Battle of Queenston Heights 1812
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Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 13 October 1812 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1812 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | 19th century (1800–1913) | derived from year |
| Location | Canada | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | North America | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | War of 1812 | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United States | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 43.1619, -79.0506 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Queenston Heights was the first major engagement of the War of 1812. The battle took place on 13 October 1812, at Queenston in Upper Canada (now Ontario) and was a decisive British victory. United States regulars and New York militia led by Major General Stephen Van Rensselaer crossed the Niagara River from Lewiston and engaged British regulars and Canadian militia led by Major General Isaac Brock. Major General Roger Hale Sheaffe took command of British forces after Brock was killed. Mohawk warriors led by John Norton supported the British during the battle.
The battle was an American attempt to establish a foothold on the Canadian side of the Niagara River before campaigning ended with the onset of winter. The British victory was mainly due to the poorly managed American offensive. Despite their numerical advantage and the widely dispersed British forces defending the Niagara frontier, the Americans were unable to get the bulk of their invasion force across the Niagara River because of British artillery and the reluctance of the inexperienced American militia. As a result, British reinforcements arrived, defeated the unsupported American forces, and forced a surrender.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Queenston Heights (revision 1381306155), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
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- Siege of Detroit 1812
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All 59 battles of the War of 1812 →
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