Royal Scots of Canada Highlanders - Electric Scotland

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The Montreal Militia of the Rebellion and after.
During the period immediately preceding the outbreak
of the rebellion in 1837 the militia of Lower Canada
had little
encouragement, and the few volunteer corps
less. If volunteer corps were maintained in the cities
of Montreal and Quebec at all, it was due rather to the
military spirit of the officers
apprehension that the perpetual political
eventually result in rebellion,
received from the authorities.
and men and to the popular
agitation would
than to any encouragement
According to the militia lists in the Quebec Almanach
the four volunteer companies of the First Montreal
Militia Battalion of 1813 had dwindled down in 1827 to one
"Volunteer Rifle Company" of which the officers were
Captain Norman Bethime, and Lieutenants J. C.
Grant, James Scott and John Smith. The names of
these officers appeared on the strength of the 1st Battalion
Sedentary Militia as well as in connection with the
Volunteer Rifle Company. The Montreal Troop of Cavalry
maintained its organization, and was commanded by
Major George Gregory.
Shortly after this date the ist Battalion ceased to
be a distinctively English battalion, and the sedentary
militia of Montreal was rearranged by districts.
The Reverand J. Douglas Borthwich in his interesting
"History of the Montreal Prison" published in 1886,
gives some facts about the militia of the "City and
County of Montreal," in 1831. The Montreal district
militia formed one division, consisting of eight battalions
of infantry, two troops of volunteer cavalry, two companies
of artillery and two companies of rifles. The population
of the city was then considerably under 40,000,
and the population of the surrounding parishes of course
small in proportion. So in proportion to population the
strength of the local militia force was very considerable,
but as a matter of fact the various units existed rather
in imagination than in tact. The volunteer militia,
which was given a distinct status from the ordinary sedentary
militia, and was commanded by Lieut, -Colonel
the Hon. John Forsyth; Major George Gregory, commanding
the cavalry, Major Peter McGill the artillery
and Jlajor John S. McCord, the rifles.
The ordinary .sedentary militia battalions were assigned
carefully defined territorial limits, and were as
follows:
1st Battalion, Montreal Militia, Colonel Commandant,
Louis Guy, Lieut.-Col. the Hon. Charles Grant,
Majors Benjamin Beaubien and Michael O'SuUivan;
limits, St. Mary's suburbs, St, Mary's and St. Martin
divisions.
Second Battalion, Lieut.-Colonel the Hon. Louis
Gugy, Majors Samuel Gerrard and Janvier, D. Lacroix;
limits the present centre and east wards and the then
suburbs of the district now cut by St.
Denis street.
Third Battalion, Lieut.-Col. J. Bouthillier, Majors
Zierre De Rocheblave and L. J. Papineau, (i) limits, the
present West Ward.
Fourth Battalion, Lieut. .-Col. the Hon. Toussaint
Pothier, Majors Fred. Aug. Quesnel and Joseph Shuter;
limits, the present St. Louis and St. Jean Baptiste
wards and rural district beyond.
Fifth Battalion, Lieut.-Col. R. Hervieux, Majors F.
A. Larocque and Austin Cuvillier; limits the present St.
Lawrence, St. George and St. Andrew's wards, and rural
districts
beyond.
6th Battalion, Lieut.-Col John Jones, Majors John
Molson and L. M. Viger; limits, the present St. Anns,
St. Joseph and St. Gabriel wards and Verdun.
7th Battalion, Lieut.-Col. J. M. Mondelet, Majors
Dominique Mondelet and Alexis Berthelot; limits, the
parishes of Lachine, Pointe Claire, Ste. Anne and Ste.
Genevieve.
8th Battalion, Lieut.-Col. Jacques Viger, Majors
John Delisle and Hypolite St. George Dupre; limits the
parishes of Longue Pointe, Pointe aux Trembles, la Riviere
des Prairies, Sault au RecoUet and St. Laurent.
In 1835, the Montreal Constitutional Association,
alarmed at the development of the revolutionary sentiment,
resolved to organize district committees in each
quarter of the city in case union and force became necessary.
The organization raised spontaneously a body of
volunteer riflemen, the members asking for the recognition
of their corps, which it was proposed to call "The
British Rifle Legion," by the governor. That official,
however, withheld his sanction, and the corps was afterwards
dissolved at his request. As the political agita-
(i)—I.ouis J. Papineau, subsequently, the leader of the rebellion in Lower
Canada was the fou of Joseph Papineau who had shown himself most zealous
for the Royal cause during the whole period of the American revolution. A
Canadian officer, M I.amothe, brought into Canada during the winter of 1776
some important despatches from I.ord Howe, then commanding at New York,
meant for General Carleton, then beseiged in Quebec, but for safety addressed
to the .Seminarists of Montreal. Louis Papineau. then a young man, .iccompanied
Lamothe in carrying them to Quebec. Secreting the despatches in
hollow walking sticks, they took the road along the right bank of the St.
Lawrence, avoiding the continental soldiers and their Canadian sympathizers
and passing on from parsonage to parsonage they reached Levis in .safety. They
crossed the St. Lawrence on the ice completely enveloped in white sheets, the
better to obscure them.selves from the observation of the continental sentries,
and delivered the despatches to Carleton on March nth. The two men, as
volunteers, at once joined the company of Quebec militia commanded by
Captain Marcoux, and paticipated in the defence of Quebec until the siege
was raised.