Total want of military command – Conjocta Creek

After the Battle of Lundy’s Lane, the Americans withdrew to their defences at Fort Erie with the British following shortly after. The American position at Fort Erie was not desirable, possessing a position of 800 yards long by 250 yards wide. Porter lamented the American position claiming, “our position is a wretched one.” The American position necessitated an open supply line to resources positioned at Black Rock and Buffalo across the water, a fact that was not lost on Drummond.

Drummond believed that destroying the American supplies would force the enemy to “fight under desperate circumstances or surrendering unconditionally.” Drummond selected 39-year-old Colonel John Tucker of the 41st Foot to launch a raid to destroy the American supplies.  Tucker’s reputation in the Right Division was not very high with soldiers nicknaming him “Brigadier Shindy,” which indicated that Tucker was a “dancing master” who was prone to quarrelling over minor problems.

U.S. Riflemen

Tucker moved his 600 men across the water near Squaw Island just a few miles from Black Rock at about 2 a.m. on August 3, 1814. Tucker did not advance his force until about an hour before daylight. Their advance puzzled John Le Couteur, writing that they moved “without an advanced guard or any apparent precaution.” The British had already lost the element of surprise as the Americans were waiting for them. 

Major Lodowick Morgan of the First U.S. Rifle Regiment was waiting for the British near Conjocta Creek (also known as Scajacuada Creek). Morgan had been a prewar regular, serving as a rifle officer for six years. Morgan spotted the British movement on August 2 on the Canadian side and suspected a forthcoming attack on the American supplies. He ordered his men, about 240 in total, to remove the flooring from the bridge over Conjocta Creek and establish a defensive position.

As the British approached, Morgan waited until they were in within good rifle distance then blew his whistle for the men to open fire. One rifleman wrote that the first volley “completely ‘decapitated’ the head of the approaching column.” The first volley sent the 41st into chaos as the men began to fire without discipline and many ran to the woods to seek cover. Tucker eventually steadied his men and deployed them into line where he exchanged fire with the more accurate American riflemen.

Le Couteur noted that the Americans “shot every Fool that came near the Bridge.” Private Byfield,

received a musket ball, through my left arm, below the elbow. I went into the rear. One of my comrades, seeing that I was badly wounded, cut my [cross] belts from me and let them drop. I walked to the doctor, and desired him to take my arm off. He said it might be cured without it; and ordered me down to a boat, saying, that the wounded men were to cross the river, and they (the doctors) would soon follow.

Tucker continued his duel with the Americans for another hour before retreating to the boats. The results for the British were 12 killed, 17 wounded and 4 missing to the Americans 2 killed and 8 wounded. Le Couteur blamed Tucker’s “total want of military command” for the failure of the mission. Tucker blamed the failed mission on his men, noting to Drummond “the men displayed an unpardonable degree of unsteadiness, without possessing on solitary excuse to justify this want of discipline.”

Drummond was furious about the defeat and on August 5, he issued a strongly worded general order blaming the defeat on “the misbehaviour of the troops employed.” Drummond reminded the officers of the 41st that it was their duty to “punish with death on the spot any man who may be found guilty of misbehaviour before the enemy.”

With the failure at Conjocta Creek, Drummond decided that the best course of action was to lay siege to Fort Erie in order to remove the Americans from that position.

This weekend you can head to Buffalo to find out more about the Battle of Conjocta Creek. Click here for more information. Also, on August 9 & 10 don’t miss the 28th Annual Siege of Fort Erie re-enactment. Click here for more information.  

Our men gave way – Battle of The Thames

By September 1813 on the Western frontier the British were dealt a devastating defeat on Lake Erie. The American victory at the Battle of Put-in-Bay on September 10, 1813 meant that Lake Erie was under American control and that British forces along Lake Erie were vulnerable to attack.

Major-General Henry Proctor decided to withdraw all British forces toward Burlington Heights up the Thames River to escape superior American forces. Tecumseh, the leader of the native Western Confederacy, was opposed to a retreat and wrote “We must compare our Father's [Proctor’s] conduct to [that of] a fat animal that carries its tail upon its back; but when affrighted, it drops it between its legs and runs off.” Despite Tecumseh’s objections, Proctor began the withdrawal with Tecumseh and his warriors reluctantly agreeing to follow.    

 

Map of the Battle of The Thames

As the British and native allies moved toward Burlington Heights, Proctor, with Tecumseh’s encouragement, decided to stop at Moraviantown to meet the approaching Americans. Tecumseh’s forces were primarily positioned in the woods with the British forces, mainly comprised of men from the 41st Regiment of Foot, were positioned on the open field between a small swamp and thick woods.

Shadrach Byfield was among them and succinctly describes the battle, “The attack commenced on the right, with the Indians, and very soon became general through the line. After exchanging a few shots, our men gave way.” Byfield retreated to the woods were he was met by a number of native warriors who informed him that Tecumseh had been killed. Byfield goes on to describe his short adventure with the natives before being reunited with his regiment.

The aftermath of the Battle of The Thames/Battle of Moraviantown proved to be a devastating defeat for the British. The British had over 500 men taken prisoner, almost half of their forces present at the battle. The defeat meant that the Western portion of Upper Canada was now open to American influence, and with Tecumseh’s death many Western natives decided to make peace with the Americans, effectively ending Tecumseh’s dream of a native Western Confederacy.

This weekend you can experience the 200th anniversary of the Battle of The Thames taking place in Thamesville, south of London. There will be a number of events happening on Friday and Saturday with a battle re-enactment at 3 p.m. on both days. Click here to find out more.

The British – turn out the guard

The capture of Fort Niagara on December 19, 1813 was an overwhelming success for the British. After the burning of Newark (Niagara-on-the-Lake) the British quickly retaliated with not only capturing Fort Niagara but by burning the length of the American side of the Niagara. A private in the 41st Regiment of Foot named Shadrach Byfield participated in the capture of Fort Niagara in 1813.

Byfield joined the military in 1807 as part of the militia before joining the 41st. His mother was so distraught that she died three days after he left. By 1809, Byfield was on a transport for Quebec and by the time of the War of 1812, he served extensively in Western Upper Canada, Michigan and Ohio before coming to the Niagara in 1813.

 

Fort Niagara

Byfield recounts that the 41st flank companies, along with the 100th Regiment of Foot, crossed the Niagara in the early hours on December 19, 1813. Byfield proceeded to Youngstown were a prisoner was taken and the countersign was obtained for the guards protecting the fort. Byfield describes that a sergeant,

“proceeded to the gate [of Fort Niagara], and was challenged by the sentry inside, he gave the countersign, and gained admittance, but the sentry cried out ‘The British – turn out the guard.’ Our force was fully prepared, and in a very short time we had possession of the fort, with very little lose.”   

Byfield later participated in the British destruction of the American side of the Niagara in the days following the capture of the fort. As a reward for the capture of Fort Niagara, the soldiers who participated in the attack were awarded prize money for their actions. As a private, Byfield would have received two pounds for his participation in the attack on Fort Niagara.  

If you want to learn more about the capture of Fort Niagara, you can visit the fort this weekend for their Annual 1812 Encampment event. Battle demonstrations and living history programs will occur during the day along with the re-enactment of the British capturing Fort Niagara on Saturday night. Click here for more details.