1838 (June 29), Upper Canada Rebellion, forwarded soldier’s letter,
from the Royal Hospital Chelsea, London, to Lieutenant
1838 (June 29), Upper Canada Rebellion, forwarded soldier’s letter,
from the Royal Hospital Chelsea, London, to Lieutenant Adjutant
Paget, 43rd Light Infantry, Montreal, Lower Canada, rated "1/51/2"
currency, endorsed "Private Ship Letter", struck with oval Ship
Letter London (30 Jun), New York SHIP (25 Jul), and Montreal (30
Jul), redirected to Drummondville, Upper Canada, with red FORWARDED
straight-line, no further charge necessary for the forwarding of
military mail, reverse with two-line "T.P. / Pimlico WO" and London
PD octagonal datestamp, a scarce and very fine soldier's cover,
following the Lieutenant from Montreal to the Lake Erie shores,
where he was to aid in the defence of Upper Canada against raiders
from the United States in support of William Lyon Mackenzie; ex Sam
Nickle. While the rebellion had been largely suppressed following
Mackenzie's flight to the United States in December 1837,
incursions from across the border into Upper Canada continued until
the Battle of the Windmill, a failed attempt by the Hunter Patriot
group to seize the town of Prescott, across the St. Lawrence from
Ogdensburg, New York. In 1837, Sir John Colborne was serving as
Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces in British North America,
personally leading the offensive at the Battle of Saint-Eustache in
December 1837, which brought about the end of the Lower Canada
Rebellion. In 1838, he was named acting Governor General of British
North America, a role in which he was confirmed in December,
following the short-lived tenure of Lord Durham.
