The 1688 Battle of Fort Albany was one of the

Anglo-French conflicts on Hudson Bay The Anglo-French conflicts on Hudson Bay were a series of conflicts in the 17th and 18th centuries between England and France for control over the area around the Hudson Bay. Overview Beginning in 1672, the French sought to drive out the Engl ...

. In the

Hudson Bay expedition (1686) The Hudson Bay expedition of 1686 was one of the Anglo-French conflicts on Hudson Bay. It was the first of several expeditions sent from New France against the trading outposts of the Hudson's Bay Company in the southern reaches of Hudson Bay. L ...

the French had, in time of peace, marched overland from Quebec and captured all three English posts on

James Bay James Bay (french: Baie James; cr, ᐐᓂᐯᒄ, Wînipekw, dirty water) is a large body of water located on the southern end of Hudson Bay in Canada. Both bodies of water extend from the Arctic Ocean, of which James Bay is the southernmost p ...

. The French had left a garrison at

Fort Albany, Ontario Fort Albany First Nation ( cr, ᐲᐦᑖᐯᒄ ᐃᓕᓕᐗᒃ pîhtâpek ililiwak, "lagoon Cree") is a Cree First Nation in Cochrane District in Northeastern Ontario, Canada, within the territory covered by Treaty 9. Situated on the southern ...

(and possibly

Moose Factory Moose Factory is a community in the Cochrane District, Ontario, Canada. It is located on Moose Factory Island, near the mouth of the Moose River, which is at the southern end of James Bay. It was the first English-speaking settlement in lands no ...

) and needed to send a ship to resupply it and take out the furs. The

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business di ...

learned of its loss in January 1687 and appealed to the king. This led to about a year of diplomatic negotiations. In 1688 the Company sent five ships to the Bay. Two went to its remaining post at

York Factory York Factory was a settlement and Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) factory (trading post) located on the southwestern shore of Hudson Bay in northeastern Manitoba, Canada, at the mouth of the Hayes River, approximately south-southeast of Churchill. ...

, one went to reestablish Rupert House which the French had burned and two went to Fort Albany on the west shore of James Bay. Their instructions were to re-establish the English trade and not to use force against the French unless the French did so first. Meanwhile,

Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville (16 July 1661 – 9 July 1706) or Sieur d'Iberville was a French soldier, explorer, colonial administrator, and trader. He is noted for founding the colony of Louisiana in New France. He was born in Montreal to French ...

had obtained command of ''Soleil d'Afrique'' and resupplied Fort Albany. In September 1688, just as he was preparing to leave, ''Churchill'' and ''Yonge'' appeared. They sailed up the river, landed twenty men and built a barricade. The English had 85 men and the French, 16 Canadians and some number of sailors. A fortnight later they began to build a fort during which three English were shot. The truce now being broken and the English outnumbering the French, Governor Marsh should have attacked, but he did not. At some point all three ships became frozen in for the winter. By December the English began to die of

scurvy Scurvy is a deficiency disease, disease resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Early symptoms of deficiency include weakness, feeling tired and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, anemia, decreased red blood cells, gum disease, ch ...

. Iberville captured the English doctor in the hope of increasing the death rate. A kind of truce was made and there was a considerable amount of coming and going between the two forts. When enough English had died of scurvy, Iberville decided to act. He ambushed a wood-cutting party, capturing twenty men, and then attacked the main fort. The post held out for several days, but when there were only eight 'sound men' left, it surrendered. In spring he captured the two ships. In summer he sailed across the bay to Fort Rupert and captured the ''Husband''. By this time England and France were officially at war, although word had not yet reached the bay.

References

* *Arthur S Morton, 'A History of the Canadian West', no date, but about 1950 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fort Albany King William's War Battles involving England Battles involving France Conflicts in 1687 17th century in Canada Military history of Ontario New France Hudson's Bay Company 1688 in North America 1688 in Canada Conflicts in Ontario