Battle of the Cedars

Battle of the Cedars
Part of the American Revolutionary War
1764 map showing western part of the island of Montreal (Isle de Mont Real), with the growing town centred on Fort Ville Marie in the upper right and the Cedars (overlooking Rapide du coteau des Cedres) in the map's lower left corner.
Date May 18–27, 1776 Location Les Cèdres, Quebec, southwest of Montreal 45°18′36″N 74°02′07″W / 45.3099°N 74.0353°W / 45.3099; -74.0353 Result British-Haudenosaunee victory
Belligerents
Great Britain Quebec Haudenosaunee	United Colonies Canadian sympathizers
Commanders and leaders
George Forster	Isaac Butterfield (POW) Henry Sherburne (POW) Benedict Arnold
Strength
40 regulars 11 militia 204 Haudenosaunee warriors[1]	Cedars: 400 regulars and militia[2] Quinze-Chênes: 100 regulars and militia[2]
Casualties and losses
Cedars: none[3] Quinze-Chênes: 1 killed, 4–5 wounded[4]	Cedars: all captured[2][3] Quinze-Chênes: 5–6 casualties, rest captured[5]
National Historic Site of Canada
Official name	Battle of the Cedars National Historic Site of Canada
Designated	1928

The Battle of the Cedars (French: Bataille des Cèdres) was a series of military confrontations in the early stages of the American Revolutionary War that occurred during the Continental Army's invasion of Quebec, which began in September 1775. These skirmishes, which involved limited combat, occurred in May 1776 at and around the Cedars, 45 km (28 mi) west of Montreal, Quebec. Continental Army units were opposed by a small British Army detachment leading a larger force of Haudenosaunee warriors and Canadian Militia.

Brigadier General Benedict Arnold, commanding the American garrison at Montreal, had placed a detachment of his troops at the Cedars in April 1776, after hearing of rumors of British and Indian military preparations to the west of Montreal. The detachment surrendered on May 19 after a confrontation with a combined British-Haudenosaunee force led by Captain George Forster. American reinforcements on their way to the Cedars were also captured after a brief skirmish on May 20. All of the prisoners were eventually released after negotiations between Forster and Arnold, who brought a sizable force into the area. The terms of the agreement required the Americans to release an equal number of British prisoners, but the deal was repudiated by the Second Continental Congress and no British prisoners were freed.

Colonel Timothy Bedel and Lieutenant Isaac Butterfield, commanders of the American force at the Cedars, were court-martialed and cashiered from the Continental Army for their roles in the affair. After distinguishing himself as a volunteer, Bedel was given a new commission in 1777. News of the engagement included greatly inflated reports of casualties and often included graphic but false accounts of atrocities committed by the Haudenosaunee, who made up the majority of the Forster's force.