The Battle of Fort George (27 May 1813) was an important battle in the War of 1812. It saw the United States launch a successful amphibious assault to capture Fort George, the main British outpost on the Niagara frontier. The Americans, however, failed to capitalize on their victory, and would ultimately abandon the fort seven months later.
Alonzo Chappel (Public Domain)
Background: Burning of York
Ever since the opening of hostilities in June 1812, the capture of Canada had been the primary objective of the US government. But several factors – including the unpreparedness of the US military and the incompetence of its general officers – led the first two attempted invasions to end in humiliating failures. By early 1813, with support for the war wavering at home, it was clear that a new approach would have to be taken if the US hoped to wrench Canada from British control. Such an approach was offered by John Armstrong, Jr., the new US secretary of war, who believed that no invasion of Canada would succeed without prior control of the Great Lakes, specifically Lakes Erie and Ontario. If the Americans could achieve naval domination on these lakes, they could strike at vulnerable military outposts and towns along the lakeshore, including York (present-day Toronto), Kingston, and Fort George. In this manner, the Americans could conquer Canada piecemeal.
With this goal in mind, Armstrong ordered a squadron of ships constructed at Sacket's Harbor, on the New York side of Lake Ontario. Placed under the command of Commodore Isaac Chauncey, this flotilla consisted of a corvette – the flagship USS Madison – a brig, and twelve schooners. Once completed, the ships were loaded with 1,700 US soldiers under Major General Henry Dearborn before setting sail for York, the capital of Upper Canada. On 27 April 1813, with Chauncey's ships anchored in Toronto Bay, the US soldiers rowed ashore, establishing a beachhead 4 miles (6 km) to the west of town. Led by the daring Brigadier General Zebulon Pike (Dearborn was supposedly too ill to lead the attack himself), the American soldiers advanced toward York overland as the schooners provided covering fire from the harbor. The British regulars and Canadian militia were outnumbered and slowly fell back. Eventually, the British were ordered to retreat, but not before blowing up the gunpowder magazine in Fort York. The explosion devastated the approaching US troops, as pieces of rock, metal, and other debris rained down upon them. The blast caused over 200 American casualties, including General Pike, who was killed after his ribs were crushed by a falling boulder.
Although their victory was dampened by the explosion, the Americans succeeded in occupying York, marking their first significant land victory of the war. Despite promises made by General Dearborn that private property would be respected, the US soldiers indulged in two days of looting; not only did they carry off valuables found in private homes but they also burned several official buildings including the Government House and the Legislative Assembly (the British would cite these burnings as justification for the burning of Washington, D.C., the following year). Dearborn lingered in York for only two weeks, long enough to load the captured military supplies onto the ships, before marching back to the American lines on 8 May. The Battle of York, though it had not been as complete a victory as Secretary of War Armstrong would have liked, still proved the merits of his plan. Having ravished York, the Americans next turned their sights toward Fort George, the main British military outpost on Lake Ontario. But this time, the Americans did not intend on simply leaving after capturing their objective; this time, they meant to begin their invasion of Canada in earnest.
The British-American War of 1812
Simeon Netchev (CC BY-NC-ND)
