After two years of delay made unfortunately necessary because of Covid-19, the Siege of Fort Erie was done again this August. It was a wonderful event, although it was blisteringly hot and horribly humid. The photo above was the rainbow over Buffalo, NY after a rainstorm... and not a drop hit us across the river in Ontario.
(All the photos are to be credited to Laughing Devil Photography, Larry Barnard, Ralph Golin, Mark Psulka, my wife Beth, and a few others whose names I could not find.)
Sad to say, I was not feeling well due to the heat for most of the weekend. I did take part in Saturday's parade and the turn-over of the fort to the American army once the garrison marched out. I had the honour of being adjutant for the US side, which was interesting.
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| Morning parade |
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| Musicians' call |
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The exchange of salutes
Following this the officer commanding takes over the parade and the adjutant
does a quick "fade" to the commander's right rear.
Officers carrying canteens/water bottles might not have been regulation,
but that weekend it was necessary! |
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| The column advances |
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| Prime and load! |
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A volunteer with the 2nd Regiment of York Militia
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The Crown line.
Numbers were down on both sides; a result of the pandemic I'm sure. |
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| The combined 21st & 17th (out of Erie, PA) give fire |
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| Fifes and Drums of the Crown Forces |
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The Glengarry Light Infantry Fencibles closest to the camera
- in green with black facings, musket armed. |
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The Incorporated Militia of Upper Canada (IMUC)
under their new captain. Huzzah! |
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| First Sergeant Mike deploys his "war face" |
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| Major Phil watches the 25th deploy |
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| The Crown cannon |
The afternoon battle, meant to display Chippewa and Lundy's Lane, was shortened because of the intense heat. Everyone was being very careful!The night battle, the reenactment of the night attack on the fort, is always a load of fun and quite a blast - literally! Beth armed herself with my carbine, a hunting shirt, and undress cap as well as the belly box she bought for me that day and took her place on the wall. Alex's musket would no longer fire at one point, so she handed over the carbine... which he used and now wants me to leave to him in my will. Get in line, Bud!
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| The view from "the Wall" over the Terreplein of the fort. |
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| Major Phil, and the marching 21st - Marcus, Alex, Mike, and Brendon |
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| Another view from the wall. |
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| It can get smoky. |
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| From the main bastion |
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And the big BOOM!
Planned, organized, and set of by professional pyrotechnicians! |
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| Part of the well-laid out Crown camp |
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| Along side the road |
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Dinner our camp - pulled pork, Caesar salad, and "Mr. Jefferson's macaroni & cheese"
- taken from a 1790's cookbook from Monticello. |
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| IMUC had the honour of leading the column. |
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| Jordan in his pioneer gear |
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| The Crown High Command |
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| "Many Strings" intent on loading |
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| Packing, Packing, Packing... |
This is a short blog since my part in the event was curtailed. I hope to do better next time... both on the field and in the blog.
