Barrimore Matthew "Barry" St. Leger (bapt. 1 May 1733 – 23 December 1793) was a
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
officer. St. Leger was active in the
Saratoga Campaign
The Saratoga campaign in 1777 was an attempt by the British high command for North America to gain military control of the strategically important Hudson River valley during the American Revolutionary War. It ended in the surrender of the British ...
, commanding an invasion force that unsuccessfully
besieged Fort Stanwix. St. Leger remained on the frontier for the duration of the war; after its conclusion, he served briefly as commander of British forces in Quebec.
Life
St. Leger was baptised on 1 May 1733 in
County Kildare, Ireland
County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...
.
Fredriksen Fredriksen is a Norwegian patronymic surname which may refer to:
People
* Aslaug Fredriksen (1918-2000), Norwegian politician
* Britt Fredriksen (born 1945), Norwegian Playmate
*Jan-Henrik Fredriksen (1956-2020), Norwegian politician
*John Fr ...
, p. 483 He was a younger son of
Sir John St Leger, a leading Irish judge and politician, and his second wife Lavina Pennefather. He was the brother of Gen.
Anthony St Leger (British Army officer)
Major-General Anthony St Leger (1731/32 – 19 April 1786) was a successful soldier, a Member of Parliament for Grimsby, and the founder of the St. Leger Stakes horse race.
Family
Born in February 1731 at Grangemellon, Kildare, Ireland, he w ...
, the founder of the
St Leger Stakes
The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a d ...
. The St Legers of Kildare were a junior branch of the family of
Viscount Doneraile
Viscount Doneraile () is a title that has been created twice in the Peerage of Ireland, both times for members of the St Leger family.
It was first created in 1703 for Arthur St Leger, along with the subsidiary title of Baron Kilmayden, also ...
, and the Pennefathers were a wealthy landowning family in
County Tipperary
County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary, and was established in the early 13th century, shortly after th ...
. He was educated at
Eton College
Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...
, and then at
Peterhouse, Cambridge
Peterhouse is the oldest constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Today, Peterhouse has 254 undergraduates, 116 full-time graduate students and 54 fellows. It is quite ...
.
He joined the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
in April 1756, serving as an ensign in the
28th Regiment of Foot
The 28th (North Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1694. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 61st (South Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot to form the Gloucestershire Regi ...
. He saw service in the
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...
under the command of
Jeffery Amherst
Field Marshal Jeffery Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst, (29 January 1717 – 3 August 1797) was a British Army officer and Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in the British Army. Amherst is credited as the architect of Britain's successful campaign ...
at the 1758
siege of Louisbourg, and in 1759 under the command of
James Wolfe
James Wolfe (2 January 1727 – 13 September 1759) was a British Army officer known for his training reforms and, as a Major-general (United Kingdom), major general, remembered chiefly for his victory in 1759 over the Kingdom of France, French ...
at the
Siege of Quebec. He was appointed
brigade-major
A brigade major was the chief of staff of a brigade in the British Army. They most commonly held the rank of major, although the appointment was also held by captains, and was head of the brigade's "G - Operations and Intelligence" section direct ...
in July 1760 and served as a staff officer in the campaign against
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
under
James Murray. On 16 September 1762, St. Leger was promoted to major in the
95th Regiment of Foot.
When the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
began in 1775, St. Leger was a lieutenant colonel in the
34th Regiment of Foot
The 34th Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1702. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 55th (Westmorland) Regiment of Foot to form the Border Regiment in 1881.
History Early history
The regim ...
. He saw service in the 1776 British relief of
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
following the
Continental Army
The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...
's 1775
invasion of that province.
He was selected to lead the western offensive that formed one leg of the 1777
Saratoga Campaign
The Saratoga campaign in 1777 was an attempt by the British high command for North America to gain military control of the strategically important Hudson River valley during the American Revolutionary War. It ended in the surrender of the British ...
.
John Burgoyne
General John Burgoyne (24 February 1722 – 4 August 1792) was a British general, dramatist and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1761 to 1792. He first saw action during the Seven Years' War when he participated in several batt ...
brevet
Brevet may refer to:
Military
* Brevet (military), higher rank that rewards merit or gallantry, but without higher pay
* Brevet d'état-major, a military distinction in France and Belgium awarded to officers passing military staff college
* Aircre ...
ed him as
brigadier-general
Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...
for this mission so that he would outrank the militia officers involved. He moved a mixed force of British regulars,
Hessian
A Hessian is an inhabitant of the German state of Hesse.
Hessian may also refer to:
Named from the toponym
*Hessian (soldier), eighteenth-century German regiments in service with the British Empire
**Hessian (boot), a style of boot
**Hessian f ...
s, Indians,
Canadien
French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fre ...
s, and
Loyalist
Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cro ...
s up the
Saint Lawrence River
The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connectin ...
to
Fort Oswego
Fort Oswego was an 18th-century trading post in the Great Lakes region in North America, which became the site of a battle between French and British forces in 1756 during the French and Indian War. The fort was established in 1727 on the orders o ...
, and from there to
Fort Stanwix Fort Stanwix was a colonial fort whose construction commenced on August 26, 1758, under the direction of British General John Stanwix, at the location of present-day Rome, New York, but was not completed until about 1762. The bastion fort was built ...
(the site of modern
Rome, New York
Rome is a city in Oneida County, New York, United States, located in the Central New York, central part of the state. The population was 32,127 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Rome is one of two principal cities in the Utica–Ro ...
). The fort was more strongly defended than he and Burgoyne had anticipated, so he
laid siege to it. When word arrived that an American relief column was approaching to break the siege, he sent a group of mostly Indians and Loyalists to oppose them. They ambushed
Nicholas Herkimer
Brigadier General Nicholas Herkimer (also known as Nikolaus Herchheimer; – August 16, 1777) was an American military officer who fought during the Revolutionary War. He died of wounds after the Battle of Oriskany.
Early life and career
Herki ...
's force in the
Battle of Oriskany
The Battle of Oriskany ( or ) was a significant engagement of the Saratoga campaign of the American Revolutionary War, and one of the bloodiest battles in the conflict between the Americans and Great Britain. On August 6, 1777, a party of Loy ...
, but the fort's occupants
sortie
A sortie (from the French word meaning ''exit'' or from Latin root ''surgere'' meaning to "rise up") is a deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops, from a strongpoint. The term originated in siege warfare. ...
d and raided their camp.
Fredriksen Fredriksen is a Norwegian patronymic surname which may refer to:
People
* Aslaug Fredriksen (1918-2000), Norwegian politician
* Britt Fredriksen (born 1945), Norwegian Playmate
*Jan-Henrik Fredriksen (1956-2020), Norwegian politician
*John Fr ...
, p. 484
When reports of a relief force under
Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold ( Brandt (1994), p. 4June 14, 1801) was an American military officer who served during the Revolutionary War. He fought with distinction for the American Continental Army and rose to the rank of major general before defect ...
reached him he was abandoned by his Indian supporters, and was forced to withdraw back to Quebec. He then tried to join up with Burgoyne's army near Saratoga, but had only reached
Fort Ticonderoga
Fort Ticonderoga (), formerly Fort Carillon, is a large 18th-century star fort built by the French at a narrows near the south end of Lake Champlain, in northern New York, in the United States. It was constructed by Canadian-born French mi ...
by the time Burgoyne surrendered his army in October 1777.
Fredriksen Fredriksen is a Norwegian patronymic surname which may refer to:
People
* Aslaug Fredriksen (1918-2000), Norwegian politician
* Britt Fredriksen (born 1945), Norwegian Playmate
*Jan-Henrik Fredriksen (1956-2020), Norwegian politician
*John Fr ...
, p. 485
For the next several years, St. Leger was a leader of the British frontier war against the Americans. He was promoted to colonel in 1780. In 1781, he led an attempt to kidnap General
Philip Schuyler
Philip John Schuyler (; November 18, 1804) was an American general in the Revolutionary War and a United States Senator from New York. He is usually known as Philip Schuyler, while his son is usually known as Philip J. Schuyler.
Born in Alba ...
. He was also involved in
the secret negotiations between
Frederick Haldimand
Sir Frederick Haldimand, KB (11 August 1718 – 5 June 1791) was a military officer best known for his service in the British Army in North America during the Seven Years' War and the American Revolutionary War. From 1778 to 1786, he serve ...
, Quebec's governor, and the
Vermont Republic
The Vermont Republic ( French: ''République du Vermont''), officially known at the time as the State of Vermont ( French: ''État du Vermont''), was an independent state in New England that existed from January 15, 1777, to March 4, 1791. The ...
's leaders over the possibility of bringing Vermont into the British fold. These negotiations ended with the
surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown.
Following the war, he remained in Quebec, and briefly commanded the British forces there in 1784. He resigned his commission the following year due to ill health, and died in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England, on 23 December 1793.
His Will was proved on 14 February 1794 at the PCC London by Frances St. Leger, widow.
See also
*
St. Leger
The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a d ...
References
Sources
*
Further reading
*Watt, Gavin K.
The British Campaign of 1777, Volume One - The St. Leger Expedition: The Forces of Crown and Congress, Second Edition' Global Heritage Press, Milton, 2003
Bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Leger, Barrimore
1733 births
1793 deaths
People from County Kildare
34th Regiment of Foot officers
People educated at Eton College
Alumni of Peterhouse, Cambridge
British military personnel of the French and Indian War
British Army personnel of the American Revolutionary War
28th Regiment of Foot officers
British expatriates in Canada
Barry Barry may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name
* Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 19 ...