The Battle of Ridgeway & the Battle of Chippawa remembered in Niagara Region

Battle of Chippawa Monument. Photo: Bruce Forsyth.

September 2022

The Battle of Chippawa

The Battle of Chippawa National Historic Site, along the Niagara River in Niagara Falls, Ontario, pays tribute to the British Forces, their American opponents and Aboriginal allies on both sides, who fought and died in the battle that would be part of the last major American invasion of Upper Canada in the War of 1812.

Taking place along the Niagara Frontier on 5 July 1814, the battle occurred when British Major-General Phineas Riall, with his force of 1400 regulars, 70 cavalrymen, and 300 Aboriginal allies, attacked the American forces, under command of Major-General Jacob Brown and his subordinate, Brigadier-General Winfield Scott, who had a combined force of 2300 soldiers.

Prior to the battle, Major-General Riall had sent a small contingent of snipers to attack the Americans with and to gain information on their numbers. Unfortunately, Riall’s soldiers mistook the grey-coated American soldiers for militia, when they were in fact regulars.

Outnumbered and faced with highly trained soldiers, MGen Riall was forced to retreat across the Chippawa River after engaging in a short battle. Riall was almost shot, with a musket ball piercing his coat, and BGen Scott was almost captured when British light infantry surprised his position while he was having breakfast in a farmhouse.

In the end, the Americans casualties were reported as 60 killed, 249 wounded and 19 missing. British losses were 108 killed, 319 wounded, 75 wounded prisoners, 15 unwounded prisoners and 18 missing. The 100th Regiment of Foot, which held the centre line, was hit particularly hard, reduced to “…one Captain & 3 subalterns doing duty, with 250 effective men.”

MGen Brown succeeded two days later in crossing the Chippawa River, forcing British forces to fall back to Fort George. British reinforcements arrived soon afterwards, making an attack on the heavily defended fort impossible.

A few weeks later, British and American forces engaged in the Battle of Lundy’s Lane.

The Legacy of the Battle of Chippawa

The legacy of the Battle of Chippawa, and the subsequent Battle of Lundy’s Lane, was that American forces proved that properly trained and led American regular units could hold their own against British regulars.

Several current American regiments perpetuate the lineage of regiments that fought at Chippawa. The 6th Infantry Regiment, originally formed 11 January 1812 by future president Zachary Taylor. The regiment’s moto “Regulars, By God!” was derived from a statement supposedly said by MGen Riall when he realized his troops were facing American regulars, not militia, although the only source for this was MGen Scott himself.

The Cadets at the United States Military Academy at West Point wear gray parade uniforms. Although many claim this is in tribute to Scott’s troops at Chippawa, but the actual reason is something more practical: the gray material used for them was cheaper than blue.

Chippewa Square in Savannah, Georgia, is named after the famous battle.

The Commanding Generals

In the years after the War of 1812 ended, the U.S. Army was reduced in size and by 1821, MGen Brown was the only major-general still in the service. He was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for his leadership in the Battle of Chippawa.

Brown suffered a stroke in 1821, but was fortunately able to continue in his duties. His personal legacy includes advocating for the establishment of two post-graduate schools for the military, precursors of present-day staff and command colleges. He also created the General Recruiting Service in 1822.

MGen Jacob Brown died in 1828.

BGen Winfield Scott was admitted to the Pennsylvania Society of the Cincinnati as an honorary member, in recognition of his service in the War of 1812. He attempted a career in politics, seeking the Whig presidential nomination in 1840, 1844, and 1848. He finally won it in 1852, but was defeated by his former army subordinate, Franklin Pierce.

He died in 1866. His Pennsylvania Society of the Cincinnati insignia is now on display in the United States Military Academy Museum.

As for MGen Riall, while his tactics likely would have been successful against American militia, against trained regular soldiers, they proved disastrous. He served as Governor of Grenada from 1816 to 1823. Knighted in 1833 and promoted General on 23 November 1841. He died in Paris in 1850.

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The Battle of Ridgeway

The Battle of Ridgeway, sometimes called the Battle of Lime Ridge, was a battle on 2 June 1866, fought between Canadian Militia soldiers and Fenian Militia attacking from America. It was the largest battle of the Fenian Raids of 1866.

Fenian Brotherhood were Irish-Americans who conducted raids on British Army forts, ports and other targets in British North America, undertaken to bring pressure on Great Britain to withdraw from Ireland. Numerous raids were conducted in 1866 and then again from 1870 to 1871, but none of these raids achieved their aims.

It was the first modern industrial-era battle to be fought by Canadians and led exclusively by Canadian officers. Soldiers from the Toronto-based Queen’s Own Rifles, 13th Hamilton Battalion (now the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry) and the Caledonia and York Rifle Companies of the Haldimand Rifles (now perpetuated by the 56th Field Artillery Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery), fought against between 500 to 800 Fenian invaders, crossing from

The battle took place near the intersection of Ridge Road and Garrison Road, with most of the fighting taking place around Lime Ridge, an elevated terrain that ran almost parallel to Ridge Road.

Led by Lieutenant Colonel Alfred Booker, the Canadian Militia put up a strong defence against the Fenians, led by Colonel John O’Neil. Although Booker’s troops outnumbers the Fenian invaders, a lack of experience and training, and supply issues, hampered their efforts. Eventually, Brooker ordered his soldiers to retreat near the Village of Stevensville, so that they could await re-enforcements from the British Army 47th Regiment of Foot (Regular Army), arriving from nearby Chippawa.

This was enough to convince O’Neil and his Fenian Militia to flee back across the Niagara River, some on logs, on rafts, or by swimming. Once back on American soil, O’Neill and 850 Fenians were arrested by American authorities.

Despite the failure of the Fenians to hold this territory, it has the distinction of being the only armed victory for the cause of Irish independence between the Irish Rebellion of 1798 and the Easter Rising of 1916.

The Fenian Raids divided the Irish-Canadian population, with Irish Protestants mainly siding with the British and the pro-Union Orange Order, while Irish Catholics were split between an independent Ireland, freed of British rule, and loyalty to their new home in British North America.

The Legacy of the Battle of Ridgeway

Some evaluations of the Fenian Raids are that they had a significant influence on reluctant Maritime provinces in favour of the collective security of nationhood, making Ridgeway the “battle that made Canada.” The battle wasn’t without controversy, though.

Newspapers that were against Confederation claimed which claimed Ridgeway was proof that Canadians would be unable to defend themselves without the security of the British Army. Two military boards of inquiry ruled that it was inexperienced and undertrained troops, along with being undersupplied, that led to the Fenian gains, not poor leadership of the officers in charge of the regiments, which some claimed was the real reason.

It was because of these official rulings that the Canadian government refused to acknowledge or commemorate the Battle of Ridgeway. Some considered it an embarrassing point of shame for Canada’s military. An official medal wasn’t even issued until 1899, when the Canada General Service Medal, with Fenian Raid 1866 & 1870 bars, was made available to eligible veterans. This came about only after an almost ten-year campaign by the Veterans of ’66 Association for recognition and land grants for veterans.

However, in what could be interpreted as a final insult, eligible veterans had to apply for it. There was no automatic issuance of the medal.

Today, the battle site is a National Historic Site, commemorated by a cairn and interpretive signs that tell the story of the battle. It can be found on the north side of Garrison Road, between Ridge Road and Burleigh Road. A period house was moved to the site as a part of the display, but it wasn’t part of the original battle.