Battle of Queenston, 1812

THE BATTLE OF QUEENSTON, OCT.R 13.TH 1813 [i.e. 1812], / Which ended in a complete Victory on the part of the British, having captured 927 Men, killed or wounded about 500, / Taken 1400 Stand of Arms, a six Pounder...

A view of the Battle of Queenston, fought on 13 October 1812 between the British, commanded by Major-General Isaac Brock (1769-1812), and the Americans, commanded by General Stephen van Rensselaer (1764-1839), resulting in a British victory. Anglo-American War (1812-15).

The Battle of Queenston was the first major conflict of the Anglo-American War of 1812. The small village of Queenston, on the Canadian side of the River Niagara, was situated at the mouth of the gorge of the Niagara, shown here in the background of the view. The Americans are shown wearing dark blue uniforms, crossing the river in boats to attack the British forces. The British, commanded by Major-General Isaac Brock and Major-General Sir Roger Hale Sheaffe (1763-1851), defeated the Americans. Major-General Brock, who was Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada, was killed in action; he became known, after this battle, as the 'Hero of Upper Canada'.

What appears to be a contemporary oil painting, attributed to James Dennis, which may have formed the basis for this engraving, was bought in England by Sam Weir from Richard Green Ltd in 1967 and donated to the RiverBrink Art Museum, Queenston, Ontario ('Local Identifier' tag: 982.2). However, there are many differences in detail, particularly in the area of the village to the right of the picture, between the painting and the print. This print was reprinted on 12 April 1836 'for J.W. LAIRD'S Martial Achievements, at 1 Leadenhall St.' In one example of Laird's reprint (RiverBrink Art Museum, Local Identifier 982.574) the Americans are shown with red coats and flying, not the American flag, but the French tricolour from before 1794, after which date the colours were reversed so that blue was next to the hoist. In a differently-coloured example of the 1836 print, the Americans are shown with either red or blue coats, some flying the flag of St George, others flying the old French Tricolour, and yet others flying what resembles the Dutch Tricolour (RiverBrink Art Museum Local Identifier 982.575). A third version of the 1836 print shows the correct colouring and correct flags (Library and Archives of Canada/C-014614).

The date is wrongly given in the title as 1813; the action took place in 1812.

For further reading, see:

J. Sweetman, 'Brock, Sir Isaac (1769–1812)', Dictionary of National Biography, 2004.
G.C. Boase, 'Sheaffe, Sir Roger Hale, baronet (1763–1851)', Dictionary of National Biography, 2004.

Condition: no fold lines.