Richard Montgomery

Portrait by Artist to Come

QUICK FACTS
BORN:
2 December 1738 in Swords, Ireland
  DIED:
31 December 1775 in Quebec City, Quebec
Buried at Quebec City; remains moved in 1818 to St. Paul’s Chapel, New York, NY

Richard Montgomery, British soldier in the Seven Years’ War and Continental Army officer during the American Revolution, was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1736.

Educated at St Andrew’s and at Trinity College in Dublin, he entered the British army in 1756. He became captain six years later. He saw war service at Louisbourg (a fortress in Nova Scotia, Canada) in 1757 and in the Lake Champlain expedition of 1759. As an adjutant of his regiment (the 17th foot) he shared in the final threefold advance upon Montreal. Later he was present at Martinique and Havana.

In 1772 he left the army, settled in New York, and married a daughter of Robert R. Livingston. Three years later he was a delegate to the first Provincial Congress of New York and became brigadier-general in the Continental Army.

Montgomery was sent with General Philip Schuyler on the disastrous Canadian expedition to take Quebec City. And when Schuyler fell ill, the command became his. Hampered by the inclemency of the season and the gross indiscipline of the troops, he went forward, gaining a few minor successes and capturing the colors of the 7th (Royal) Fusiliers. At Point aux Trembles, he met up with Benedict Arnold’s contingent, and together they pushed on to Quebec. Barely 800 strong they nonetheless made an assault on 31 December 1775.

At almost the first discharge Montgomery was instantly killed.

The body of the American general was honorably interred by the Quebec garrison. Congress approved a memorial to be erected at St Paul’s Chapel in New York. And in 1818 his remains were transferred from Quebec and buried in the churchyard.

ADAPTED FROM:
Encyclopedia Britannica, 1911 ed.

The failure of the Loyalists to flock to the royal standard cannot be understood without appreciating how effectively they had been locked down and neutralized by the patriots. Loyalists could not buy, sell, or bequeath property or other assets. They were barred from all legal recourse to recover debts or redress any other injury. They could not practice law or teach unless they had taken an oath of allegiance to the cause. They could not be executors of estates or be a guardian to a child. Any person who wrote, or spoke, or by any act libeled or defamed Congress ... should be brought to trial.

Michael Stephenson
Patriot Battles: How the War of Independence Was Fought (2007)