Richard Montgomery

On 3 February 1757, the 17th Foot was ordered to march from its garrison at Galway and prepare to be deployed overseas.[6] On 5 May, Montgomery and the 17th Foot sailed from Cork for Halifax, Nova Scotia, arriving in July.[7] The British had planned an attempt on Louisbourg but the operation was called off, and they sailed instead for winter quarters in New York.[7] In 1758, the 17th Foot was sent back to Halifax, once again with the goal of taking Louisbourg.[6]

The British commanders, Jeffery Amherst and James Abercromby drew up a plan to assault the French at Louisbourg, which is located on the Atlantic coast of Cape Breton Island, north of Halifax.[8] The French garrison consisted of only 800 men, while the British force had 13,142 troops supported by 23 ships of the line and 13 frigates. On 8 June 1758, the attack on the fort began. Montgomery landed on the beach under heavy fire and ordered his troops to advance with fixed bayonets.[9] The outer French defenses withdrew back toward the city. Montgomery's unit and the rest of the British force chased the French back to a point just outside the Fort's guns.[9] At this point, the British prepared to besiege the city. Due to bad weather, artillery and other materials needed for the siege took several weeks to arrive onshore.[10] Montgomery had his men dig entrenchments and build breastworks, also ordering his men stay alert to the possibility of a French attack.[9] On 9 July, the French attempted a breakout, but it failed. On 26 July, following a series of actions resulting in the destruction of most their fleet, the French surrendered.[11] General Amherst was impressed by Montgomery's action during the siege, and promoted him to lieutenant.[11]

On 8 July 1758, James Abercromby attacked Fort Carillon on Lake Champlain, but was repelled with heavy losses.[12] In August, Montgomery and the 17th foot sailed to Boston, marched to join with Abercromby's forces in Albany and then moved to Lake George.[13] On 9 November, Abercromby was recalled; Amherst replaced him as commander-in-chief.[12] The British high command, for the 1759 campaign, developed a plan for a three-pronged attack into Canada, in which forces including the 17th foot would assault Fort Carillon and also capture Fort St. Frédéric, near Crown Point, New York. Under Amherst's command, Montgomery and the 17th Foot participated in the capture of Fort Carillon.[12] While the army was gathering prior to the battle, Montgomery's company was on guard duty; he ordered his men to remain vigilant for French and Indian ambush parties. On 9 May his suspicions proved correct when 12 men from the 17th were attacked.[14] Montgomery and the 17th met stiff resistance at first.[14] Montgomery ordered that his men were not to fire at night, fearing they would shoot their comrades. On 21 July, the army began its movement toward Fort Carillon; by the 26th they were in position outside the fort's walls, from which the French had already withdrawn most of their forces to Fort St. Frédéric. That night, after some exchange of cannon fire during the day, the French blew up Carillon's powder magazine, and Fort St. Frédéric the next day, and withdrew to the far end of Lake Champlain.[14]

The 17th, which was placed under the command of Major General Robert Monckton late in 1759, spent the winter on garrison duty in the Mohawk River valley.[15] On 15 May 1760, Monckton named Montgomery as regimental adjutant, a position awarded by the commanding officer to the most promising lieutenant in the regiment.[16] In August, the 17th Foot joined with the Lake Champlain Division, and set out from Crown Point to participate in a three-pronged attack on Montreal.[17] The 17th Foot captured the Île aux Noix and Fort Chambly before meeting with the two other divisions outside Montreal. The Marquis de Vaudreuil, Canada's French governor, seeing that the city could not be defended, surrendered the city without a fight.[18] With the fall of Montreal, all of Canada fell into British hands.[17] In the summer of 1761, Montgomery and the 17th Foot marched from Montreal to Staten Island.[17]

After conquering Canada, the British government put together a plan to defeat the French in the West Indies.[17] In November 1761, Montgomery and the 17th set sail for Barbados, where they joined other units from North America. On 5 January 1762, the force left Barbados and headed towards the French island of Martinique, arriving there in mid-January. The French, having received word of an impending attack, had built up their defenses.[17] A beachhead was quickly established, and the main offensive began on 24 January. The French outer defenses were overrun and the survivors fled to the capital, Fort Royal. The British prepared to launch an assault on the fort, but the French, seeing the situation was hopeless, surrendered.[19] On 12 February, the entire island surrendered.[19] After the fall of Martinique, the rest of the French West Indies, Grenada, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent, fell to the British without a fight.[19] On 6 May 1762, in reward for his actions in Martinique, Lieutenant Colonel John Campbell promoted Montgomery to captain and gave him command of one of the ten companies of the 17th Foot.[20]

Spain entered the war in 1761 as an ally of France.[19] The British high command believed that capturing Havana would destroy the lines of communication from Spain to its colonial empire.[21] On 6 June, the assaulting British forces arrived seven miles off the shore of Havana. The 17th Foot, including Montgomery's company, was to capture Moro Fort, the key to the Spanish defense of the city.[21] British battleships bombarded the fort, silencing all but two Spanish guns. On 30 July, Montgomery and the 17th Foot stormed and captured the fort.[21] In late August 1762, Montgomery and the 17th Foot were sent to New York, where they remained for the rest of the war. The conflict was ended by the signing of the Treaty of Paris on 10 February 1763.[22]

On 16 May 1775, Montgomery was elected as one of the ten deputies to represent Dutchess County in the New York Provincial Congress.[41] Although Montgomery had only lived in New York for two years and had not sought political involvement, he was well known and respected in the area and he felt obliged to attend.[42] He was reluctant to go, but nonetheless went to New York City, 80 miles south of Rhinebeck.[43]

The first session began on 22 May.[43] On 26 May 97 delegates, including Montgomery, signed a resolution legitimizing its authority. Montgomery's views were those of a moderate Patriot. He believed that the British Government was wrong, but hoped for an honorable reconciliation.[44] Gradually, the faction of the Congress that remained loyal to the King lost its influence, with some not participating on a regular basis.[44] Montgomery was selected to serve in a site selection committee to decide the placement of military defensive positions in New York,[45] and was also involved in organizing the provincial militia and securing its supplies.[45]

After the appointment of George Washington as Commander-in-Chief of the newly formed Continental Army on 15 June 1775, the Second Continental Congress asked the New York Provincial Government to select two men for service in the army.[46] One would be a major general, the other a brigadier general. The assembly favored Philip Schuyler as the major general. Montgomery expressed concern over this, as he did not believe that Schuyler had enough combat experience for such an appointment.[47] Montgomery wrote that "Phil Schuyler was mentioned to me ... His consequence in the province makes him a fit subject for an important trust – but has he strong nerves? I could wish to have that point well ascertained with respect to any man so employed."[47] Although Montgomery knew he was under consideration for brigadier general, he did not publicly show any desire for the appointment.[47] Nonetheless, Schuyler was appointed major general, and Montgomery brigadier general, on 22 June.[48] Montgomery was ranked second in command of all the brigadier generals.[49] In view of this appointment, he said, "The Congress having done me the honor of electing me brigadier-general in their service, is an event which must put an end, for awhile, perhaps for ever, to the quiet scheme of life I had prescribed for myself; for, though entirely unexpected and undesired by me, the will of an oppressed people, compelled to choose between liberty and slavery, must be obeyed."[50]

The American invasion of Canada.

On 25 June, George Washington passed through New York City on his way to Boston.[51] Washington assigned Montgomery as deputy commander under Schuyler. A few days later, Schuyler received orders from the Continental Congress to invade Canada.[51] The idea was that the army was to invade Quebec, where the Hudson River and the northern lakes could supply the army. A force was quickly assembled at Fort Ticonderoga, and Schuyler left to take command of the army on 4 July.[52] Montgomery stayed in Albany for several more weeks making the final arrangements for the invasion. His wife followed him as far north as Saratoga, where he told her "You shall never have cause to blush for your Montgomery."[52]

Through July and early August, Montgomery and Schuyler continued to organize their force, raising the men and materials needed for an invasion.[53] While they organized, Washington decided to expand the invasion, ordering Benedict Arnold to lead another invasion force that would invade Quebec from Maine. It was to join with Schuyler's army outside Quebec City, where they would launch a joint attack on to the city.[53]

In August, Schuyler left to meet with representatives of the Iroquois Confederacy in order to keep them neutral during the invasion, leaving Montgomery in command of the forces at Fort Ticonderoga.[54] While Schuyler was away, Montgomery received intelligence that the British were building two gunboats on Lake Champlain, which, when complete, would give the British military access to the lake.[55] Without asking permission from Schuyler, he moved 1,200 men north on the schooner Liberty and the sloop Enterprise.[54] Montgomery wrote a letter to Schuyler, explaining the situation.[56]

The Embarkation of Montgomery's troops at Crown Point.

Schuyler returned to Fort Ticonderoga on 30 August,[57] ordered an additional 800 men to reinforce Montgomery, and then, despite being ill, set out to join Montgomery. He caught up with Montgomery on 4 September on Isle La Motte,[58] where he assumed command and ordered the advance to continue to Île aux Noix, a small island in the Richelieu River.[58] Schuyler, whose health was poor, drafted a proclamation in which he called the Canadians "Friends and Countrymen", asking them to help expel the British from Canada.[58]

On 6 September, Montgomery led a probing force to Fort St. Johns, the key to the British defense of Montreal.[58] Montgomery led the main body of troops toward the fort through a marshy and heavily wooded area. A flanking party led by Captain Matthew Mead was ambushed by 100 Native Americans allied to the British.[59] The party held its ground, forcing the ambushing Natives to fall back to the fort. Montgomery, fearing that the British force was larger than he had anticipated, called off operations for the rest of the day and withdrew his force to a spot beyond the range of the British guns.[59] Believing that the fort could not be captured quickly, Schuyler recalled Montgomery's force and fortified Île aux Noix.[60]

Schuyler's health declined,[60] so Montgomery assumed command of the daily functions of the army. On 10 September, a larger force of 1,700 men led by Montgomery moved toward the fort.[61] In the swampy area around the fort, it was so dark that two parties of Americans ran into each other; each feared the other to be the British, and both fled.[61] Montgomery ran to intercept them and ended the flight. As they advanced toward the fort, the force came under British grapeshot fire.[61] One party of Americans attacked the British breastworks, inflicting 2 casualties, after which they fell back.[61] The next morning, Montgomery called a council of war, in which it was agreed to make another attack on the fort. However, word spread that a British warship was advancing up the river, and half the New England troops fled out of fright.[62] Montgomery, believing his force could no longer take the fort, retreated back to Île aux Noix. Montgomery, furious at the flight of the New England troops, asked Schuyler to appoint a court-martial board.[62] Meanwhile, Schuyler's health had not improved. He left for Ticonderoga on the 16th to recover, giving full control of the operation to Montgomery.[63]

Outside of Fort Saint-Jean (Quebec), Montgomery continued to receive reinforcements.[64] He granted leaves to commanders who he felt were not fit for their position. He said "I hope we shall have none left but fighting men on whom I can rely."[64]

On 16 September, Montgomery organized another expedition against the British fort.[64] In total, he had 1,400 men. He sent a naval component, with 1 schooner, 1 sloop, and 10 bateaux with 350 troops to counter any move by the British warship, Royal Savage.[64] Montgomery took the rest of his force and sailed up the river, landing near St. Johns on 17 September.[64] The British garrison was 725 men commanded by Major Charles Preston, who just 3 years earlier had been Montgomery's superior officer in the British Army.[65]

Montgomery and his troops spent the first night near the landing area, under light fire from the British guns.[65] The next morning, he ordered Major Timothy Bedel to occupy a position north of the fort, but when Montgomery saw that his men were apprehensive, he chose to lead the mission himself.[65] As Montgomery led his troops, they came upon a fight between British troops and another American party. Montgomery took command of the skirmish and forced the British party back into the fort.[66] Montgomery sent Bedel with a force to entrench themselves about a mile north of the fort. Montgomery then put other troops around the fort and began a siege.[66]

A map of Fort St. Johns

Preston and the British forces had many more guns and much more ammunition than the Americans and thus achieved a 10-to-1 firepower advantage for the first few weeks.[66] Montgomery concentrated his forces on improving the siege works. Within several days they had erected 2 batteries under consistent fire from the fort.[66] On 22 September, Montgomery was nearly killed while inspecting the breastworks when a cannonball from the fort shot past him, ripping his skirt and knocking him off the breastwork, although he landed on his feet. The troops observed that this "did not seem to hurt or frighten him."[67]

The Americans continued to receive armaments from Ticonderoga,[68] with guns arriving on 21 September and also on 5 October. However, the artillery were positioned too far away to do much damage to the fort.[68] With the arrival of the new guns, Montgomery planned to move the emphasis of the bombardment from the east side of the fort to the north side, where they would be closer. However, his officers unanimously rejected this plan, fearing that many men would desert due to the increased danger.[69] Montgomery ordered that a new battery be built where the Royal Savage could be threatened. On 14 October, the battery was completed and then used to sink the British ship.[70]

In mid-October, James Livingston, an American expatriate living near Chambly (and a relative of Montgomery's wife Janet), suggested to Montgomery that he might have better success attacking Fort Chambly, which, about 10 miles downstream, was weaker than St. Jean.[71] Montgomery approved of the idea and ordered 350 men to take Chambly. On the night of 16 October, two American guns were slipped past Fort St. Jean and moved towards Chambly.[71] The next morning, these guns opened fire on Chambly. After two days of bombardment, holes were driven into the fort's walls and the chimney had been knocked down. The British commander surrendered the fort, along with 6 tons of gunpowder and 83 men.[72] Montgomery sent the colors of the 7th Royal Fusiliers, who had been defending the fort, to Schuyler, the first standards of a British regiment captured in the war.[72] Washington sent a letter of congratulations to Montgomery and commented that he hoped "that his next letter be dated from Montreal."[72]

The capture of Chambly improved morale in the ranks of Montgomery's army, so much so that he went through with his plan to establish a battery north of Fort St. Jean,[73] this time without opposition. While the Americans were constructing the batteries, the British heavily bombarded the American workers, but this resulted in few casualties.[74] General Guy Carleton, commanding the British forces at Montreal, realized that the situation at Fort St. Jean was becoming desperate. He personally led a relief force at the end of October, but American forces successfully prevented it from crossing the Saint Lawrence River south of Montreal.[75]

On 1 November, the new batteries erected north of the fort were complete.[75] The Americans began to fire at the fort and continued to do so throughout the rest of the day. The British guns fired back, but were less effective.[75] The American guns caused few casualties, but inflicted heavy structural damage inside of the fort. Morale in the besieged garrison fell as the bombardment (and declining rations) took their toll.[75] At sundown, Montgomery ordered the firing to stop and sent a prisoner captured at Chambly inside with a letter asking for the garrison's surrender. A messenger sent from Carleton to Preston was captured during the night, in which Carleton ordered that Preston continue to hold out.[76] On 2 November, the British agreed to surrender with full military honors. They marched out of the fort on 3 November, and were sent into the colonies, where they were interned.[77] The British had suffered 20 killed and 23 wounded, while the Americans had only five killed and six wounded throughout the siege.[77]

General Guy Carleton opposed Montgomery at Quebec.

Montgomery then turned the army toward Montreal.[78] The march was difficult as there was snow, water, and ice on the ground and a winter storm struck several days after their departure.[78] In an attempt to stop an escape of British troops from Montreal to Quebec, Montgomery sent a detachment to Sorel where the force briefly clashed with British troops. The British troops quickly withdrew to their vessels in the St. Lawrence River.[79] When Montgomery and the main army reached the outskirts of the city, Montgomery sent a messenger in demanding the surrender of the city or they would suffer bombardment. While negotiations for the city's surrender took place, Carleton fled down the St. Lawrence River in a small flotilla of ships. The city surrendered on 13 November, and Montgomery and his army marched into the city without a shot being fired.[80]

On 19 November, the British flotilla was captured, but Carleton narrowly escaped and made his way to Quebec City.[81] Montgomery's kind treatment toward the captured British prisoners caused several officers to express their concern. Montgomery saw this as a challenge to his authority and this, along with the lack of discipline in the army, caused Montgomery to threaten resignation.[82] Letters from Washington in which Washington also expressed his troubles with the discipline of troops convinced Montgomery to continue his command.[83]

On 28 November, Montgomery and 300 men went aboard some of the captured ships and began to sail to Quebec City.[84] On 2 December, Montgomery joined Benedict Arnold's force at Pointe aux Trembles, 18 miles upriver from Quebec. On his arrival, Arnold turned over command of his forces to Montgomery.[85] On 3 December, Montgomery gave Arnold's men, who had marched through the Maine wilderness to Quebec City and suffered much hardship along the way, much-needed supplies, including clothing and other winter supplies taken from the captured British ships. The next day, the army moved toward the city; when they arrived, Montgomery ordered the city to be surrounded.[86] On 7 December, Montgomery sent an ultimatum to Carleton, demanding the surrender of the city. Carleton burned the letter. Several days later, Montgomery sent a letter into the city appealing the merchants telling them that they had come to liberate the civilians of Quebec. However, Carleton discovered the plan and quickly had the messenger arrested. Montgomery, wanting his message to reach the inhabitants of the city, then sent the proclamation over the wall with bows and arrows.[87]

The Death of General Montgomery in the Attack on Quebec, 31 December 1775, John Trumbull, 1786

Unknown to Montgomery, he was promoted to major general on 9 December for his victories at St. Johns and Montreal. After Montgomery was unable to convince Carleton to surrender, he placed several mortars a few hundred yards outside the walls of the city.[88] The shelling of the city began on 9 December, but after several days it had failed to make a serious impact on the walls, the garrison, or the civilian population. With the shelling having little effect, Montgomery ordered the emplacement of another battery closer towards the city walls, on the Plains of Abraham, despite the fact it offered little natural cover from returning fire.[89] On 15 December, the new batteries were ready and Montgomery sent a party of men under the flag of truce to ask for the city's surrender. However, they were turned away. Montgomery then resumed firing on the city, but the effect was little better.[90] When the new batteries were hit by more effective fire from the British, Montgomery ordered their evacuation.[90]

MGen Richard Montgomery with autograph in 1775

As the bombardment of the city proved to be unsuccessful, Montgomery then began to plan for an assault.[91] Montgomery was to assault the Lower Town district (Saint-Roch), the part of the city near the river shore, while Arnold was to attack and take the Cape Diamond Bastion, a strong part of the city walls on the highest point of the rocky promontory. Montgomery believed that they should attack during a stormy night, therefore the British would not be able to see them.[91] On 27 December, the weather became stormy, and Montgomery ordered that the men prepare to attack. However, the storm soon subsided and Montgomery called off the attack.[92] As Montgomery waited for a storm, he was forced to revise his plans, because a deserter communicated the original plan to the defenders. In the new plan, Montgomery would attack the Lower Town from the south and Arnold would attack the Lower Town from the north.[93] After breaking through the walls, Montgomery and Arnold would meet up in the city and then attack and take the Upper Town, causing resistance to collapse. To increase their chance of surprise, Montgomery planned two feints.[93] One detachment of troops (the 1st Canadian Regiment under James Livingston) would set fire to one of the gates while another (under the command of Jacob Brown) would engage the guard at Cape Diamond Bastion and fire rockets to signal the start of the attack. While the feints were conducted, artillery would fire into the city.[93] Although Montgomery was reluctant to attack, enlistments for Arnold's men were expiring on 1 January, and he was concerned about losing their services.[93]

On the night of 30 December, a snowstorm struck.[94] Montgomery issued the order to attack and the Americans began to move towards their designated positions. At 4:00 a.m., Montgomery saw the rocket flares and began to move his men around the city towards the lower town.[95] Although the rockets were to signal the attack, they also alerted the British of the impending attack, and the city's defenders rushed to their posts. Montgomery personally led the march to the Lower Town, as they descended the steep slippery cliffs outside the city walls.[96] At 6:00 a.m., Montgomery's force reached a palisade at the edge of the Lower Town, which they had to saw through.[97] After they sawed through a second palisade, Montgomery led the advance party through the opening. Seeing a two-story blockhouse down the street, Montgomery led the troops toward it, encouraging the men by drawing his sword and shouting, "Come on, my good soldiers, your General calls upon you to come on."[98] When the Americans were about 50 yards (46 m) away, the British forces in the blockhouse (30 Canadian militia and some seamen), opened fire with cannon, musket, and grapeshot. Montgomery was killed with grapeshot through the head and both thighs.[98] Also killed in the burst of gunfire were Captains John Macpherson and Jacob Cheesman.[98]

With the death of Montgomery, his attack fell apart.[98] Colonel Donald Campbell, the surviving officer, ordered a somewhat panicked retreat. One of Montgomery's staff officers, Aaron Burr, briefly attempted to drag his commander's body to friendly lines, but was foiled by the snow as well as Montgomery's dead weight. Without Montgomery's assistance, Arnold's attack, after initial success, fell apart.[99] Arnold was wounded in the leg, and a large number of his troops were captured, including Daniel Morgan.[100]

On 1 January 1776, the British started collecting bodies of the deceased and soon found the body of a high-ranking officer of the American colonial army. After being brought to General Carleton, an American prisoner confirmed that the body was that of Richard Montgomery.[101]

Once Montgomery's death was announced, Benedict Arnold assumed command of the American colonial forces.[102] As Montgomery was a well-respected man on both sides of the battlefield, Carleton ordered that he be buried with dignity, but not with too much fanfare.[101] At sunset on 4 January 1776, Montgomery's remains were put to rest. During his burial, American prisoners acknowledged Montgomery as a "beloved general" with "heroic bravery" and "suavity of manners" who held the "confidence of the whole army."[103]

Montgomery Place in Barrytown, New York

Fort Montgomery, a massive masonry fortification mounting 125 guns on Lake Champlain was named for the General. Its construction begun in 1844, it was designed to guard the strategically important frontier between Canada and the United States; only ruins remain today.

Montgomery has several places named after him. Counties named for him are to be found in North Carolina, Missouri, Arkansas, Illinois,[119] Indiana, Kansas, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Georgia, Virginia, and Kentucky.[120] Cities and towns named for him most notably include Montgomery, Alabama, that state's capital and third largest city, as well as Montgomery, Minnesota and Montgomery, Vermont. There is a township in New Jersey, a town and village in New York, and a town in Massachusetts as well.

Richard Montgomery High School in Rockville, Maryland, bears his name, itself located in the county named after him, Montgomery County. Montgomery Place, a mansion in Barrytown, New York, was constructed in 1803 and named in his honor by his widow.[121] General Montgomery had planned it before his departure from Grassmere in 1775, and construction was originally planned to start in 1776.[122]

Montgomery Street in Savannah, Georgia, is named for him,[123] as well as Montgomery Street in Trenton, New Jersey.[124]