Siege of Fort Meigs

The siege of Fort Meigs took place during the War of 1812 in northwestern Ohio in late April and early May 1813. British regulars and militia led by Brigadier General Henry Procter, supported by Indigenous forces led by Tecumseh, attempted to capture the recently constructed fort in order to forestall Major General William Henry Harrison's campaign to retake Detroit and advance into Upper Canada. An American attempt to relieve the fort on May 5 resulted in heavy casualties, however, Procter was unable to breech Harrison's defences and withdrew after a 11-day siege.

Siege of Fort Meigs
Part of the War of 1812 and Tecumseh's War
A reconstructed blockhouse at Fort Meigs Historic Site
Date April 28 – May 9, 1813 (1 week and 4 days) Location Present-day Perrysburg, Ohio Result American victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom Tecumseh's confederacy	United States
Commanders and leaders
Henry Procter Tecumseh Roundhead	William H. Harrison Green Clay William Dudley †
Strength
1,250 Native Americans 433 regulars 462 Canadian militia	1,200 regulars 1,600 militia
Casualties and losses
British 14 killed 47 wounded 41 captured Indians 19 killed and wounded Total 121	160 killed 190 wounded 100 wounded prisoners 530 captured 6 missing Total 986

Background

Map of battles in the region

In the early days of the War of 1812, American forces led by Brigadier General William Hull, surrendered to the British following a brief siege of Detroit. To recover Detroit and advance into Upper Canada, the Americans formed the Army of the Northwest. Brigadier General James Winchester, briefly commanded this army before William Henry Harrison, then governor of the Indiana Territory was commissioned a major general in the regular United States Army and appointed to the command by President James Madison.^[1]

Harrison initially planned a winter campaign but his advance was hampered by bad weather and a shortage of supplies. On 22 January 1813, a detachment of his army (commanded by Winchester) was defeated at the Battle of Frenchtown. Harrison had been en route to Frenchtown with reinforcements when news of Winchester's defeat reached him. He withdrew to the Maumee Rapids, ordered Winchester's stores burned, then pulled his soldiers back to the Portage River.^[2] In spite of rebukes from Secretary of War James Madison, Harrison declined to resume the advance immediately and gave orders for the construction of several forts to protect the rivers and trails which his army would use in any renewed advance.^{[citation needed]} Two of the most important were Fort Meigs (named for Return J. Meigs Jr., the Governor of Ohio) on the Maumee River and Fort Stephenson on the Sandusky River, both in northwestern Ohio.

Harrison descended the Maumee to the proposed site of Fort Meigs with an force which ultimately numbered 4,000 men (mainly militia) and began construction of the fort on 1 February 1813. He contemplated making a hit-and-run attack across the frozen Lake Erie against the British position at Amherstburg in Upper Canada. He moved to the mouth of the Maumee, found that the ice on the frozen lake was breaking up, and returned to the half-finished fort.^[3] The officer he had left in charge had departed with all of his men because the enlistment period of the militia units assigned to the task had expired. Construction had halted, and the wood that had been cut was being used as firewood.

Since the enlistments of Harrison's Ohio and Kentucky militia were also about to expire, Harrison disbanded his force and left for Cincinnati to the south to raise a fresh army. He left Army Corps of Engineers Major Eleazer D. Wood and several hundred inadequately clothed men from the 17th and 19th Regiments, U.S. Infantry to complete the construction of the fort, as well as militia from Pennsylvania and Virginia whose own enlistments were soon to expire.

The fort was located on the south bank of the Maumee, near the Miami Rapids. Across the river were the ruins of the old British Fort Miami and the site of the 1794 Battle of Fallen Timbers. Fort Meigs occupied an area of 10 acres (40,000 m²) and was the largest wooden-walled fortification constructed in North America.^[4] The perimeter consisted of a fifteen-foot picket fence, linking eight blockhouses. The north face was protected by the Maumee, and the east and west faces by ravines. The south face was cleared of all timber to create an open glacis.^{[5][failed verification]}

The poor weather in March prevented a British attack while the fort was still vulnerable.^[6] In April, the British Army commander on the Detroit frontier, Brigadier General Henry Procter, began preparations to attack the fort and prevent a summer offensive.^[7] Harrison received word of Procter's preparations, and hastened down the Maumee with reinforcements, increasing the garrison of the fort to a total of 1,100 men.^[5] He also persuaded Isaac Shelby, the Governor of Kentucky, to call up a brigade of 1,200 Kentucky militia under Brigadier General Green Clay. Clay's brigade followed Harrison down the Maumee, but failed to reached the fort before it was besieged.

Siege begins

After several delays caused by heavy rain, Procter and 533 regulars from the 41st Regiment of Foot and the Royal Newfoundland Regiment of Fencible Infantry embarked aboard the vessels of the Provincial Marine on April 23 and sailed across Lake Erie to Maumee Bay. 462 militia followed in batteaux. Tecumseh and the Wyandot chief Roundhead led roughly 1,200 Indigenous warriors overland and rendezvoused with Procter on 29 April.^[8].

Procter established his headquarters at the abandoned Fort Miami. Procter had Tecumseh lightly invest Fort Meigs while four artillery batteries were established on the north side of the river opposite the fort. On 1 May, two 24-pounder guns, three 12-pounder guns, an 8 inch howitzer, two 5½-inch howitzers, two 5½-inch mortars, and two gunboats mounting 9-pounder guns opened fire on the fort.^[9]

The bombardment caused caused little damage due to the bombproofs and traverses that Harrison had ordered constructed. Harrison ordered his artillery to return fire but his supply of ammunition was limited and the shelling had little effect.^[10] On 3 May, Procter sent a letter to Harrison demanding the surrender of Fort Meigs in order to prevent the "effusion of blood."^[11] After Harrison refused, Procter had an additional battery placed on the south side of the river 300 yards (270 m) east of the fort.^[12]

Battle of the Miami

Plan of the Battle of 5 May, from Benson J. Lossing's Pictorial Field Book of the War of 1812

On 2 May, Harrison sent a courier to Clay's force, with orders for part of them to spike the British guns on the north bank and then withdraw into the fort, while a sortie from the fort attacked the battery on the south bank.

The Kentuckians gained complete surprise. Early on the morning of 5 May, a detachment from Clay's brigade under Colonel William Dudley landed from boats on the north bank of the river. Dudley's command comprised 761 of his own 10th Kentucky Detached Regiment of Militia, 60 of the 13th Kentucky Detached Regiment of Militia and 45 U.S. Army regular troops.^[13] This force stormed the batteries on the north bank and spiked the guns but used ramrods for the spiking instead of handspikes, which meant that the cannons were only temporarily disabled.^[14] Dudley then lost control of some of his men. Coming under fire from Natives in the woods, part of the Kentuckian force pursued Tecumseh's men, who led them deeper into the forest. Dudley followed in an attempt to bring them back, leaving Major James Shelby in command at the battery.^[15] Major Adam Muir led three companies of the 41st Foot and one of Canadian militia from the British camp and stormed the battery, killing many of the Kentuckians and forcing Shelby to surrender.^[16] In the woods, the disorganised Kentuckians were decimated in confused fighting against the Natives.^[14] Of Dudley's 866 officers and men,^[13] only 150^[17] escaped to the fort. This became known as "Dudley's Massacre" or "Dudley's Defeat". The rest of Clay's force, which had not been involved in the attack on the batteries, reached the fort safely to reinforce the garrison.

On the south bank, the American sortie against the British battery was partially successful. Colonel John Miller, at the head of 350 regulars and volunteers, captured the battery and took 41 prisoners. However, Captain Richard Bullock, with the flank companies of the 1/41st Foot, two companies of militia and 300 Indians, counterattacked and, in hard fighting, drove Miller's detachment back into the fort with heavy casualties.^[18]

Aftermath

Artillery at Fort Meigs

After the battle, the prisoners from Dudley's command were taken for confinement to the ruined Fort Miami near the British camp. Here, a group of Ojibwe warriors began massacring prisoners. Several American prisoners were killed before Tecumseh and Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Elliott of the British Indian Department forced the warriors to stop.^[19] Tecumseh is alleged to have demanded Procter explain why he had not prevented the massacre. When Procter replied that the Indians could not be made to obey, Tecumseh supposedly replied, "Begone! You are unfit to command. Go and put on petticoats".^[20] Another version of the incident had Tecumseh rebuking Procter with, "I conquer to save; you to kill".^[21] Eye-witness accounts stated that between 12 and 14 prisoners were killed in the massacre.^[22]

By nightfall all the prisoners had been secured aboard the Provincial Marine vessels anchored at the mouth of the river.^[23] Several hours later Procter received a letter from Harrison proposing a prisoner exchange. Procter and Harrison met the following morning and arranged for 21 American prisoners to be swapped for the British soldiers captured when the artillery position east of the fort was overrun.^[24]

The battle of 5 May was known to the British as "the Battle of the Miami", having taken place beside the Miami du Lac River (now known as the Maumee River). The 41st Regiment, whose successor in the British Army is the Royal Welsh Regiment, was awarded the battle honour, "Miami", in commemoration of its successful action during the battle.^[25]

Within the Canadian Army both the Royal Newfoundland Regiment and the Essex and Kent Scottish Regiment carry the battle honour "Maumee" to commemorate the participation of their ancestor units in the campaign.

Five active regular battalions of the United States Army (1-3 Inf, 2-3 Inf, 4-3 Inf, 2-7 Inf and 3-7 Inf) perpetuate the lineage of the old 17th, 19th and 24th Infantry Regiments, which had elements that were engaged at Fort Meigs. In addition, Virginia militia units that eventually became the 150th Cavalry (ARNG WV) were present during the construction of the fort.

Casualties

War of 1812 memorial obelisk at Fort Meigs

The British official casualty return gave 14 killed, 47 wounded and 40 captured.^[26] It was headed as being for May 5 but it appears to have been for the entire siege up to and including May 5, since it included among the wounded Captain Laurent Bondy of the Canadian militia, who is known to have received his (ultimately fatal) wound from artillery fire on May 3. The Native Americans allied to the British had 19 men killed and wounded, including Roundhead's brother Jean-Baptiste.^[27]

Harrison reported the casualties sustained by his garrison in the entire siege, from 28 April to 9 May, as 80 killed and 190 wounded, of whom 12 were killed and 20 wounded by artillery fire.^[28] This would indicate 68 killed and 170 wounded during the engagement on 5 May. An official British return of prisoners details 547 captured Americans but a note from Procter states that "since the above return was made out more than eighty prisoners have been brought by the Indians".^[29] This would give a total of about 630 Americans captured at the battle.^[30] Harrison reported no men missing or captured from his garrison,^[31] so all of the prisoners taken on 5 May must have been from Dudley's troops on the north bank of the river. The official casualty report for Dudley's command, compiled after the Kentucky Militia prisoners were paroled, details 80 men killed and 100 wounded (all of whom had been captured).^[32] This gives total casualties for Dudley's 866-strong detachment of 80 killed, 100 wounded prisoners, 530 unwounded prisoners and 6 missing; and an overall American loss on May 5 of 148 killed, 170 wounded, 100 wounded prisoners, 530 unwounded prisoners and 6 missing.

End of the siege

On 7 May, terms were arranged providing for the mutual exchange of all regular prisoners and the parole of the Kentucky Militia prisoners, who were convoyed to Sandusky under pledge of performing no further military service until formally exchanged for British prisoners.^[30] On the same day, Procter's artillery resumed fire, but most of the Natives had abandoned the army and the Canadian militia were anxious to get back to their farms. The renewed bombardment had little effect, and the garrison of the fort now outnumbered the besiegers. Procter abandoned the siege on 9 May. The total American loss in the siege came to 160 killed, 190 wounded, 100 wounded prisoners, 530 other prisoners and 6 missing: 986 in all. 14 killed, 47 wounded and 41 captured were Procter's entire (non-Indian) casualties for the siege, which indicates that 1 man was captured after 5 May.^[33]

Order of battle

British/Native American order of battle

American order of battle

British Army: Brigadier General Henry Procter Royal Artillery 41st Regiment of Foot Royal Newfoundland Regiment of Fencible Infantry Upper Canada Militia, including: 1st and 2nd Regiments of Essex Militia 1st Regiment of Kent Militia Tecumseh's Confederacy Shawnee: Tecumseh Wyandot: Roundhead

Army of the Northwest: Major General William Henry Harrison Fort Meigs Engineers: Captain Eleazer D. Wood[34] 2nd U.S. Dragoons, detachment: Major Ball 1st U.S. Artillery: Major Amos Stoddard, mortally wounded 17th and 19th U.S. Infantry detachments: Colonel John Miller[34] Bradford's Company: Captain William Bradford Croghan's Company: Captain George Croghan Elliott's Company: Captain Wilson Eliott Langham's Company: Captain Angus L. Langham Nehring's Company: Captain Abel Nehring Gwynne's Company: Captain David Gwynne 10th Kentucky Militia, detachment: Captain Sebree 1st Ohio Militia: Colonel James Mills[35] Pennsylvania Militia Battalion: Major John B. Alexander[36] Pittsburgh Blues: Captain James Butler Petersburg Company: Lieutenant Tisdale Kentucky Militia Brigade: Brigadier General Green Clay 10th Kentucky "Light" Militia: Colonel William E. Boswell[36] 13th Kentucky Militia: Colonel William Dudley † U.S. Army Infantry detachment

Second siege

Main article: Battle of Fort Stephenson

Once the British had withdrawn, Harrison left Clay in command of the fort with about 2000 militia. In July 1813, Procter decided to raid Harrison's supply depot on the Sandusky River. His Indigenous allies, however, led by Tecumseh, insisted on a second attack on Fort Meigs. Tecumseh's warriors staged a mock battle in the woods to make it appear as if they were attacking a relief column in order to lure Clay out of the fort. Clay, however, knew no reinforcements were coming, and the ruse failed. Procter abandoned the siege and proceeded east to attack Fort Stephenson. Over the course of two days in early August, the severely outnumbered garrison of roughly 160 men, under the leadership of Major George Croghan, repelled all attacks. The British suffered 96 casualties before Procter decided to withdraw back to Amherstburg.^[37]