The York Militia was a volunteer militia unit in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of t ...

formed after the passage of the Militia Act of 1793. Members of the York Militia were drawn from the settlers of York County, an area mostly made up of present-day

Greater Toronto The Greater Toronto Area, commonly referred to as the GTA, includes the City of Toronto and the regional municipalities of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York. In total, the region contains 25 urban, suburban, and rural municipalities. The Greater ...

. The Militia consisted of 3 line infantry regiments: * 1st Regiment of York Militia *

2nd Regiment of York Militia The 2nd Regiment of York Militia was a Canadian Militia regiment active during the War of 1812. They were part of the York Militia, which at that time was three Regiments strong. The 2nd Regiment was recruited around the present-day Regional Mun ...

* 3rd Regiment of York Militia - recruited around the present-day York Region (Markham), Toronto (Scarborough, old Town of York later as Toronto, Etobicoke) and Durham (Pickering and Whitby). The regiment can be partially traced back to John Button's 1st York Light Dragoons (c. 1810) from

Markham, Ontario Markham () is a city in the Regional Municipality of York, Ontario, Canada. It is approximately northeast of Downtown Toronto. In the 2021 Census, Markham had a population of 338,503, which ranked it the largest in York Region, fourth largest ...

. The three regiments of the York Militia fought in several engagements during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It ...

. The 1st Regiment of the York Militia was involved at the Siege of Fort Mackinac, the

Siege of Detroit The siege of Detroit, also known as the surrender of Detroit or the Battle of Fort Detroit, was an early engagement in the War of 1812. A British force under Major General Isaac Brock with Native American allies under Shawnee leader Tecumse ...

, the Battle of Queenston Heights, and the

Battle of York The Battle of York was a War of 1812 battle fought in York, Upper Canada (today's Toronto, Ontario, Canada) on April 27, 1813. An American force supported by a naval flotilla landed on the lakeshore to the west and advanced against the town, ...

. The 2nd Regiment of the York Militia fought at

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

Queenston Heights The Queenston Heights is a geographical feature of the Niagara Escarpment immediately above the village of Queenston, Ontario, Canada. Its geography is a promontory formed where the escarpment is divided by the Niagara River. The promontory fo ...

, and at the Battle of Lundy's Lane The 3rd Regiment of the York Militia fought at Detroit, Queenston Heights, and York. Within the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases acr ...

, the 1st and 3rd Regiments of York Militia are perpetuated by the

Queen's York Rangers The Queen's York Rangers (1st American Regiment) (RCAC) is a Canadian Army Primary Reserve Royal Canadian Armoured Corps regiment based in Toronto and Aurora. The regiment is part of 4th Canadian Division's 32 Canadian Brigade Group. The reg ...

while the 2nd Regiment is perpetuated by the

Royal Hamilton Light Infantry The Royal Hamilton Light Infantry (Wentworth Regiment) (RHLI) is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army, based at John Weir Foote VC Armoury in Hamilton, Ontario. The RHLI is part of 31 Canadian Brigade Group, which is part of 4t ...

References

Military history of Canada Canadian military units and formations of the War of 1812 Queen's York Rangers (1st American Regiment) Royal Hamilton Light Infantry (Wentworth Regiment) {{Warof1812-stub

See also

References