Battle of Windsor facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Battle of Windsor
Part of Patriot War, Rebellions of 1837
Date December 4, 1838 Location Michigan area, USA Windsor, Upper Canada area Result Anglo-American victory
Belligerents
Upper Canada  United Kingdom United States	Hunter Patriots
Commanders and leaders
John Sparks John Prince Richard Airey Hugh Brady	Lucius Verus Bierce
Strength
300 Canadian Militia/British Regulars U.S. Forces	400 Hunter Patriots
Casualties and losses
8 dead 1 steamship	25 dead 44-65 captured

The Battle of Windsor was a short but important fight near Windsor, Ontario in Canada and the Michigan area of the United States. This battle was part of a bigger conflict called the Patriot War and the Rebellions of 1837.

A group of people, calling themselves "Patriots", wanted to change the government in Canada. They formed small groups of citizen soldiers, known as militias. Their goal was to take control of the southern part of Ontario, between the Detroit and Niagara Rivers. They hoped to bring an American-style government to Canada. These Patriot groups set up bases in Michigan at places like Port Huron, Mount Clemens, Detroit, and Gibraltar. However, the Patriots were eventually defeated by forces from both the British and American governments.

How the Conflict Started

In December 1837, a leader named Thomas Jefferson Sutherland was asked to gather a fighting force in Detroit. This happened after another Patriot base, Navy Island, was left empty. Many other Patriots then came to Detroit.

They held public meetings in Detroit and started to organize an invasion force. People traveled from far away, like Illinois and Kentucky, to join the movement. The U.S. General Hugh Brady was worried the Patriots might take weapons from the U.S. arsenal at Fort Gratiot. So, he ordered the weapons to be moved by boat. But the boat got stuck in ice, and the weapons had to be moved by wagon instead.

On January 5, 1838, the Patriots took 450 muskets (a type of gun) that had been stored in the Detroit jail. They also reportedly took another 200 weapons from a U.S. marshal's office in Detroit.

The Schooner Ann Incident

On January 8, the Patriots took control of a ship called the schooner Ann. They sailed it to Gibraltar, Michigan. The governor of Michigan, Stevens T. Mason, and 200 militiamen chased them in two steamships. A hundred Canadian militiamen also followed in their own steamship, the Alliance.

Governor Mason talked with the Patriot leaders at Gibraltar. But the Ann kept going towards Fort Malden on the Canadian side. On January 9, the Patriots on the Ann started firing cannons at Fort Malden and the town of Amherstburg. The Canadian militia got ready in the town. Meanwhile, 300 Patriots moved to Bois Blanc Island, which was across from the town.

The Canadian militia fired at the schooner when it tried to reach the island. They hit several of the ship's crew and damaged its sails. The ship then drifted and got stuck. Canadian militia boarded the ship and captured the Patriot crew without a fight. The remaining Patriots on Bois Blanc Island went back to the American side of the river for safety. Some Patriots were hurt, a few were killed, and the Canadians captured 300 muskets, two cannons, and lots of gunpowder.

After losing the Ann, the Patriots took another ship, the steamer Little Erie. Even though the head of the Detroit militia tried to stop them, and U.S. marshals fired warning shots, the local people supported the Patriots. The boat was taken to Gibraltar.

On January 27, U.S. troops arrived to help calm the area. Governor Mason met with the Patriots again on February 12, but it didn't help. On that same day, Patriots raided the U.S. arsenal in Dearborn, Michigan, taking hundreds of weapons. These weapons were later found hidden near a tavern in Detroit.

Clashes at Fighting Island and Pelee Island

On February 24, 1838, Patriots started gathering on Fighting Island, which is on the Canadian side of the Detroit River. Supplies were brought over from Detroit. About 400 Patriots from Cleveland joined the men from Detroit. At the same time, a larger group of 600 men from Cleveland occupied Pelee Island. It was reported that the Patriots on Fighting Island had only 50 muskets and one broken cannon.

The U.S. general told his British counterpart about the gathering. He said he would wait for the Patriots to leave the island and then arrest them for breaking American neutrality laws. The British commander replied that he would attack the Patriot camp and chase them into the United States. Because of this, General Brady ordered red flags to be placed on the ice to mark the border. He told his men to shoot any British soldiers who crossed the line.

The British soldiers, with their cannons and Canadian militia, attacked Fighting Island at dawn on February 25. They crossed the ice to capture the island but did not cross the border into the U.S. The U.S. forces briefly held a few Patriots but soon let them go. It's not clear how many people were hurt. The British commander said no one died, but other reports said 5 British soldiers died and 15 were hurt. At least 5 Patriots were wounded, and some needed their arms removed.

On March 23, in a much more intense fight, British and Canadian forces drove the Patriots from Pelee Island.

A Time of Waiting

After the fights at Fighting Island and Pelee Island, U.S. and Canadian troops patrolled their sides of the border. There wasn't much Patriot activity in the Detroit-Windsor area for a while. Bigger battles happened in other places, with many Patriots being defeated. However, the Patriots were not completely finished. Activity around Detroit started up again when winter returned.

Renewed Fighting

On November 24, 1838, General Brady, on the steamer Illinois, captured a Patriot ship with 250 weapons and ammunition. When he returned to Detroit, he found that his own troops' weapons had been taken from city hall while he was away. The weapons were found and returned after two days.

A Patriot group in Port Huron, along with their allies across the river in Sarnia, planned an invasion for early December. But extra fighters from Detroit didn't arrive. British officials in Canada learned about the plan and sent troops and cannons to that part of the border, stopping the invasion. Throughout November, about 300 Patriots from Ohio and Pennsylvania gathered south of Detroit, joining a few hundred local people and Canadians.

On December 4, 1838, at 2 am, the Patriots crossed the Detroit River into Canada on a captured steamboat called the Champlain. They fought an unsuccessful battle at Windsor. The Patriots set the British barracks on fire, burned the steamer Thames and several houses, and killed four militiamen. They then took positions at the Baby farm, which had a large fruit orchard. Only 20 militiamen were in Windsor, a small town of about 300 people. The main force of 500 militiamen and regular soldiers was a few miles south in Sandwich and Amherstburg.

Around 7 am, a company of 60 Canadian militiamen led by Arthur Rankin from Sandwich fought back the invasion before the regular soldiers arrived. They captured several Patriots. The militia pushed the Patriots out of the orchard and chased them through the town. The Patriots then ran in different directions. Some went back to their steamer to free the 18 prisoners they had taken. Colonel John Prince arrived after the Patriots had been defeated (at 9:30 am) and took command. Prince then moved his troops back to Sandwich, fearing another attack there.

At 1:30 pm, a company of British regular soldiers from the 34th (Cumberland) Regiment of Foot arrived at Sandwich with a cannon and 20 mounted Indigenous fighters. They continued north to Windsor. Prince decided to follow with his 400 militiamen. However, all the Patriots had escaped by this time, and only one was captured. Prince ordered that four prisoners be immediately shot without a trial. The British cannon fired shots at Patriots escaping in stolen canoes, hitting one in the arm. The U.S. steamer Erie, carrying Detroit militia, captured some of the Patriots but soon released them on U.S. soil.

Remembering the Battle

In 1966, a special plaque was put up at the Hiram Walker Historical Museum by the Archaeological and Historic Sites Board of Ontario. It tells the story of the Battle of Windsor:

The Battle of Windsor 1838 - Early on December 4, 1838, a force of about 140 American and Canadian supporters of William Lyon Mackenzie crossed the river from Detroit and landed about one mile east of here. After capturing and burning a nearby militia barracks, they took possession of Windsor. In this vicinity they were met and routed by a force of some 130 militiamen commanded by Colonel John Prince. Four of the invaders taken prisoner were executed summarily by order of Colonel Prince. This action caused violent controversy in both Canada and the United States. The remaining captives were tried and sentenced at London, Upper Canada. Six were executed, eighteen transported to a penal colony in Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) and sixteen deported.

What Happened Next

After the battle, Colonel Prince ordered more prisoners to be shot, but important local citizens convinced him not to. These citizens later wrote a public statement against Prince. This led to one of them, William R. Wood, having a duel with Prince, but Prince was not hurt. A military court later mostly cleared Prince of wrongdoing. The issue was even discussed in the British Parliament. No official punishment happened there either, as the Duke of Wellington changed the topic to the need for regular troops to protect Canada from American invasions.

Joshua Doan, from Sparta, Upper Canada, was one of the Hunter Patriots captured in Windsor. He was later executed for his actions against the government. Others were sent to a far-off prison in Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania), and some to Bermuda.

The Michigan militia stayed at the United States Arsenal in Dearborn. They helped track down any remaining Patriot groups in the area. This conflict led to changes in how the Michigan militia was organized, as its old structure wasn't good enough for such rebellions. The U.S. Army built Fort Wayne in Detroit in 1842 to make U.S. defenses stronger, as a counter to Fort Malden in Amherstburg, which had been rebuilt during the war. The blockhouses built by the British on Bois Blanc Island during the war were used until the 1850s.

These events at Windsor were the last military actions of the rebellions in Upper and Lower Canada from 1837–38.

An Ontario Historical Plaque was put up by the province to remember the Battle of Windsor's role in Ontario's history.