| Nova Scotia theatre | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theAmerican Revolutionary War | |||||||
 Naval battle off Halifax (1782) | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 United Colonies(1775-1781)  United States(1781-1782)  Kingdom of France |  Great Britain | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 La Pérouse |
 CaptainHenry Francis Evans[1] † CaptainRupert George[2][3][4]Richard Peter Tonge (POW) | ||||||
Nova Scotia during the American Revolution was an important factor in the British war effort.[5] Northern-most of the British colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America, theProvince of Nova Scotia did not join with theThirteen Colonies which fought for independence, achieving it with aid from European allies. At the outbreak, there was ambivalence in Nova Scotia over whether the colony should join the Americans in the war against Britain, and it was "almost the 14th American Colony". Largely as a result of Americanprivateer raids on Nova Scotia villages, as the war continued, the population of Nova Scotia solidified their support for the British.[6] Thousands ofLoyalist refugees fled to Nova Scotia during the war, and many were resettled in the region after the signing of the 1783Treaty of Paris as "United Empire Loyalists". With the influx of Loyalist refugees, Nova Scotia was subdivided, creatingNew Brunswick in 1784.
InNova Scotia was the traditional territory of the Mi'kmaq and then settled by the Catholic FrenchAcadians, the British conquering a portion of the territory in 1710, but did not immediately settle it. With the establishment of the deepwater port ofHalifax, which became the capital, the British began asserting control over the territory as a counter to French power in North America. Halifax became the North American station for the Royal Navy in 1759. Starting in 1755, the British took action against continuing Acadian attacks by forciblyexpelling the Acadians, an estimated 14,000 over several years. Their lands were opened to English and Scots settlers. New Englanders, used to the harsh climate, came in fairly large numbers.
New Englanders objected to the British imposition of theStamp Act 1765, but recent British immigrants and London-oriented business interests based in the port ofHalifax the provincial capital, were more influential in keeping the colony loyal to the crown. The only major public protest was the hanging in effigy of the stamp distributor andLord Bute. The act was implemented in both provinces, but Nova Scotia's stamp distributor resigned in January 1766, beset by ungrounded fears for his safety. Authorities there were ordered to allow ships bearing unstamped papers to enter its ports, and business continued unabated after the distributors ran out of stamps.[7]
At the outbreak of theAmerican Revolution, many Nova Scotians were New England-born and were sympathetic to theAmerican Patriots. This support slowly eroded over the first two years of the war as American privateers attacked Nova Scotian villages and shipping to try to interrupt Nova Scotian trade with theAmerican Loyalists still in New England. During the war, American privateers captured 225 vessels either leaving or arriving at Nova Scotia ports.[8]
In June 1775, the Americans had their first naval victory over the British in theBattle of Machias where American privateerJeremiah O'Brien and the men ofMachias, Maine, captured a British war ship. In response to this defeat, in July 1775, the British sent from Halifax two armed sloops to Machias to capture the rebel captain and his men. On July 12, 1775,Jeremiah O'Brien sailing his schooner, theMachias Liberty, acting in concert with Colonel Benjamin Foster (in an East Machias schooner) captured these two British vessels in theBay of Fundy.[9]
The following month American privateers from Machias executed their third consecutive victory in the region byraiding St John.[10][a]
In retaliation for the American victories at Machias andSt. John, the Britishburned Falmouth (present-dayPortland, Maine) in October 1775.[11] The following month, in November 1775, the American Patriots retaliated by shipsHancock andFranklin from Marbleheadraiding Charlottetown andCanso, Nova Scotia, where they took five prizes. (In the raid on Charlottetown, the privateers also sought revenge against Nathaniel Coffin, the Loyalist who cut down theLiberty Tree in Boston.) The first year of the war ended with the American privateerraid on Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.[12]
In 1775, rebellion began to ferment within Nova Scotia. Governor Legge began to target prominent Protestantdissenters of theSt. Matthew's Church:John Fillis and judgeWilliam Smith andJohn Frost (minister). The Governor also targeted judgeSeth Harding from the Liverpool Township and he left on October 1775 and did not return.[13][14] According to Cahill, as a result of "instances of non-legal repression and petty tyranny, such as the summary dismissals of Judge Smith and Justice Frost, had ended with the recall of Governor Legge [to London] in January 1776."[15]
A small number of Nova Scotians went south to serve with theContinental Army against the British; upon the completion of the war these rebels were granted land in theRefugee Tract in what later becameOhio.[16]
In 1776, there was also armed rebellion such as theMaugerville Rebellion (1776). The other attack was by land and led byJonathan Eddy who led theBattle of Fort Cumberland.[12] According to historian Barry Cahill, this rebellion led the Nova Scotia government to "use the formal law in sedition trials for an essential aspect of the official response to the American Revolution."[15] The government arraigned dissentersJohn Seccombe and jailedTimothy Houghton for sedition (incitement to rebellion).[17][18]Malachy Salter was convicted of sedition in 1777.
At the end of 1776, there were two significant American attacks on Nova Scotia. One of these assaults was by sea and led byJohn Paul Jones in theraid on Canso. In 1776, John Allan led the Maliseet to challenge the loyalists onIndian Island, New Brunswick, to join the rebel cause.[19] In 1776, two American privateers took four vessels atCape Forchu, Nova Scotia, and took the people of the hamlet prisoners.[20]
In March 1777, in the firstContinental Navy encounter with theRoyal Navy,HMSMilford capturedUSSCabot in thebattle off Yarmouth. The crew ofCabot escaped to find protection among the local village, and two inhabitants of Yarmouth sheltered them for 30 days until they made their escape back to New England. The engagement betweenMilford andCabot was one of several in the region. On 2 May 1777, in the Minas Basin Captain Collet ordered the capture the American privateer schoonerSea Duck, under the command of John Bohannan. He had the vessel taken toWindsor.[21] In June, the American Patriots launched theSt. John River expedition.[22] In July 1777, HMSAmazon captured the privateerActive off ofCape Sable Island.[23][24][25] In August 1777, the Britishraided Machias.[26]
The following year, in April 1778 the American privateers againattacked Liverpool. On 9 August, American privateers attacked Cornwallis at present-dayKentville, which resulted in the British buildingFort Hughes in the area. The fort could hold 56 soldiers. In 1778, the British schoonerHope also defeated an American privateer ship at Canso. Seven Patriots escaped but were later captured near Halifax.[27] Prisoners were returned from Halifax to Boston on theSwift in September 1778.[28] TheCartel Silver Eel took prisoners to Boston in October 1778.[28] In 1779 Maugerville was raided again by Maliseets working withJohn Allan inMachias, Maine. A vessel was captured and two or three residents' homes were plundered. In response, a blockhouse was built at the mouth ofOromocto River also namedFort Hughes (named after the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia, SirRichard Hughes).[29] In June 1779, the British troops at Windsor captured 12 American privateers in the Bay of Fundy, where they cruised in a large boat, armed, plundering the vessels and the inhabitants.[30] In 1779, American privateers returned to Canso and destroyed the fisheries, which were worth £50,000 a year to Britain.[b]
In 1779 the British from Halifax adopted a strategy to seize parts of Maine, especially around Penobscot Bay, and make it a new colony to be calledNew Ireland. It was intended to be a permanent colony for Loyalists and a base for military action during the war.[31]
In early July 1779,Francis McLean left Halifax and led a British naval and military force into Castine's commodious harbor, landed troops, and took control of the village. He began erectingFort George on one of the highest points of the peninsula. Alarmed by this incursion, theCommonwealth of Massachusetts sent thePenobscot Expedition to lay siege to the fort and reclaim the territory.[32] The siege started on July 25 and lasted three weeks until the arrival of British commanderGeorge Collier who defeated the American expedition. (The British held New Ireland, the planned loyalist homeland, until the end of the war. Instead, the British divided Nova Scotia and named the new Loyalist homelandNew Brunswick.)[33]
At the end of 1779, the British at Halifax experienced some significant losses. In December 1779 the schooner Hope wrecked near theSambro Island Light on the Three Sisters Rocks. Captain Henry Baldwin and six other crew were killed. Weeks later, 170 British sailors died when two vessels –North andSt Helena – were wrecked in a storm when entering Halifax harbour.[33][34]
On 10 July 1780, in theBattle off Halifax, the British privateer brigResolution (16 guns) under the command of Thomas Ross engaged the American privateerViper (22 guns and 130 men) off Halifax at Sambro Light. In what one observer described as "one of the bloodiest battles in the history of privateering", the two privateers began a "severe engagement"[35] during which both pounded each other with cannon fire for about 90 minutes.[36][37] The engagement resulted in the surrender ofResolution and the death of up to 18 British and 33 American sailors.[c]
In May 1781, the local Nova Scotia militia defeated American privateers in theBattle off Cape Split.[39][40] The British and French also clashed in theNaval battle off Cape Breton.[41] Finally, the privateers returned in theRaid on Annapolis Royal (1781).[42] In the final year of attacks on Nova Scotia, the American privateers fought in theNaval battle off Halifax and theRaid on Lunenburg (1782).[43][44]
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To guard against American privateer attacks, the84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants) (2nd battalion) was garrisoned at forts aroundAtlantic Canada.Fort Edward (Nova Scotia) inWindsor, Nova Scotia was the Regiment's headquarters to prevent a possible American land assault on Halifax from the Bay of Fundy. Also raised in Nova Scotia were theRoyal Fencible American Regiment and theRoyal Nova Scotia Volunteer Regiment. TheKing's Orange Rangers defended Liverpool, the second largest settlement in the colony. TheHessians also served in Nova Scotia for five years (1778–1783). They protected the colony from American privateers, such as when they responded to theRaid on Lunenburg (1782). They were led by Baron Oberst Franz Carl Erdmann von Seitz. There were 5000 British troops in Nova Scotia by 1778.[48]
In terms of naval force, along with issuing letters of marque for different privateering vessels, in 1776 the government also retained the armed schoonerLoyal Nova Scotian (8 guns, 28 men).[49][50][51] On November 26, 1776, under the command of John Alexander, theLoyal Nova Scotian re-captured the privateerFriendship.[52] In 1778, the vessel was ordered to Lunenburg and then retired.[53][54] By 1779, Nova Scotia's naval defence had four vessels: a frigate (32 guns), sloop of war (18 guns), armed schooner (14 guns) and another armed schooner (10 guns).[55] These ships were namedRevenge (18 guns, 50 men, Captain Jones Fawson; Captain James Gandy),Buckram (8 guns, 20 men, Captain Archibald Allardice) and the armed schoonerInsulter (Captain John Sheppard), all acting under government orders.[20] There were numerous other privateers supported by local villages:Enterprise (Liverpool),Hero (100 men, 16 guns, Captain Bailey, Chester),[56]Arbuthnot,The David,Mowatt,Lady Hammond,The Fly,Sir George Hammond,Lancaster,Dreadnought (Captain Dean of Liverpool),The Success,The Lively, the sloopHowe, and the shipJack.[57]
In 1778, Nova Scotian ships had taken at least 48 prizes and four recaptures. Between 1779 and 1781, they captured 42.[57]
In 1776, the Mi'kmaq signed theTreaty of Watertown, agreeing to support the American Patriots against the American Loyalists. Three years later, on 7 June 1779, the Mi'kmaq "delivered up" the Watertown treaty to Nova Scotia GovernorMichael Francklin and re-established Mi'kmaw loyalty to the British.[58][59] After the British resounding victory over the AmericanPenobscot Expedition, according to Mi'kmaw historian Daniel Paul, Mi'kmaq in present-day New Brunswick renounced the Watertown treaty and signed a treaty of alliance with the British on 24 September 1779.[60][61][62]
The population of St. John's Island (present-dayPrince Edward Island), small compared to Nova Scotia, was only about 1215 in 1774.[63] Nova Scotia has been described as a 'shield' to the other two colonies, stopping much unrest from the American colonies from reaching them. St. John's Island during the time has been described as "a model colony".[64]
At the outbreak of the American Revolution,Phillips Callback was in charge of St. Johns Island.[d]Thomas Gage began recruiting men to help defend Quebec against American attack; however, his efforts were hindered by a group of American revolutionaries living inPictou, Nova Scotia. A group of about 150 American soldiers set out to attack ships bringing arms to the British.[65] Though they failed in their attempt, they arrived in Pictou, and from the Americans living there learned about recruiting efforts, andattacked Charlottetown. They threatened to set fire to the town but Callback convinced them to spare the town. Callback and Thomas Wright (the surveyor of the island) were taken prisoner.[66][67] The two hostages were eventually released, and made it back to the island on May 1, 1776.[68]
After the attack, an armed brig was sent to guard St. John's Island, and a militia was raised. The brig left whenHMS Lizard arrived in September 1776. A fort was planned to better defend the town thanFort Amherst could. After Eddy's raid, the militia (which had only existed as 20 men previously) was raised to 80, and named The Loyal Island of St. John Volunteers. In 1778, five companies underTimothy Hierlihy were sent to better garrison the island. At the troops' arrival, Callback was ordered to disband the "superfluous and expensive" militia. He ignored the orders. The feasibility of attacking St. John's was considered by the French navy.[69]
The Island, despite perceived danger, served mainly as a stopping point for British troops on their way out from Quebec, and British troops bringing captured privateers back. A group of 200Hessians en route to Quebec spent a year on the Island. Work on the fort continued until Patterson (the governor) arrived in 1780. He saw the five companies and 8,000 pounds which had been spent on fortifications as a colossal waste of money. Work was halted and the companies returned. Throughout the war, the island was highly loyal, and endured few attacks.[70]
In 1765, Newfoundland's population was around 15,000, consisting largely of Irish immigrants.[63] As it was not technically a colony, Newfoundland did not pay theStamp Act 1765 orTownshend Acts taxes. Despite having minor problems with the British government, the island "preserved a tone of exemplary loyalty." The island maintained nearly no defences, and as such,Esek Hopkins was sent to attack Newfoundland. In September 1776, a group of several privateers took three or four ships, and plundered about ten others. In 1777,HMS Fox was captured, and several months laterretaken. The following year many other ships were attacked, particularly byMinerva.[71]
Upon the arrival ofRichard Edwards, many privateers were defeated, and by 1779, very few were left. Edwards ordered cannon distributed to allow towns to defend themselves against attack. In early 1780, atMortier, a privateer was repulsed by the town. That same year, a fleet, led by Edwards, of nine ships, captured six privateers. Fourteen were captured the next year. Several companies were raised, and several hundred soldiers left to fight with British troops.[72]
Both islands had minor food shortages, particularly after a fire on St. Johns burnt 35 houses, and many stores of food. The fishing industries in both were reduced to "low and miserable state[s]," and the general population of both decreased as well. An outbreak of robberies occurred as people needed various resources. A riot occurred in 1779 on St. John's, in which one person was killed.[72]
About 20,000Loyalists fled to Nova Scotia during and after the American Revolution. Most came from the state of New York.[73][74] The three largest settlements being Saint John River Valley,Digby, Nova Scotia andShelburne, Nova Scotia. Cape Breton was a separate colony and received 3150 Loyalists. Ile St. Jean received 300 Loyalist refugees.[75] The British returned New Ireland to the Americans and the territory in Maine entered the control of the newly independent American state ofMassachusetts. Those from New Ireland settledSt. Andrews, New Brunswick. With the Loyalist homeland gone, Nova Scotia was divided to accommodate the Loyalists: both New Brunswick and Cape Breton were created as separate colonies for the Loyalists (Cape Breton returned to Nova Scotia in 1820).
There are many Loyalists who settled in Halifax and were buried in theOld Burying Ground (Halifax, Nova Scotia), including a number ofBlack Loyalists who have unmarked graves.[76]
Numerous British soldiers becameLoyalists and their regiments settled in various communities across Nova Scotia.[77] TheRoyal Fencible American Regiment settled inWallace, Nova Scotia. The Second Battalion of the84th Regiment of Foot (Royal Highland Emigrants) settled inMunicipality of East Hants, particularly atKennetcook, Nova Scotia.
There were three Regiments that settledDigby, Nova Scotia:New Jersey Volunteers, theRoyal Garrison Battalion and theLoyal American Regiment.[78] Black Pioneers settled in Brindley Town, (nowAcaciaville, Nova Scotia).[79]
TheBlack Pioneers settled atAnnapolis Royal, Nova Scotia. TheHessians also settled Annapolis Royal and other places in Nova Scotia.[80][81]
AtGuysborough, Nova Scotia there were six regiments that settled:Jamaica Rangers,Jamaica Volunteers,Negro Horse,Royal North Carolina Regiment,Duke of Cumberland's Regiment and theNorth Carolina Highlanders. EastCountry Harbour, Nova Scotia was settled by three regiments: theRoyal North Carolina Regiment, theKing's Carolina Rangers (seeJoseph Marshall) and theSouth Carolina Royalists.[82][83]
TheRoyal Nova Scotia Volunteer Regiment settledShip Harbour, Nova Scotia andAntigonish, Nova Scotia.
TheKing's Orange Rangers settled inMiddleton, Nova Scotia.
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