The Devil for us all – Dr. Cyrenius Chapin

After the capture of Fort George in 1813 by the Americans, the British set up a loose blockade. Both sides suffered from shortages of supplies and sickness. The Americans took to looting farms and mills in order to sustain their position. One of the most prolific plunderers was Major Cyrenius Chapin.

A doctor by trade, Chapin was the 44-year-old commander of the mounted volunteers recruited at Buffalo. Chapin as a rare Federalist who broke with his party and supported the war. He was fond of profanity and alcohol, and after ten years of practicing medicine, he decided to seek thrills and profits by conducting cross-border raids. Chapin insisted that his men only stole from public property, but that was not always the case. His group quickly earned the name “the Forty Thieves” for their rampant looting.

Chapin and 28 of his men were taken prisoner during the Battle of Beaver Dams. When being transported to Kingston, Chapin and his men overpowered their 16 guards when they stopped to drink grog. The boats were redirected to Fort George where a crowd of Americans watched Chapin come in with his new prisoners. One officer said that Chapin was bearing a “sort of triumph in his look.”

In December 1813, Chapin was in Buffalo ready to defend the area from advancing British troops. The men in Buffalo preferred Chapin’s command over General McClure’s since McClure was blamed for letting Joseph Willcocks burn the town of Newark. McClure had Chapin arrested on charges of mutiny and treason, writing, “there is not a greater rascal [who] exists than Chapin, and he is supported by a pack of tories and enemies to our Government.” Local volunteers soon rescued Chapin and sent McClure running for his life.

When the British arrived on December 30, 1813, the American defenders did not last long before fleeing for safety. Chapin yelled, “Every Man for himself & the Devil for us all.” The British and Native allies burned the town, leaving the American side of the Niagara devoid of 12,000 inhabitants whose flight depopulated 160 square miles.

Chapin became synonymous with destruction. In 1814, Brown commented on his new army mustering around Buffalo that “All private property, ever has been, and ever will be, by me, respected. No such man as Dr. Chapin, will I hope accompany an army that I have the honor to command.”  

If you want to find out more about Cyrenius Chapin, head to Old Fort Erie on Friday, September 26, to hear Doug Kohler speak about Chapin. In addition, on Saturday, September 27, the Heritage Arts Legacy of Fort Erie will be holding a Bi-national Peace Celebration at Old Fort Erie. Click here to find out more.

The most splendid achievement – The Sortie

After the failed British assault on Fort Erie on August 15, 1814, the British continued to siege the American held position. New artillery positions were installed and skirmishing between both sides continued into September.

The American commander of Fort Erie, Major-General Jacob Brown, decided on a plan “to storm the batteries, destroy the cannon, and roughly handle the brigade upon duty before those in reserve could be brought into the action.” On September 17, 1814, Brown ordered his men to attack the British position. At the time, the British were busy removing their artillery since they had decided to abandon the siege the day before.

The weather was rainy on the 17th, helping to obscure the American advance through the tree line. At around 2:30 p.m. men from Porter’s column burst forward into the British position with bayonets fixed and quickly overwhelmed the De Watteville Regiment on duty. Private Ford recounted that the Twenty-Third

charged upon the blockhouse from which the enemy kept up a brisk fire until they were compelled to surrender” and “took about eighty prisoners while the ground was strewed with the dead bodies of the enemy.

Porter and his men quickly captured Battery No. 3 and worked upon disabling the British artillery pieces.

A short time later, a second attack commenced on Battery No. 2 where the Americans overwhelmed the British position. General Drummond ordered his men stationed at the main camp to move forward and recover the captured gun batteries.

Major-General Jacob Brown

Members of the 82nd Regiment entered Battery No. 2 and “poured a volley into the mass of the enemy, who were huddled together into so small a space that they could not return it.” As the fighting continued, Le Couteur recorded that the attack on the battery “was a very savage affair” as “our Men bayoneted every Soul” and the battery “was full of corpses.”

The fight for Battery No. 3 resulted in a musket duel. Porter moved forward with some of his men, but in the confusion, he found himself alone and surrounded by British infantry. Porter grabbed one of the soldier’s muskets and demanded them to surrender, claiming that he had reinforcements on the way. The British in turn demanded that Porter surrender. Thankfully, for Porter, some of his men appeared and fired at the British, allowing him to escape.

Eventually, Brown ordered a withdrawal believing that he had accomplished his goal. The battle lasted less than two hours, causing heavy casualties on both sides. The Americans listed 511 casualties: 79 killed, 216 wounded and 216 missing. The British listed 579 casualties: 115 killed, 148 wounded, 316 missing with the De Watteville’s receiving 264 casualties. One American officer said that the sortie was “by far the most splendid achievement” of the Niagara 1814 campaign.

This Friday, September 19th, head to Old Fort Erie to hear Jim Hill speak about the “Military and Militia in the War of 1812.” The talk begins at 6 p.m.

James Fitzgibbon and the girl he loved

The War of 1812 separated many military couples and given the danger associated with active service, a number of military couples decided to marry on short notice. One example comes from Captain James Fitzgibbon who married in 1814.

In August 1814, the Americans were in the Niagara and two major engagements had already taken place at Chippawa and Lundy’s Lane, with Fitzgibbon fighting at the Battle of Lundy’s Lane. With the Americans in possession of Fort Erie and the British preparing to siege the enemy, Fitzgibbon surprised his commanding officer when he “asked [for] leave, without giving any reason for such an apparently unreasonable request.” Many officers would not receive permission, but Fitzgibbon’s impressive record permitted him to take a short leave.

James Fitzgibbon

Fitzgibbon sent a letter to his fiancée, Mary Haley, at Kingston 250 miles away requesting that she meet him. Mary Haley appeared at the appointed time on August 14, 1814 outside the church at Adolphustown, then an important community on the road between Kingston and York. The couple married and “the knot tied, the soldier said farewell to his wife on the church step” before returning to the war. Fitzgibbon knew that he would be involved in heavy fighting and did not want “the girl he loved being left unprovided for” should he be killed.     

Fitzgibbon survived the war and remained in Upper Canada serving as a public servant and a colonel in the militia. During the Upper Canada Rebellion in 1837, he helped to defend Toronto from William Lyon Mackenzie’s forces. Fitzgibbon moved to England in 1847 after his wife died, with whom he had four sons and a daughter. In 1850, Fitzgibbon was appointed Military Knight of Windsor before dying in 1863 at Windsor Castle.

The story of Laura Secord and her encounter with Fitzgibbon will be one of the topics covered at a lecture series being put-on by the Heritage Arts Legacy of Fort Erie this Friday. Every Friday in September starting at 6 p.m. at Old Fort Erie there will be different War of 1812 topics being covered. Click here for more information.

A divided nation

Spies played an important role during the War of 1812 by providing vital information to military and civilian authorities. One spy’s revelations helped to divide the Americans before and during the war.

John Henry was born and educated in Dublin before moving to Philadelphia in the mid-1790s. Henry was described as a tall, handsome, charming gentleman who cultivated Federalist patrons by selling them wine and editing one of their newspapers. Henry was rewarded for his service with a captain’s commission in the army, but he abruptly resigned in 1800 and moved to Montreal, professing his renewed loyalty to the British crown.

President James Madison

During the Chesapeake crisis in late 1807, Henry served as a British secret agent by provoking Federalist disaffection in New England. He predicted that, “By good management, a war will make half of America ours.” Henry went to New England in 1808 and reported that the Federalists were prepared to secede and join the British.

Once the Chesapeake crisis passed, Henry sought payment in London but only received vague promises. Henry decided to go to the president and secretary of state to sell his papers, predicting that the damning letters would discredit the Federalists “and produce a popular war.” Madison and Monroe decided to spend the nation’s entire secret service budget for the year, $50,000, to buy Henry’s papers.

Initially the Federalists were worried, but closer examination of Henry’s papers proved that he relied on gossip and his reports lacked hard evidence. Congress attempted to questions Henry, but Monroe reported that he had left the country with the administrations blessing. The Republicans used the papers as proof that the British and the Federalists were up to no good. One Republican remarked, “Such is the conduct we have ever expected from England, while she retains possession of Canada – such the cause that necessarily forces us into a state of war.”

In the end, John Henry’s reports helped to polarize U.S. politics and bitterly divided the nation, a fact that continued throughout the War of 1812.

On Saturday, September 6, two great events are happening in Niagara. During the day, Fort George will be hosting Polo Niagara with polo events happening throughout the day. At night, Old Fort Erie will be having their annual Murder Mystery where visitors will interrogate suspects to help solve a murder. Don’t miss these great events.

Bid my dear and loving wife adieu

The War of 1812 separated loved ones, causing anxiety for those who did not know if their loved ones would return. One couple that found the war disruptive to their relationship was British Lieutenant Maurice Nowlan and his wife Agathe. Maurice and Agathe were newlyweds who were separated by the war after only six months of marriage.

Maurice wrote that he most enjoyed being alone reading Agathe letters than amongst the jovial society functions. Although Maurice longed for his wife, he firmly believed that a military camp was no place for a woman. Agathe was desperate for letters from Maurice and complained that she did not hear from him as much as she liked.

British soldiers at Fort Niagara

The couple’s situation became worse when Maurice’s regiment, the 100th Foot, was transferred to the Niagara in autumn of 1813. As their distance grew, Maurice wrote “Nothing on Earth could give me more pleasure than to have the infinite happiness of pressing you to my Heart.” During their separation, Maurice attempted to reassure his wife by writing “Try to be a little more patient,” while asking, “what can I do my dear so far away?”

On December 10, 1813, Lieutenant Nowlan was about to take part in the night attack on Fort Niagara. Although his was confident that he would survive, Maurice found it difficult “to bid my dear and loving wife adieu and perhaps the last time.” He went on to write,

My dearest jewel don’t torture yourself with grief if you should chance to get this before I have time to write you again. Hope for the best, my only Heart. You know you are my only care, it’s but for you I live, may the Almighty bless you, my only wife.

Sadly, Maurice was killed in action during the attack. There is no record of how Agathe coped with her husband’s death but she could take small comfort in knowing that she was loved by a devoted and brave officer.

This weekend head out to Old Fort Niagara for their annual 1812 encampment. You can find out more about Fort Niagara’s role during the war with activities happening during the day, and at night with the British storming the fort. Click here for more information.

For honour’s sake

At the start of the War of 1812, the U.S. officer corps lacked combat experience and many American officers were lawyers, merchants and clerks in commercial society. Winfield Scott described most of his fellow officers in 1812 as “imbeciles and ignoramuses.”

This crop of new officers came with an extreme sense of honour and many American officers would “devote every thing to the service of his country, except his honor.” This new officer corps readily insulted others and quickly felt slighted compared to their British counterparts who had a keen sense of duty and their place in class hierarchy.

For the Americans, the newspapers were another important battleground as they published accounts of battles as well as battle reports from commanders. These reports invariably cast the best possible light on the commanding officer, since they were the ones writing them, and on their favoured subordinates. Officer who felt slighted by these reports submitted letters to the newspapers, which often created rivalries and feuds.

Militia Officer, New York State

The winter season provided a great opportunity for officer to secure furloughs for leave to Washington in order to advance their own interests. In March 1814, one congressman wrote, “So great has been the resort of epaulettes here that many have inquired who were left with the Troops?” Leaving the troops behind squandered a great opportunity to train the troops, who resented the fact that they could not go home.

Courts-martial were far more abundant in the American army than in the British. Many officers pressed charges against one another, causing General George Izard to lament, “It is wonderful how much valuable time these Courts Martial engross.” Of course duelling was another way to settle disputes between officers.

Although duelling was prohibited in the U.S. Army, it did take place and some generals even encouraged this practice. With honour as a paramount concern, duellists shot at each other instead of the enemy. In the spring of 1813, two officers crossed the Niagara River to duel in order to leave New York’s legal jurisdiction, but were taken by surprise by the British and captured. At Fort George in 1813, Lieutenant Smith killed Dr. Shumate in a duel, depriving the camp of a much-needed surgeon during epidemics of malaria and dysentery.

Politics, war and honour proved a bloody mix for officers, since fighting each other was easier than fighting the British. Although the American officers retained their sense of honour as a paramount concern, their officer corps did improve during the war. By the time of the Niagara 1814 campaign, younger energetic officer took over and focused on training their men for the task at hand. A renewed sense of duty and training ensured that the Niagara 1814 campaign was the most successful for the American Army during the War of 1812.

This weekend you can head to Fort George for their annual timeline event with interpreters and animators representing the War of 1812, WWI, WWII and more. Click here for details.

From Garryowen and glory

The song Garryowen today is best associated with the U.S. Civil War and later as the regimental marching song for George Custer’s Seventh Calvary. The song actually originates from the Irish city of Limerick in the 1780s.

Garryowen was sung by a gang of wealthy troublemakers who enjoyed drinking in the popular and fashionable Limerick suburb of Garryowen (translated as “the garden of John”). The young hooligans enjoyed smashing property that did not belong to them. The song eventually became popular in the British Army since many Irishmen were recruited. During the wars with France between 1793-1815, Garryowen became the second most popular song in the British Army, after British Grenadiers. 

The lyrics for Garryowen:

            Let Bacchus’s sons be not dismayed,

            But join with me each jovial blade,

            Come, booze and sing and lend me aid,

            To help me with the chorus.

                        Instead of spa we’ll drink down ale,

                        And pay the reckoning on the nail,

                        For debt no man shall go to jail,

                        From Garryowen and glory.

            We’ll break windows, we’ll break doors,

            The watch knock down by threes and fours,

            Then let the doctors work their cures,

            And tinker up our bruises.

                        Instead of spa we’ll drink down ale, etc.

            Our hearts so stout have got us fame,

            For soon ‘tis known form whence we came,

            Where’er we go they dread the name,

            Of Garryowen in glory.

Instead of spa we’ll drink down ale, etc.

If you want to hear this song and many more, head out to the annual Fife and Drum Muster and Soldiers’ Field Day this weekend. Fife and Drum corps and infantry units from historic sites across Canada and the U.S. will be at Fort George. Click here for more information.