John Graves Simcoe, 1752-1806 Read online

  Simcoe was able to purchase a “Canvas House” in London that had once belonged to his father’s one-time subordinate, the navigator and explorer Captain James Cook. Whether Grenville was of any help is not known. In fact, the Simcoes acquired two canvas houses — glorified tents but with wooden floors and frames, and walls that were papered. Elizabeth, too, was busy with plans to go to Upper Canada, deciding what they would take with them for her role as the mistress of government house, even though it might be of canvas. She would need ball gowns, and her Nankin china, a few servants, linens and some furniture. The Marquis of Buckingham had presented them with a tapestry from Stowe, his country house in Buckinghamshire. It could be used as a wall hanging to add warmth during the severe Canadian winters. Elizabeth, Marchioness of Buckingham sent her friend Mrs. Simcoe a spinning wheel that had been a gift for her from Queen Charlotte.8

  The most serious matter concerned the children. The Colonel believed that they should leave all but Sophia, the youngest daughter, at home with a governess, supervised by their Great Aunt Margaret Graves. Elizabeth was appalled at the idea of abandoning Eliza, Charlotte, Harriet and Caroline. By early 1791 she knew she was expecting their sixth child, who would certainly accompany them, and surely they could find a way to take all their daughters. Simcoe was adamant; he had seen enough of the North American wilderness to know that a comfortable home for so large a family would be impossible to find. Besides, they would meet very few people of education, and certainly not anyone who could be employed as a tutor. The older girls must stay home at Wolford Lodge to receive the education that would make them amiable companions in later life. Elizabeth elected to remain behind, but Simcoe felt he could not possibly manage without her, and for more than moral support. She could take many vital tasks out of his hands, and she had the ability to sketch with as much skill as any officer of the Royal Engineers.

  The difference between them as parents is striking. Simcoe, the affectionate, demonstrative father, would leave four vulnerable children for many years with hardly a qualm. Patriot and imperialist, nothing must interfere with his duty to King and Empire. Elizabeth, less at ease with the girls, was torn by the prospect of leaving them, and fearful she might never see some of them again. They had been fortunate thus far not to have lost a child; so many ailments threatened children especially in their most tender years.

  Mary Anne Burges rose to the occasion. She promised to see the girls frequently, to watch over their studies, to sketch with them — and to be entirely frank with their mother about their welfare. Elizabeth pleaded to be told the bad, as well as the good, and this Mary Anne agreed to do, in packets of letters that could go in her brother James’s government “bag” more securely and at less cost than in the regular mail.9 There remained the choice of a suitable person to oversee the nursery staff at Wolford Lodge, and to take responsibility for the girls. When Aunt Margaret suggested Mrs. Mary Ann Hunt, Elizabeth knew she was right. Miss Mary Hunt agreed to live in Wolford Lodge, too, as governess and tutor, and Elizabeth’s mind was even more relieved. Both the Hunts knew Aunt Margaret so well that they would not be disconcerted by mood swings or unreasonable demands. Elizabeth had told Mrs. Hunt that they would be setting out in the spring of 1791, but they changed their plans when they found that the next little Simcoe would arrive in June. They would not be leaving until the autumn.

  In March 1791, Simcoe’s illusions over Vermont were shattered. On the 4th, that republic became the fourteenth member of the United States of America. Despite all the advantages of rejoining the British Empire, those scoundrel leaders had probably been holding out hopes to the British and American governments to avoid being coerced by either side. The Vermont leaders were not gentlemen after all. Simcoe would show the way, set the example; he would govern Upper Canada guided by the finest principles of Great Britain.

  He made frequent trips to London, working on final details. He was still waiting for a reply to his request for a new regiment of Queen’s Rangers. He was also calling for reinforcements of regular troops for the forts along the Canadian border. Technically, these forts were on United States soil, but the government felt justified in retaining them. One excuse was protection of Britain’s native allies, and of Loyalists still resident near the forts. Stronger garrisons would dissuade the former colonists from attacking them. Policy on the aboriginal allies was foggy; there was a hope that an Indian state would be a buffer zone between the American states and British North America. On one hand, war-weary Britain did not want to provoke a war with the United States; on the other hand, allowing land-hungry Americans to drive the natives from their tribal lands, as a part of national expansion, was equally unpalatable. Whatever the future, Simcoe was convinced that a strong army was absolutely necessary to ensure the safety of Upper Canada.

  He attended the House of Commons during the spring. A new friend and fellow member was a Devon neighbour, John Pollexfen Bastard (the accent on the second syllable). The Bastard country seat was Kitley. (In Upper Canada, Simcoe would name two rural townships: one after John P. and the other after his Devon home.)

  On 28 March, Simcoe addressed the House of Commons on the subject of army recruiting. His most relevant, if limited, contribution was his words on the Canada, or Constitutional Act of 1791. According to the Parliament Register:

  [on] 12 May Colonel Simcoe read an extract from an American paper to prove that the Congress thought a very small number sufficient for the members forming the House of Assembly for the Western Province, and that two or four would be enough to represent Montreal and Quebec.

  The newspaper seemed to imply that in the event of annexation of Canada, this would be the distribution of representatives. On 16 May:

  [the] Colonel spoke in favour of the Bill and having pronounced a Panegyric on the British Constitution, wished it to be adopted in the present instance as far as circumstances would permit.10

  The Canada Act divided the old Province of Canada into Lower — the French seigneuries along the lower St. Lawrence, and Upper — the land along the upper St. Lawrence and the Great Lakes. Each part would have a legislative assembly. The established church in Lower Canada would be Roman Catholic, and in Upper Canada, or so Simcoe fervently hoped, Church of England. The lieutenant governor of Lower Canada would be Major General Alured Clarke, like Simcoe a veteran of the American War of Independence. Clarke’s Devonian connection was strong; he was related to Dr. Alured Clarke, a Dean of Exeter. Superior to both lieutenant governors was Lord Dorchester, a situation Simcoe mistrusted, not so much because he was aware of Dorchester’s prejudice against him, but out of a wish to be in full control of his territory. Dorchester, as Captain General and Governor in Chief of Upper and Lower Canada, would be in command of the armed forces in both provinces, and in a position to interfere with Simcoe’s administration.

  On 6 June 1791, the Simcoes’ sixth child was born, and on 17 July he was baptized Francis Gwillim at St. Nicholas, Dunkeswell.’11 Gwillim came from his mother, but the choice of Francis allows speculation. Did Simcoe honour his old colleague, Francis Lord Rawdon, rather than his own father, John, or Elizabeth’s father, Thomas? Elizabeth was no doubt relieved that she had given the Colonel his male heir. Simcoe himself may have been overjoyed, yet his great love of his daughters shines through his own letters, and in those the girls wrote throughout their lives. Clearly he admired and loved the boy, but equally well he seemed to have adored his girls. As with his sisters, Elizabeth hired a wet nurse to feed Francis. Women of wealth did not suckle their own babies, although most recognised that mother’s milk was the best food for a newborn.

  When Simcoe received a letter from the War Office, dated 29 August 1791, he felt that his wings had been clipped. Henry Dundas informed him that no regular troops would be available to reinforce the border forts. He had permission to raise a corps of two companies, each of 200 men. On 20 December Sir George Yonge wrote him further details. Each company would have a captain, captain-lieutenant, two lieutenants,
two ensigns, six sergeants, six corporals and a drummer, as well as staff officers. Simcoe would serve as colonel commandant without pay.

  Writing to Miss Elliott about the plans for Canada, Elizabeth admitted that Simcoe was not without concern for the horse, Salem. The Colonel had made arrangements for a Mrs. Bowman, of Exeter, to look after the now elderly “old servant.”12 He would need a horse in Upper Canada, but he could not put Salem through a second Atlantic crossing.

  The new Queen’s Rangers would not be primarily a fighting force. Even Simcoe expected them to serve as artificers, on construction of houses and barracks, and to help build roads. They were expected to remain in the province after their enlistments were ended, as capable settlers and experienced pioneers. The truncated Queen’s Rangers would, however, have a “Band of Music.” The drummers, and fifers as well, were signalers and part of each infantry battalion. The band of music consisted of brass and woodwind instruments. The musicians were paid by the officers, chiefly the Colonel, and they played during marches and at concerts. The Marquis of Buckingham donated the instruments for the Queen’s Rangers band.13

  By September the Simcoes’ plans were nearly complete. The reliable John Scadding would be in charge of the estates during their absence. On the 15th Colonel and Mrs. Simcoe, with Sophia and Francis and their nurses, set out by carriage for Weymouth, where they would board the 28-gun frigate Triton. Behind followed the baggage in wagons, accompanied by the few servants who would travel with them. During the farewells everyone was smiling. As soon as the departing loved ones were out of sight, Miss Burges and Miss Hunt took the four girls for a walk. When Caroline complained of weariness one of the women carried her while the other three capered about. The axe fell when they returned home and faced a tea table no longer presided over by their parents but by Mrs. Graves. That selfish old lady, rather than comfort her great nieces, launched forth with a tirade about being left with so much responsibility. Beside Miss Burges, Eliza began to weep softly. When Aunt Margaret noticed she demanded to know what ailed her.

  “I can’t help crying when you are so cross with my dear Mama and Papa,” Eliza managed through her tears. “Oh, if only they would turn back and stay with us.”

  The sensitive Eliza mourned for months. Charlotte and Harriet, more boisterous, fared better, while three-year-old Caroline was still young enough to be comforted by the Hunts, especially Mary. Those who needed their parents most had been left behind, while the two who could have been cared for by any kind person were on their way to Canada.

  After tea the day the Simcoes left for Weymouth, Mary Anne Burges walked home to Tracey and in the early evening she began to write the first of nearly 900 pages she would send to Elizabeth Simcoe over the next five years. She described Mrs. Graves’s pique and Eliza’s tears. Farther on in the letter she wrote that Eliza’s sobs would have a “happy effect,” for Mrs. Graves would be more careful in future over what she said in front of the children.14

  PART IV

  ACHIEVEMENT AND FRUSTRATION

  In recounting John Graves Simcoe’s years in Canada, the diary of his wife claims a wider attention than the governor’s voluminous correspondence. Whereas an overview of his administration can be assembled quickly from his many letters and reports, revelations on the day-to-day occurrences are found in the writings of Mrs. Simcoe. She exposes as much of her husband’s feelings as she does of her own. The events in their lives were closely interwound.

  In February 1792, while the Simcoes were waiting out the winter in Quebec City, the soldiers of Britain and Hyderabad defeated the Tippoo, who parted with half of Mysore. Slowly, Britain was gaining a larger hold on the Indian sub-continent, through conquest and alliance.

  At the time, Austria and Prussia were allied against France, where Jacobins had wrested power from the less-zealous Girondins. In 1793, the French guillotined Louis XVI, established committees of public safety, and the Reign of Terror commenced. Russia and Prussia partitioned Poland. In September, France launched a new offensive against the Netherlands, during which an army led by the Duke of York was defeated at Hondschoote and in the Rhineland. French troops reached Rome. In November the United States ordered an embargo on British shipping. That December, France invaded Holland, and abolished slavery in all the French colonies.

  Russia and Austria partitioned Poland in 1795. The Dutch surrendered Ceylon to Britain. Spain signed a treaty with France, and ceded to that country the Spanish part of San Domingo. The French suppressed a revolt in Brittany in 1796. That July, Britain captured Elba. Meanwhile, the Dutch ruler, Prince William V of Orange, had come to England. The British seized the Cape of Good Hope in September, as a place of refuge for William. In October, Spain declared war on Britain while the Simcoes were en route home from Upper Canada.

  TWELVE

  WINTER AT QUEBEC

  Mary Anne Burges began her letters to Mrs. Simcoe immediately after her friends had left home on 15 September for Weymouth. Just days later, Elizabeth began writing a diary or journal for the residents of Wolford Lodge and more personal letters to Miss Burges, Mrs. Hunt and other close friends and relatives. Her letters to Mary Anne interconnect with her friend’s. Most of Elizabeth’s letters from Canada have vanished. However, much can be deduced from Mary Anne’s replies and comments. Information on the loved ones back home comes from Mary Anne’s letters. Elizabeth’s are less personal, and in her diary she gives almost no detail about the children who were with them. Well aware of how much the four little girls at Wolford Lodge were missing them, Elizabeth felt constrained. In contrast, Mary Anne wrote at length about Eliza, Charlotte, Harriet and Caroline, asking for reports on Francis and giving advice on how to manage a defiant Sophia.

  Two versions of Mrs. Simcoe’s diary have been published, the first by the Toronto newspaperman John Ross Robertson in 1911, the second by Mary Quayle Innis in 1965. More revealing are the many watercolour sketches Elizabeth made during her years in the province. Her representations of trees in the valley of the Don River evoke foliage of today, even though modern motorways have so altered the appearance of the land along the river.

  John Graves Simcoe left extensive correspondence about Upper Canada. Five thick volumes were edited by Brigadier Ernest A. Cruikshank, a man who compiled considerable information on the history of Ontario from manuscript sources. Simcoe’s writing is serious, detailed and repetitious. Elizabeth revealed the lighter side of life in the Canadas. Simcoe had a fine sense of humour, but he found little to laugh at during the Canada years. If he viewed Upper Canada as the hub of a new British Empire, to which the United States could be attached, the home government and Lord Dorchester did not. A Loyalist province was a fine objective, but expenses were to be kept to a minimum, as in the case of the reduced size of the Queen’s Rangers.

  The regiment, like its predecessor, would have green jackets.1 For himself, Simcoe was bringing two dress regimental coats. One was green, which he would wear when he was appearing as the Colonel Commandant of the Queen’s Rangers. The other was red, correct for a Colonel in the British Army. This he would wear at functions which he attended as the lieutenant governor.2

  Simcoe had already selected some of his officers. The commissions were dated 1 September 1791, although he did not then know for certain which of them would accept a place in the new regiment. His captains would be David Shank, who had settled in England, and Samuel Smith, then in New Brunswick. His choices for “Captain Lieutenant and Captain” were Aeneas Shaw, in New Brunswick, and George Spencer, who had drawn maps for his former commander. John McGill, also in New Brunswick, would be the adjutant, with the humble rank of ensign. Simcoe probably regretted not having enough captaincies to allow him a higher rank.3 Two of his former cornets would be coming to Upper Canada. William Jarvis would be the Provincial Secretary. He had moved to England, and married Hannah, a daughter of the Reverend Samuel Peters, who had left Connecticut for England after threats from his rebel neighbours. Cornet Thomas Merritt wanted to leave New
Brunswick, as did Ensign Christopher Robinson.4 Coming from Ireland was Captain Edward Littlehales, heir to a baronetcy, as Simcoe’s brigade major and military secretary.5

  For Deputy Quartermaster General, Simcoe chose Captain Charles Stephenson, 5th Regiment. He appointed the Reverend Edward Drewe, son of Francis Drewe of The Grange and Broadhembury, chaplain to the garrison of Upper Canada, at a stipend of £100 per annum.6 Simcoe suspected that Drewe, the first cousin of his old comrade, cashiered Major Edward Drewe, might elect to remain in England, merely using the position as a sinecure. Generally, Simcoe disapproved of handing out appointments to men who would not take them up actively, but his fondness for the clergyman and his family overcame any scruples. He was especially pleased with commissions to men in New Brunswick. After pioneering there, they would give leadership to the officers from Britain, and to the rank and file, expected in the spring, who would be unfamiliar with life in an unsettled land. Most were recruited in the West Country, but the regimental depot was at Chatham in Kent.

  Upper Canada was a forested wilderness, best penetrated by the rivers, and with a barebones administration. When Lord Dorchester arrived as governor in chief in 1786, Canada was divided into two administrative districts — Quebec and Montreal. The Loyalist townships were part of the latter. In preparation for separation, Dorchester had divided Upper Canada into four such districts, each with a court and a board to grant tracts of land to Loyalists and other settlers. He named the most easterly district Luneburg. Mecklenburg lay west of the Cataraqui River. Nassau was the Niagara peninsula, while Hesse extended beyond Detroit. Dorchester chose German names to please King George III. Within each district lay settlements of Loyalists — disbanded soldiers and their families — and a few civilians. While the population of Lower Canada was about 150,000, that of Upper Canada was estimated at approaching 10,000.