our marine, was the destruction of the new ship, and the capture of an
inconsiderable quantity of stores designed for her, together with the
Gloucester schooner, then lying a mere hulk, under repairs for a transport.
It may in this place be proper briefly to notice another assertion of the
Reviewer, respecting our marine--that the enemy commanded the waters of
Lake Champlain[44] with a flotilla, before the British Commander in Chief
had directed the construction of a single gun-boat to oppose them. That
this should have been the fact, will not appear at all remarkable, when it
is known that the waters of that Lake belong exclusively to the Americans,
who enjoyed the most abundant means and resources for fitting out a fleet,
from the number of vessels constantly navigating it for the purposes of
trade. It was only necessary to arm and equip some of the vessels of that
description, and their command of the water would be undisputed. At the
commencement of the war, and for some time afterwards, we neither did nor
could possess any force capable of meeting them; but that this subject was
not viewed with indifference by Sir George Prevost, notwithstanding the
variety of other and more important concerns which commanded his attention,
may be inferred from the fact, that in June, 1813, in less than twelve
months after the commencement of the war, our force of gun-boats on the
Richelieu river, communicating with Lake Champlain, was such, that in
conjunction with our troops at Isle aux Noix, they were sufficient for the
capture of two fine schooners of the enemy, each carrying 11 guns, and 45
men. To have attempted to create any other force, except gun-boats, for the
purpose of defending the Richelieu, would, when no offensive operations
were contemplated, have been an useless waste of those means which were
required and employed for the increase of our marine on the other Lakes.
These observations upon Sir George Prevost's conduct with respect to our
marine on the Lakes, may be concluded by a reference to the opinion of the
public bodies in Upper Canada, with regard to the exertions of the
Commander of the forces, in preserving our naval ascendancy on those
waters.
These documents afford a strong proof of the sentiments almost universally
entertained on this head, by persons most capable, from their knowledge of,
and interest in the subject, of appreciating the merits of Sir George
Prevost's exertions.
In the address of the House of Assembly of Upper Canada,[45] in answer to
the President's speech at the opening of the Provincial Parliament, 27th
February, 1813, they say, "We learn, with the highest satisfaction, that
the most vigorous measures have been adopted under the direction of the
Commander of the forces, and are now in operation, to strengthen the
Provincial Marine, and preserve the superiority of the Lakes so essential
to the prosperity of this Province." The same expressions occur in the
address of the Legislative Council, and in March following, on Sir George
Prevost's arrival in Upper Canada, the House of Assembly and town of York
addressed him in similar terms.
The campaign of 1813 opened, on the part of the Americans, with the attack
and capture of York. The squadron under Commander Chauncey employed on this
expedition, after landing part of the force at the Niagara frontier,
returned to Sackett's Harbour, from whence it again sailed towards the end
of May, with another strong force collected from that place and its
neighbourhood, for the purpose of uniting with the troops on the Niagara
frontier, in an attack upon Fort George. In this attack, which took place
on the 27th May, the overwhelming numbers of the enemy prevailed, and the
small but gallant band of about 1,500 men, under Brigadier-General
Vincent, which had, for more than two hours, opposed nearly 5,000 of the
Americans, after evacuating Fort George, spiking the guns, and destroying
the ammunition, retreated towards the head of the Lake, General Vincent
having first called in all the detachments from the different Posts on that
frontier.
The enemy, pursuing his advantages, pushed forwards a force of between
3,000 and 4,000 infantry and cavalry, with nine pieces of artillery, to
attack the position which General Vincent occupied at Burlington. Previous,
however, to their reaching that point, a well-concerted, daring, and
spirited attack was made upon their camp in the night, by a party of
General Vincent's force, and under his command, which proved completely
successful as a surprise, and Generals Winder and Chandler, the two senior
officers, together with 100 prisoners, and four field-pieces being taken,
the enemy, after destroying their stores and provisions, &c. precipitately
retreated, until they joined the main body of their army. While these
operations were proceeding, the most active measures were taking at
Kingston to fit out and equip a fleet which might be able to dispute with
the enemy the temporary ascendancy which they had gained on the Lake; but
whatever efforts might be made to construct vessels and prepare them for
service, it must be obvious that no advantage could be derived from any
number or description of vessels without officers and seamen. The only
reinforcement which up to this period, the end of April, Sir George Prevost
had been able to obtain from the Admiral commanding on the Halifax station,
consisted of the three lieutenants, and four petty officers, whose arrival
at Kingston has been already mentioned, and whose active services had very
much accelerated the equipment of our squadron before Sir James Yeo took
the command of it. Previous to the arrival of Sir George Prevost at that
place in May, his extreme anxiety respecting the naval force preparing on
both Lakes, had induced him, during the depth of winter, to proceed in the
month of February, from the Lower Province to Kingston, York, and Fort
George, where his presence must have essentially contributed to impart
increased activity to the preparations then making for the opening of the
next campaign. The zeal and energy thus displayed by him in his
indefatigable endeavours to promote the public service, although justly
appreciated by the inhabitants of both provinces, could not protect him
from the unfounded accusations of the Reviewer,[46] who informs his readers
that Sir George Prevost had excited the expectations of the Canadian
public, "that he had designed an attack upon Sackett's Harbour, where the
shipping was known to be very indifferently protected, by marching over the
ice, which was stronger at that time than had been known for many
years."--And that "the anxious inhabitants of the Provinces who had
witnessed his previous inactivity, with gloomy foreboding, were again
doomed to be disappointed." What the opinion of the inhabitants of the
Provinces was, with regard to Sir George Prevost's "_previous inactivity_,"
has clearly been shewn from the different addresses presented to him at the
period alluded to.
That Sackett's Harbour could at that time, or at any other period of the
winter, have been attacked with the smallest prospect of success, may be
confidently denied. So far from the shipping, which by the Reviewer's[47]
own showing, was a formidable squadron, commanded by an experienced
officer, and manned by more than 500 able seamen, being, as he has
asserted, indifferently protected, the enemy had constructed batteries for
their defence, and it was known that a very considerable force had been
assembled at that post, and in its neighbourhood, in order to be ready for
embarkation as soon as the season would permit the fleet to take the Lake.
To have attempted with the small force which then garrisoned Kingston, and
which was scarcely sufficient for its defence, an expedition against an
enemy's position, capable of a determined resistance, when it is considered
that the troops would have been obliged to march several miles over the ice
before they could reach the American territory, from whence they would
still have been 15 miles distant from the object of their attack, and
exposed during the whole of their approach to the concealed fire of the
enemy's troops in the woods, would have been, under the circumstances in
which Sir George Prevost was placed, with regard to his resources for
defending Kingston, the Key, as it has been termed, to the Lower Province,
little short of madness. Nothing but a determination to attach blame to the
conduct of Sir George Prevost could have induced the Reviewer to hazard so
groundless and unmilitary a stricture. That Sir George was alive to the
importance of attacking this place, and of destroying the means there
possessed by the enemy for increasing their marine, and for carrying on
from thence their offensive operations, will appear evident from the
measure which will be immediately adverted to, and which has drawn upon the
Commander of the forces the acrimonious censure of the Reviewer.
In December, 1812, Sir George Prevost, aware of the importance of
strengthening himself against the threatened attempts upon the Canadas, in
the interval which would elapse before any reinforcements could by
possibility arrive from Europe, had directed Lieutenant-General Sir John
Sherbrooke, and Major-General Smyth, to make arrangements for forwarding to
him, during the winter, by land, the 104th regiment, then in New Brunswick.
This arduous march, which had not before been attempted, and which was
thought extremely hazardous, if not altogether impracticable, was effected
in the month of March without the loss of a single man, and by the end of
April six companies of that regiment arrived at Kingston. This accession to
the strength of that garrison enabled Sir George Prevost, who, as already
stated, reached Kingston with Sir James Yeo about the middle of May, to
avail himself of the opportunity afforded by the sailing of the American
fleet for the head of the Lake, to attempt a diversion in favour of the
points threatened by the enemy on the Niagara frontier. The expedition
against Sackett's Harbour was accordingly resolved upon, the moment the
absence of the enemy's squadron was ascertained. The circumstances which
attended this expedition, have been misrepresented in the most
extraordinary manner by the Quarterly Reviewer,[48] who, instead of
ascribing the failure of the enterprise to its real and natural causes, as
given in the official report of Colonel Baynes,[49] and which will now be
more particularly detailed, has not scrupled to attribute that failure to
the indecision and misconduct of the Commander of the forces. As the whole
force, which could be mustered for this service, hardly exceeded 700 men,
consisting of the greater part of the garrison of Kingston, it must be
obvious that means so inadequate could justify an attempt to carry
Sackett's Harbour only by surprise. This, in fact, was the sole object in
view; and the troops being embarked, together with two field-pieces, on
board of our squadron, sailed in the evening of the 27th May, under the
immediate command of Colonel, now Major-General Baynes. Sanguine hopes were
entertained of teaching the enemy's post in the course of the night, when
the surprise would have been complete, and our success infallible; but
owing to light and baffling winds, it was not until between 10 and 11
o'clock on the following morning, the 28th, that our fleet was able to
approach within 12 or 15 miles of Sackett's Harbour. Previously to this,
and as soon as our squadron had been discovered from the port, alarm-guns
had been fired, and boats were seen filled with armed men, continually
passing down the shores of the Lake, from Oswego towards Sackett's Harbour,
to assist in its defence. In the mean time, the troops on board the fleet
were held in readiness for landing in the boats, as soon as the vessels
should have approached sufficiently near to the shore for that purpose, as
well as for insuring their co-operation in the attack. At this period,
unfortunately, the wind, which had been rather fair, though light,
altogether failed, and shortly afterwards the breeze came almost
immediately from the point which the fleet was endeavouring to approach. To
have attempted a landing in boats, at the distance of fifteen miles from
the object of attack, would have been a most tedious and hazardous
undertaking, exposed, as the men must have been, to the fire of musketry
and field-pieces from the shore, and to the direct _enfilade_ of all the
heavy cannon in the enemy's forts and batteries. The day was too far
advanced to leave any hope of completing the service before dark; and
without the efficient co-operation of the fleet, which, from the state of
the wind, could not be obtained, the most gallant exertions of the troops,
as was afterwards proved, would have been ineffectual. From these
circumstances, it was the unanimous opinion of the principal officers of
the expedition under Colonel Baynes, who, together with Sir James Yeo, had
been consulted by him as to the expediency of persevering in the
enterprise, that the attempt should be abandoned, and orders were
accordingly given for the return of the squadron to Kingston. The incident
of the surrender of the cavalry officer and his party, which is stated by
the Reviewer with his usual incorrectness, did certainly lead to the
determination, which was subsequently taken, of persisting in the
expedition; but it was the information obtained from those persons, with
regard to the force of the enemy, and their means of defence, which
principally influenced that determination. It appearing probable, from the
state of the wind, which towards evening again became favourable for
approaching Sackett's Harbour, that the men might be brought under cover of
the night to the point of attack, in which they would be supported by the
active co-operation of the fleet, it was resolved to make the attack at
day-break the following morning. In order to favour the belief that we had
abandoned the attempt, the ships' heads were kept towards Kingston until
the evening commenced, when the squadron stood in for the shore. The troops
were in the boats at ten o'clock, and confident hopes were indulged that,
on the approach to the landing at day-break, they would be assisted by the
artillery, and receive the effectual support and co-operation of the fleet,
which was judged most essential to the success of the undertaking. The
landing took place as was intended, nearly at day-break; and, considering
the local impediments, was effected in a style highly creditable to the
military skill of Colonel Baynes. Notwithstanding the want of our
artillery, which being on board of a schooner, towed by the boats of the
squadron, was still at a considerable distance, and the state of the wind,
which prevented the squadron from approaching the shore, our troops, after
landing and taking possession of one of their field-pieces and a tumbril,
had, by a spirited advance, driven the enemy before them, at the point of
the bayonet, through the woods, which were most obstinately maintained by
them, and had forced them to retire towards their works and loop-holed
barracks. But these works were found to be of such strength, as to render
it next to impossible for our small force, unprovided with heavy cannon, to
make any impression upon them. The men had been now engaged for several
hours, and had sustained a considerable loss. It was at this period that
Sir George Prevost, who had landed shortly after the troops, and who had
followed their course and progress, came up with the main body engaged with
the enemy; and it was then that he received from the officer commanding the
expedition, the report of the manner in which the enemy had been driven
towards their works and loop-holed barracks, and of the difficulty, if not
impossibility, of forcing them without the aid of our artillery and the
co-operation of our fleet. The former, with all the exertions made in
towing the schooner, had not been landed; and the latter, from the state of
the wind, could not approach sufficiently near for their guns to bear upon
the enemy's batteries.
The Commander of the forces then, for the first time, interfered, so as to
give any orders respecting the expedition. Though there was scarcely a hope
of success, yet he determined not to abandon the enterprise whilst a
possibility of attaining his object remained. He accordingly directed
Colonel Baynes to concentrate his scattered force, and to advance upon the
enemy, who were posted in considerable numbers in front of and behind their
loop-holed barracks. Not more than from 300 to 400 men could be assembled
for this last attack. It was, however, made by this small band with
intrepid gallantry. The enemy, though superior in numbers, were driven from
their position, and forced to take shelter in the town; but in the further
attempt to approach the works, our troops were met by such a galling and
destructive fire of grape and musketry, both in front and flank, that they
were compelled to abandon a contest to which their numbers were so unequal.
The force of the enemy, at this period, consisted, by their own
acknowledgment, exclusive of their killed and wounded, of upwards of 1,100
men, including 142 artillerymen. They were strongly posted in Fort
Tompkins, armed with heavy guns, and in their block-houses and loop-holed
barracks, the very situation which renders the youngest American recruit (a
marksman from his youth), more than a match for the most experienced
veteran. Our force was reduced to nearly one-third of its effective
strength from the casualties of the field, and from the absence of those
who had withdrawn to the rear with the wounded and prisoners. We possessed
not a single field-piece, the artillery not having yet been landed. Colonel
Young had retired from exhaustion, in consequence of previous illness. All
the other field-officers, one excepted, were wounded, together with most of
the captains and subalterns. Captain Mulcaster commanding the gun-boat,
made every exertion in his power; but there was no hope of assistance from
the fleet, in consequence of the state of the wind. Under such
circumstances, that so small a band, exhausted by previous exertion, should
have attacked and carried Fort Tompkins, the block-houses, and the
remaining loop-holed barracks of the enemy, so numerously defended as they
were, might probably be expected by such experienced warriors as the
Quarterly Reviewer, and those upon whose authority he relies; but it was
apparent to every officer and man who was present, that success was
impossible. Such being the conviction of the Commander of the forces, who
had witnessed with feelings of poignant regret the last gallant though
unavailing exertions of his troops, he reluctantly ordered their
re-embarkation, which was effected in the most perfect order, and without
the slightest precipitation, the enemy not attempting to offer the least
molestation. This expedition, though certainly attended with a considerable
loss on our part, was not unproductive of advantage to us, or of damage and
serious inconvenience to our adversaries. Their apprehensions of the result
of the last attack, ignorant as they were of the trifling force by which it
was made, induced them to set fire to their new ship and naval arsenal; and
although, afterwards, when their fear subsided, from a more perfect
knowledge of the state of our force, they succeeded in extinguishing the
fire on board the ship, before it had got to any height, yet, by their own
acknowledgment, they lost their arsenal, with a large quantity of valuable
stores; while one field-piece, and upwards of 200 prisoners were brought
away, together with some camp-equipage, and another field-piece was
rendered useless. Their loss, also, in killed and wounded was, by their own
admission, upwards of 150 men. From this detail of facts, to the truth of
which there are abundant living witnesses to vouch, it must be obvious
that the main object of the expedition failed principally from the
smallness of our numbers, compared with the superior force of the enemy;
from the want of our artillery, which could not be landed in time; and
particularly from the little assistance which, from the state of the wind,
the squadron could afford in taking off the fire of the forts. So far from
nearly _two days_ being lost, as the Reviewer has stated,[50] it is
notorious to every person who was employed in that expedition, that the
fleet sailed on the evening of the 27th May from Kingston, and did not
arrive at Sackett's Harbour until the morning of the 28th, when the
intended attack was prevented solely by the impossibility of approaching
the shore from the state of the wind, and that it did in fact take place on
the following morning, the 29th, within 24 hours after the fleet had
appeared off the place. It is a fact equally well known to every person
engaged in this enterprise, that Sir George Prevost did not take the
personal command of it, in the sense in which the Reviewer[51] would have
it understood. That he accompanied the expedition was never denied, or
attempted to be concealed. His zealous and anxious feelings prompted him to
that measure, to prevent any delay in the contemplated service, should a
reference to him become necessary. It is freely admitted, that when
present he could not divest himself of his authority, or responsibility as
Commander of the forces. But independently of its being contrary to all
military usage, for the Governor in Chief and Commander of the forces in
British North America, to assume the immediate command[52] of so
inconsiderable a force, no instance of his interference took place until
the period of the last attack, which certainly produced the greatest damage
that the enemy sustained. The order to retreat was neither precipitate,[53]
nor one which the gallant officers "believed with difficulty."[54] They
were all convinced, not excepting the naval commander, Sir James Yeo, that
it was impossible longer to contend with any prospect of success, and with
our diminished means, against the superior numbers and resources of the
enemy. It may indeed be confidently asserted, in direct opposition to the
Reviewer's statement, that although "the troops withdrew to their boats in
disappointment," at their not having been able to accomplish their object,
they felt no disgrace in retiring from a contest which they had so long and
so bravely supported; nor did either officers or men experience any
indignation or shame at a retreat which, after the most gallant, though
unavailing exertions, they knew to be indispensable for their own
preservation. It may here be observed, that the situation of our troops at
the time of the retreat was most critical. At that very period, a
reinforcement of 600 men, under Colonel Tuttle, reached Sackett's Harbour.
With the overwhelming superiority which this accession to their force gave
the enemy, it is obvious that with very moderate pretensions to either
skill or enterprise, they might have opposed most formidable obstacles to
our re-embarkation. A further perseverance in the attack on our part, or
the least delay in the retreat, would probably have ended in the capture or
destruction of the whole of our troops. Fortunately, the coolness and
deliberation with which that measure was executed, served to deceive the
enemy with regard to our numbers and losses; and the re-embarkation being
effected without opposition, the troops returned the same day to Kingston
with the field-piece, camp-equipage, and prisoners which they had taken.
On the following morning the American squadron, which had been recalled
from the head of the Lake to the assistance of Sackett's Harbour, appeared
off Kingston, and it was a most fortunate circumstance that they did not
fall in with our fleet, encumbered as it was with troops and wounded men.
One material advantage immediately accrued from this expedition, by the
recal of the enemy's fleet to Sackett's Harbour. Sir George Prevost lost
not a moment in availing himself of the opportunity of their being in port,
to embark the 49th regiment on board the squadron, and to despatch it to
the head of the Lake to reinforce Brigadier-General Vincent, who was then
hard pressed by the enemy, and to whose small force that regiment proved an
important accession of strength at a very critical period. Sir James Yeo
accordingly sailed with, and safely landed them, and from that time our
full equality at least, if not our ascendancy, was established on Lake
Ontario.
In reviewing the events that took place during the campaign of 1813, it
will be necessary to notice the operations on the Detroit frontier, and on
Lake Erie, more especially as the Commander of the forces has been accused
of neglecting the representations of Colonel Procter, who commanded in
that quarter.
The battle of Frenchtown, in which the Americans were totally defeated, and
their General captured, was highly creditable to the talents of Colonel
Procter, who certainly, until the retreat from Amherstburgh, was entitled
to the reputation of a zealous and active officer.