The Death of General Montgomery, by John Trumbull - Yale University Art Gallery,
History includes the passage of times and the events and personalities that are contained within. As we near the end of our historical survey of the American Revolutionary War, a few months of our attention and effort in my column, we go back toward the beginning of the war and a significant mission, to Canada, that doesn’t get much attention.
The American assault on Canada in the opening year of the Revolutionary War was one of the most ambitious and punishing campaigns the Continental Army ever attempted. It began with optimism, unfolded through extraordinary hardship, and ended in bitter defeat. The plan was simple in concept: two American forces would converge on Quebec, seize the province, and bring Canada into the Revolution. In practice, it became a test of endurance, leadership, and survival.
Congress believed that many French Canadians might support the Revolution if freed from British rule. Capturing Canada would also prevent British armies from descending the Hudson Valley and splitting the colonies (which did happen later when British general Burgoyne came southward down and Colonel St. Ledger came east along the Mohawk River, suffering defeats at Fort Stanwix and Saratoga). Thus, in late summer 1775, two separate American columns were ordered north.
The first, under General Richard Montgomery, advanced from New York through Lake Champlain. The second, under Colonel Benedict Arnold, would take an unthinkably difficult wilderness route through Maine. Their goal was to meet outside Quebec and launch a coordinated assault.
Montgomery’s march was the more conventional of the two, though still demanding. He captured Fort St. Jean after a stubborn siege, forcing the British to abandon Montreal. On Nov. 13, 1775, Montgomery entered the city in triumph. It was one of the earliest major American victories of the war.
Montgomery’s leadership was calm, disciplined, and humane. He treated the Canadians respectfully, hoping to win their support. His success opened the St. Lawrence River and allowed him to move downriver toward Quebec, where he would join Arnold.
Montgomery’s victory at Montreal was the high point of the American invasion. It gave the Continental Army control of the western half of Canada and created the illusion that Quebec might fall just as easily. But Quebec was a fortress, and the hardest part of the campaign still lay ahead.
While Montgomery advanced through settled country, Arnold’s detachment, including the young Aaron Burr, faced one of the most brutal marches in American military history. Their route through Maine was a 300‑mile wilderness of swamps, mountains, and icy rivers.
Burr, only nineteen, distinguished himself with endurance and initiative. The men hauled bateaux, which are river boats, up the Kennebec River, dragged them across the Great Carrying Place, and fought freezing rapids and starvation. Many boats shattered; food spoiled; disease spread. Nearly half the force was lost before reaching the Chaudière River.
Burr’s most famous moment came when he volunteered to carry dispatches ahead of the army. He pushed through the wilderness alone, reached the settlements near Quebec, and returned with intelligence. His survival was remarkable; many who attempted similar feats perished.
By early November, Arnold’s ragged survivors reached the outskirts of Quebec—exhausted, frostbitten, and starving, but still determined.
Montgomery arrived in early December, bringing discipline, artillery, and hope. The meeting of the two columns was emotional: Arnold’s men had endured a march worthy of legend, and Montgomery’s arrival restored the possibility of victory.
Among Arnold’s officers was Major Matthias Ogden, a Sussex County figure whose courage was noted throughout the campaign. Ogden had marched with Arnold through the Maine wilderness and later played a key role in the assault on Quebec. His presence connects Sussex County directly to one of the most dramatic operations of the Revolution.
The Americans knew they could not take Quebec by siege. Winter was closing in, supplies were low, and British reinforcements would arrive in spring. Montgomery and Arnold agreed on a desperate plan: a night attack during a snowstorm on 31 December 1775.
Montgomery led the western column; Arnold led the eastern. Ogden advanced with Arnold’s vanguard in the narrow streets of the Sault‑au‑Matelot district.
Montgomery’s attack collapsed quickly As he advanced through a narrow passage, a British cannon fired a single blast of grapeshot. Montgomery, Major John MacPherson, and Captain Jacob Cheeseman were killed instantly. His column retreated in shock.
Arnold’s column fought fiercely. Arnold was shot in the leg early, and command passed to Daniel Morgan. Ogden pushed forward with Morgan’s men, fighting hand‑to‑hand in the twisting streets. But the Americans were trapped between barricades. Surrounded and outnumbered, Morgan and roughly 400 men—including Ogden—were captured.
With Montgomery dead and Arnold wounded, the assault failed. The Americans settled into a hopeless winter siege, ravaged by smallpox, starvation, and desertion. When British reinforcements arrived in May 1776, the Continental Army retreated all the way back to New York.
The mission to Canada had begun with optimism and courage. It ended in tragedy, but it produced legends: Montgomery the martyr, Arnold the daring commander, Burr the indomitable young officer, Morgan and his riflemen who would later help win at Saratoga, and Ogden, the Sussex County hero who fought in the most desperate corner of Quebec’s icy streets.
Bill Truran, Sussex County’s historian, may be contacted at billt1425@gmail.com He is the author of “Last Signer of the Declaration of Independence: Lewis Morris III.”
