Richard Montgomery - Pontiac's War

Pontiac's War

Angered by the French surrender, and unhappy with British policies that affected them, an Ottawa chief named Pontiac organized 18 Native American tribes that attacked British military and civilian settlements beginning in April 1763. The tribes captured eight British forts and forced the evacuation of two more. General Amherst ordered the 17th to Albany in June 1763 to assist in combating the outbreak of hostilities.

En route to Albany, the ship carrying Montgomery up the Hudson River ran aground near Clermont Manor, seat of the politically powerful Livingston family. While the ship was refloated, the Livingstons played host to the officers who were aboard the vessel. Montgomery was at this time introduced to Robert Livingston's 20-year-old daughter Janet. While it has never transpired exactly what happened between them at this time, Janet noticed that the young Montgomery was not with the regiment (having been given leave to return to England early) when it returned to New York.

The 17th was first assigned to garrison duty at Fort Stanwix, where Montgomery remained until 1764. In 1764, Montgomery applied to Colonel Campbell and General Thomas Gage for leave to return to England, as his service in the Caribbean had taken a toll on his health. Gage granted the leave, directing Colonel Campbell to give it as soon as possible. Campbell, whose officer ranks had been depleted in the Caribbean campaign, would only grant the leave after the upcoming expedition.

The British in 1764 organized two expeditions to combat the Native uprising. Montgomery and the 17th were on one of these expeditions, commanded by John Bradstreet, that went to Fort Niagara in July, where they were stationed for one month, while Sir William Johnson organized and held a major conference with Natives from around the Great Lakes. The conference drew more than 2,000 Natives; Bradstreet's forces stayed there as a deterrent to rumored Native attacks. They then marched to Fort Detroit, which had been subject to a surprise attack earlier, arriving in August. For several weeks, Montgomery stayed at the fort, helping to improve its defenses, and also gaining an understanding of how to interact with the Natives. In September, Bradstreet left Fort Detroit for Sandusky, to meet with the Shawnee and the Delaware; while the 17th remained on garrison duty at Fort Detroit and Fort Michilimackinac, Montgomery, whose leave had been granted, accompanied him. On October 3, Montgomery and several other officers met with Thomas King, an Oneida chief. King had accompanied a detachment of Bradstreet's men on operations in Illinois; he reported that the Natives were quite hostile there, and had recommended against military action against them. Two days later, at a larger conference with Bradstreet and Iroquois leaders, Bradstreet explained to them that the British would not be attacking the Shawnee and Delaware. Bradstreet then released Montgomery, who traveled first to Johnson Hall and then New York, where he delivered dispatches from Bradstreet to Gage before departing for England.