Battle of Baker's Farm
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| Battle of Baker's Farm | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Lower Canada Rebellion | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Lower Canada |
 Patriotes | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Unknown |
James Perrigo Joson Dumochelle | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| Unknown | 800 Patriotes | ||||||
The Battle of Baker's Farm took place in Lower Canada on November 8, 1838, during the Patriot's War. It was the first and last military success of the Patriotes in the campaign of 1838. 800 Patriotes gathered on a farm near Sainte-Martine, Quebec and fought off several attacks by Loyalist volunteers. After news of the defeat of Patriotes forces at the Battle of Odelltown spread, the massed Patriotes dispersed before the arrival of British troops.
In 1837 the Russell Resolutions were made law by the British Parliament, imposing taxation without representation and rejecting all Patriotes reforms for Lower Canada. This led to a confrontation with the Société des Fils de la Liberté, a paramilitary organization on November 6, 1837. A series of battles took place in the countryside around Montreal and the British crushed the initial rebellion, capturing many and forcing others, including Louis-Joseph Papineau to flee to the United States. The British burned many farms and placed the colony under martial law.[1][2]
From the United States a second campaign was planned, groups of Frères Chasseurs were established all over the province to set up an underground military organization. On November 4, 1838, Robert Nelson, one of the leaders of the Frères Chasseurs, declared the independence of Lower Canada at Napierville with him as head of the provisional government before a crowd of 1,000.[3][4] Though the area of Beauharnois did not participate in the rebellion in 1837, it had been readied during summer 1838 and was ready to rise after the harvest.[5] Led by Joson Dumochelle, a farmer who was a member of the Frères Chasseurs, a force of 400 men marched on a manor house owned by the British Member of Parliament Edward Ellice and seized it from his wife on November 3. On November 4, the group detained and disabled the steamboat Henry Brougham when it docked at Beauharnois.[4][6] The Ellice manor house and the steamboat were looted, with the owners left with promissory notes by the Patriotes.[7]