New Hampshire Provincial Regiment
Encyclopedia
The New Hampshire Provincial Regiment was a composite regiment
made up of units of the New Hampshire Militia
during the French and Indian War
for service with the British Army
in North America
. It was first formed in 1754 with the start of hostilities with France
.
was given command, the regiment sent a company under Robert Rogers
to build Fort Wentworth
on the upper reaches of the Connecticut River
before joining Sir William Johnson's army at Fort Edward
in New York
. During the Battle of Lake George
, Col. Blanchard was in command at Fort Edward when the battle started. When he heard the battle commence and saw the smoke of burning ox-carts he sent a company under Nathaniel Folsom
to reinforce Sir William Johnson's army 14 miles away. Capt. Folsom's company was able to capture the French baggage train and the French commanding officer Jean Erdman, Baron Dieskau
as the French and Indian forces tried to disengage from Sir William Johnson's main force. After the battle a 2nd battalion
was raised under the command of Col. Peter Gilman and sent to reinforce the army at Lake George
. Both battalions left Fort Edward in December to return home to New Hampshire
except for Robert Rogers' ranger company
that stayed behind as part of the winter garrison.
in command. The 1st battalion was sent to Nova Scotia
and the 2nd to the newly built Fort William Henry
.
and the 2nd battalion under the command of Lt. Col John Goffe
to Fort William Henery. Of the 200 men from the New Hampshire Provincial Regiment at Fort William Henry 80 were killed in the siege and massacre
that followed. With the 1st battalion in Nova Scotia and the 2nd battalion regrouping at Fort Edward a new 3rd battalion of Infantry with two attached companies of Dragoons was quickly raised under the command of Maj. Thomas Tash and sent to Fort at Number 4
to protect the western frontier of the state.
would join General Jeffrey Amherst
in the Capture of Fortress Louisbourg and the 2nd under Lt Col. Goffe was sent to join Gen. James Abercrombie
in the defeat at the Battle of Carillon
. The regiment and the attached rangers stayed on the flanks during the main assault and covered the retreat of the British Army
preventing a complete disaster.
to Quebec City
and the Battle of the Plains of Abraham
serving in a support role followed by the Battle of Sainte-Foy
. While the 2nd battalion was with Gen. Amherst at the capture of Fort Ticonderoga
and Fort St. Frédéric
driving the French from the Lake Champlain
valley. In 1760 with the continuation of the 1759 Lake Champlain campaign, Col. Goffe commanded the New Hampshire troops who built the Crown Point Military Road from the Fort at Number 4 to the new English
fort at Crown Point
in forty days during the spring and at the Siege of Montreal and the fall of New France
later that year.
In 1759 1/3 of all abled bodies males of military age in New Hampshire were serving in the British military.
that captured
Havana, Cuba from the Spanish
on August 10, 1762.
Other notable members of the regiment were John Stark
, William Stark
, James Reed
, Timothy Bedel
, Isaac Wyman
, Enoch Hale
, Hercules Mooney
and Abraham Drake
. All of these men would go on to serve as officers during the American Revolutionary War
.
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
made up of units of the New Hampshire Militia
New Hampshire Militia
The New Hampshire Militia was first organized in March 1680, by New Hampshire Colonial President John Cutt. The King of England authorized the Provincial President to give commissions to persons who shall be best qualified for regulating and discipline of the militia. President Cutt placed Major...
during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
for service with the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. It was first formed in 1754 with the start of hostilities with France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
1755
In 1755 Col. Joseph BlanchardJoseph Blanchard
Joseph Blanchard was born in Dunstable, New Hampshire on February 11, 1704 to Capt. Joseph Blanchard and his wife Abiah Hassell. In 1724 he joined the New Hampshire Militia as a lieutenant and served in Capt. Eleazer Tyng's Company. On September 26, 1728 he married Rebecca Hubbard of Groton,...
was given command, the regiment sent a company under Robert Rogers
Robert Rogers (soldier)
Robert Rogers was an American colonial frontiersman. Rogers served in the British army during both the French and Indian War and the American Revolution...
to build Fort Wentworth
Fort Wentworth
Fort Wentworth was built by order of Benning Wentworth in 1755. The fort was built at the junction of the Upper Ammonoosuc River and Connecticut River, in Northumberland, New Hampshire, by soldiers of Colonel Joseph Blanchard's New Hampshire Provincial Regiment including Robert Rogers. In 1759,...
on the upper reaches of the Connecticut River
Connecticut River
The Connecticut River is the largest and longest river in New England, and also an American Heritage River. It flows roughly south, starting from the Fourth Connecticut Lake in New Hampshire. After flowing through the remaining Connecticut Lakes and Lake Francis, it defines the border between the...
before joining Sir William Johnson's army at Fort Edward
Fort Edward
Fort Edward could refer to:* A historic site located in Windsor, Nova Scotia* A temporary fort in South Africa, ca. 1901. It was established in 1901 by British forces during the Boer War...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. During the Battle of Lake George
Battle of Lake George
The Battle of Lake George was fought on 8 September 1755, in the north of the Province of New York. The battle was part of a campaign by the British to expel the French from North America in the French and Indian War....
, Col. Blanchard was in command at Fort Edward when the battle started. When he heard the battle commence and saw the smoke of burning ox-carts he sent a company under Nathaniel Folsom
Nathaniel Folsom
Nathaniel Folsom was an American merchant and statesman.He was a delegate for New Hampshire in the Continental Congress in 1774 and 1777 to 1780, as well as the Major General of the New Hampshire Militia.-Private life:Folsom was born into a large family in Exeter, New Hampshire...
to reinforce Sir William Johnson's army 14 miles away. Capt. Folsom's company was able to capture the French baggage train and the French commanding officer Jean Erdman, Baron Dieskau
Jean Erdman, Baron Dieskau
Jean Erdman, Baron Dieskau or Jean-Armand Dieskau, Baron de Dieskau or Ludwig August von Dieskau was a German-born soldier remembered mostly as a French general and commander in America for a part of the French and Indian War.-Biography:He was aide-de-camp of Marshal Maurice de Saxe, and visited St...
as the French and Indian forces tried to disengage from Sir William Johnson's main force. After the battle a 2nd battalion
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...
was raised under the command of Col. Peter Gilman and sent to reinforce the army at Lake George
Lake George (New York)
Lake George, nicknamed the Queen of American Lakes, is a long, narrow oligotrophic lake draining northwards into Lake Champlain and the St. Lawrence River Drainage basin located at the southeast base of the Adirondack Mountains in northern New York, U.S.A.. It lies within the upper region of the...
. Both battalions left Fort Edward in December to return home to New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
except for Robert Rogers' ranger company
Rogers' Rangers
Rogers' Rangers was an independent company of colonial militia, attached to the British Army during the Seven Years War . The unit was informally trained by Major Robert Rogers as a rapidly deployable light infantry force tasked with reconnaissance and conducting special operations against distant...
that stayed behind as part of the winter garrison.
1756
In the spring of 1756 two more battalions were raised with Col. Nathaniel MeserveNathaniel Meserve
Nathaniel Meserve was born to Clement Maserve and his wife Elizabeth Jones.On December 16, 1725, aged 21, he married Jane Libby and together they had ten children...
in command. The 1st battalion was sent to Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
and the 2nd to the newly built Fort William Henry
Fort William Henry
Fort William Henry was a British fort at the southern end of Lake George in the province of New York. It is best known as the site of notorious atrocities committed by Indians against the surrendered British and provincial troops following a successful French siege in 1757, an event which is the...
.
1757
For the 1757 campaign two more battalions were raised, the 1st would again go to HalifaxCity of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
and the 2nd battalion under the command of Lt. Col John Goffe
John Goffe
John Goffe was a Colonial American soldier...
to Fort William Henery. Of the 200 men from the New Hampshire Provincial Regiment at Fort William Henry 80 were killed in the siege and massacre
Battle of Fort William Henry
The Siege of Fort William Henry was conducted in August 1757 by French General Louis-Joseph de Montcalm against the British-held Fort William Henry...
that followed. With the 1st battalion in Nova Scotia and the 2nd battalion regrouping at Fort Edward a new 3rd battalion of Infantry with two attached companies of Dragoons was quickly raised under the command of Maj. Thomas Tash and sent to Fort at Number 4
Fort at Number 4
The Fort at Number 4 was the northernmost British settlement along the Connecticut River in New Hampshire until after the French and Indian War. Now known as Charlestown, it was more than from the nearest other British settlement at Fort Dummer. Construction began in 1740 by brothers Stephen,...
to protect the western frontier of the state.
1758
For the 1758 campaign again two battalion were raised the 1st under Col. John HartJohn Hart (soldier)
John Hart was a militia officer during King George's War and the French and Indian War from the Province of New Hampshire....
would join General Jeffrey Amherst
Jeffrey Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst
Field Marshal Jeffery Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst KCB served as an officer in the British Army and as Commander-in-Chief of the Forces.Amherst is best known as one of the victors of the French and Indian War, when he conquered Louisbourg, Quebec City and...
in the Capture of Fortress Louisbourg and the 2nd under Lt Col. Goffe was sent to join Gen. James Abercrombie
James Abercrombie (general)
General James Abercrombie or Abercromby was a British Army general and commander-in-chief of forces in North America during the French and Indian War, best known for the disastrous British losses in the 1758 Battle of Carillon.-Early life:Abercrombie was born in Glassaugh, Banffshire, Scotland to...
in the defeat at the Battle of Carillon
Battle of Carillon
The Battle of Carillon, also known as the 1758 Battle of Ticonderoga, was fought on July 8, 1758, during the French and Indian War...
. The regiment and the attached rangers stayed on the flanks during the main assault and covered the retreat of the British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
preventing a complete disaster.
1759 & 1760
In 1759 the 1st Battalion went with Gen. James WolfeJames Wolfe
Major General James P. Wolfe was a British Army officer, known for his training reforms but remembered chiefly for his victory over the French in Canada...
to Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
and the Battle of the Plains of Abraham
Battle of the Plains of Abraham
The Battle of the Plains of Abraham, also known as the Battle of Quebec, was a pivotal battle in the Seven Years' War...
serving in a support role followed by the Battle of Sainte-Foy
Battle of Sainte-Foy
The Battle of Sainte-Foy, sometimes called the Battle of Quebec, was fought on April 28, 1760 near the British-held town of Quebec in the French province of Canada during the Seven Years' War . It was a victory for the French under the Chevalier de Lévis over the British army under General Murray...
. While the 2nd battalion was with Gen. Amherst at the capture of Fort Ticonderoga
Battle of Ticonderoga (1759)
The 1759 Battle of Ticonderoga was a minor confrontation at Fort Carillon on July 26 and 27, 1759, during the French and Indian War...
and Fort St. Frédéric
Fort St. Frédéric
Fort St. Frédéric was a French fort built on Lake Champlain at Crown Point to secure the region against British colonization and to allow the French to control the use of Lake Champlain....
driving the French from the Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain
Lake Champlain is a natural, freshwater lake in North America, located mainly within the borders of the United States but partially situated across the Canada—United States border in the Canadian province of Quebec.The New York portion of the Champlain Valley includes the eastern portions of...
valley. In 1760 with the continuation of the 1759 Lake Champlain campaign, Col. Goffe commanded the New Hampshire troops who built the Crown Point Military Road from the Fort at Number 4 to the new English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
fort at Crown Point
Crown Point
Crown Point is the name of several towns or cities, and geographic features:United States*Crown Point, Alaska*Crown Point, Indiana - Lake County*Crown Point, New York**Fort Crown Point, built in 1759 on Lake Champlain by the British...
in forty days during the spring and at the Siege of Montreal and the fall of New France
New France
New France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period beginning with the exploration of the Saint Lawrence River by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Spain and Great Britain in 1763...
later that year.
In 1759 1/3 of all abled bodies males of military age in New Hampshire were serving in the British military.
1762
Volunteers from the regiment were with the British ArmyBritish Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
that captured
British expedition against Cuba
The Battle of Havana was a military action from March to August 1762, as part of the Seven Years' War. British forces besieged and captured the city of Havana, which at the time was an important Spanish naval base in the Caribbean, and dealt a serious blow to the Spanish navy...
Havana, Cuba from the Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
on August 10, 1762.
Other notable members of the regiment were John Stark
John Stark
John Stark was a New Hampshire native who served as a major general in the Continental Army during the American Revolution. He became widely known as the "Hero of Bennington" for his exemplary service at the Battle of Bennington in 1777.-Early life:John Stark was born in Londonderry, New...
, William Stark
William Stark
William Stark was the older brother of Gen. John Stark, the hero of the Battle of Bennington. William Stark was born on April 1, 1724 at Londonderry, New Hampshire...
, James Reed
James Reed (soldier)
James Reed was a military officer in the French and Indian War and the American Revolution, rising to the rank of brigadier general in the latter conflict....
, Timothy Bedel
Timothy Bedel
Timothy Bedel was a soldier and local leader prominent in the early history of New Hampshire and Vermont.Bedel was born in Amesbury, Massachusetts...
, Isaac Wyman
Isaac Wyman
Isaac Wyman was born January 18, 1724 in Woburn, Massachusetts to Joshua Wyman and his wife Mary Pollard. In 1747 he married Sarah Wells of Franklin, Massachusetts...
, Enoch Hale
Enoch Hale
Enoch Hale was born in Rowley, Massachusetts on November 28, 1733. He and his brother Nathan Hale would move to Rindge, New Hampshire as young men. During the French and Indian War Enoch Hale served in the New Hampshire Provincial Regiment in 1755 and 1757-1758...
, Hercules Mooney
Hercules Mooney
Hercules Mooney was an Irish-born veteran of the French and Indian and American Revolutionary wars.Born to a Protestant family, in 1733 he emigrated to the United States and settled in Dover, New Hampshire. In 1738 he married Elizabeth Evans, also of Dover...
and Abraham Drake
Abraham Drake
Abraham Drake was an officer in the New Hampshire militia that served with the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.-Biography:...
. All of these men would go on to serve as officers during the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
.
Sources
- Montcalm and Wolfe: The French and Indian War by Francis ParkmanFrancis ParkmanFrancis Parkman was an American historian, best known as author of The Oregon Trail: Sketches of Prairie and Rocky-Mountain Life and his monumental seven-volume France and England in North America. These works are still valued as history and especially as literature, although the biases of his...
, DeCapo Press NewYork, New York 1995 - A People's Army:Massachusetts Soldiers and Society in the Seven Years War by Fred Anderson, Univ. of North Carolina Press Chaplin Hill NC 1984
- Redcoats, Yankees and Allies: A History of the Uniforms, Clothing and Gear of the British Army in the Lake George-Lake Champlain Corridor 1755-1760 by Brenton C. Kemmer, Heritage Books Inc. Bowie, MD 1998
- Colonel John Goffe:18th Century New Hampshire by William Howard Brown, Lew A. Cummings Co. Manchester, NH 1950
- Louisbourg: From its Founding to its Fall by J.S. McLennan, Macmillian and Co. LTD London, UK 1918
- Colonial American Troops 1610-1774 (2) by Rene Chartrand, Osprey Pub. Oxford, UK 2002
- A List of The Revolutionary Soldiers of Dublin, N.H. by Samuel Carroll Derby Press of Spahr & Glenn, Columbus, Ohio 1901