See also:
The Defenses of British North America: 1861
When the American Civil War began on April 12, 1861, the British
garrison in Canada and the Maritimes numbered no more than 4,300 men of
all ranks. 2,200 of these were stationed in Canada itself, 100 men of the
Royal Canadian Rifles (a regular British regiment raised in Canada for
use exclusively in British North America) were stationed at Fort Garry
in Manitoba, and 150 Royal Engineers in British Columbia. In addition to
these forces there were 5,000 uniformed and armed Canadian volunteers in
Canada (see 1855 Militia Act) and a similar
number in the Maritimes. Behind these forces stood the Sedentary Militia,
with no arms, equipment or training.
The Trent Affair
Soon after the Civil War began, Captain Wilkes of the United States
Navy, commanding the warship U.S.S. San Jacinto, stopped a British
mail ship, the Trent, and removed two Confederate diplomats who
were en route to Great Britain. While the Union states cheered Wilkes'
actions, there was an explosion of anger in the UK. The British Parliament
demanded the release of the Confederates and an official apology. "You
may stand for this," bellowed Prime Minister Lord Palmerston to his cabinet,
"but damned if I will!".
The British press adopted a firmly anti-American attitude. "Captain
Wilkes is an ideal Yankee," wrote The Times, "Swagger and ferocity,
built on a foundation of vulgarity and cowardice, these are the characteristics...the
most prominent markes by which his countrymen...are known all over the
world".
Canadians for the most part also condemned the action, fuelling
their anger towards the northern states and strengthening their wishes
to see the South victorious, despite their aversion to slavery. Indeed,
war between the Union states and the British Empire seemed almost certain
in the final months of 1861.
Although President Abraham Lincoln's cabinet opposed the release
of the Confederates, Lincoln himself ordered their release on Christmas
Day, 1861, counselling his subordinates that one war at a time was enough.
British regulars despatched to Canada
As a result of the Trent Affair, additional British reinforcements were sent to Canada, bringing the total
number of British troops in the provinces to about 18,000. These troops
were hastily despatched in the dead of winter, however, and endured a difficult
passage to their posts in the interior. Moving by sea to Halifax, St. John
and St. Andrew's, they embarked along the Madawaska Road by horse-drawn
sleigh, forcing them to negotiate the difficult Temiscouata portage. It
was a striking demonstration of how poor communications were between Canada
and Great Britain.
British units despatched to Canada belonged to the following units:
- 1st Grenadier Guards
- 2nd Scots Fusilier Guards
- 1/16th (Bedfordshire) Regiment (1 company)
- 62nd (Wiltshire) Regiment
- 63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment
- 1st Battalion The Rifle Brigade
- E, F, and G Batteries/4th Brigade Field Artillery
- 5th and 6th Batteries/7th Brigade Garrison Artillery
- 1st, 4th, 5th and 6th Batteries/10th Brigade Garrison Artillery
- 15th and 18th Companies Royal Engineers
Appropriate command, supply and medical units accompanied the combat units. Training units were also sent to assist in the preparation of the Canadian militia for the expected war.
The Canadian Response
On the part of the Canadians and the local British military officials,
current defense measures were improved and new programs were pushed forward.
New batteries were raised at Kingston and Toronto, arrangements were made
to call out the Sedentary Militia and to increase the number of volunteers,
and a department of defense was created with future PM John A. MacDonald
as Minister of Militia. Military enthusiasm ran high, and militia regiments
enjoyed full ranks for the first time in decades.
The enthusiasm was not, however, prevalent among Liberal ![Militia recruiting poster, 1861 [Click to see the text of the poster]](acwpost.jpg) politicians,
who had opposed militia reforms in 1855 and would now oppose them again.
As the immediate danger of the Trent Affair passed, MacDonald's Department
of Defense concluded that at least 50,000 trained men would be required
to meet an invasion from the south, with a reserve of similar numbers.
This was addition to the British garrison. It was also recommended that
a flotilla of armoured warships be raised on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence
for the protection of these vital waterways. The total cost for this venture
was to be $1,110,000, or one-tenth of the provincial revenue.
Such a cost was unacceptable to the Liberals, and they renounced
the bill even after MacDonald offered to compromise, partly as a result
of the success of the Confederate armies and the apparent doom of the United
States. The ruling government resigned over the defeat and a new government,
headed by Sandfield Macdonald and Louis Sicotte merely stepped up the militia
budget to $250,000 and gave the governor-general authority to strengthen
the sedentary militia as might be required.
Greater Provincial Responsibilities
Such a situation could not last forever in the face of the mounting
success of the Union armies. Two new militia acts were passed in 1863 which
improved mobilization measures by organizing a number of service battalions
within the sedentary militia, which would train more regularly than before.
By 1864, these men numbered about 88,000. The number of volunteers was
also increased from 10,000 to 35,000. Additionally, two military schools
were established for the training of officers. These proved so popular
that provisions were made in 1865 for the opening of four more.
These were small changes, but at least they showed that the provinces
were beginning to take on responsibility for self-determination. The anger
caused in the northern states by the depredations of the rebel raider C.S.S.
Alabama, and the increased use of Canada as a base for Confederate cloak-and-dagger
operations, necessitated a strong force to defend the border. To make matters
worse, defeatism was running high in the UK and the British parliament
was increasingly unenthusiastic about spending money in a seemingly fruitless
defense of Canada.
Political union: the final act
British reluctance to assist the Canadians in the defense of their
country led directly to the Fathers of Confederation looking to political
a union of the provinces as a means for self-defense. A meeting at Quebec
of the future federal government of Canada led to an agreement by which
additional fortifications would be raised at Quebec, Montreal and Kingston.
The British remained unresponsive, however, and it was only with
great opposition that funds for the arming of the fortifications were appropriated
by parliament. The cost of defending Canada had finally fallen onto Canada
itself. The forts were ultimately constructed with scant British assistance,
those at Quebec being designed to prevent an enemy from erecting batteries
at Point Levis, as Wolfe had done in 1759. Thus Canada had assumed the
responsibilities that would lead to Confederation from the British Empire
in 1867.
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