Title

Chapter 4

Identifier

http://www.nflibrary.ca/nfplindex/show.asp?b=1&ref=oo&id=298157

page

52-65

Bibliographic Citation

1812; the war and its moral : a Canadian chronicle / William Foster Coffin.

10167813

1812; the war and its moral : a Canadian chronicle / William Foster Coffin.

Type

Text

extracted text

CHRONICLE OF THE WAR.

FORAY ON GANANOQUE—ATTEMPT ON OGDENSBURG.

letters of marque and reprisal, under expectation that the United
States would, upon notification of the Order in Council of the
23rd June, forthwith recall the said declaration of war." This
hopeful credulity clogged their own movements and those of their
subordinates, and nearly proved fatal to Canada. Prevost, pacific
by nature, and bound by the pacific instructions of the Imperial
government, on learning the repeal of the Orders in Council, pre-

Canada on the first rumour of war, and had obtained from them
cordial support.* They indorsed his " Army Bills " to the extent
of $1,000,000, and they voted $60,000 for five years, to meet the
interest and expenses. By a preceding Act of May of the same
year they had authorized the embodiment of 2000 militiamen, and
in the event of war, the calling out of the whole militia force of
the Province, and measures had been energetically taken to give
effect to this legislation.

52

sumed Mr. Madison to be as pacific as himself, and proposed to
General Dearborn, chief on the northern frontier, an armistice,
which, in terms and operation, was as useful to the enemy as it
was unfavourable to us, and which all but neutralized the moral
effect of the victories which had been achieved in the west. It
gave the enemy time to breathe, to think, to transport stores and
reinforcements unmolested, and, when it had served their turn,
was repudiated by the President. It admitted of the removal of
nine fine vessels from Ogdensburg—removed from under the guns
of Fort Wellington at Prescott—to Sackett's Harbour, and gave
Commodore Chauncey that ascendency on Lake Ontario which
enabled him subsequently to destroy Little York.* Brock urgently
renewed his instances. He was then at Kingston. " Attack Sackett's Harbour from hence. With our present naval superiority, it
must fall. The troops at Niagara will be recalled for its protection. While they march, we sail ; and before they can return, the
whole Niagara frontier will be ours." In reply, Brock received
peremptory orders from Sir George Prevost to do nothing ; to remain
on the defensive and not provoke the enemy. It is just to believe
that in doing this, the Governor. General but obeyed the peremptory
and painful orders of his superiors. Within his own sphere he had been
prompt and energetic. He had convened the Legislature of Lower

• Narrative of Simon Van Ranselaer, Lieut.-Col., A.D.O.
Ranselaer, Niagara.

53

" A cordon was formed along the frontier of Lower Canada from
the Yamaska to St. Regis, where the line of separation between
the United States and Canada touches the St. Lawrence, consisting of Canadian Voltigeurs and part of the embodied Militia.
A light brigade of elite, regulars and militia, was formed at Blairfindie, under the command of Lieut. Col. Young of the 8th
Regt., consisting of the flank companies of the 8th, 100th, and
103rd Regts., with the Canadian Fencibles, the flank companies of
the 1st Batt. of Embodied Militia, and a small brigade of the
Royal Artillery with six field-pieces.f
" On the Montreal frontier the road to the United States from
the camp at L'Acadie through Burtonville and Odeltown was rendered impracticable by abattis. The Voltigeurs, with extraordinary perseverance, effected this fatiguing duty in short time, under
the superintendence of their commanding officer, Major de Salaberry .
" On the other hand, the Americans augmented their preparations rapidly, and Gen. Dearborn threatened Montreal with invasion by St. Johns and Odeltown. Their force at Niagara and on
the Niagara frontier, under Brig.-Gen. Van Ranselaer, was already
formidable, and afforded good ground of apprehension to Gen.
Brock of a speedy irruption from that quarter ; while Gen. Har-

Gen. Van
• 16th July, 1812.

t Christie, Volt II;

p. 40.

Ibid.

NIMPOi mu) r UIJL.mr
54

CHRONICLE OF THE WAR.

rison was actively employed in collecting an army at the river
Raisin, near Detroit, from Ohio and Kentucky. The naval establishment at Sackett's Harbour in the meantime increased with
celerity, and the ascendency of their fleet on Lake Ontario was, by
the indefatigable exertions of Commodore Chauncey, now almost
established." *
Two insignificant affairs occurred on the Upper St. Lawrence,
this early autumn, but little creditable to either party. Capt.
Forsyth with 150 riflemen crossed from the American side (on the
9th September) to Gananoque, where he fluttered the turkeys,
captured a few old muskets, wounded the wife of a militia officer
who kept a store there, burnt the building and its contents, and
returned home with a good deal of predatory exultation.
En revanche, and provoked by frequent interruptions of his convoys from Montreal, Col. Lethbridge, in command at Prescott, attempted a descent on Ogdensburg, opposite, in open day. He pushed
off, on the 4th October, in the forenoon, with a force of 750 regulars
and militiamen, in 25 batteaux, escorted by two gun-boats. They
were received by a heavy fire of artillery, boats were struck and
sunk, some disabled, all fell into confusion. The flotilla dropped
down the stream out of fire, and returned whence they came, with
three men killed and four wounded. It was a rash and unauthorized enterprise, ill-concerted, and led with more of courage than
conduct.
Brock, chafing but obedient, had returned to Niagara. He
writes thence to his brother, 18th September 1812: " A river
about 500 yards wide divides the troops. My instructions oblige
me to adopt defensive measures, and I have evinced greater forbearance than was ever practised on any former occasion. It is
thought that without the aid of the word the American people

• Christie, Vol. II, p. 40.

AMERICAN PREPARATIONS—QUEENSTON HEIGHTS.

55

may be brought to a due sense of their own interest. I firmly
believe that I could at this moment sweep everything before me
between Fort Niagara and Buffalo. . . . The militia, being
principally composed of enraged democrats, are more ardent and
anxious to engage, but they have neither subordination nor discipline. They die very fast. It is certainly singular that we should
be two months in a state of warfare, and that along this widely
extended frontier not a single death, either natural or by the
sword, should have occurred among the troops under my command,
and we have not been altogether idle, nor has a single desertion
taken place." *
The " enraged democrats " at length brought things to a crisis.
The American leaders had assembled on the Niagara frontier,86 miles in length from Buffalo to Fort Niagara—a force of about
6,000 men. A large number consisted of militia, of whom Col.
Baines, having encountered them on his official visit to Gen. Dearborn, says to Brock : " I found a very general prejudice prevailing with Jonathan of his own resources and means of invading
these Provinces, and of our weakness and inability to resist, both
exaggerated in a most absurd and extravagant degree." *
These paladins, with little discipline, and no subordination,
exhibited great impatience at what they were pleased to term, the
dilatoriness of their officers, in not " clearing out the British frontier right off," and their impetuosity was greatly sharpened by a
successful exploit on the part of Lieut. Elliott of the American
Navy, who was then engaged at Black Rock in fitting for service
an armed schooner. This officer, backed by 100 good seamen, in
the early morning of the 9th October, boarded and carried, off
Fort Erie, the brig of war Detroit, and the private brig Caledonia,
laden with stores and spoils from Amherstburg. This feat, which was
• Brock Correspondence, p. 108.

56

CHRONICLE OF THE WAR.

well and gallantly done, could never have been attempted, had not
Brock, at an earlier period, been restricted to defensive measures.
Black Rock and its batteries would have disappeared, and the
armed vessel Elliott had in hand, would have been in ours, or in
flames. As it was, the Detroit grounded and was destroyed, but
the eclat of the exploit turned the heads of the gallant militia, and
they insisted, incontinently, either to be led to victory or to go
home.
General Van Ranselaer, who commanded the whole force, was
manifestly under the impression that a good deal of glory was to
be got at small risk, and was unwilling to allow the glittering prize
to slip through his fingers. He had been informed by a deceitful
spy, that Brock had left for the Detroit frontier. He resolved
therefore, on the adventure. On the morning of the 11th October,
an attempt was made, but failed. Boats were wanting—oars were
deficient—it rained hard, and the general prospect was disagreeable. The attack on Queenston heights was, in consequence,
deferred to the 13th.
There is not on this continent a more imposing situation or a
lovelier scene, than is presented from the noble plateau immortalized
as Queenston Heights. Rising in rich undulation from the alluvial
shore, which, at a distance of seven miles, subsides into Lake
Ontario, they form the height of land through which, for twenty
miles back, the river and cataract of Niagara cleave their resistless way. They trend away westerly until they reach Hamilton,
and constitute the great embankment which dams back the superincumbent waters of Lake Erie. The approach to the heights from
the village of Queenston is strikingly beautiful. It \reminds an
Englishman of the grassy glades and hanging woods of his native
land. An ascent of 250 feet, tortuous and broken, is now crowned
by a grand column of buff sandstone, artistically designed, and not
unworthy of the memory which Canada reveres. Brock's monument

PASSAGE OF THE NIAGARA—STRUGGLE AT LANDING. 5t;

is a credit to the taste and gratitude of the country. From the summit
the eye commands a varied landscape of woodland and farm land, of
umbrageous forest and rich cultivation---of village and of villa—
church spire and cosy homestead—the blue Ontario in the distance,
flecked with sails ; such as may well gladden the hearts of those
under whose eye the land has grown, and make them glory in the flag,
emblematic of the system, which fosters and protects it. The noble
river, boiling, rushing, eddying,—which, 500 yards wide, rushes
through the gorge at the right hand side of the spectator, now
spanned by a gossamer bridge, 800 feet of wire tracery,—separates, as with a barrier of steel, the " clearings " of experiment
from the domain of experience—the United States from British
territory. On that rich October morning, glowing with the gorgeous
tints of the autumnal foliage, and softened by the mellow haze of
the first flush of the Indian summer, how attractive must have
been that lovely scene to the eye of the American invader,
Baptized in molten gold and swathed in dun.

In the early morning, before day broke, the desperate few, the
" forlorn hope," had manned the first boats, and under the command of Colonel Van Ranselaer, gained the Canadian shore.
The force there stationed consisted of two companies of the
49th and about 200 of the York militia. One 18-pounder gun
was in position, on a spur of the heights, and a carronade raked
the river from a point about a mile'below. The American force,
covered by the fire of two eighteen pounders, and two field
pieces from their own side, effected a landing with little loss.
One officer was slain in the boats by a ball from the gun at
the point. More troops and some militia-men crossed, until about
1,300 men were in line, and in front of them the British outposts.
The resistance made was desperate ; the assailants were as resolute.
The voices of the American officers could be heard above the rattle

58

,

CHRONICLE OF THE WAR.

•
TO 511

of the musketry with the cry of " On men ! on ! for the honour of
America." The reply, again, was a dogged cheer, and the rattle of
musketry. In a short time, Col. Van Ranselaer was desperately
wounded in four places. Good men and officers had fallen around
him. The captains commanding the 49th companies had both fallen
wounded. The fire of the 18-pounder was of no avail in that part
of the field. It would have been more fatal to friend than to foe.
At this moment Brock rode up. Awakened at daybreak by the
firing, and fully anticipating attack, he called for his good horse
Alfred, and, followed by his staff, galloped up from Fort George.
He passed without drawing rein, through the village, reached the
18-pounder battery, dismounted, and was covering the field through
his telescope, when a fire was opened on the rear of the field work
from a height above, which had been hardily gained during this
brief interval by Captain Wool and a detachment of American
regulars, up an almost inaccessible fisherman's path. The volley
was promptly followed by a rush; Brock and his suite had no time
to remount; • they quickly retired with the „twelve men who manned
the battery. There was neither space, nor time, nor thought, for
generalship—all was sheer fighting. Williams of the 49th, with
a detachment of 100 strong, charged up the hill against Wool's men,
who were repelled, but reinforced, charged again ; notwithstanding
which " in the struggle which ensued the whole were driven to the
edge of the bank." * Here, with the storming foe before then, a
precipice of 180 feet behind, and the roaring Niagara beneath, some
craven spirit quailed—an attempt was made to raise the white flag—
Wool tore it down and trampled it under foot. The re-inspired regulars
opened a scathing fire of musketry ; Brock who, in front, roused
beyond himself, had forgotten the general in the soldier, conspicuous
by his height, dress, gesture and undaunted bearing, was pointing to

• Wool's letter to Van Ranselaer, BuAlo, October 23, 1812.

DEATH OF BROCK—ADVANCE OF SHEAFFE.

59

the hill, and had just shouted " Push on the brave York Volunteers," when he was struck by a ball in the right breast, which passed
through his left side. He fell. His last words were, that his death
should be concealed from his men, and that his remembrance should
be borne to his sister. Thus fell, and thus died a brave soldier, an
able leader, and a good man, who honoured by his life and ennobled
by his death the soil on which he bled, and whose name remains,
ever beloved and respected, a household word and a household
memory in Canada.
Shortly after, McDonell, his Aide-de-Camp, a Lieut.-Colonel of
Militia, and Attorney-General for Upper Canada, obeying the last
behest of his chief, leading on the " brave York Volunteers " and
breasting the hill on horseback, was struck from his saddle. He
died next day, and, regardless of self, his last thoughts were with his
departed commander and friend.
The charge of the Volunteers had compelled the enemy to spike
the 18 pounder and retire ; but at this moment, the best officers
and bravest men down on both sides, and the rest exhausted, a lull
took place in the fighting. The Americans retained the hill, with
the precipice at their backs ; the British retired under cover of the
houses on the outskirts of the village. Both parties looked for
reinforcements.
As has been before remarked, the Americans occupied at this
time a position full of peril. Though Wool had received an accession of force, their number was unequal to the adventure, and they
were cooped up on the brow of the hill, with their foe in front, whose
strength they knew must increase, and the beetling precipice and
the boiling river in their rear. Nothing could save them but a
retreat, or large reinforcements. The first expedient was impracticable. The reinforcements were within sight, within call, yet
denied their aid. The " enraged democrats " had abated all their
savagery. The men, a few days before, so desperate to do or die,

60

CHRONICLE OF THE WAR.

quailed at the sight of danger, and urged qualms of conscience
and constitutional scruples as a plea for their poltroonery. Canada
forsooth was not New York State, and they could not lawfully
risk their precious lives, except in defence of their native soil.
The brave men on the opposite hill-side were, therefore, left to
their fate.
On the other hand, General Sheaffe, who commanded at Fort
George, had, under instructions from Sir Isaac Brock, got his
men together on the first alarm. With about 300 regulars of the
41st and 49th regiments, two companies of Lincoln militia, and a
handful of Indians, he had followed rapidly to the scene of the
conflict. He took the road from Newark to St. Davids, which
enabled him to debouch on the heights about two milesato the west
of Queenston. He heard, on his way, of the fall of Brock, and
pushed on the more eagerly, to avenge his death and retrieve the
day. With all his speed, marching through roads such as they
then were, he could not reach the Plateau long before noon. Here
he was reinforced by Norton, and Brant the younger, Indian chiefs,
and a body of their followers, and by about 200 volunteer militia
men from Chippewa, making the whole force equal to 800 men.
It will be seen, at once, that the invaders were surrounded,
their backs to the river and to their own recreant countrymen,
Queenston with its defenders breathing vengeance on their
right, and Sheaffe on their front and left flank. Gradually and
systematically, the fatal semicircle of fire and steel narrowed
and thickened. Wool, who had bravely done his best, was down
with wounds. Scott, who has since filled so large a place in the
history of his country, succeeded him, and not unworthily. The
Americans fought on manfully, but hopelessly. The fatal semicircle narrowed more and more-a volley here—icattered shots
there—amid the wild yell of the Indian, the shout of the soldier, the
shriek of the wounded, the hoarse word of command,—amid smoke

AMERICAN RESISTANCE—SIR JOHN BEVERLY ROBINSON.

61

and dust, and tumult, and groans and execration, the last vengeful
rush was made, and every living American swept from the summit
of that blood-stained hill.
Of the survivors, part scrambled down by the path they had
ascended, part clinging to rocks and shrubs endeavoured to escape,
but the lithe Indian proved the better cragsman, and the descent
was fearfully accelerated. Many were dashed to pieces : many
drowned—two men were seen to strip deliberately, and take to the
whirling river, remarking significantly, that they might as well
be drowned as hanged. Here, on the rocky selvage, at the
foot of overhanging cliffs, unarmed and defenceless, the remainder
assembled and, at once, resolved to surrender.* Scott, accompanied
by Captains Totten and Gibson, with Totten's cravat attached to

his sword point, not without great danger, from the infuriate savages,
emerged from the rocks, near where the Suspension Bridge now
stands, and meeting a British picket, were conducted to General
Sheaffe. Short was the parley between men in their condition, and
a commander in whose hands were life and safety. Major-General
Wadsworth and about 1,100 American officers and soldiers surrendered, unconditionally, prisoners of war. The American loss by
bullet, steel, and flood, had been near 400 men.
Among the present residents, whom the fortunes of peace
have cast on our frontier, is one John McCarthy, who served in
the American regulars at the battle of Queenston heights. He
now lives between old Newark (Niagara) and Queenston. He
relates that, in preparation for the last assault of the British, the
American officers caused their men to load and lie down, with
the order not to rise or fire a shot until they " got the word."
Twenty men were detailed at intervals in the rear, with pieces
loaded, and directions openly given, to, shoot down any man disobey* Mansfield's Life of Scott, p. 48; Stone's Life of Brant, Vol. II, p. 512.

CHRONICLE OF THE WAR.

FUNERAL OF BROOK—SCOTT 'AND THE SAVAGES.

ing the first order. He states that the British were within forty
yards before the word came, that the volley was instantaneous and
fatal, but never stopped the rush, which cleared the hill like chaff

of the Province, and to the rank of an English Baronet. The
late lamented death of Sir John Beverly Robinson, Bart., and C. B.,
demands, as an homage to the grief of Canada, this passing tribute
to his memory. Bright names hallow story as well as song.
Thus terminated this remarkable contest. It has been the practice
of all writers, with pardonable partiality, so far to identify Brock
with Queenston heights, as to make his name inseparable from the
victory ; but, honor to whom honor is justly due, and Brock was
the last man to deny it to an old friend who had fought by his
side in the 49th, in many a stricken field. The battle was won by
Sheaffe—a U. E. Loyalist, born in Boston, who had served the king
from the days of Bunker Hill Brock lost his life early in the
morning—the fight flagged in consequence—was re-fought, and
won by Sheaffe at 3 in the afternoon. Sheaffe was rewarded for
his success by a Baronetcy. Brock died unconscious of the honors
he had earned. On the day of his death, at the foot of Queenston
heights, the guns of the Tower of London proclaimed his victory at
Detroit. He had been made a Knight of the most honourable
order of the Bath. His banner and his spurs were laid upon his
tomb. Like a wreath of " immortelles," they cover a solitary name,
" alone in its glory." Brock died unmarried. His remains were
interred with those of his Provincial Aide-de-Camp, Col. McDonell,
at Fort George, in a cavalier bastion which had been constructed
under his superintendence. On the erection of the column to his

62

before a gust of wind.
The British force engaged during the day consisted of the
remnants of the two companies of the 49th attacked in the
morning who had been bravely sustained by Cameron's, Howard's, and Chisholm's companies of the York militia. Sheaffe
brought to their support 380 of the 41st. Crook's and McEwen's
flank companies of the 1st Lincoln ; Nellies and W. Crook's
companies of the 4th Lincoln, Hale's, Durand's, and Applegate's
companies of the 5th Lincoln, Major Merritt's yeomanry corps,
and a party of Swayzee's militia artillery. Colonel Clark of
the militia came up from Chippewa with Capt. Derinzys' and
Bullock's company of the 41st, Capt. R. Hamilton and Stone's
flank companies of the 2nd Lincoln and Volunteer Sedentary
militia, Young Norton, Brant the younger, and about 50 Mohawks. A company of colored men under Captain Runchey was
on the ground, and did good service. The whole force at the close
of the day did not exceed one thousand rank and file. Of this
number about 80 were killed and wounded, Indians included.
The British had been greatly exasperated by the fatal event of
the morning. The men of Lincoln and the " brave York Volunteers " with " Brock " on their lips and revenge in their hearts,
had joined in the last desperate charge, and among the foremost,
foremost ever found, was John Beverly Robinson, a U. E. Loyalist,
a lawyer from Toronto, and not the worse soldier for all that. His
light, compact, agile figure, handsome face, and eager eye, were
long proudly remembered by those who had witnessed his conduct in
the field, and who loved to dwell on those traits of chivalrous loyalty, energetic talent and sterling worth which, in after years, and
in a happier sphere, elevated him to the position of Chief Justice

63

memory at Queenston heights, they were removed, and rest there.
The soldier who commanded at the American fort, Niagara, on the
occasion of the funeral, hoisted his flag half mast, and fired minute
guns during the ceremony, shot for shot with our own.*
a It may be pardoned to the pen which traces these lines, if it is inspired by
something of an hereditary interest in the events narrated. The chief mourner
at the funeral of Brock was General Sheaffe. Two of the pall bearers were
Lieut.-Colonel Coffin, Provincial Aide de Camp, and James Coffin, Esquire,
Deputy Assistant Commissary General, both uncles to the writer. As General

64

CHRONICLE OF THE WAR.

A picturesque incident of this semi-savage warfare is related. Col.
Scott, by his stature and intrepidity during the day, had attracted
the particular attention of the Indian Chieftains. Fortune favoured him so far, that his escape was ascribed to some peculiar
" medicine," or to witchcraft. On the evening of the day of the
surrender, Scott was dining with General Sheaffe, when a messenger
came from persons without, who wished to speak with the " tall
American." Scott rose, with a jocular observation, and proceeded into the narrow entrance, where he found himself confronted by two Indians, Jacob Norton and Brant the younger.
The latter in English, rapidly questioned him " as to his wounds,"
"balls through his clothes," " they had fired at him all day
without effect." The former somewhat rudely took the Colonel
by the arm, as if to turn him round for inspection. Scott
indignantly flung the intruder from him, exclaiming " Hands off,
you scoundrel : you shot like a squaw." The Indian blood was
roused instantaneously, knives and tomahawks were drawn. Scott
grasped his sword, but the odds were against him in a narrow passage, when, in at the door way stepped Colonel Coffin, Provincial
Aide-de-Camp to General Sheaffe, who seeing things at a glance,
drew a pistol and put it to Norton's head, calling for assistance,
which in one moment was on the spot from the room behind. The
Indian Chiefs, recovering from their sudden gust of passion, and
abashed by their own violence, slowly dropped their arms, and
retired. The officer to whom Scott possibly owed his life was then
Aide-de-Camp to the General, and on the 14th January following,
was appointed Deputy Adjutant General of the militia of Upper
Canada, which post hefilled with universal respect, fig twenty-four
years.*
Sheaffe had married their sister, and was their first cousin, his name is added,
with, it is believed, a not ignoble pride, to the familiar record of men who—all
U. E. Loyalists—had served their king and country truly in times of trial.

* Mansfield's Life of Scott, p._4 1i Stone's Lifeof Brant, Xol.,1.1 ,p414.
1

)

CHAPTER V.
Armistice between Sheaffe and Van Renselser. Eastern frontier—Affair at St. Regis. " Capture of a stand of colors "—Retaliation. Hard frost below—Pleasant weather west.
American squadron and Commodore Earle. Gallant exploit of the Canadian schooner
Simcoe. Chauncey and Captain Brock. Armistice between Smyth and Sheaffe terminated. Descent on Canadian frontier. Americans repulsed. Fort Rile summoned.
Bishop wont give up. Smyth retires into winter quarters, and goes south. United
States disunited on the war—Canada unanimous. Sufferings and spirit of the people.
Loyal and Patriotic Society.

It is unfortunate that Sheaffe, if his own master, should have
marred the fair proportions of his success by an armistice which has,
given rise to much animadversion. He apparently might, and if he'
could, he ought to have crossed the river forthwith, and to have.
swept the coast of the renegade crew who had disgraced our common manhood, and the Niagara frontier, on both sides, would have
been spared much of future evil. Brock, as he got into his saddle
on the morning of his death, had ordered Major Evans of the 8th
Regt., who remained in command at Fort George, to open fire on Fort
Niagara, directly opposite, and so effectually was the order obeyed,
that, in a short time, the place was dismantled and abandoned, and
might easily have been taken possession of the following day. But it
should be kept in mind, that Sheaffe had to protect a frontier of
36 miles with about 1500 men—that he had on the other side
6000 opposed to him ; that in assailing the enemy's frontier he
exposed his own to superior numbers at remote points, and that a
failure on his part would have been a sacrifice of the successes gained,
would have opened the road to Burlington Heights and York, would
have thrown the enemy in Proctor's rear, and have endangered the
safety of the Province. Independent of the rashness of an advance,.
there were in favour
of an armistice many substantial grounds..
.