Canadian Historic Sites: Occasional Papers in Archaeology and History No. 18

A Campaign of Amateurs: The Siege of Louisbourg, 1745

by Raymond F Baker

Background

The fall of the Fortress of Louisbourg in 1745 was the culmination of events that began with another surrender 32 years before, in 1713, when France signed the Treaty of Utrecht ending Queen Anne's War. By the terms of that treaty, France lost most of her North American empire. Acadia (comprising the present provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick and much of the state of Maine), the vast Hudson's Bay trading area and Newfoundland passed into English hands, leaving the rest of New France (Canada) virtually isolated and vulnerable to attack from the New England colonies. Louis XIV tried to retain Acadia and thus provide a buffer of sorts, but the best he could secure was Cape Breton, a rocky island off the coast of Nova Scotia. This was not much of a gain, but it did give France a toe-hold on the Atlantic frontier; and the island's strategic position at the mouth of the St. Lawrence River, "the natural highway into the heart of Canada," would, if defended by a large enough fleet, allow the French to maintain that vital lifeline to the interior.

To ensure control of the St. Lawrence and to protect her North American commerce and commercial fisheries, France spent the next 30 years and ten million dollars building the fortified naval station of Louisbourg at Havre à l'Anglais on Cape Breton's southeast coast. The fortifications were begun in 1719, based upon the principles of defence developed by the renowned French military engineer, Sebastien Le Prestre de Vauban. They eventually enclosed a town area of some 57 acres with 30-foot-high masonry walls and a series of bastions. The most important of these, stretching south and east for three-quarters of a mile along the landward front, were, respectively, the Dauphin Demi-bastion on the harbour side, the King's Bastion, the Queen's Bastion, and, butting against the Atlantic, the Princess Demi-bastion. A glacis, ditch and covertway afforded additional protection.

The main barracks building, located in the gorge of the King's Bastion (together known as the Citadel), was Louisbourg's administrative and military centre and contained the governor's apartments, a chapel, officers' rooms, and quarters for the garrison. Most of the town of Louisbourg consisted of stone and timber and "picquet" buildings.¹

Louisbourg Harbour runs roughly northeast by southwest, and while the two peninsulas at the entrance are about a mile apart, the actual roadway is reduced to less than half a mile between Goat and Battery islands on one side and numerous reefs off Lighthouse Point on the other. The harbour entrance was protected by the Island Battery and by the Royal Battery on the mainland, about a mile northeast of the town fronting the harbour: the circular battery at the Dauphin Bastion, the Maurepas Bastion at the neck of Rochefort Point, and an artillery work called Pièce de la Grave near the quay.

Garrisoned by French regulars and militia and mounting more than 100 cannon (mostly 24- and 42-pounders), Louisbourg, fortress and harbour, by 1745 presented an imposing and formidable appearance. Some considered it impregnable.²

For 30 years after the Treaty of Utrecht, England and France remained at uneasy peace. During this time, New Englanders had looked upon Louisbourg's development with growing interest and not a little concern. But it took the outbreak of King George's War (part of the larger European War of the Austrian Succession) in 1744 to underscore the threat the fortress posed to their security. When word reached North American waters that France and England had declared war in April of that year, French privateers operating out of Louisbourg began to prey on the New England coastal trade. Between 31 May and 12 June, two French privateers armed only with muskets captured at least ten Massachusetts fishing vessels off the Sable Island and Canso banks. By July, French raiders were operating off the coast of Massachusetts, threatening the trade routes to and from Boston.³

In late May French troops surprised and captured the poorly defended English fishing village of Canso at the mouth of Chedabucto Bay, carrying its garrison off to captivity at Louisbourg — a costly error, since this gave the English the opportunity to scrutinize the French defences and note any weaknesses. In August, another troop detachment sent out from the fortress laid siege to Annapolis Royal, the British stronghold on the Bay of Fundy, but withdrew after three weeks of desultory attacks when the defences proved too strong.⁴

The French gained little by attacking Canso and Annapolis Royal and succeeded only in angering the New Englanders and rousing them to action. Perhaps, as the anonymous habitant de Louisbourg later claimed "Les Anglois ne nous auroient peut-être point inquiétés, si nous n'eussions été les premiers à les insulter . . . . Les habitans de la nouvelle Angleterre étoient intéressés à vivre en paix avec nous. Ils l'eussent sans doute fait, si nous ne nous étions point avisés mal à propos, de les tirer de cette sécurité où ils étoient à notre égard."⁵ But attention had been forcibly drawn to the dangers posed by the French naval base, and the clamour for an expedition against the fortress would not be silenced.

The originator of the Louisbourg expedition has long been a subject of controversy, but credit for promoting and gathering support for it must go to Massachusetts' 50-year-old royal governor, William Shirley. Born in England and trained for the law, Shirley had come to Boston in 1731 when his meagre London law practice proved inadequate to support a wife and eight children. In the next 10 years, his legal career had blossomed; so, too, had his popularity and reputation as a staunch supporter of the king's interests, and in 1741 he became the colony's governor.⁶ Shirley had long contemplated an expedition against Louisbourg, and when the Canso garrison returned to Boston from confinement at the fortress in late 1744, he listened attentively to reports that the "impregnable" French stronghold was far from impregnable — that the garrison was small, discontented, and mutinous; that the fortress was dominated by high hills to the west; that the Royal Battery had two unrepaired breaches, and that supplies and munitions were inadequate to withstand a long and determined siege.⁷ The longer Shirley listened, the more convinced he became that an attack on Louisbourg could succeed if it were launched before the French reinforced the garrison in the spring.

1 Governor William Shirley. (The Canadian Magazine, Vol. 22, No. 4, p. 356.)

On 20 January 1745, Shirley went before the Massachusetts General Court seeking the authority to raise and fit out an expedition. After swearing the members to secrecy, he warned them of the threat Louisbourg presented to navigation and trade, to supply ships, to the New England fisheries, and to the general security of British settlements. Nothing, he argued,

would more effectually promote the interests of [Massachusetts] . . . than a reduction of that place . . . . From the best information that can be had of the circumstances of the Town and of the number of the soldiers and Militia within it, and of the situation of the Harbour, I have good reason to think that if Two Thousand men were landed upon the Island [Cape Breton] as soon as they may be conveniently got ready . . . such a number of men would, with the blessing of Divine Providence upon their enterprise, be masters of the field at all events.⁸

The court did not share Shirley's optimism and voted down the proposition after several days' debate. It was only after Boston merchants learned of the decision and petitioned the court to reconsider the governor's proposal that the expedition was finally approved on 5 February by the narrow margin of one vote — occasioned, it is said, when one of the members of the court broke his leg while hurrying to cast a dissenting ballot.⁹ Shirley then notified the home government in London of the intended attack, drew up a "Scheme for Attacking Louisbourg" (see Appendix B), which he sent to the admiralty, and appealed for volunteers from colonies as far south as Pennsylvania.

At the same time, Shirley requested naval assistance from Commodore Peter Warren, commanding British naval operations in American waters, then stationed in the Leeward Islands in the West Indies. Warren, 42 years old, had been on duty in North America since 1730. He had property holdings and family connections in New York (he was married to the sister of Chief Justice James De Lancey of the New York Supreme Court) and, like Shirley, had long favoured attacking Louisbourg. Indeed, as early as February 1743, Warren had recommended just that to the Admiralty, but nothing had come of it.¹⁰ Shirley, possibly with Warren's outlook in mind, told the commodore that if he would release ships to assist in the expedition, they (along with the vessels the colonies furnished) would ensure the ultimate success of New England arms. The governor even offered Warren command of the expedition, writing that "if the service in which you are engaged would permit you to come yourself and take command of it, it would I doubt not be a most happy event for his Majesty's service and your own honour."¹¹

Warren's reply, which reached Shirley in mid-March, was disappointing. The commodore wrote that he would have willingly complied with the governor's request, but his fellow officers had met in council and decided that, without Admiralty instructions, Warren had no authority to send naval assistance for the expedition. He was, however, sending two warships to patrol New England waters and thus relieve those colonial vessels taking part in the campaign.¹²

In the meantime, Warren received orders from the Admiralty which, interpreted broadly, gave him authority to assist in the expedition. He immediately fitted out his 60-gun flagship Superbe, and on 24 March sailed from Antigua in company with two 40-gun ships of the line (the Mermaid and the Launceston) and a transport. He sent word to Shirley that, to save time, he would sail directly for Louisbourg, stopping at Canso for water and the latest intelligence. Warren also ordered two other battleships (one a captured French prize) to join him off Louisbourg.¹³

The Louisbourg expedition has been called both "a mad scheme" and "a project of wild audacity,"¹⁴ fitting epithets when one considers that there were no experienced troops in the colonies to carry it out — no regular soldiers, no trained officers, no knowledgeable veterans, and no naval force. Few, indeed, could boast of more than a passing acquaintance with the rudiments of basic military drill, let alone the intricate art of siegecraft. This state of affairs led a skeptical Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia to caution his brother in Boston: "Fortified towns are hard nuts to crack, and your teeth are not accustomed to it. Taking strong places is a particular trade, which you have taken up without serving an apprenticeship to it . . . . But some seem to think forts are as easy taken as snuff."¹⁵

Despite Franklin's misgivings — and there were others who shared his concern — more than 4,000 men, all New Englanders, signed up to attack Louisbourg. Some 3,300 came from Massachusetts (which then included Maine), 500 from Connecticut, and 450 from New Hampshire (some of whom were paid by Massachusetts).¹⁶ New York supplied a few cannon of varying size and quality, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey sent food and clothing. Rhode Island voted to raise three companies of men, but, having second thoughts, cautiously withheld them until the campaign had ended.¹⁷ Other colonies sent their prayers and best wishes, but nothing else.

2 Sir Peter Warren. (New Brunswick Museum.)

The army (if that name can be applied to such a heterogeneous and undisciplined body of men) was made up of fishermen, farmers, mechanics, merchants, and frontiersmen of all age and circumstance, all determined to see Louisbourg devastated because that place "was Like to prove Detremental if not Destroying to our Country."¹⁸ So great was the enthusiasm to enlist in the expedition that Major John Storer of the Maine militia signed up a company of three score men in a single day, their ages running from 16 to 60.¹⁹

The great religious revival that had so recently swept through New England also brought a large number of militant Protestant clergymen into the army's ranks, all anxious to lay waste that "Stronghold of Satan" on Cape Breton Island. One, the Reverend Samuel Moody of York, Maine, and at 70 "the oldest man in the army," reportedly brought his own ax to cut down the "idols" in the Louisbourg churches. English Methodist minister George Whitefield, who did not accompany the army to Louisbourg, supplied a motto: Nil desperandum Christo duce (Despair of nothing while Christ leads). The presence of the ministers gave the expedition an atmosphere of a crusade, causing a later writer to feel that the campaign was a "strangely combined muster and camp-meeting."²⁰

The terms of service varied little from colony to colony, each man usually receiving a specified amount of money and a blanket. Those who could bring their own musket, sword, belt and cartridge box, blanket, and whatever else might be required, "to the acceptance of the military officer who shall enlist them," received higher monthly stipends. To those unable to furnish such items, the colony would see to their needs, with the stipulation that each item furnished must be returned at the end of the campaign and that any item lost be paid for. All enlistees would also have an equal share in all plunder, be free from the collection of debts until returning to the colony, and receive one month's wages in advance before embarkation.²¹ The men were also promised such goodly portions of rum that Connecticut's Governor Jonathan Law felt compelled to caution Captain John Prentis of the Connecticut sloop Defiance against allowing his men to indulge too heavily for fear they might be inebriated in time of danger.²²

Command of the army and expedition was given to 49-year-old William Pepperrell of Kittery, Maine. Pepperrell, who received the rank of lieutenant general, was president of the Massachusetts Council and a prosperous and influential merchant. He had no previous military experience beyond an occasional muster of the militia, of which he was colonel, but he was popular and possessed a marked degree of common sense — primary requisites for a leader of undisciplined citizen-soldiers.²³ Pepperrell's commission as commander of the army did not come from Massachusetts alone; he held simultaneous commissions from New Hampshire and Connecticut.²⁴ Each of these colonies, therefore, possessed a degree of authority over his actions. Surprisingly, Pepperrell was not hampered by this and he maintained relative independence of command.

Second in command was Roger Wolcott, 67-year-old deputy governor of Connecticut, who received his appointment and rank of major general as a condition for that colony sending troops.²⁵ The brigadiers were Samuel Waldo, prominent merchant and landowner, and Joseph Dwight, colonel of the artillery train actively commanded by Richard Gridley.

The provincial army was organized into nine regiments according to colony, as follows:

First Massachusetts Regiment, William Pepperrell, colonel. (Actively commanded by Lieutenant Colonel John Bradstreet.)

Second Massachusetts Regiment, Samuel Waldo, colonel. (Actively commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Noble of Georgetown, Massachusetts.)

Third Massachusetts Regiment, Jeremiah Moulton, colonel.

Fourth Massachusetts Regiment, Samuel Willard, colonel.

Fifth Massachusetts Regiment, Robert Hale, colonel.

Sixth Massachusetts Regiment, Sylvester Richmond, colonel.

Seventh Massachusetts Regiment, Shubael Gorham, colonel.

Connecticut Regiment, Andrew Burr, colonel.

New Hampshire Regiment, Samuel Moore, colonel.²⁶

To carry the army to Canso, where it would rendezvous before sailing on to Louisbourg, Shirley had managed to assemble (exclusive of Warren's squadron then on its way north from the Leewards) a fleet of 90 transports, 5 men-of-war, and 6 sloops. It was commanded by Commodore John Rous of the frigate Shirley. Captain Edward Tyng, of the frigate Massachusetts, was senior provincial naval officer present, acting under Shirley's commission.²⁷

3 Sir William Pepperrell. In the background of this painting by John Smibert is a view of Pepperrell's forces in action at Louisbourg. (Essex Institute, Salem, Massachusetts.)

The expedition sailed on 4 April. For the men, tightly packed into the holds of the transports, the trip to Canso was far from enjoyable. For many, it was their first time at sea. "Wee had'ent Sailed, above 3 or 4 Leagues, before Some were Sea Sick," wrote one volunteer. The sickness increased and soon he was noting that "our Vessel was A Very Hospital, wee were all Sick, in a Greater or lesser Degree." The gunsmith Seth Pomeroy of Northampton, Massachusetts, was among those distressed, writing that he was so sick "day & night that I have not words to set it forth."²⁸ The campaign was not off to a very auspicious beginning, but the sickness soon abated and by the middle of April the fleet began to assemble at Canso.

At Canso, Pepperrell learned that Gabarus Bay, southwest of Louisbourg where the landing would take place, was still blocked with winter ice. The ships would have to wait until the ice packs cleared. The delay, however, was taken up by prayer-meetings and military training, with the preaching loud and long and the training far from elaborate. The New England soldiers were enthusiastic, but apparently a bit reckless. One man "Carelessly handling his Gun, Shot it off, and the Bullet went thro' a Man's Cap on his head."²⁹

Commodore Warren arrived off Canso with his little squadron on 4 May, sending word ashore to Pepperrell that he was proceeding immediately to Louisbourg to block the harbour against the entry of any French ships. He assured Pepperrell that "nothing shall be wanting, on our parts to promote the Success of the Expedition, which I think of the utmost Consequence to our King and Country."³⁰ Shirley had told Pepperrell that Warren, upon his arrival, was to take over command of the provincial naval force and that the cruiser officers were to take orders from the commodore. The governor urged Pepperrell to have no disagreements with Warren that might prejudice the success of the campaign.³¹

Early in May, after nearly four weeks at Canso, Pepperrell finally received word that Gabarus Bay was free of ice. Previously, on 16 April, a council of war decided to make Canso the base of operations, It was to serve as both a place of retreat (should it prove necessary) and a place to carry the sick and wounded.³² Two companies of 40 men each were detailed to remain at Canso to guard against any French attack. The remainder of the men (except for Jeremiah Moulton's regiment, which had been sent to raid and burn the French settlement at St. Peters)³³ were once again packed into the tight holds of the transports. On 9 May they sailed away on the enterprise which, if successful, "would be the most glorious and useful thing done in the war."³⁴