The Battle of Queenston Heights "Your bullets shall soon spread Havoc and dismay among those Ranks that form so proudly." Iroquois chief John Norton Further Reading An Overview of the Battle of Queenston Heights British Background to the Battle of Queenston Heights American Background to the Battle of Queenston Heights The British at Queenston Heights Brock at Queenston Heights The Americans at Queenston Heights The Iroquois at Queenston Heights Iroquois Chief John Norton

The Iroquois at Queenston Heights On the morning of October 13, 1812, at Fort George, John Norton awakens and begins to organize his warriors. The battle they have been waiting for has finally started. Two weeks earlier, this force of Mohawk, Ojibwa, Mississauga, and Delaware had performed their ceremonial war dances at Grand River. The warriors then, marched off to meet British General Isaac Brock at Fort George. Norton's force has dwindled to around 300 men. It was originally larger, but some of the warriors grew tired of waiting and slipped away for the fall hunt. Since many warriors are traveling with their families, almost half of them stay behind to protect Fort George. The rest of them quickly catch up with General Sheaffe's troops, who had started the seven-mile march to Queenston earlier. Just north of the village of Queenston, Norton hears a rumour that the Americans are advancing through the forest to the west of the road. He doubts that a large force could move through the thick woods, but decides to take his men into the forest anyway. Moving quietly through the trees, the warriors find no sign of the Americans. What they do find are frightened and misinformed Canadian militiamen who claim that 6000 American troops have crossed the river. This news makes many of the warriors nervous; they don't like to fight if they are badly outnumbered. Norton appeals to their bravery, but half of his warriors slip away. Some want to save their families, others want only to save themselves. The warriors path through the woods leads them almost directly behind the American position on the Heights. Expecting to be attacked from the front, U.S. leader Winfield Scott has posted only a thin line of men to guard the rear. Norton's men burst from the woods and catch these soldiers by surprise; the rearguard is pushed back towards the main body of U.S. troops. The warriors engage in the unorthodox battle tactics that have earned them their reputation as formidable and unpredictable fighters. Using the tree line for cover, they quickly attack and then disappear again. This constant movement gives the US troops the impression that the warriors are everywhere at once. Norton's men keep low to the ground when in they are in the open; the Americans can barely see them, let alone get clear shots at them. Though heavily outnumbered, the Iroquois keep the Americans off balance for hours. They return the enemy fire, says Norton, "with Coolness and Spirit." The Iroquois suffer some casualties during their bolder advances, but their spirits are buoyed by the arrival of 80 Cayuga warriors from Fort George. Norton's flanking movement has prevented the Americans from consolidating their position on the Heights and has slowly pushed the US troops closer to the cliffs. This allows Major Sheaffe's British reinforcements to advance without opposition. Sheaffe later credits a large part of the victory to the warriors' intuitive sense of battle tactics. Winfield Scott realizes he has no choice but to withdraw. He orders his men to descend the cliffs and make their way back across the river to Lewiston. The retreat leaves the Americans in a vulnerable position. Sheaffe orders an attack but it is the Iroquois who are out in front. The Americans scramble down to the banks of the Niagara. But the Iroquois are soon upon them, scalping the dead and looting from the wounded until the battle winds down. The United States later charges that the Iroquois ignored American attempts to surrender and prolonged the battle, but Norton replies that the attackers "had no reason to complain of cruelty this day." For his instrumental part in the victory, Norton is promoted to "Rank of Captain of the Confederate Indians."