Thomas Gage - Early Governorship

Early Governorship

After the French surrender, Amherst named Gage the military governor of Montreal, a task Gage found somewhat thankless, because it involved the minute details of municipal governance along with the administration of the military occupation. He was also forced to deal with civil litigation, and manage trade with the Indians in the Great Lakes region, where traders disputed territorial claims, and quarrelled with the Indians. Margaret came to stay with him in Montreal and that is where his first two children, Harry, the future 3rd Viscount Gage, and Maria Theresa, were born. In 1761, he was promoted to major general, and in 1762, again with the assistance of his brother, was placed in command of the 22nd Regiment, which assured a command even in peacetime.

By all accounts, Gage appeared to be a fair administrator, respecting people's lives and property, although he had a healthy distrust of the landowning seigneurs and of the Roman Catholic clergy, who he viewed as intriguers for the French. When peace was announced following the 1763 Treaty of Paris, Gage began lobbying for another posting, as he was "very much of this cursed Climate, and I must be bribed very high to stay here any longer". In October 1763 the good news arrived that he would act as commander-in-chief of North America while Amherst was on leave in England. He immediately left Montreal, and took over Amherst's command in New York on 17 November 1763. When he did so, he inherited the job of dealing with the Indian uprising known as Pontiac's Rebellion.