Battle of the Cedars
The Battle of the Cedars was a series of military confrontations early in the American Revolutionary War. The skirmishes, which involved limited combat, occurred in May 1776 at and around the CedARS, 45 km west of Montreal, British North America. Continental Army units were opposed by a small force of British troops leading a larger force of Indians and militia. The garrison surrendered on May 19 after a confrontation with a combined force ofBritish and Indian troops led by Captain George Forster. American reinforcements on their way to the Cedar were also captured after a brief skirmish on May 20.
About Battle of the Cedars in brief
The Battle of the Cedars was a series of military confrontations early in the American Revolutionary War during the Continental Army’s invasion of Canada that had begun in September 1775. The skirmishes, which involved limited combat, occurred in May 1776 at and around the CedARS, 45 km west of Montreal, British North America. Continental Army units were opposed by a small force of British troops leading a larger force of Indians and militia. The garrison surrendered on May 19 after a confrontation with a combined force ofBritish and Indian troops led by Captain George Forster. American reinforcements on their way to the Cedar were also captured after a brief skirmish on May 20. All of the captives were eventually released after negotiations between Forster and Brigadier General Benedict Arnold, who was bringing a sizable force into the area. Colonel Timothy Bedel and Lieutenant Isaac Butterfield, leaders of the American force, were court-martialed and cashiered for their roles in the affair. The American forces occupying the city numbered about 500, with additional forces at posts outside the city. The occupation of Montreal was poorly managed, and relations between the Americans and the population, including those supportive of the Americans, deteriorated for a variety of reasons. One major factor that contributed to the poor relations was the American interdiction of trade with the Indian populations on the upper St. Lawrence and the Great Lakes, since the trade goods might be used to support British garrisons in those areas.
The fur trade was economically important to the city, and its interruption affected both supporters and opponents of theAmerican cause. The Cedars is on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River, about 45 kilometres from the center of modern Montreal, to the southwest of the western tip of the island of Montreal. It is separated by the Ottawa River, from which it is separated from the city of Montreal by the St. Louis River. In early 1776, a Loyalist captain, John Butler, held a conference with several hundred tribesmen from the Six Nations, primarily from the Akwesasne. Butler held a meeting at Fort Niagara in early May, where he recruited 100 Mohawk men from Akesesne. At Fort Niagara, the captain held a conversation with several hundred Indians, primarily Mohwawkmen from Six Nations. The meeting occurred on May 6, where the captain agreed to launch an attack on Continental forces at Montreal from the west. The commander of the Fort Niagara was Captain George Butler, who led a company of Loyalists under the command of George Présentation. The Battle of Fort Niagara took place on May 7, 1776. The battle was won by the Loyalists, but the Americans were able to capture Fort St. Jean the next day. The Siege of Fort St Jean was fought on May 13, 1775, and resulted in the fall of the British Province of Quebec. The siege was followed by the capture of Montreal on May 14, 1777.
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This page is based on the article Battle of the Cedars published in Wikipedia (as of Oct. 30, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
