British expedition against Dominica

British expedition against Dominica

The British expedition against Dominica was a military action in June 1761, as part of the Seven Years' War.

Prelude

By the end of 1760, the conquest of Canada was completed and a great number of British troops were left idle in North America.

As early as January 1761, William Pitt had informed Amherst that some of his troops would be required in the autumn for the conquest of Dominica, Saint Lucia and Martinique. Amherst had to immediately send 2,000 men to Guadeloupe, which was already in British hands since the British expedition against Guadeloupe in 1759, where he would concert with the Governor of the island the means of taking Dominica and Saint Lucia. Furthermore, Amherst had to despatch another 6,000 men later in the year for the capture of Martinique.

The expedition

In the first days of June 1761, transports from America began to drop singly into Guadeloupe, the fleet having been dispersed by a storm.

By June 3, four ships had arrived, together with Lord Rollo, who had been appointed by Amherst to take the command.

On June 4, the whole of these British ships, together with one ship more from Guadeloupe itself, made sail under escort of the squadron of Sir James Douglas, the admiral on the Leeward Islands station, to beat back against the trade wind to Dominica. The force consisted of:

* a detachment from the garrison of Guadeloupe (300 men)
* Highlanders (400 men)
* 22nd Regiment of Foot
* 94th Vaughan's Regiment of Foot On June 6 by noon, the British force had arrived before Roseau, where the inhabitants were summoned to surrender. The French replied by manning their batteries and other defences, which included four separate lines of entrenchments, ranged one above another. Rollo landed his men and entered the town. Fearing that the French might be reinforced in the night, he resolved, though it was already late, to storm the entrenchments immediately. He attacked and drove out the French in confusion with trifling loss to himself. The French commander and his second were both taken prisoners. After this engagement, resistance ceased.

On June 7, Dominica swore allegiance to King George.

Aftermath

Unlike Guadeloupe and Martinique, the island was not given back to France after the Treaty of Paris (1763). With an interval between 1778 and 1783, it remained in British hands until its independence in 1978.

References

Fortescue, J. W.; A History of the British Army Vol. II, MacMillan, London, 1899, pp. 537-538.

Source

* [http://www.kronoskaf.com/syw/index.php?title=1761_-_British_expedition_against_Dominica British expedition against Dominica]

:"This article was originally based on material from [http://www.kronoskaf.com/syw/index.php?title=1761_-_British_expedition_against_Dominica] , which is licensed under the GFDL."


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • British expedition against Martinique — The British expedition against Martinique was a military action from January to February 1762, as part of the Seven Years War. Prelude After the surrender of Dominica to a British expeditionary force, the French in Martinique fully expected this… …   Wikipedia

  • History of Dominica — The Arawaks were guided to Dominica, and other islands of the Caribbean, by the South Equatorial Current from the waters of the Orinoco River. These descendants of the early Tainos were overthrown by the Kalinago tribe of the… …   Wikipedia

  • British Empire — For a comprehensive list of the territories that formed the British Empire, see Evolution of the British Empire. British Empire …   Wikipedia

  • Newfoundland expedition — For other military actions involving Newfoundland, see Newfoundland expedition (disambiguation). Newfoundland expedition Part of the French Revolutionary Wars …   Wikipedia

  • Canada under British rule (1763–1867) — History of Canada This article is part of a series Timeline …   Wikipedia

  • French and Indian War — Not to be confused with French and Indian Wars. French and Indian War Part of the Seven Years War …   Wikipedia

  • Andrew Rollo, 5th Lord Rollo — Andrew Rollo, 5th Lord Rollo, (November 18 1703 Leicester, June 20 1765) was a Scottish army commander in Canada and Dominica during the Seven Years War, who led the British land forces in the capture of Dominica on June 6 1761. Lord Rollo, of… …   Wikipedia

  • Rodney, George Brydges Rodney, 1st Baron — ▪ British admiral baptized Feb. 13, 1718, London, Eng. died May 24, 1792, London       English admiral who won several important naval battles against French, Spanish, and Dutch forces.       The grandson and son of army officers, Rodney briefly… …   Universalium

  • War of 1812 — This article is about the Anglo American War of 1812 to 1815. For other wars in 1812, see War of 1812 (disambiguation). War of 1812 The unfinished United States Capitol after the burning of Washington. Watercolor and i …   Wikipedia

  • Naval operations in the American Revolutionary War — Part of the American Revolutionary War …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”