam pregado a seus homens a doutrina da impenetrabilidade e da não perseverança”. Enquanto os homens de Greene votavam pela marcha, Enos partiu para a retaguarda com cerca de 300 homens, sua própria divisão mais retardatários e doentes de outras divisões. O retiro foi realizado em 11 dias de viagem relativamente fácil.

Alcançando Quebec

Depois de 17 portagens, o corpo principal chegou a Height of Land, porta de entrada para o rio Chaudiere. Os homens esqueléticos, famintos e meio mortos, sob a carga dos poucos bateaux restantes, abriram caminho através de uma cadeia de lagoas e subiram as paredes de granito da Altura da Terra coberta de neve. As montanhas estavam cobertas de neve desde setembro. Agora, com o vento de inverno uivando ao redor deles, os homens cansados caíram no chão, alguns morreram em minutos. Muitos de seus companheiros, escreveu um soldado em seu diário, “estavam tão fracos que mal conseguiam ficar em pé. Passei por muitos sentados totalmente afogados em tristeza. Semblantes de autocomiseração que eu nunca havia visto antes. Meu coração estava prestes a explodir. ”

O exército foi reduzido a menos de 700 homens em perigo de morrer de fome. Destemido, Arnold continuou, na esperança de obter comida para seus homens enfraquecidos e famintos. Em 27 de outubro, no Chaudiere, Arnold recebeu notícias animadoras. Dois indianos trouxeram-lhe uma carta dizendo que o povo de Quebec se alegrou com sua abordagem e se juntaria aos americanos para subjugar as forças britânicas. As provisões foram combinadas e cada homem recebeu cinco litros de farinha e cerca de duas onças de carne de porco para sustentá-lo pelos últimos 160 quilômetros antes que o exército chegasse aos assentamentos canadenses.

Na ânsia dos homens de descer o canal rochoso do Chaudiere, três barcos carregados de munições e suprimentos preciosos tombaram. Com a fome ainda pela frente, o exército avançou em direção ao rio São Lourenço. Enquanto desciam o Chaudiere, eles chegaram a um assentamento franco-canadense, onde foram caridosamente recebidos e receberam uma refeição enviada pelos céus com vegetais frescos e carne bovina. “Sentamos”, observou Senter, “comemos nossas rações e abençoamos nossas estrelas”.

Washington disse a Arnold para enviar um mensageiro expresso de volta a Cambridge se surgissem problemas durante a marcha. A partir do relatório otimista de Arnold afirmando que suas provisões durariam mais 25 dias e que ele esperava chegar às águas do Chaudiere em 10 dias, colocando-o perto de Quebec, Washington presumiu que Arnold estaria em Quebec em 5 de novembro. dia chegou, Arnold estava enfrentando novos problemas. Ele tinha apenas 650 homens restantes, muitos deles tremendo em suas camisas com os ventos de inverno.

Em 8 de novembro, em uma luta épica contra a fome, o clima e o terreno, os homens de Arnold avançaram pelos últimos trechos do angustiante rio Chaudiere. Finalmente, em 9 de novembro, o bando irregular de homens emergiu das florestas cobertas de neve na margem sul do St. Lawrence. Com os pés calçados em peles em carne viva e vestidos com roupas esfarrapadas, os homens marcharam rio acima até Point Levi, na Ilha de Orleans. Eles levaram 45 dias, não os estimados 20, para cobrir 350 milhas. Mas eles haviam chegado e, embora estivessem muito fracos para fazer um ataque efetivo à cidadela de Quebec, eles iriam atacar mesmo assim.

Cruzando o Rio São Lourenço

Disfarçado de camponês, Carleton conseguiu escapar de Montgomery em Montreal. Atravessando o interior, ele chegou a Quebec em 19 de novembro e imediatamente assumiu o comando das forças britânicas ali estacionadas. Durante a Guerra da França e da Índia, Carleton serviu sob o Brig. O general James Wolfe e testemunhou a precipitação do general francês Louis Joseph de Montcalm de Saint-Veran ao arriscar uma batalha fora das muralhas de Quebec. Carleton mandou seus homens queimarem todos os barcos do Rio São Lourenço para evitar que Arnold transportasse tropas para o outro lado do rio.

Diante de mais um obstáculo, Arnold encarregou seus homens de obter canoas, abrigos e escalar escadas. Depois de permitir que os homens recuperassem suas forças, Arnold finalmente estava preparado para cruzar o St. Lawrence com quase dois quilômetros de largura. Seu plano era fazer uma travessia noturna e pousar em Wolf's Cove. Usando o mesmo caminho acidentado que Wolfe havia usado durante a guerra francesa e indiana, Arnold pretendia escalar as planícies de Abraham. A partir daí, os americanos desafiariam corajosamente a guarnição. Assim como Montcalm foi arrastado para a batalha fora do perímetro da guarnição, Arnold esperava que Carleton cometesse o mesmo erro.

Em 13 de novembro, Arnold tinha barcos suficientes para transportar seu exército, exceto cerca de 150 homens que ele deixou em Point Levi. Às 21h, Arnold iniciou a travessia do rio com 30 embarcações. Movendo menos de 200 homens de uma vez, Arnold conseguiu passar por dois navios armados britânicos três vezes antes do amanhecer do dia 14. Aterrissando em Wolfe’s Cove sem canhões e sem munição, Arnold conduziu seus 500 mosqueteiros semiamados por um caminho íngreme até a extensão de terra conhecida como Plains of Abraham, a uma milha e meia da cidade. Marchando para as muralhas de Quebec, Arnold ordenou que sua banda desse uma ovação. O barulho parecia provocar curiosidade dentro da cidade, mas nada mais. Lá dentro, Carleton, tendo servido como subalterno com Wolfe, não seria enganado pelo mesmo estratagema que os britânicos haviam usado em Quebec alguns anos antes.

Montgomery se conecta a Arnold

Duvidando da simpatia dos habitantes, Carleton manteve seus homens dentro da fortaleza. Naquela noite, Arnold enviou um mensageiro sob uma bandeira de trégua para exigir a rendição do forte. Arnold sabia que seu blefe havia sido invocado quando os britânicos atiraram em seu emissário. Em pé diante das muralhas da grande fortaleza, Arnold percebeu que sua força era muito fraca para tentar um movimento contra a grande cidadela natural. Sua única esperança era que os habitantes dentro das muralhas se levantassem, mas não havia sinais disso. Sem poder de fogo para montar um ataque - seus homens tinham apenas cinco tiros cada um - e percebendo que era inútil tentar sitiar a cidade sem canhões, Arnold exerceu sua única opção restante e pediu uma retirada ordenada para Pointe aux Trembles para aguardar o chegada de Montgomery.

Mesmo antes de Montgomery se preparar para deixar Montreal, ele relutantemente chegou à conclusão de que a única maneira de conquistar Quebec era por assalto, independentemente da perda de vidas que tal ataque acarretaria. Ele raciocinou que um cerco seria um caso longo e prolongado, terminando quando o gelo derretesse na primavera e permitisse que reforços britânicos navegassem pelo rio St. Lawrence.

O comando de Montgomery consistia em pouco mais de 800 homens, de que ele precisava para guarnecer suas conquistas e atacar Quebec. Enquanto os ventos frios de novembro sopravam, Montgomery mandou uma mensagem a Arnold que ele logo se juntaria a ele em Point aux Trembles. Em 26 de novembro, Montgomery partiu com 300 homens para se juntar a Arnold antes dos portões de Quebec, deixando St. John's sob o comando do Capitão Marinus Willett e confiando Montreal ao Brig. Gen. David Wooster.

Em 2 de dezembro, Montgomery se uniu a Arnold, trazendo roupas limpas, artilharia, munição e provisões de vários tipos capturadas em Montreal. Assumindo o comando dos famintos veteranos de Arnold, a força combinada de Montgomery consistia em cerca de 1.000 soldados americanos e um regimento voluntário de cerca de 200 canadenses. Em 5 de dezembro, a força de Montgomery avançou em direção a Quebec por meio de uma nova nevasca. Montgomery estabeleceu seu quartel-general nas Planícies de Abraham entre St. Roche e Cape Diamond e colocou os homens de Arnold no subúrbio semi-queimado de St. Roche.

A Confident Carleton

Enquanto os atiradores de elite americanos abatiam as sentinelas em posições expostas, Montgomery tentou lançar a terraplanagem e levantar uma bateria de seis canhões de 9 libras e um obus.

Ao interceptar mensagens entre os comandantes americanos, Carleton estava bem ciente da força e da disposição das forças coloniais. Depois do desafio fútil de Arnold, Carleton reforçou sua força com o tenente-coronel Allan MacLean marchando à força 400 recrutas de Sorel. Com esses homens adicionais, Carleton agora tinha 1.200 homens à sua disposição. Ele esperava com confiança o avanço de Montgomery.

Quando o inverno canadense feroz começou, a neve começou a se acumular e um vento forte e forte uivou nas alturas desprotegidas ao redor de Quebec. Percebendo que sua munição e suprimentos não durariam o suficiente para submeter Quebec à fome, Montgomery enviou uma camponesa ao forte com um ultimato exigindo a rendição da cidadela. Para enfatizar sua demanda, ele avançou com fuzileiros perto das muralhas de Quebec. Mas Carleton novamente se recusou a capitular, dizendo que não negociaria com os rebeldes. Para enfatizar seu ponto, ele pediu a um menino baterista que pegasse a carta das mãos da mulher com um conjunto de pinças e a jogasse, sem ler, na lareira. Enquanto os atiradores de elite americanos abatiam sentinelas em posições expostas, Montgomery tentou lançar a terraplenagem e levantar uma bateria de seis canhões de 9 libras e um obus.

Os pequenos projéteis lançados pela bateria não causaram danos essenciais à guarnição. Sob uma segunda bandeira de trégua, Montgomery tentou novamente coagir Carleton a se render. Novamente ele foi rejeitado. Estava claro para Montgomery que sua fanfarronice e suas armas não haviam causado qualquer impressão visível em Carleton. Sem armas pesadas para golpear as paredes de Quebec, a comida escasseando e os alistamentos prestes a expirar, Montgomery se preparou para um ataque total. Montgomery e Arnold decidiram esperar até a próxima tempestade de neve para esconder seus movimentos da cidade, então atacar a cidade do penhasco. Solicitando uma revisão geral na noite de Natal, Montgomery disse a seus homens sem rodeios: "Devemos finalmente chegar à tempestade."

O plano de ataque

Carleton era um comandante capaz que sabia o que precisava ser feito para que Quebec resistisse. Sentindo que o ataque de Montgomery seria direcionado contra a cidade baixa, ele definiu suas defesas de acordo. Montgomery também era um homem de capacidade, mas carecia da principal vantagem de Carleton - a grande cidadela triangular de pedra. Em vez disso, Montgomery concebeu um plano ousado para um ataque antes do amanhecer. Seguindo a estrada que corria ao longo da base dos penhascos elevados, Montgomery lideraria uma divisão do oeste, enquanto Arnold lideraria um segundo ataque do norte. Juntando forças na cidade baixa, eles iriam então subir a encosta para a cidade alta. Ao mesmo tempo, movimentos de finta deveriam ser lançados contra as paredes ocidentais voltadas para as Planícies de Abraão.

Os preparativos foram apressados. Homens martelavam juntos escalando escadas e se armavam com machadinhas e lanças, esperando um combate corpo a corpo. Montgomery emitiu uma proclamação destinada a inspirar suas tropas: “Os [americanos] coraram com sucesso contínuo, confiantes na Justiça de sua causa e contando com a Providência que os protegeu, avançarão com entusiasmo para atacar as obras incapazes de serem defendidas pela desgraçada Garrison atrás deles. " Carleton, esperando um ataque, manteve os sinalizadores acesos durante toda a noite ao longo das paredes da fortaleza.

O Ataque em Quebec

Na tarde de sábado, 30 de dezembro, nuvens de neve se acumularam e ventos fortes sopraram de nordeste. As ordens finais foram emitidas e os homens se prepararam para lançar o ataque, que começaria às 2h. No início da manhã do dia 31, com uma nevasca uivando ao redor de Quebec, os dois falsos ataques foram lançados antes do previsto. A pequena força canadense do coronel James Livingston se aproximou do Portão de St. John, mas rapidamente quebrou e fugiu, enquanto os homens do Capitão Jacob Brown em Massachusetts lançaram um fogo sustentado contra o bastião de Cape Diamond sem qualquer efeito significativo. A guarnição britânica, agora alertada, começou a tocar tambores e sinos de igreja. Oficiais correram pelas ruas de Quebec enviando suas tropas. Rapidamente, as barricadas da cidade baixa foram ocupadas.

Nas primeiras horas da manhã, o sargento britânico Hugh McQuarters foi alertado pelas luzes de lanternas descendo das Planícies de Abraham, bem como por foguetes de sinalização. Olhando ao longo da trilha que levava a leste de Wolf's Cove, ele logo detectou movimento. Dentro da neve rodopiante, o movimento tornou-se mais claro, finalmente se transformando em um corpo de homens em formação avançando cautelosamente. Em uma tempestade de neve cegante, os homens de Montgomery desceram das Planícies de Abraham e passaram com segurança ao redor de Point Diamond. Ao chegar à primeira barreira e encontrá-la sem defesa, Montgomery enviou mensageiros incitando seus homens a se apressarem. Avançando por um desfiladeiro estreito, ele avistou uma casa de toras contendo brechas para mosquetes e dois canos de 3 libras carregados com metralha. Dentro da fortificação, McQuarters esperava a abordagem do inimigo com fusíveis acesos.

Montgomery esperou até que cerca de 60 homens se juntassem a ele. Then, urging his men forward, he rapidly advanced on the battery. McQuarters, in charge of the loaded cannon, held his fire. The Americans closed to within about 50 yards and halted in the blinding snow. Trying to make out the nature of the obstacle ahead, Montgomery slowly moved forward, followed by two or three others. McQuarters dropped his match to the breech of the cannon. A sheet of flame spewed forth, and a devastating blast of grapeshot tore through the advancing Americans. Montgomery was instantly cut down, along with most of his advance party, leaving the cluster of bodies lying dead in the snow. The balance of the men fell back in panic. Morale shattered, Colonel Donald Campbell assumed command and, leaving the bodies of the slain Montgomery and his men where they fell, ordered an immediate retreat.

The long and arduous march that took its toll on Arnold’s men.

Arnold, meanwhile, led his troops in single file on a path along the St. Charles. They passed the Palace Gate unchallenged. No sooner had the main body passed the Palace Gate, however, than the city bells began to ring and the drums beat a general alarm. From the ramparts above came a tremendous fire. Pelted by musketballs, Arnold and his men ran the gauntlet for a third of a mile. Driving forward into the narrow street, they came upon a barricade mounted with two guns. A musket ball struck Arnold in his left leg, pitching him forward into the snow. Trying to continue the charge in spite of a broken leg, he was finally led to a military surgeon a mile from the battle.

Morgan assumed command, and his men rushed to the portholes in the first battery and fired into them while others mounted ladders and quickly carried the battery. Greene, Bigelow, and Meigs soon joined Morgan at the head of his Virginians and a few Pennsylvanians, swelling their meager force to 200 Americans. They quickly pressed down a narrow lane toward the second barricade at the extremity of Sault au Matelot. Upon reaching the barricade, Greene made a heroic effort to carry it, but upon scaling its walls he was met with a wall of bayonets. The Americans were exposed to heavy fire from both sides of the narrow street. Unable to push forward or retreat, the attackers were quickly overpowered and forced to surrender. A few individuals managed to make their way back to their own lines, but Morgan and 425 other colonials were taken prisoner. Another 60 were killed outright.

The Campaign into Canada Crumbles

The fight for Quebec was over. Arnold and Montgomery’s attempt to seize Canada died during the howling snowstorm on December 31. Everything had conspired against its success. Arnold’s long trek through the wilderness and Montgomery’s delay at St. John’s placed their armies before Quebec ill-equipped to either breach the citadel’s walls or mount a siege. Their ensuing attack resulted in Montgomery’s death and Arnold’s wounding. Recuperating quickly, Arnold assumed command of the remnant army outside Quebec. Stubbornly attempting to maintain the siege, he began pulling his forces together, checking the flight of deserters, and imploring the lethargic Wooster, Montreal’s commander, to send as many men and equipment as he could spare. Wooster replied that he could send little help. This, along with the refusal of the New York regiment to reenlist, caused Arnold’s chances for a renewal of the conflict to disappear.

Meanwhile, Carleton bided his time safe inside the walls of Quebec, allowing the winter cold and sickness to further reduce the American force. General John Thomas replaced Wooster and assumed command of the Canadian expedition. Shortly after his arrival in May 1776, British ships sailed up the St. Lawrence, their decks crowded with the scarlet and white of the British Army and the blue and white of 2,000 German mercenaries. This eliminated any hope the Americans had of capturing Quebec. Thomas issued orders for a retreat toward Montreal. The colonial army began a slow withdrawal toward Richelieu, St. John’s, Ile aux Nois, Crown Point, and Ticonderoga.

At St. John’s, Brig. Gen. John Sullivan replaced Thomas, who had died of smallpox during the retreat. Sullivan briefly considered making a stand at Montreal, but decided against it. Arnold wrote to Schuyler, “The junction of the Canadians with the Colonies—an object which brought us into this country—is at an end. Let us quit then and secure our own country before it is too late. There will be more honor in making a safe retreat than hazarding a battle against such superiority which will doubtless be attended with the loss of our men and artillery. These arguments are not urged by fear for my personal safety. I am content to be the last man who quits the country.”

Arnold assumed charge of the rear guard and waited until the British army came into view before firing off one last pistol shot and joining the retreating soldiers in boats ferried south to Isle aux Noix. From there, the remnants of Montgomery’s and Arnold’s commands fell back to Crown Point. Strangely, Carleton broke off his pursuit and withdrew, leaving the shaky garrison at Ticonderoga in American hands. The ambitious Canadian campaign had ended in defeat, but once again the American forces had lived to fight another day.

The White House wasn’t opposed to the plan.

Far from some whiskey-fueled daydream, the Irish-American plan to invade Canada was carefully crafted for months by veteran Civil War officers, including the one-armed general Thomas William Sweeny. Although an attack on a foreign country with which the United States maintained peaceful relations ran afoul of American neutrality laws, the plan also had the tacit approval of the White House.

Indeed, President Andrew Johnson proved more than willing to let the Fenian Brotherhood twist the tail of the British lion as he sought to pressure Great Britain to pay reparations for the damage caused by Confederate warships, such as the CSS Alabama, that had been built in British ports. In addition, many Americans hoped Canada would become the next territory to be absorbed by the United States as it fulfilled its expansionist Manifest Destiny. The U.S. government sold surplus weapons to the Irish militants, and Johnson met personally with their leaders, reportedly giving them his implicit backing. The Irishmen were free to establish their own state in exile𠅌omplete with their own president, constitution, currency and capital in the heart of New York City.

War of 1812, Invasion of Canada.

The US States in the North did not support the Invasion, many of the active troops that participated in the campaign were from southern states. Several revolutionary war veterans from the Kings mountain campaign were active in the campaign such as Isaac Shelby.

Many of the war hawks in congress that pushed for war were slave owning politicians who feared Canada’s declaration of emancipation and their plans to create an Indian State was seen as a potential safe haven for run away slaves.

The drill of the US officers, soldiers was very poor prior to the war the politicians didn’t field their best generals. The best generals were those who had previous field experience, they chose men who were mostly administrators (the equivalent of placing Horatio Gates in charge of the Southern Army by Congress in 1780).

The campaign itself was flawed from the start and the objectives were not clear was Canada to be Annexed? Or was it to be considered liberated by British rule? The US annexation of Canada doesn’t seem likely because they simply didn’t have the troops to occupy the entire nation nor the navy to defend its ports. The US Military was also in poor supply of regular troops and artillery for sieges of fortified areas. Most offensive operations were conducted with Militia who were unreliable and often left the field.

You're laying down an awful lot of your own suppositions for someone who is looking for answers.

They're not suspicions just lots of observations from small reads, video's.

You should read Pierre Berton's books on the War of 1812. There is no evidence to suggest annexation was the aim - The U.S. didn't even have a standing army when the war was declared.

Those books are fantastic but put the sword to a lot of misconceptions on both sides.

Thanks, I'll def jump on that. I always hear that Annexation was an aim of the Americans, I could see that potentially being so in 1776 however in 1812 I don't thing it was realizable.

How do you think this relates to the failed Invasion of Québec in 1775?

Its worth noting in regard to item #3 that here on the Canadian side, we only had a small garrison of professional English troops, most of the numbers were made of militia (not to minimize the participation of native irregulars) who were likely of comparable quality to the US troops.

and to note the Canadians were able to out maneuver the Americans with very reliable Indian scouts. The Americans really did mimic the mistakes of the Quebec invasion of 1776. Over extended marches, shortness of supplies, theft of enemy merchandise and private property, failure to synch the navy with the movements of the army etc. The only really successful military campaign in Canada was in the French and Indian War when the armies of Wolf and Amherst converged on Montreal, York, and Quebec with the combined navy, land forces and militia. The French were completely overwhelmed.

It seems the Militia combined with a regular force is best suited for defensive positions. As far as offensive maneuvers militia are best used in guerrilla war tactics, such as how the Americans conducted themselves at concord and Lexington and in the South during the revolutionary war.

Almost more than half the American troops were milititia, very bad decision by Henry Dearborn and Hull.

CBC Ideas recently did a great show about the war of 1812. It seems like the US feels they won, Canada feels they beat the US, Britain feels it's hardly important but they won.

I love this College Originals skit on the War of 1812. I think it basically sums up what people in general know about it:

Americas objective at the onset of the war was the expulsion of Britain from North America as well as the capture of Canada and the cessation of British impressment of US sailors. A large majority of upper Canada consisted of American loyalists who moved up prior to and after the revolution. This lead the American brass to assume they could march on places like York(Toronto) and be hailed as liberators. Instead they razed the city and united a nation. Canada is still a country, Britain never left and the only reason they stopped impressment was Napoleons defeat and exile.

All in all I don't know how anyone could view it as a US victory. It was by and large a blunder of war on both sides and the only clear cut winners are the people of Canada who exist because Britain was able to defend against and repel superior forces.

See I'm from the US and it always seemed like we got the shit kicked out of us till the very end.

Canada did defeat the US the only claim the US has to victory in Canada were the few victories they had on America Soil at Thames, the second battle of Detroit and Plattsburgh.

The closest the US came to any sort of victory in Canada was in the Nigra offensive campaign, but once gain a lack of good leadership made the difference for America.

The way I've always seen it presented in America is that we won the sea war and got our asses kicked in the ground war up until the very end in New Orleans and that the war overall was basically a draw leaning towards a US victory.

The US States in the North did not support the Invasion, many of the active troops that participated in the campaign were from southern states. Several revolutionary war veterans from the Kings mountain campaign were active in the campaign such as Isaac Shelby.

This is not really true - rather than being based on regional or sectional lines, votes for the war tended to be along party lines - federalists opposed the war, democratic-republicans did not. Pennsylvania was one of the biggest supporters of the war, for example. New England federalists opposed the war, New England democratic-republicans were for it. While some D-R's opposed the war, all federalists did.

Many of the war hawks in congress that pushed for war were slave owning politicians who feared Canada’s declaration of emancipation and their plans to create an Indian State was seen as a potential safe haven for run away slaves.

What's your source for this statement? While I've heard support for Native Americans and a potential Native American state being among the reasons the US went to war, I've never heard that potential emancipation and a safe haven for runaway slaves factored into the war.

The campaign itself was flawed from the start and the objectives were not clear was Canada to be Annexed? Or was it to be considered liberated by British rule?

I don't think this is true - modern scholarship has settled quite firmly that Canada was a means to an end - a way to get Britain to the negotiation table where economic sanctions had backfired horribly, by cutting off a large supply of its food and timber.

Segunda Guerra Mundial

On September 9, 1939, eight days after Germany’s invasion of Poland, Canada’s Parliament voted to declare war on Germany, which the country did the next day. (Its separate declaration of war was a measure of the independence granted it in the 1931 Statute of Westminster in 1914 there had been no such independence and no separate declaration of war.) The vote was nearly unanimous, a result that rested on the assumption that there was to be a “limited liability” war effort that would consist primarily of supplying raw materials, foodstuffs, and munitions and the training of Commonwealth air crews, mainly for the Royal Air Force. Canadian men were to be actively discouraged from serving in the infantry, which was expected to take high casualties, and it was anticipated that few infantry units would be formed. If this plan were followed, King and other government leaders reasoned, conscription would be unnecessary. King and the leader of the Conservative opposition had both pledged themselves to a “no conscription” policy even before the war began.

The expulsion of the British from the Continent and the fall of France in the spring of 1940 totally changed the circumstances. Canada’s overseas allies had fallen or were in danger of doing so, and the country immediately concluded an agreement at Ogdensburg, New York, with the United States for the defense of North America. Moreover, Canada now stood in the forefront of the war. After Britain, it was (prior to the U.S. entry into the war in December 1941) the second most powerful of Germany’s adversaries. The emphasis on supply gave way to a focus on combat forces. King’s “no conscription” policy had been modified in 1940 when the government introduced conscription for home defense, but at the same time King renewed his pledge not to send conscripts overseas for “active” duty. In 1942 the King government called a national plebiscite asking Canadian voters to release it from that pledge nearly two-thirds of Canadian voters supported conscription, though in Quebec three-fourths opposed it. Thereafter the government enforced compulsory service for home defense, but King, fearing an Anglo-French cleavage, did not send conscripts overseas during the early years of the war, preferring to avoid such a move unless absolutely necessary.

Still, Canadians were deeply enmeshed in the war. Under increased pressure from military leaders to move Canadian troops into battle, two battalions were sent to help defend Hong Kong (then a British colony), but the results were disastrous, as the Japanese imperial forces swept to victory. An ill-planned and poorly executed raid on the German-occupied French port of Dieppe was attempted, largely by Canadian troops, in August 1942, with significant casualties. Lessons learned from the disaster, however, later proved useful during the planning for the Normandy (France) Invasion in 1944. What became known as the Battle of the Atlantic marked one of Canada’s largest commitments. Canadian escorts helped protect the convoys that traversed the Atlantic bringing supplies to Britain. Again Canada suffered many casualties, both in the naval service and in the merchant marine. Under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, Canadians flew in both Royal Canadian Air Force and combined Royal Air Force (RAF) squadrons from the Battle of Britain through the bombing campaigns over Germany to eventual victory. Aircrew losses were particularly heavy in the RAF Bomber Command.

At Normandy in June 1944, Canada was assigned one of the five invasion beaches. Casualties began to mount quickly as the offensive in France dragged on, and the Canadian army became strapped for infantry reinforcements. The Canadian army, which had been fighting in Sicily and Italy since July 1943, was crippled by particularly high infantry casualties in late summer and early fall 1944. King’s minister of national defense, J.L. Ralston, supported sending conscripts overseas and was forced to resign as a result. Ralston’s resignation precipitated a cabinet crisis, which was resolved in November 1944 when King relented and agreed to send conscripts to the front to reinforce the army’s infantry units.

Not only was Canada’s war effort in World War II far more extensive than that in World War I, but it also had a much more lasting impact on Canadian society. By the end of the war, more than 1,000,000 Canadians (about 50,000 of whom were women) had served in the three services. Although total casualties were lower than in the previous war, still some 42,000 were killed or died in service, and 54,400 were wounded. The domestic war effort was no less significant. Canada hosted, and paid much of the cost of, the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, which trained more than 100,000 Commonwealth airmen. Canadian factories turned out everything from rifles to Lancaster heavy bombers, and Canadian scientists, technicians, and engineers worked on advanced weapons technology, including the atomic bomb (for which Canada supplied the uranium ore). Canadian foods, direct cash contributions to Britain, and munitions for the Allies, including the Soviet Union, contributed to the overall war effort.

The government intervened in almost all aspects of Canadian life to regulate the war effort, ensure a smooth flow of troops and supplies, and curtail inflation. Agencies such as the Wartime Prices and Trade Board and the National War Labour Board represented a massive growth in the federal government, bringing a surge of government spending and a vast increase in the civil service. Toward the end of the war, the King government launched even further social welfare policies, introducing a major veterans’ benefits program, family allowances, farm price supports, compulsory collective bargaining, and a national housing program. It would undoubtedly have gone even further than it did in 1945 and 1946—a national health insurance plan was under consideration—but for the opposition of provincial governments, particularly Ontario and Quebec. Despite that opposition, however, the war produced a significant shift of power toward Ottawa. World War II had been a watershed in Canadian history, as the role of the federal government in engineering national economic growth had been considerably strengthened.

Conteúdo

United States President Election in 2012

The 59th quadrennial presidential election of the United States is held in November 3, 2020. Frank Joseph Roberts defeated Barack Obama and other candidates and became the President of the United States. He pursued more land for the United States.

Alaska Crisis

Soon after Frank Joseph Roberts became the POTUS, Alaska is filled with soldiers of the US Army, and multiple warships nearby. This caused suspicion of a possible invasion of Canada by the United States. In December 2012, Canada moved its troops to the Alaska border.

Início da guerra

On February 2, 2013, the United States forces in garrisoned Alaska broke the border and attacked the Yukon territories. Soon after the attack, the Commonwealth including the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and the Bahamas joined the Canadians and declared war on the United States. Russian territories near Alaska set up defenses and resupplied the Commonwealth forces. The Canadians took massive casualties and retreated to British Columbia and Northwest territories.

The Irish Invasions of Canada: Yes, the Irish really did Invade Canada – They Won Some Battles Too

The Irish have had a rough time in the era of modern history. They suffered from the awful potato famine and faced intense hostility when they came in droves to America. The British occupation of Ireland was also a tense subject, greatly exacerbated by the thought that British lack of aid during the potato famine was almost as bad as a full genocide against the Irish.

Many American Irish simply put their heads down and worked hard to find their place in America, but some were simply angry and wanted to do something. The Fenian Brotherhood was an Irish Republican group, largely based in New York City and Ireland, that bordered on a terrorist organization, though it did contain a large international faction aimed at simply giving humanitarian aid to Ireland.

One of their main goals was to free Ireland from British rule. Though technically not under orders from Ireland, the Fenians were a large contingent of Irish fighting on behalf of Ireland.

For the thousands of Fenian supporters in America, freeing their home island from British rule was a tough ask, seeing as it was across the Atlantic. But a massive British possession loomed just to the north. The idea was formed that the Fenian Brotherhood would form an armed invasion force to seize as large of a chunk of Canadian territory as they could. They could then use this as a bargaining chip, trading Irish independence for giving back their occupied territories of Canada.

The Irish Famine caused a lot of emigration as well as resentment towards the British whom the Irish thought could have helped more.

Before the large, planned attack, a group of about 700 Fenians invaded New Brunswick, but scattered very quickly at fast approaching British warships. A discouraging result for the Irish, but apparently not too much, for the other main attack would commence just two months later.

The plan was to cross the Niagara River between the Great Lakes of Erie and Ontario. The area was possibly defensible after it was secured and was able to be taken by surprise. Additionally, the US patrolling gunboat USS Michigan was sabotaged by crew loyal to the Fenian Brotherhood the morning of the invasion on June 1 st , allowing most of the Fenian invaders to get across in multiple barges.

A map of the raids in the heart of the Great Lakes region.

For such a bold attack it could be assumed that the Fenian Brotherhood had about 10,000 soldiers or more, considering their aspirations of invading Canada. Well, they probably had about 900, with a possible maximum of 1,500 men.

So, manpower was lacking, but firepower, command structure and experience were not. Many of the Fenian Brotherhood volunteers were veterans of the American Civil War. The war being very recent, they were skilled down to the individual level, being expert riflemen. They also had the ability to perform tactical maneuvers on command. The Irish also had plenty of weapons and apparently so much ammunition that they had to dump some in the river to lighten their load.

Once the USS Michigan was repaired, it was able to cut off the remaining Fenians and their supplies. Despite their position the Fenians across the river kept on marching, setting up an ambush for the soon to respond Canadian militia. The Fenian commander, John O’Neill, had extensive military experience and set up a trap to lure the Canadians to a ridge where the bulk of the Fenians were entrenched.

The Battle of Ridgeway.

The battle of Ridgeway started with the larger Canadian force pushing back the forward units of Fenian troops. This progressed according to the Fenian plan to lure the Canadians to their fortifications on the ridge. As the Canadians were pressing onward, however, their discipline absolutely fell apart. It seems that one unit formed a square formation fearing an ultimately nonexistent cavalry charge. When the order was reversed the unit fell apart and the line of advance wavered.

The Fenians noticed the wavering of the lines and decided to rally their forces and launched a bayonet charge that broke the Canadians and prompted a full withdrawal. The Canadians suffered about 22 dead and 37 wounded to the Fenian’s five dead and 16 wounded.

The Fenians knew that they couldn’t hold the town of Ridgeway and decided to take the lightly defended Fort Erie. Here, 79 Canadians made a brave stand against the hundreds of Fenian attackers. After some fierce fighting, the Fenians captured the better-defended town.

Things didn’t change too much, however, as several thousand men of the Canadian militia and British regulars were advancing towards the Fenians. Despite their successes, the Fenians were losing hope in their cause with a massive sense of impending doom. About half of O’Neil’s forces deserted, many making makeshift rafts to cross the river back to America.

In the face of sure defeat, the Fenians marched back to American soil, being apprehended by American troops just on the other side of the river. The Fenians banked on some US support or at least US recognition of the Irish holding lands in Canada, but they were mistaken. The Americans did indeed make little effort to stop the rallying of the Fenians and have been accused of giving some support. It seems that the US saw the earlier failed “invasion” and figured that the second one would have a similar outcome, so it wasn’t worth the expense to root out and apprehend the invaders.

Irish freedom was not just an idea limited to the Fenian movement, though they had some of the most aggressive and deadly tactics.

Despite the victories, the Irish invasion of Canada was a total failure, as no possessions could be held long enough to negotiate on behalf of Ireland. Despite these failures, many Fenians still held on to the idea of attacking Canada. The Fenian efforts redoubled after news that a Fenian made bomb was set off in London in an effort to break out a fellow Fenian. 120 people were injured and 12 killed by the blast. Aims for the radical Fenians seemed to shift from securing territory to simply causing enough problems to force negotiations.

This political cartoon paints a very unflattering image of the Fenians and their violent acts.

Several more raids were launched over the next several years all were utter failures. US treatment of the raiders was usually quite lenient and they often simply ferried them away from the Canadian border. Despite their best efforts, Fenian raids and bombing fostered British resentment against the Irish and greatly undermined peaceful Irish independence movements. The raids also unified the Canadian territories as the citizens and militia had to rely on themselves to defend against these attacks that could happen at any time. This sense of unity would lead to the formation of an independent Canada.

Invasion of Canada - History

On July 12, 1812, US forces under General Hull invaded Canada. The invasion was met with fierce opposition and American forces are forced to withdraw. By August 16, Hull surrendered Detroit to the British.

One of the main American goals of the war was to attack and capture Canada. The plan was to attack Canada in three places. That attack should have taken place simultaneously, but the American forces were not ready, so the western leg of that attack began first. General William Hull who had led Massachusetts's troops during the Revolutionary War led it. He was the governor of Michigan territory and as such the head of Michiganâ's territorial militia. Hull believed it was dangerous to enter Canada as long as the British controlled Lake Erie. Despite his concerns Hull went forward with his plan to march on Detroit and on to Canada.

Hull made his first mistake by sending the schooner Cuyahoga ahead on the Maumee River with some sick men and more importantly his correspondence. When the British captured it they became aware of Hulls plans.
On July 5th Hull and his soldiers arrived at Detroit. A week later Hull and his troops, (less two hundred Ohio militia member who refused to cross the border) enter Canada unopposed.

Hull headed south along the Detroit River. He attempted to lay siege to Fort Malden, but failed to capture it. At this point he began to fear that his supplies lines were too long. He sent a force of 150 to meet a supply train coming from Ohio. They were beaten back by Indian forces led by Tecumseh. Hull then sent a second larger force of 600 they to were attacked and forced back.

Meanwhile a worse setback was occurring on Mackinac Island. Lieutenant Porter Hanks commanded the Fort. His opponent was Captain Charles Robert who was the commander of the British fort of St Joseph. On July 16th he set off with 46 British regulars, 180 Canadian militia and 400 Indians to capture Fort Mackinac. Hanks had not known that a state of war existed between the United States and Great Britain. Faced with a much larger force then his own Hanks quickly surrendered to the superior British force.
As a result of the fall of Fort of Mackinac ordered the evacuation of Fort Dearborn. Captain Herald who marched out with 54 regulars, twelve militia nine women and 18 children commanded Fort Dearborn. A mile from the fort the column was attacked and surrendered. The Indians slaughtered two woman, 12 children and many of the soldiers.
Hull withdrew from Canadian territory and pleaded for reinforcements. That reinforcement coming from Ohio were unfortunately tied down on the Raisin River. The British brought to bear cannons on Fort Detroit and began an intermittent bombardment. After a British demand to surrender Hull agreed. The Northwest frontier was now unprotected. Thus ended the first American assault on Canada.

Avaliações da comunidade

When I was a college intern in Washington, D.C., I got into an argument with a student from Canada over who won the War of 1812. I, as a good and patriotic American, was perfectly aware that nós had won the War of 1812. She, as a good and patriotic Canadian, was equally adamant that that elas had won. It wasn&apost until later that I learned we had both been right. The U.S. claimed victory over Britain in the War of 1812, but Canada claimed victory over the U.S. because it successfully repulsed multi When I was a college intern in Washington, D.C., I got into an argument with a student from Canada over who won the War of 1812. I, as a good and patriotic American, was perfectly aware that nós had won the War of 1812. She, as a good and patriotic Canadian, was equally adamant that that elas had won. It wasn't until later that I learned we had both been right. The U.S. claimed victory over Britain in the War of 1812, but Canada claimed victory over the U.S. because it successfully repulsed multiple American attempts to invade and annex it.

The Invasion of Canada by Pierre Berton is a masterful narrative history of why that effort failed – and why Americans have all but forgotten it. He documents thoroughly the utter bumbling incompetence exhibited by both sides in the war, but especially by an American military force that was skeptical of non-democratic concepts such as chain of command and following orders and relied heavily for leadership on aging Revolutionary War heroes unwilling to take the risks necessary to successfully invade another nation.

As a result, the battles of 1812-13 along the Canadian border ranged from the farcical, as in Canada's bloodless capture of Mackinac Island and Detroit, to the needlessly horrific, as in the abominable atrocities committed by Americans against Native tribes followed by the natives' in-kind response in the Battle of Frenchtown. And all of it caused by a handful of "War Hawks" in the American Congress who blithely assumed war against Canada could be won in mere weeks and worked their will despite widespread opposition among the people and soldiers asked to fight it.

In many ways, Berton's account is an indictment of war in general. The War of 1812, as he shows, is a particularly egregious example of those things that make war so evil – the Americans declared war after Britain had capitulated to their demands (but hadn't heard the news yet, a situation that would reverse itself when the Battle of New Orleans was needlessly fought after the war's official end) rushed into battle without enough troops, supplies or popular support and managed to permanently alienate both native tribes and the previously friendly Canadian provinces through their arrogance and brutality. Breton in fact argues that if not for the American invasion, Canada would likely have drifted closer to the United States and eventually allowed itself to be annexed willingly. Instead, American hostility not only repelled Canada but actually hastened the creation of a founding national myth and sense of common purpose so important to nationhood.

Berton's account only covers the first year of fighting the American-Canadian frontier was a focus of the war until its end, but the tone was set by its first year, when even minimally competent American military leadership could have indeed conquered Canada with a minimum of blood shed. That did not happen, and Breton is unsparing in recounting the tragedy that was a needless front in a needless war.

[EDIT to add: This is indeed a work of narrative history Berton does his duty in describing troop movements and the strategy (or lack of it) conceived by the Great Men of the War, but he also delves deep into diaries and newspaper accounts to provide common touches of individual soldiers thrust into a conflict they barely understood.]

As a Canadian himself, Berton clearly brings a perspective to his writing, as we all do, but I never got the sense that he was interested in anything other than laying out the causes and effects of the battles over the border as clearly and fairly as possible. He succeeded with flying colors. This is an excellent book! . mais

I think that without question this is the finest history book I&aposve ever read.

The narrative thrill of McCullough or Shelby Foote, the insight of Ellis or Remini, Pierre Berton manages to tell you everything you need to know in half a page, dripping with excitement and insight, yet somehow leaving nothing out.

So what is this book about? The book covers the first amazing and turbulent year of the War of 1812, focusing on the engagements in the "Northwest", really meaning today&aposs I think that without question this is the finest history book I've ever read.

So what is this book about? The book covers the first amazing and turbulent year of the War of 1812, focusing on the engagements in the "Northwest", really meaning today's upper-Midwest: Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, New York, and adjacent portions of Southern Canada, called Upper Canada at the time. Readers will meet an amazing pantheon of figures, such as Tecumseh, Issac Brock, Winfield Scott, William Henry Harrison, and many others.

Honestly the book is wonderful enough that I'm unable to tell you much more than that if you consider yourself a fan of history at ALL, then you should consider this a book that you need to read as soon as possible. I mean it when I say I think this is the best history book I've ever read, and this comes from a very serious amateur historian. Excepcional! . mais