A Neighbourly War

When most people think of the War of 1812, they think of the Niagara frontier, the British burning of the White House, the harrowing tale of Laura Secord, and the much-ballyhooed Battle of New Orleans. But there was more of British North America involved in the war than Upper and Lower Canada. With Great Britain locked in battle with Napoleon’s France, the United States pounced on the chance to declare war on Britain. In New Brunswick, the threat of invasion was a very real possibility. Fearing for their lives, families, and property, the people and their legislative assembly adopted every possible measure to make New Brunswick ready for war. However, an officially undeclared state of neutrality was established along the Maine border, and the threat faded. Supporting the British army in its efforts in Upper and Lower Canada and the navy in its operations along the Atlantic coast led to major growth in the province’s war economy.

As the war moved into its final year and Napoleon’s empire fell in Europe, Britain became much more aggressive in its North American campaign. Buoyed by this, the New Brunswick government decided to press its claims to the unresolved international border with Maine. The British military thus occupied the Penobscot River Valley, and northern Maine was declared part of New Brunswick. By the end of the war, and the signing of the Treaty of Ghent, the unresolved border remained unresolved.

The economic, political, geographical, and societal results of the War of 1812 continue to be felt in New Brunswick. The war strengthened the colony’s ties to Britain, built up its economy, and led to the growth of major cities, especially with the settlement of retiring soldiers. Shipbuilding and supplying the British troops had led to growing profits for farmers, fishermen, merchants, and labourers. Although it would be decades later before the boundary issue was officially settled, there were areas still in dispute. Unlike its Upper and Lower Canadian cousins, the war in New Brunswick may not have involved the burning and pillaging of towns and villages, but its effects were nonetheless important and far-reaching.

A Neighbourly War is volume 19 in the New Brunswick Military Heritage Series.

AUTHOR

Robert L. Dallison

Born in Montreal in 1935, Robert Leonard Dallison attended both the Royal Roads Military College and the Royal Military College of Canada and, following graduation in 1958, was commissioned into the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry. He received a BA (history) from RMC and a BA (history and international studies) from the University of British Columbia. He served for thirty-five years with the Canadian Army, obtaining the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and ending his career as chief of staff of the Combat Arms School at CFB Gagetown. After retiring, he maintained his life-long interest in history and heritage, including serving as the President of Fredericton Heritage Trust and as the New Brunswick representative on the Board of Governors for Heritage Canada. From 1992 to 2002, he was director of Kings Landing Historical Settlement. Retired again, he is currently living with his wife Sharon in Fredericton.

Reviews

On June 18, 1812, US President James Madison signed a declaration of war against Britain and launched an attack against the British colonies in North America in what he thought would be a quick and decisive land grab. Fearing invasion, the New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, along with the citizenry, prepared for war. When the invasion failed to materialize, neutrality ruled along the New Brunswick-Maine border and New Brunswick turned its attention elsewhere. It supported the naval battles along the coast between the Royal Navy and American privateers and the British campaigns in Upper and Lower Canada by sending reinforcements and supplies along the grand communications route. With Napoleon’s defeat in Europe, Britain refocused its military on North America. In addition to sending reinforcements to the campaigns in Upper and Lower Canada, the British Army invaded Maine, seized disputed lands along the Penobscot River Valley, and redrew the map so that, for a time, much of northern Maine would become part of New Brunswick. In this revealing account, Robert Dallison examines the repercussions of the War of 1812 in New Brunswick and Maine, how a once-friendly border turned hostile, how wartime growth turned villages into towns, and how the post-war settlement of British soldiers and Black Refugees changed the composition of the province’s population.
“Dallison’s book offers a wealth of useful and interesting information…. The author keeps the story fresh by never dwelling too long on any particular moment in the war…. A Neighbourly War is a brief and straightforward account of a unique period in the history of Atlantic Canada.”
– Mark Schram