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{{campaignbox French and Indian War}}
{{campaignbox French and Indian War}}


The '''St. John River Campaign''' occurred during the [[French and Indian War]] when Colonel [[Robert Monckton]] led a force of 1150 British soldiers to destroy the Acadian settlements along the banks of the [[Saint John River (New Brunswick)]] until they reached the largest village of Ste Anne’s Point (present day [[Fredericton, New Brunswick]]) in February 1759.<ref>John Grenier. ''The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760.'' Oklahoma University Press.pp. 199-200</ref> There were 2000 Acadians on the St. John River, many of whom were refugees trying to escape the [[Expulsion of the Acadians]].<ref>Maxwell, p. 25.]</ref>
The '''St. John River Campaign''' occurred during the [[French and Indian War]] when Colonel [[Robert Monckton]] led a force of 1150 British soldiers to destroy the Acadian settlements along the banks of the [[Saint John River (New Brunswick)]] until they reached the largest village of Ste Anne’s Point (present day [[Fredericton, New Brunswick]]) in February 1759.<ref>John Grenier. ''The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760.'' Oklahoma University Press.pp. 199-200</ref> The British started at the bottem of the river with raiding Kennebecais and Managoueche ([[St. John, New Brunswick|City of St. John]]). Then they moved up the river and raided Sainte-Anne, Jemseg, Sainte-Marie ([[Marysville, New Brunswick|Marysville]]), Mercure ([[French Village, New Brunswick|French Village]]), [[Oromocto, New Brunswick|Oromocto]], Ekoupag ([[Meductic, New Brunswick|Meductic]]), and finally Nashwaak before the reached Ste Anne's Point. There were 2000 Acadians on the St. John River, many of whom were refugees trying to escape the [[Expulsion of the Acadians]].<ref>Maxwell, p. 25.]</ref>


== Context ==
== Context ==

Revision as of 19:37, 2 May 2010

St.John River Campaign: Raid on Grimrose (present day Gagetown, New Brunswick). This is the only contemporaneous image of the Expulsion of the Acadians

The St. John River Campaign occurred during the French and Indian War when Colonel Robert Monckton led a force of 1150 British soldiers to destroy the Acadian settlements along the banks of the Saint John River (New Brunswick) until they reached the largest village of Ste Anne’s Point (present day Fredericton, New Brunswick) in February 1759.[1] The British started at the bottem of the river with raiding Kennebecais and Managoueche (City of St. John). Then they moved up the river and raided Sainte-Anne, Jemseg, Sainte-Marie (Marysville), Mercure (French Village), Oromocto, Ekoupag (Meductic), and finally Nashwaak before the reached Ste Anne's Point. There were 2000 Acadians on the St. John River, many of whom were refugees trying to escape the Expulsion of the Acadians.[2]

Context

The first wave of the Expulsion of the Acadians began in 1755 with the Acadians from present day mainland Nova Scotia. After the Siege of Louisbourg (1758), the second wave of the Expulsion of the Acadians began from Ile St. Jean (Prince Edward Island), and Ile Royale (Cape Breton, Nova Scotia). As a result Acadians fled Ile Royal and Ile St. Jean for the Acadian and Indian villages along the banks of the St. John River, including the largest communities at Grimrose (present day Gagetown, New Burnswick) and Ste Anne’s Point.

French Officer Charles Deschamps de Boishébert et de Raffetot was stationed at St. Anne’s Point and was responsible to locate the Acadan refugees along the St. John River. He located them along the St. John River at Grimross, at Villeray (three miles down river from Grimrose), at Nashwaak, at Pointe Ste-Anne, and at Aukpaque.

Fort Frederick

On September 13, 1758, Monckton and his troops left Halifax and arrived at the mouth of the St. John River a week later. He established a new base of operations by reconstructing the old French fortification Fort Menagoueche at the mouth of the river. He re-named it Fort Frederick (present day Fort Howe).[3] Establishing Fort Frederick allowed the British to virtually cut off the communications and supplies to the villages on the St. John River. Monckton was accompanied by the New England Rangers, which had three companies that were commanded by John Gorham (military officer), Dank and Scott.[4]

On October 1 Monckton moved his boats, regulars and rangers above the falls. The village of 50 families that had migrated there in 1755 were forced to abandon their homes. Monckton’s troops burned every building, tourched the fields, and killed all the livestock..[5]

Raid on Jemseg

Marquis de Boishébert - Charles Deschamps de Boishébert et de Raffetot (1753)

Monckton arrived at the village of Jemseg, New Brunswick and burned it to the ground. Then he returned to Fort Frederick at the mouth of the St. John River..[6] When Moncton and his troops appeared on the St. John River, Boishébert retreated.[7] The Acadians were left unprotected in their settlements at Grimross, Oromocto and Ste. Anne’s Point.

Boishébert directed the Acadian to go to Quebec City.

Raid on Grimrose

The next engagement was the Raid on Grimrose (present day Gagetown, New Brunswick) on November 4, 1778. 300 Acadians were at the village, many of whom had already retreated to St. Anne’s Point before the Rangers arrived. The Rangers chased down and scalped Acadians.[8] They burned 50 buildings, crops and killed the animals.[9]

Raid on Ste. Anne’s Point

Moncton did not continue on to Sainte-Anne’s Point (present day Fredericton, New Brunswick) because of the pending winter. Then, afraid of being trapped by the frozen river, he turned back to Fort Frederick, and afterwards sailed for Halifax with thirty Acadian families as prisoners. Major Robert Morris was put in charge of the fort.[10]

Almost three months later, on 19 February 1759, Moncton sent Captain McCurdy and his Rangers out from Fort Frederick to go to Ste. Anne’s Point on snow- shoes.[11] Captain McCurdy died of an accident along the way and was replaced by lieutenant Moses Hazen.

On 28 February 1759, Lieutenant Hazen and about fifteen men arrived at Point Sainte-Anne. When they realized Monckton was going to continue his advance, they retreated to the Maliseet village at Aukpaque (Ecoupag) for possible protection. The Rangers pillaged and burned the village of 147 buildings, scalping six Acadians and taking six prisoners. They burned a large store-house, and with a large quantity of hay, wheat, peas, oats, etc., killing 212 horses, about 5 head of cattle, a large number of hogs and so forth.

They also burned the church (located just west of Old Government House, Fredericton).

There is a written record of one of the Acadian survivors Joseph Godin-Bellefontaine. He reported that the Rangers restrained him and then massacred his family in front of him. There are other primary sources that support his assertions.[12]

Consequences

The St. John River Campaign resulted in famine that winter for the few Acadians that remained.

Canada’s Governor Vaudreuil reported 1600 Acadians immigrated to Québec City in 1759. During this same winter, Quebec City also suffered a famine and a small pox epidemic broke out killing over 300 of the Acadian refugees.[13]

In the spring of 1759 twenty-nine of the refugees from the St. John River area went farther up the St. Lawrence to the area around Bécancour, Quebec, where they successfully established a community.[14]

References

Secondary Sources

  • Le village acadien de la Pointe-Sainte-Anne (Fredericton), Fidèle Thériault
  • L.M.B. Maxwell The History of Central New Brunswick, 1937. (Republish in 1984 by the York-Sunbury Historical Society.)
  • Macfarlane, W. G. Fredericton History; Two Centuries of Romance, War, Privation and Struggle, 1981
  • John Grenier. The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760. Oklahoma University Press.pp. 199–200

Links

Endnotes

  1. ^ John Grenier. The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760. Oklahoma University Press.pp. 199-200
  2. ^ Maxwell, p. 25.]
  3. ^ John Grenier. The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760. Oklahoma University Press.pp. 199-200; F. Thériault, p. 11
  4. ^ John Grenier. The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760. Oklahoma University Press.pp. 199-200
  5. ^ John Grenier. The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760. Oklahoma University Press.pp. 199-200
  6. ^ John Grenier. The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760. Oklahoma University Press.pp. 199-200
  7. ^ Maxwell, p. 25.
  8. ^ [52 Raymond, p. 123.]
  9. ^ F. Thériault, p. 11.]
  10. ^ Maxwell, p. 25
  11. ^ [F. Thériault, p. 15.
  12. ^ A letter from Fort Frederick which was printed in Parker’s New York Gazette or Weekly Post-Boy on 2 April 1759 provides some additional details of the behavior of the Rangers.
  13. ^ G. Desilets., pp. 14-15.
  14. ^ G. Desilets, p. 15.]
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