Sergeant Richard Smith | |
|---|---|
 Gravestone of Richard Smith | |
| Born | c. 1790 New Brunswick, Canada (supposed) |
| Died | September 21, 1819 (aged 29) Halifax, Nova Scotia |
| Buried | 44°38′N63°34′W / 44.64°N 63.57°W |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Years of service | 1805-1817 |
| Rank | Sergeant |
| Unit | 104th (New Brunswick) Regiment of Foot |
| Battles/wars | War of 1812 |
Richard Smith was a Canadian soldier who fought in the War of 1812 for the 104th (New Brunswick) Regiment of Foot.
The place and date of birth of, and the background of, Richard Smith are unknown. On June 18, 1805, he enlisted in the New Brunswick Regiment of Fencible Infantry. (That regiment became the 104th (New Brunswick) Regiment of Foot in 1810.) He was under the minimum age of 15, so could have enlisted as a "Boy"; but he lied about his age, and joined as a Private. He was assigned to the Grenadier Company, where the biggest and strongest men were placed: the minimum height requirement was 6 feet 0 inches (1.83 m), and he was 6 feet 5 inches (1.96 m).
In February 1811, he was promoted Corporal; and in February 1812, Sergeant; signs of exemplary service. In June 1812, war broke out between the United Kingdom and the United States of America. In February and March 1813, he was with his regiment on their 750 miles (1,210 km) epic winter march from Fredericton, New Brunswick through Quebec (Lower Canada) and Kingston (Upper Canada) to the Niagara corridor. On November 25, 1813, he was appointed Regimental Colour Sergeant; an honor reserved for the bravest of soldiers, his duty being to protect the junior officer (the Ensign) who carried the regimental colours during battle.
On July 3, 1814, American troops attacked Fort Erie, and captured it. The British attempted to retake it by siege, but ultimately failed. During the assault on August 15, Smith attacked as part of the forlorn hope under Colonel William Drummond to try to scale the walls and to open the entrance from inside. The Colonel had promised Smith that if the assault succeeded, he would recommend him to the Prince Regent for a commission; although the attack was partially successful, the Colonel was unable to fulfill his promise: he had been killed during it. Meanwhile, Smith had been wounded five times: twice in the head, once in the thigh, and twice in his right arm. His arm was afterwards amputated close to the shoulder.
Smith petitioned Lieutenant General Sir Gordon Drummond for the promised commission, signing himself "X"; the mark of an illiterate, or perhaps of someone who had not yet learned how to write with his left hand. On November 16, 1814, his Captain, Richard Leonard, wrote to Major Thomas Hunter, acting commander of the 104th, as follows:
I beg leave to forward to you the enclosed petition from Serg’t Smith, of my company (No 9), and I have great pleasure in bearing testimony to his merit. His general conduct as a non-commissioned officer since his first appointment has been such as always to meet my approbation, particularly the respect he at all times commanded from the men. I have great satisfaction in stating that I was, in several instances witness to his gallantry in action during the last two campaigns on the Niagara Frontier — particularly the last — when he was chosen by the late Lt Col Drummond to lead the forlorn hope, in the attack on the enemy’s principal work at Fort Erie. On that occasion I was directed by L’t Colonel Drummond to notify Serg’t Smith that, if he acquitted himself with credit on that service, his intention was to recommend him for a commission.
On September 11, 1815, Smith's name was noted at the Horse Guards, London (the predecessor of the War Office) "for an ensigncy in a list of candidates". British Army forces were reduced after the conclusion of the War of 1812 (February 1815) and the final defeat of Napoleon (June 1815). Smith never received his commission.
On May 24, 1817, he was discharged from army service in Montreal "in consequence of Five Wounds, two in the Head, one through the Thigh, and two in the Right Arm".
He was subsequently appointed and served as Magistrate for the County of Northumberland, New Brunswick.
The inscription on his gravestone in the Old Burying Ground, Halifax, Nova Scotia calls him "Richard Smith, Esq." - which is noteworthy, because as late as 1894, the primary meaning of "Esquire" was "gentleman", either by birth or by deeds. [1] [2]
The Battle of Queenston Heights was the first major battle in the War of 1812. Resulting in a British victory, it took place on 13 October 1812 near Queenston, Upper Canada.
The Battle of Lundy's Lane, also known as the Battle of Niagara, was a battle fought on 25 July 1814, during the War of 1812, between an invading American army and a British and Canadian army near present-day Niagara Falls, Ontario. It was one of the bloodiest battles of the war, and one of the deadliest battles fought in Canada, with approximately 1,720 casualties including 258 killed.
General Sir Gordon Drummond, GCB was a Canadian-born British Army officer and the first official to command the military and the civil government of Canada. As Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, Drummond distinguished himself on the Niagara front in the War of 1812 and later became Governor-General and Administrator of Canada.
The Battle of Chippawa, also known as the Battle of Chippewa, was a victory for the United States Army in the War of 1812, during its invasion on July 5, 1814, of the British Empire's colony of Upper Canada along the Niagara River. This battle and the subsequent Battle of Lundy's Lane demonstrated that trained American troops could hold their own against British regulars. The battlefield is preserved as a National Historic Site of Canada.
The siege of Fort Erie, also known as the Battle of Erie, from 4 August to 21 September 1814, was one of the last engagements of the War of 1812, between British and American forces. It took place during the Niagara campaign, and the Americans successfully defended Fort Erie against a British army. During the siege, the British suffered high casualties in a failed storming attempt; they also suffered casualties from sickness and exposure in their rough encampments. Unaware that the British were about to abandon the siege, the American garrison launched a sortie to destroy the British siege batteries, during which both sides again suffered high losses.
General Sir Howard Douglas, 3rd Baronet, was a British Army officer born in Gosport, England, the younger son of Admiral Sir Charles Douglas, and a descendant of the Earls of Morton. He was an English army general, author, colonial administrator and Member of Parliament for Liverpool.
The Capture of Fort Niagara took place late in 1813, during the War of 1812 between the United Kingdom and the United States. The American garrison was taken by surprise, and the fort was captured in a night assault by a select force of British regular infantry.
General Sir Phineas Riall, KCH was the British general who succeeded John Vincent as commanding officer of the Niagara Peninsula in Upper Canada during the War of 1812. In 1816, he was appointed Governor of Grenada.
When the United States and the United Kingdom went to war against each other in 1812, the major land theatres of war were Upper Canada, Michigan Territory, Lower Canada and the Maritime Provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Cape Breton . Each of the separate British administrations formed regular and fencible units, and both full-time and part-time militia units, many of which played a major part in the fighting over the two and a half years of the war.
The 41st (Welch) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1719. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 69th Regiment of Foot to form the Welch Regiment in 1881.
The 52nd (Oxfordshire) Regiment of Foot was a light infantry regiment of the British Army throughout much of the 18th and 19th centuries. The regiment first saw active service during the American War of Independence, and were posted to India during the Anglo-Mysore Wars. During the Napoleonic Wars, the 52nd were part of the Light Division, and were present at most major battles of the Peninsula campaign, becoming one of the most celebrated regiments, described by Sir William Napier as "a regiment never surpassed in arms since arms were first borne by men". They had the largest British battalion at Waterloo, 1815, where they formed part of the final charge against Napoleon's Imperial Guard. They were also involved in various campaigns in India.
The Glengarry Light Infantry Fencibles were a light infantry unit, raised chiefly in the Glengarry District of Upper Canada shortly before the outbreak of the Anglo-American War of 1812. The unit fought throughout the war, and was disbanded shortly afterwards.
Colonel Sir John Le Couteur was a British Army officer and Aide-de-camp for Jersey to William IV and Victoria. Son of Lieutenant General John Le Couteur (1761–1835), he is best known for his War of 1812 memoirs of his service as a lieutenant in the 104th Foot, published in 1993 as Merry Hearts Make Light Days.
The 103rd Regiment of Foot was a line infantry unit of the British Army. Though only existing for just over 10 years, the regiment would see more action than most of its 100-series regiments.
The Battle of Conjocta Creek was an attempt by British forces under the command of Lieutenant Colonel John Tucker to raid the American supply depots at the towns of Black Rock and Buffalo. The Raid was ordered by British Lieutenant General Gordon Drummond in hopes of causing an early American surrender at Fort Erie. On the morning of August 3, 1814, Tucker and his men met a small force of American riflemen under the command of Major Lodwick Morgan. After fighting for about an hour, Tucker and his men were defeated, and withdrew across the Niagara river to Canada. The battle played a major role in the Siege of Fort Erie's failure, due to the supply post at Black Rock being able to continue supplying the American force defending Fort Erie. This resulted in the British eventually withdrawing from their siege positions around the fort to Chippawa on September 21st, 1814.
Prince Regent was a schooner constructed for Upper Canada's Provincial Marine for use on Lake Ontario. Built just before the beginning of the War of 1812, the vessel took part in the attack on Sackett's Harbor, New York. With the arrival of the Royal Navy in the Great Lakes under the command of Commodore James Lucas Yeo in 1813, the vessel was renamed HMS Lord Beresford or General Beresford, or Beresford. The British detachment on the lake engaged the American naval squadron and attacked American positions in the Niagara region, while supporting British armies.
104th Regiment of Foot was a regiment of the British Army. The regiment had its origins in the New Brunswick Regiment of Fencible Infantry, a unit of fencibles raised for the defence of the colony of New Brunswick in 1803. Recruits were drawn from across British North America, Scotland, Ireland and existing British Army units. The regiment was formally entered into the establishment in 1806 with a strength of around 650 enlisted men but grew to almost 1,100 by 1808. In 1810 the regiment's officers requested that it join the British Army as a regiment of foot. This request was granted on 13 September 1810 and the unit was renamed the 104th Regiment of Foot.
Major-General George Johnstone was a British Army officer. He was commissioned into the infantry 1780, serving in Grenada during Fédon's rebellion in 1795-96. He was afterwards transferred to command a regiment of fencibles in New Brunswick, where he served for a year as acting Lieutenant Governor. In 1810, he was given command of a Highland regiment which served on garrison duty in Cape Colony. Johnstone was promoted to major general in 1814 and given command of the 6th Brigade in the 1815 Waterloo campaign. His brigade was not engaged in the 18 June Battle of Waterloo as they were posted to the extreme right flank, protecting the approaches to Brussels and Ostend. His men fought in the subsequent advance to Paris and helped to storm the fortress of Cambrai on 24 June.