Battle of Quebec (1775)

Context

Seeking to attract the Canada in the revolution, the American chiefs prepare to take the town of Quebec, held by small garrisons of 100 British soldiers under the command of Guy Carleton, governor of Canada, and colonel Allen Maclean. The British have at their disposal a militia of several thousands of badly armed men, handling mainly the Mousquet and some bayonet S; the fortifications of the city, dilapidated, are supported by barricades out of wooden set up inside the urban districts.

Two forwardings are launched for Quebec. The Brigadier general Richard Montgomery passes by the Lac Champlain, while the Colonel Benedict Arnold carries out its troops through the back-country of the Maine. During this time, the general Washington operation to prevent the English from sending reinforcements to north. At the end of October 1775, the American troops arrive for Quebec. In November, Arnold crosses the the St. Lawrence and camps in the Plaines of Abraham, where he summons the garrison of the town of leave and to fight (during the Guerre Seven Year old, Montcalm had acted thus and be overcome) not obtaining an answer, Arnold decides to attack.

The battle

The attack begins at 4 a.m. in the morning, the December 31st 1775. Arnold divides its troops into two columns of attack. It carries out its own group, extremely of 600 men, with the attack of the northern part of the city, while one second column, made up of 300 men carried out by Montgomery, attacks has southern. The two columns must be found with the point of the St. Lawrence, before entering inside the walls of the city. But the fortifications prove too strong to be taken. That, in addition to the snowstorm which starts before the paddle, condemns the attack as of the beginning. The column of Montgomery advances along the river to the bastion of the course Diamant, where they arrivdent in front of a barricade at Near-of-City held by approximately 30 Canadian militiamans, who open fire. Montgomery is killed by the first salvo, which kills or wounds also a dozen men. Incompetents to counteract with their mousquets, useless in the middle of the storm, the Americans beat a retreat along the river.

Being unaware of the failure of the attack of Montgomery and its death, Arnold advances with its troops in direction of the barricades in north, where they are taken for target by the English and the local militia who hold the walls of the city. By reaching a barricade in the street called Sault with the Sailor , Arnold receives a ball of mousquet in ankle left and is repatriated with the back. Arnold being out of state of combat, its second, Daniel Morgan, takes the command and seizes the first barricade. But, in waiting of new orders, the Americans are attacked by thousands of militiamans in the streets and the houses in the vicinity. A British counter-attack takes again the first barricade, trapping Morgan and its men in the narrow streets of the city. Deprived of any means of fleeing and under the fire of the balls, the totality of the troops of Morgan go. At ten o'clock in the morning, the battle is completed with the rendering of Morgan and the last American pockets of resistance downtown.

Among the troops of Arnold, more than thirty soldiers (twenty others are killed are found at the time of the thaw and several others drown while trying to cross ice-cold water of the river) and 426 are made prisoners, of which Morgan. At least twelve other Americans are killed or wounded on southern bank with Montgomery after the attack. The English commander, Guy Carleton, state to have lost an English naval officer and five French Canadian militiamans, with four English soldiers and fifteen wounded militiamans.

The seat

Although its troops are lower than against three, Arnold refuses to give up and besieges Quebec, in spite of the winter temperatures and the massive desertions from its men after the expiry of their engagements, the 1776. The first American reinforcements arrive in March 1776, carrying the total of the troops with 2.000 men. But, incompetents of launching a new attack against the city, the seat continues until the arrival of more than 8.000 English soldiers in reinforcement, the May 6th 1776, which forces the American army to beat a retreat towards the south and to return in the colony of New York.

Consequences

After the English victory in Quebec and the American withdrawal of Canada, no other serious attempt to imply the Canadians in the American revolution against the English will take place.

References

Sir John Fortescue, History off the British Army
Christopher Ward, The War off the Revolution

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