Combat, Memory and Remembrance in Confederation Era Canada: The Hidden History of the Battle of Ridgeway, June 2, 1866

摘要: On June 1, 1866, one thousand heavily-armed Irish-American Fenian insurgents invaded Upper Canada across the Niagara River from Buffalo, NY. The next day near town of Ridgeway, 800 Fenians battled with 850 Canadian volunteer soldiers, including a small company 28 University Toronto students who ended up taking brunt attack. Battle Ridgeway (or Lime Ridge or Limestone Ridge) disastrous rout Canadians in their panicked retreat left dead and wounded on field. It was last major incursion into Canada, battle Ontario first modern fought by Canadians, led field exclusively officers, significantly Canada. The Raid mobilized some 22,000 troops resulted suspension habeas corpus colonial Province its Attorney General Minister Militia John A. Macdonald, but which climaxed this crisis is only prominent obscurity historiography. Almost everything known cited about springs same sources—four books pamphlets—three them published summer 1866 immediately after event remaining 1910. This dissertation argues that history distorted falsified these sources two military board inquiries staged to explicitly cover extent disaster. This study investigates relationship between contemporary author-historians sources: Alexander Somerville, an investigative journalist Hamilton, Ontario, recent immigrant Britain controversial history; George T. Denison III, young attorney, commander troop cavalry, former Confederate secret service agent, author-commentator Canada’s policy presiding judge both boards inquiry. This describes process Ridgeway’s hidden possible scope significance New archival are identified, assessed assembled for newly restored authenticated micro-narrative battle.%%%%PhD