Originally Posted by
ChrisGeorge
I believe the 8th King's Liverpool Regiment was at Fort York (later Toronto) although I am not sure
they were at Lundy's Lane
To bolster the meagre, mostly Canadian militia and Indian forces at Niagara, the Kingsmen marched from Fort York to Niagara
arriving at dusk on the evening of July 24, 1814. The American force, led by Generals Jacob Brown and Winfield Scott, attacked the British regiment, the
Kings Liverpool, while they where bivouacing behind the cemetery on Lundy's Lane. The battle raged throughout the hot a humid night with many casaulties on
both sides. Close to dawn the fighting abated and when daylight came it could be seen that the Americans had left the field to the British and were in full
retreat across the Niagara River. This was the last and most decisive battle of the War of 1812 and was the battle that broke the will of the invading
Americans. The Americans, in attacking Canada, sought to take advantage of Britains pre-occupation with Napoleon. After this battle Britain was able to
concentrate on defeating the French Emperor Napoleon Boneparte and did defeat him the following year at Waterloo in Belgium.
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It was for the Battle of
Lundy's Lane that the King, George III, awarded the Kings Liverpool Regiment the "White Horse of Hanover" to wear as a honour in thier cap.
PS:
Artifacts from this battle can be seen at the small museum dedicated to the battle in Niagara Falls, Ontario. A letter writen by one of the 'Kings
Liverpool' soldiers to his sweetheart in Liverpool, a Miss Dolly Lunt, is/was on display in the National Museum of Canada in Ottawa.
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