War of 1812, Part 7: Disaster at Queenston Heights

The New Nation
Written By Tom Hand

The center thrust of the three-prong American invasion of Canada was along the Niagara River frontier, a thirty-five-mile stretch that would be the most contested piece of real estate during the War of 1812. Command of this sector was entrusted to General Stephen van Rensselaer, who established his headquarters at Lewiston, New York, directly across the Niagara River from Queenston, Upper Canada. On October 13, 1812, van Rensselaer sent Captain John Wool, a recently commissioned officer, and Colonel Solomon van Rensselaer, the general's nephew, across the river to capture Queenston. British General Isaac Brock arrived with reinforcements and led a counterattack but was mortally wounded and the British attack faltered. American reinforcements led by Lieutenant Colonel Winfield Scott also arrived and dug in to secure their position. However, soldiers refusing to leave American soil would soon lead to disaster.

Tom Hand, creator and publisher of Americana Corner, discusses the disaster at Queenston Heights and why it still matters today.  

 

Images courtesy of the National Gallery of Art, Library of Congress, New York Public Library, National Army Museum - United Kingdom, Brock University Library, Brown University Library, Florida Memory, National Portrait Gallery - Smithsonian Institution, Wikimedia.

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War of 1812, Part 6: The Battle of the Thames