At Old Fort William
Thunder Bay, Ontario - Our Home
The Thunder Bay Platoon,
Old Fort William.
It is not hard to spot the old campaigners from the young
recruits.
Photo by HM Regt DeMeuron
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A platoon of deMeuron's approaching Fort William by bateau.
On their way to the Red River Colony, in 1816, the soldier/settlers were
ordered by Lord Selkirk to sieze Fort William and assist the Constable
John McNabb in arresting the partners of the North West Company for conspiracy.
On the bow of the bateau, you can see a small 1lb swivel cannon.
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On the Campaign trail . . . Visiting other events and places.
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| Waiting for the order to advance. British soldiers form
their line and wait for the order to advance. In a few moments they
will leave the protection of the wood line and cross the open ground towards
the American's.
The distinctive light blue facing's of the deMeuron Regiment are visible in the front of the line. |
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| The Kentucky Dragoons attack the flank of the British.
As they
advance across the open field, the British line is attacked by American cavalry. The left hand platoon is quickly wheeled backwards by it's Sergeant, to form a right angle, and repel the horsemen. Eventually the dragoons give up, not wanting to risk the points of the British bayonets. But not before inflicting some serious casualties. |
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| The British line carries on. Leaving the casualties to
be tended by the
women following the soldiers, the British continue the attack on the American position. On the left, you can see Sgt. John Fenner, of the Michigan Fencible Regiment. He is using his spontoon to straighten the line during the advance. Sgts. carried the short pikes to help them keep the line steady and straight. On the right, the drummer keeps the beat for the advancing infantry, even as he steps over the wounded soldier. |
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An old campaigner
relaxes before the battle.
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A young recruit
anxiously prepares for his first fight. |
An American soldier stands over a wounded British soldier, as he loads his musket. |
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The infantry trade volley's. The American infantry fire a volley into the advancing British, who in turn, reply with their own. |
The British tactic is to fire one platoon at a time. By firing in sequence of platoons, the British never have all their muskets unloaded at any given point. If the entire line fires, then for the next 20 seconds, all the muskets are unloaded. As well, the amount of smoke in front of the line is reduced. The British Colonel can still see much of the battle field. These can be critical points in the battle |
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A woman warrior from the Saulk tribe.
She sits patient, waiting for the battle to begin. She will join the men of her tribe, to seek vengance for her husband's death. He was killed by American's while fighting with Tecumsah. |
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One of the soldier's wives keeps
busy in the camp, waiting for her
husband to return from the fighting.
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Another wife will not wait.
She and her daughter follow the soldiers into the battle. She is carrying a bucket of water, for the men to drink. |
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Searching the battlefield.
Not every one always comes back.
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1781-1813 |
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