QUEBEC.
General Carleton, seeing that Montgomery's whole force was retained
idle before St. John's, began to hope that the winter would come to
his assistance before the invaders had made any serious progress.
Unfortunately he had not reckoned on the utter incapacity of the officer
in command of Fort Chamblée. Major Stopford of the Seventh Regiment had
160 men and a few artillerymen, and the fort was strong and well
provided with provisions. American spies had found the inhabitants
around the place favorable to the Americans. Major Brown was sent down
by Montgomery with a small detachment, and, being joined by the
inhabitants, sat down before the fort. They had only two six-pounders,
and could have effected nothing had the fort been commanded by a man of
bravery and resources. Such was not the character of its commander, who,
after a siege of only a day and a half, surrendered the place with all
its stores, which were of inestimable value to the invaders, who were
upon the edge of giving up the siege of the fort; their ammunition being
entirely exhausted; but the six tons of gunpowder, the seventeen cannon,
mortars, and muskets which fell into their hands enabled them to carry
on the siege of St. John's with renewed vigor. There was no excuse
whatever for the conduct of Major Stopford in allowing these stores to
fall into the hands of the Americans; as, even had he not possessed the
courage to defend the fort, he might, before surrendering, have thrown
the whole of the ammunition into the river, upon which there was a safe
sally-port, where he could have carried on the operation entirely
unmolested by the enemy. The colors of the Seventh Regiment were
captured and sent to Congress as the first trophy of the war.
The siege of St. John's was now pushed on by Montgomery with vigor.
Colonel Maclean, with 800 Indians and Canadians, attempted to relieve
it, crossing the St. Lawrence in small boats. On nearing the other bank,
they were received by so heavy a fire by the Americans posted there that
they were obliged to retire without effecting a landing. Provisions and
ammunition were now running short in St. John's, there was no hope
whatever of relief from the outside, and the officer commanding was
therefore obliged to surrender on November 14, after a gallant defense.
As there were only some fifty or sixty regulars in Montreal, General
Carleton was unable to defend that town, and, upon the news of the fall
of St. John's, he at once retired to Quebec, and Montreal was occupied
by the Americans. In the meantime another expedition had been dispatched
by the Americans under Arnold. This officer, with 1500 men, had started
for Quebec from a point 130 miles north of Boston. Suffering enormous
fatigue and hardship, the force made its way up the river; past rapids,
cataracts, and through swamps they dragged and carried their boats and
stores. They followed the bed of the river up to its source, and then,
crossing the watershed, descended the Chaudière and Duloup rivers on to
the St. Lawrence, within a few miles of Quebec.
This was a wonderful march--one scarcely equaled in the annals of
military history. Crossing the St. Lawrence in canoes, Arnold encamped
with his little force upon the heights of Abraham. Such a daring
attempt could not have been undertaken had not the Americans been aware
of the extreme weakness of the garrison at Quebec, which consisted only
of 50 men of the Seventh Regiment, 240 of the Canadian militia, a
battalion of seamen from the ships-of-war, under the command of Captain
Hamilton of the _Lizard_, 250 strong, and the colonial volunteers,
under Colonel Maclean.
The fortifications were in a ruinous condition. It was fortunate that
Colonel Maclean, who had come from the Sorrel, upon the surrender of St.
John's, by forced marches, arrived on the very day on which Arnold
appeared before the city. Directly he arrived Arnold attacked the city
at the gate of St. Louis, but was sharply repulsed. He then desisted
from active operations and awaited the arrival of Montgomery, who was
marching down from Montreal. The flotilla in which Carleton was
descending the river was attacked by the Americans, who came down the
Sorrel, and was captured, with all the troops and military stores which
it was bringing down. General Carleton himself escaped in a small boat
under cover of night, and reached Quebec.
Captain Wilson's company had been attached to the command of Colonel
Maclean, and with it arrived in Quebec in safety.
Upon the arrival of Montgomery with his army the city was summoned to
surrender. A strong party in the town were favorable to the invaders,
but General Carleton treated the summons with contempt, and turned
all the inhabitants who refused to join in the defense of the city
outside the town.
The winter had now set in in earnest, and the difficulties of the
besiegers were great. Arnold's force had been much weakened by the
hardships that they had undergone, Montgomery's by desertions; the
batteries which they erected were overpowered by the fire of the
defenders, and the siege made no progress whatever. The men became
more and more disaffected and mutinous. Many of them had nearly served
the time for which they had enlisted, and Montgomery feared that they
would leave him when their engagement came to an end. He in vain
tempted the besieged to make a sally. Carleton was so certain that
success would come by waiting that he refused to allow himself to
hazard it by a sortie.
The weather was fighting for him, and the besiegers had before them only
the alternatives of taking the place by storm or abandoning the siege
altogether. They resolved upon a storm. It was to take place at daybreak
on December 31. Montgomery determined to make four attacks--two false
and two real ones. Colonel James Livingstone, with 200 Canadians, was to
appear before St. John's gate, and a party under Colonel Brown were to
feign a movement against the upper town, and from high ground there were
to send up rockets as the signal for the real attacks to commence--that
led by Montgomery from the south and that under Arnold from the
northwest--both against the lower town.
The false attacks were made too soon, the rockets being fired half an
hour before the main columns reached their place of attack. The British
were not deceived; but, judging these attacks to be feints, left but a
small party to oppose them and marched the bulk of their forces down
toward the lower town. Their assistance, however, came too late, for,
before they arrived, the fate of the attack was already decided. The
Americans advanced under circumstances of great difficulty. A furious
wind, with cutting hail, blew in their faces; the ground was slippery
and covered with snow.
Half an hour before the English supports arrived on the spot Montgomery,
with his leading company, reached the first barricade, which was
undefended; passing through this, they pressed on toward the next. The
road leading to it was only wide enough for five or six persons abreast.
On one side was the river, on the other a steep cliff; in front was a
log hut with loop-holes for musketry, and a battery of two
three-pounders. It was held by a party of 30 Canadians and 8 militiamen
under John Coffin, with 9 sailors under Bairnsfeather, the captain of
the transport, to work the guns. Montgomery, with 60 men, pushed on at a
run to carry the battery; but, when within fifty yards Bairnsfeather
discharged his pieces, which were loaded with grape-shot, with deadly
aim. Montgomery, his aid-de-camp Macpherson, Lieutenant Cheeseman, and
10 others fell dead at the first discharge, and with them the soul of
the expedition fled. The remaining officers endeavored to get the men to
advance, but none would do so, and they fell back without losing another
man. So completely cowed were they that they would not even carry off
the bodies of their general and his companions. These were brought into
Quebec next day and buried with the honors of war by the garrison.
The force under Arnold was far stronger than that under Montgomery. The
Canadian guard appointed to defend the first barrier fled at the
approach, but the small body of sailors fought bravely and were all
killed or wounded. Arnold was shot through the leg and disabled. Morgan,
who commanded the advanced companies, led his men on and carried the
second barrier after an obstinate resistance. They were attacking the
third when Maclean with his men from the upper town arrived. The British
then took the offensive, and drove the enemy back, and a party, going
round, fell upon their rear. Fifty were killed in Arnold's column, 400
taken prisoners, and the rest retreated in extreme disorder.
Thus ended the assault upon Quebec--an assault which was all but
hopeless from the first, but in which Americans showed but little valor
and determination. In fact, throughout the war, it may be said that the
Americans, when fighting on the defensive behind trees and
intrenchments, fought stubbornly; but that they were feeble in attack
and wholly incapable of standing against British troops in the open.
It would now have been easy for Carleton to have sallied out and taken
the offensive, but he preferred holding Quebec quietly. He might have
easily driven the Americans from their position before the walls; but,
with the handful of troops under his orders, he could have done nothing
toward carrying on a serious campaign in the open.
Until spring came, and the rivers were opened, no re-enforcements could
reach him from England, while the Americans could send any number of
troops into Canada. Carleton, therefore, preferred to wait quietly
within the walls of Quebec, allowing the winter, hardships, and disunion
to work their natural effects upon the invaders.
Arnold sent to Washington to demand 10,000 more troops, with siege
artillery. Several regiments were sent forward, but artillery could not
be spared. Eight regiments entered Canada, but they found that, instead
of meeting, as they had expected, an enthusiastic reception from the
inhabitants, the population was now hostile to them. The exactions of
the invading army had been great, and the feeling in favor of the
English was now all but universal.
On May 5 two frigates and a sloop-of-war made their way up the river
to Quebec. The Americans endeavored to embark their sick and
artillery above the town. Re-enforced by the marines, the garrison
sallied out and attacked the enemy, who fled with precipitation,
leaving their provisions, cannon, five hundred muskets, and two
hundred sick behind them. The British pursued them until they reached
the mouth of the Sorrel.
The arrival of the fleet from England brought news of what had taken
place since Captain Wilson's company had marched from Boston, a short
time after the battle of Bunker's Hill. Immediately after the battle the
colonists had sent two deputies, Penn and Lee, with a petition to
Parliament for the restoration of peace. This petition was supported by
a strong body in Parliament. The majority, however, argued that, from
the conduct of the Americans, it was clear that they aimed at
unconditional, unqualified, and total independence. In all their
proceedings they had behaved as if entirely separated from Great
Britain. Their professions and petition breathed peace and moderation;
their actions and preparations denoted war and defiance; every attempt
that could be made to soften their hostility had been in vain; their
obstinacy was inflexible; and the more England had given in to their
wishes, the more insolent and overbearing had their demands become. The
stamp tax had been repealed, but their ill will had grown rather than
abated. The taxations on imports had been entirely taken off save on one
small item; but, rather than pay this, they had accumulated arms and
ammunition, seized cannon belonging to the king, and everywhere prepared
for armed resistance. Only two alternatives remained for the British
nation to adopt--either to coerce the colonists to submission or to
grant them their entire independence.
These arguments were well founded. The concessions which had been made
had but encouraged the colonists to demand more. No good whatever would
have come from entering into negotiation; there remained but the two
alternatives. It would have been far better had Parliament, instead of
deciding on coercion, withdrawn altogether from the colonies, for
although hitherto the Americans had shown no great fighting qualities,
it was clear that so small an army as England could spare could not
permanently keep down so vast a country if the people were determined
upon independence. They might win every battle,--might overpower every
considerable force gathered against them,--but they could only enforce
the king's authority over a mere fractional portion of so great an area.
England, however, was unaccustomed to defeat; her spirit in those days
was proud and high; and by a large majority Parliament voted for the
continuance of the war. The next step taken was one unworthy of the
country. It tended still further to embitter the war, and it added to
the strength of the party in favor of the colonists at home. Attempts
were made by the government to obtain the services of large numbers of
foreign troops. Negotiations were entered into with Russia, Holland,
Hesse, and other countries. Most of these proved ineffectual, but a
considerable number of troops was obtained from Hesse.
The news of these proceedings excited the Americans to renewed efforts.
The force under Washington was strengthened, and he took possession of
Dorchester Heights, commanding the town of Boston. A heavy cannonade
was opened on the city. The British guns answered it, but the American
position gave them an immense advantage. General Howe, who was in
command, at first thought of attempting to storm the heights, but the
tremendous loss sustained at the battle of Bunker's Hill deterred him
from the undertaking. His supineness during the past four months had
virtually lost the American colonies to England. He had under his
command 8000 troops, who could have routed, with ease, the
undisciplined levies of Washington. Instead of leading his men out
against the enemy, he had suffered them to be cooped up for months in
the city, and had failed to take possession of the various heights
commanding the town. Had he done this Boston might have resisted a
force many times as strong as that which advanced against it, and there
was now nothing left for the English but to storm the heights with
enormous loss or to evacuate the city.
The first was the alternative which had been chosen when the Americans
seized Bunker's Hill; the second was that which was now adopted.
Having adopted this resolution, Howe carried it out in a manner which
would in itself be sufficient to condemn him as a military leader.
Nothing was done to destroy the vast stores of arms and ammunition, and
two hundred and fifty pieces of cannon were left for the colonists to
use against England. No steps were taken to warn ships arriving from
England of the surrender of the town. The consequence was that, in
addition to the vast amount of stores captured in the town, numbers of
the British storeships fell into the hands of the Americans--among them
a vessel which, in addition to carbines, bayonets, gun-carriages, and
other stores, had on board more than seventy tons of powder, while
Washington's whole stock was all but exhausted.
But worse even than this hurried and unnecessary abandonment of vast
munitions of war was the desertion of the loyalist population. Boston
was full of loyalists, among whom were many of the wealthier and
better-born persons in the colony, who, from the commencement of the
troubles had left their homes, their fortunes, and their families to
rally round the standard of their sovereign. The very least that Howe
could have done for these loyal men would have been to have entered into
some terms of capitulation with Washington, whereby they might have been
permitted to depart to their homes and to the enjoyment of their
property. Nothing of the sort was attempted, and the only choice offered
to a loyalist was to remain in the town, exposed to certain insult and
ill treatment, perhaps to death, at the hands of the rebels, or to leave
in the transports for England or Halifax and to be landed here penniless
and starving.
Howe's conduct in this was on a piece with his behavior throughout the
campaign; but he was little, if at all, inferior to the other generals,
who vied with each other in incapacity and folly. Never in the whole
history of England were her troops led by men so inefficient, so
sluggish, and so incapable as those who commanded her armies in the
American Revolutionary War.
The first ships from England which arrived at Quebec were followed, a
few days later, by the _Niger_ and _Triton_, convoy transports, with
troops. The British now took the offensive in earnest. From the west
Captain Forster marched from Detroit, with 40 men of the Eighth
Regiment, 100 Canadians, and some Indians, against a pass called the
Cedars, situated fifteen leagues above Montreal. This was held by 400
men with two cannon. As soon as the British force opened fire the
Americans surrendered. The following day Forster's force, advancing,
came upon 140 men under Major Sherbourne, who were marching to
re-enforce the garrison at the Cedars. These were forced to retreat and
100 of them taken prisoners.
Arnold, with 700 men, advanced against the British force. The British
officer, fearing that in case of an attack the Indians with him might
massacre the prisoners, released the whole of them, 474 in number, under
the promise that an equal number of British prisoners should be
returned. This engagement was shamefully broken by the Americans, who
raised a number of frivolous excuses, among others that prisoners taken
by the British were ill treated--an accusation which excited the
indignation of the prisoners themselves, some of whom wrote to members
of Congress, stating that nothing could be kinder or more courteous than
the treatment which they received.
While Forster was advancing toward Montreal from the west, Carleton
was moving up against the Americans at Sorrel from Quebec. At the
death of Montgomery, Wooster had taken the command of the main
American force. He had been succeeded by Thompson, but the latter
dying of smallpox, Sullivan took his place. The new commander
determined to take the offensive against the English, and dispatched a
force of about 2000 men to attack General Fraser, who held a post at a
place called Three Rivers.
A Canadian peasant brought news to General Fraser of the approach of the
Americans, and as he had received re-enforcements from below he
determined to anticipate their attack. His movements were completely
successful. Some of the Americans fought well, but the rest dispersed
with but little resistance. Two hundred were killed and 150 taken
prisoners. The rest succeeded in returning to Sorrel.
The main body of the British army now came up the river in their ships,
and, as they approached Sorrel, Sullivan broke up his camp and
retreated. At the same time Arnold, who commanded at Montreal, evacuated
the town and joined Sullivan's army at St. John's.
Had the English pushed forward with any energy the whole of the American
army of invasion would have fallen into their hands. They were
completely broken in spirits, suffering terribly from sickness, and were
wholly incapable of making any defense. Burgoyne, who commanded the
advance of the English army, moved forward very slowly, and the
Americans were enabled to take to their boats and cross, first to
Isle-aux-Noix and then to Crown Point. An American historian, who saw
them after they landed, says: "At the sight of so much privation and
distress I wept until I had no more power to weep. I did not look into a
tent or hut in which I did not find either a dead or dying man. Of about
5000 men full half were invalids. In little more than two months they
had lost by desertion and death more than 5000 men."
Captain Wilson and his company were not present with the advance of the
British troops. General Howe, after evacuating Boston, had sailed with
his army to Halifax, there to wait until a large body of re-enforcements
should be sent in the spring from England. General Carleton had, in his
dispatches, mentioned favorably the services which the little company of
loyalists from Boston had performed, and Lord Howe wrote requesting that
the company should be sent down by ship to Halifax, as he was about to
sail from New York to undertake operations on a large scale, and should
be glad to have with him a body of men accustomed to scouting and
acquainted with the country. Accordingly, the company was embarked in a
transport and reached Halifax early in June. On the 11th they sailed
with the army and arrived at Sandy Hook on the 29th. On July 3 the army
landed on Staten Island, opposite Long Island, and soon afterward Lord
Howe, brother of General Howe, arrived with the main army from England,
raising the total force to nearly 30,000 men. It consisted of two
battalions of light infantry, two of grenadiers, the Fourth, Fifth,
Tenth, Seventeenth, Twenty-second, Twenty-third, Twenty-seventh,
Thirty-fifth, Thirty-eighth, Fortieth, Forty-second, Forty-third,
Forty-fourth, Forty-fifth, Forty-ninth, Fifty-second, Fifty-fifth,
Sixty-third, and Sixty-fourth regiments of foot, part of the Forty-sixth
and Seventy-first regiments, and the Seventeenth Regiment of light
dragoons. There were, besides, two battalions of volunteers from New
York, each 1000 strong. Had this force arrived, as it should have done,
three months earlier, it might have achieved great things; but the delay
had enabled the Americans to make extensive preparations to meet the
coming storm.
Lord Howe brought with him a communication from Parliament, giving him
and his brother full power to treat with the Americans on any terms
which they might think fit. Upon his arrival Lord Howe addressed a
letter to Dr. Franklin, informing him of the nature of his
communication, expressing hopes that he would find in America the same
disposition for peace that he brought with him, and requesting his aid
to accomplish the desired end. Dr. Franklin, in answer, informed Lord
Howe that, "prior to the consideration of any proposition for friendship
or peace, it would be required that Great Britain should acknowledge the
independence of America, should defray the expense of the war, and
indemnify, the colonists for all damages committed."
After such a reply as this Lord Howe had no alternative but to commence
hostilities, which he did by landing the army in Gravesend Bay, Long
Island. The enemy offered no opposition to the landing, but retreated at
once, setting fire to all the houses and granaries, and taking up a
position on the wooded heights which commanded the line by which the
English must advance.
The American main force, 15,000 strong, was posted on a peninsula
between Mill Creek and Wallabout Bay, and had constructed a strong line
of intrenchments across the end of the peninsula. The intrenchments were
strengthened by abattis and flanked by strong redoubts. Five thousand
remained to guard this post, and 10,000, under General Puttenham,
advanced to hold the line of wooded hills which run across the island.
In the center of the plain, at the foot of these hills, stood the
village of Flatbush.
The Hessian division of the British army, under General De Heister,
advanced against this, while General Clinton, with the right wing of the
English army, moved forward to attack the enemy's left.
This force marched at nine o'clock at night on August 26; General Sir
William Howe himself accompanied it. The line of hills trended away
greatly to the left, and the enemy had neglected to secure the passes
over the hills on this flank; consequently, at nine o'clock in the
morning, the British passed the range of hills without resistance, and
occupied Bedford in its rear. Had Sir William Howe now pushed on
vigorously, the whole of Puttenham's force must have been captured.
In the meantime the Hessians from Flatbush attacked the center of the
Americans, and after a warm engagement, routed them and drove them into
the woods with a loss of three pieces of cannon.
On the British left General Grant also advanced, and at midnight carried
a strong pass on the enemy's left. Retiring, they held a still stronger
position further back and offered a fierce resistance until the fires at
Bedford showed that the English had obtained a position almost in their
rear, when they retreated precipitately.
[Illustration: Sketch of the British Position on Long Island.]
The victory was a complete one, but it had none of the consequences
which would have attended it had the English pushed forward with
energy after turning the American left. Six pieces of cannon were
captured and 2000 men killed or taken prisoners. The English lost 70
killed and 230 wounded.
So impetuously did the English attack that even Sir William Howe
admitted that they could have carried the intrenchments. He alleges he
did not permit them to do so, because he intended to take the position
by regular approaches and wished therefore to avoid the loss of life
which an immediate assault would have occasioned. On the 27th and 28th
regular approaches were commenced, but on the 29th, under cover of a
fog, the Americans embarked in boats and succeeded in carrying the whole
of their force, without the loss of a man, across to the mainland.
The escape of this body of men was disgraceful in the extreme to the
English commanders. They had a great fleet at their disposal, and had
they placed a couple of frigates in the East River, between Long Island
and New York, the escape would have been impossible, and General
Washington and his army of 15,000 men must have been taken prisoners.
Whether this misfortune would have proved conclusive of the war it is
now too late to speculate; but so splendid an opportunity was never
before let slip by an English general, and the negligence was the more
inexcusable inasmuch as the fleet of boats could be seen lying alongside
of the American position. Their purpose must have been known, and they
could at any moment have been destroyed by the guns of a ship-of-war
taking up its position outside them.
Lord Howe dispatched the American General Sullivan, who had been taken
prisoner on Long Island, to Congress, repeating his desire to treat. A
committee of three members accordingly waited on Lord Howe, who informed
them that it was the most ardent wish of the king and the government of
Great Britain to put an end to the dissatisfaction between the mother
country and the colonists. To accomplish this desire every act of
Parliament which was considered obnoxious to the colonists should
undergo a revisal, and every just cause of complaint should be removed,
if the colonists would declare their willingness to submit to the
authority of the British government. The committee replied that it was
not America which had separated herself from Great Britain, but Great
Britain had separated herself from America. The latter had never
declared herself independent until the former had made war upon her, and
even if Congress were willing to place America in her former situation,
it could not do so, as the Declaration of Independence had been made in
consequence of the congregated voice of the whole people, by whom alone
it could be abolished. The country was determined not to return under
the domination of England.
The negotiations were therefore broken off. Lord Howe published a
declaration to the people of America, giving the answer of the committee
to his offer of reconciliation. He acquainted them with the fact that
the parent country was willing to receive into its bosom and protection
all who might be willing to return to their former obedience. In taking
this step, Lord Howe was convinced that a majority of the inhabitants of
America were still willing to enter into an accommodation of the
differences between the two powers, and the conviction was not ill
founded. The declaration, however, produced but little effect, for the
dominant section, that resolved to break off all connection with
England, had acquired the sole management of affairs, and no offers
which could possibly have been made would have been accepted by them.
Convinced that all further negotiations would be ineffectual, Lord Howe
prepared to carry his army across from Long Island to New York, where
the American army had taken up their post after the retreat from Long
Island. The armies were separated by the East River, with a breadth of
about thirteen hundred yards. A cannonade was kept up for several days.
On September 13 some ships-of-war were brought up to cover the passage.
Washington, seeing the preparations, began to evacuate the city and to
abandon the strong intrenchments which he had thrown up. At eleven
o'clock on the morning of the 15th the men-of-war opened a heavy fire,
and Clinton's division, consisting of 4000 men in eighty-four boats,
sailed up the river, landed on Manhattan Island at a place called Kipp's
Bay, and occupied the heights of Inclenberg, the enemy abandoning their
intrenchments at their approach. General Washington rode toward Kipp's
Bay to take command of the troops stationed there, but found the men who
had been posted at the lines running away, and the brigades which should
have supported them flying in every direction, heedless of the exertions
of their generals.
Puttenham's division of 4000 men was still in the lower city, and would
be cut off unless the British advance should be checked. Washington
therefore made the greatest efforts to rally the fugitives and to get
them to make a stand to check the advancing enemy, but in vain; for, as
soon as even small bodies of redcoats were seen advancing, they broke
and fled in panic.
Howe, as usual, delayed giving orders for an advance, and thus permitted
the whole of Puttenham's brigade, who were cut off and must have been
taken prisoners, to escape unharmed. And thus, with comparatively little
loss, the Americans drew off, leaving behind them only a few heavy
cannon and some bayonets and stores.
So rapid had been their flight at the approach of the English that only
fifteen were killed, two men falling on the English side.