By:
On:
In: Project:1812
With: 0 Comments

The British Capture of Fort Niagara is one of many controversial engagements of the Anglo-American War of 1812 and certainly marked a shift in the tactics of both the British and Americans in the final year of the war. General Gordon Drummond’s orders came on the heels of the destruction of the town of Niagara, today Niagara-On-The-Lake, Ontario, by the Americans and a group of traitorous Canadians. While the exact details of the destruction were blown out of proportion to justify the brutality of the capture better, it none the less is a dark stain on the British record of the war. Fort Niagara asRead More →

By:
On:
In: Project:1812
With: 0 Comments

When the Americans retreated across the river in December of 1813 they left nothing but a charred ruin of the town of Newark (Today’s Niagara-On-The-Lake) and Fort George. Left with no fortifications in the area, General Drummond immediately ordered the capture of Fort Niagara (which was a huge success) and the construction of new fortifications to defend the Canadian Side of the mouth of the Niagara River. Drummond, quick to realize that Fort George was too distant to command the river mouth ordered the new fort be constructed closer to Lake Ontario. Construction of the new Fort Mississauga commenced in spring of 1814. It consistedRead More →

By:
On:
In: Project:1812
With: 0 Comments

Following a series of defeats that saw the surrender of three American Armies and the British in control of the entire Michigan Territory from Ohio to Mackinac Island. General Henry Dearborn needed a new plan, one that would not only boost the morale of his troops but give Washington DC a swift victory that they had been expecting. It was again decided that a three-pronged assault would be enough to force the British to retreat and surrender from Upper Canada. But it didn’t go exactly to plan. Dearborn believed the false report that 8,000 British Regulars garrisoned Kingston, home to the Royal Navy Squadron onRead More →

By:
On:
In: Project:1812
With: 0 Comments

Queenston Heights, one of the famous locations connected to the Anglo-American War of 1812, the southern terminus of the Niagara Escarpment and surprisingly overlooked for its importance in all the stages of the war except for the famous battle that took place at the site in 1812. Queenston Heights takes it name from the village of Queenston located east of the heights. The village had its beginnings in 1780 founded by Robert Hamilton and marked one of the terminuses of the Niagara Portage that allowed traders to bypass Niagara Falls. A memorial carin in the village erroniously marks the spot of Brock’s death. In realtyRead More →

By:
On:
In: Project:1812
With: 0 Comments

A watershed event for the Canadians during the Anglo-American War of 1812. The tiny town of York, today’s Toronto, Ontario, was the colonial capital of Upper Canada, established in 1793 by John Graves Simcoe for the sole purpose of being further away from the American frontier. Despite the town’s status as the capital it was poorly regarded called Muddy York, a far cry from the seat of British power in North America, Quebec City. And while the town itself was far from a tactical target, it wasn’t a tactical target that US Army commander, Henry Dearborn, wanted following a series of American defeats in 1812.Read More →