April 27, 1813: American troops capture York, the capital of Upper Canada, in the Battle of York



When the United States declared war on Great Britain in 1812, military planners recognized the need to capture Britain’s Canadian holdings. Early in 1813, they drew up plans to capture the large British province. The Navy dispatched a fleet under Commodore Isaac Chauncey to gain control of the Great Lakes, in order to disable British naval superiority, there. The Secretary of War, John Armstrong convinced the Navy to defer Chauncey’s expedition and send him instead to blockade the capital of Upper Canada in conjunction with the Army. The War Department dispatched troops under General Zebulon Pike to take the capital, York.

On April 26, American forces arrive outside the city. Chauncey’s squadron began to bombard the settlement, in order to aid Pike’s troops advance. As Pike’s troops encircled the city, a magazine exploded, sending debris flying all over the battlefield. Pike collapsed, mortally wounded by the falling debris. Later that afternoon, York surrendered to American forces. Between April 28 and 30, American soldiers looted the city, burning many of the buildings. The British would have their revenge when they burned Washington D.C. in the summer of 1814.

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