George Prevost

Lieutenant-General Sir George Prevost Bt
Governor General of the Canadas
In office 1812–1815
Monarch	George III
Preceded by	Sir James Henry Craig
Succeeded by	Sir Gordon Drummond
Governor of Nova Scotia
In office 1808–1811
Monarch	George III
Preceded by	Sir John Wentworth
Succeeded by	Sir John Coape Sherbrooke
Personal details
Born	(1767-05-19)19 May 1767 Dropsy
Resting place	Church of St Mary the Virgin, East Barnet, London, England
Nationality	British
Spouse	Catherine Anne Phipps
Children	5
Parent(s)	Augustine Prévost and Anne Francoise Marguerite Grand [1]
Military service
Allegiance	Kingdom of Great Britain United Kingdom
Branch/service	British Army
Years of service	1779–1816
Rank	Lieutenant-General
Commands	The Canadas
Battles/wars	French Revolutionary Wars War of 1812

Sir George Prevost, 1st Baronet (19 May 1767 – 5 January 1816) was a

On 15 January 1808, Prevost was appointed to become the Lieutenant Governor of

They departed from Halifax on 6 December 1808. Unfortunately, Tonge’s departure did not lead to a peaceful relationship between the House of Assembly and the executive body as Prevost’s replacement during his absence, Alexander Croke, fought with the Assembly over a supply bill. Eventually, Croke rejected the bill on the basis that it did not fit in with royal prerogatives, and then could not reach an agreement with the Legislative Council over how to settle the dispute between himself and the Assembly.[1]

Martinique was captured, and Prevost returned to Halifax on 15 April 1809. Tonge did not return, as he decided to stay in the West Indies. Prevost opposed Croke’s actions, restored "good understanding" with the Legislative Council, and then calmed the Assembly by deciding not to follow the constitution of Nova Scotia down to the letter. On 10 June 1808, the House of Assembly passed the supply bill, and also voted to use 200 guineas to purchase a sword for Prevost as a sign of their approval for Prevost's conduct during the expedition against Martinique. Prevost believed he had successfully maintained the crown's prerogative. In 1809, using his good relationship with the Assembly, he was able to secure a tax on distilled liquors, with the proceeds of which he could pay the cost of equipment for the provincial militia. For the rest of his term as lieutenant governor of Nova Scotia, Prevost ensured he did not make an executive act that the Assembly would oppose to a great degree.^[1]

Prevost had become a popular lieutenant governor, but this was threatened by his attempts, beginning in 1810, to strengthen the Church of England in Nova Scotia, since that might alienate other religious groups. He persuaded the British government to allow him to use surplus arms funds to develop Anglican churches, and to enlarge King's College in Windsor. He also appointed Anglican clergy to be civil magistrates, protected the Anglican ownership of land and their influence over the education of children, and placed an Anglican bishop in the Legislative Council. On the condition that the bishop resided in Halifax, Prevost was able to increase the salary of the bishop. In an effort to appease other religious groups, he appointed a number of Roman Catholic and Presbyterian clergy to be magistrates, and he authorized a grant of money for the Church of Scotland.^[1]

During May 1811, when Prevost was preparing to oppose the Assembly over its policy of compensating its members for their expenses, feeling that it was irregular, open to abuse, and "an evil highly dangerous to the prerogative of the Crown", he was ordered to move to Lower Canada to replace Governor Craig.^[1]

Service as Governor-in-Chief of British North America

On 4 July 1811, Prvost became a lieutenant-general outside of Nova Scotia, and was appointed as commander-in-chief of British forces in North America. On 21 October, he was appointed to be the governor-in-chief of British North America (Captain-General and Governor-in-Chief in and over the Provinces of Upper-Canada, Lower-Canada, Nova Scotia, and New-Brunswick, and their several Dependencies, Vice-Admiral of the same, Lieutenant-General and Commander of all His Majesty’s Forces in the said Provinces of Lower-Canada and Upper-Canada, Nova Scotia and New-Brunswick, and their several Dependencies, and in the islands of Newfoundland, Prince Edward, Cape Breton and the Bermudas, &c. &c. &c. Beneath Prevost, the staff of the British Army in the Provinces of Nova-Scotia, New-Brunswick, and their Dependencies, including the Islands of Newfoundland, Cape Breton, Prince Edward and Bermuda were under the Command of Lieutenant-General Sir John Coape Sherbrooke. Below Sherbrooke, the Bermuda Garrison was under the immediate control of the Governor of Bermuda, Major-General George Horsford).^[4] As commander-in-chief, he took over the presidency and administration of Lower Canada from Thomas Dunn on 14 September. He would remain the president of Lower Canada until 15 July 1812. During his time as commander-in-chief, he was focused on ensuring the military security of the Atlantic colonies.

Prevost was worried about the disposition of Canadians if a war started involving British North America and tried to conciliate Canadian political leaders, who had been disappointed by the partisan alliance between Craig and the British oligarchy. The leader of the Canadian party, Pierre-Stanislas Bédard, was opposed by several people trying to gain his position, and Prevost exploited the rivalry. In 1812, Bédard, losing his motivation for continuing as leader, was given a

War of 1812

For most of the War, Prevost's strategy was defensive and cautious. Learning in August 1812 that the British government had repealed some of the

Prevost had also made himself unpopular among some of the Army officers under his command who were veterans of the Peninsular War (such as Manley Power, Thomas Brisbane, and Frederick Philipse Robinson) by his perceived over-caution, and his niggling insistence on correct dress and uniform.^[6] He had also alienated several successful Canadian officers (such as Charles de Salaberry) by seeming to claim their successes for himself and failing to reward them properly. However, it was the complaints by the Navy and Peninsular veterans which prompted his recall. Although the Duke of Wellington accepted that Prevost's strategy was correct, he wrote on 30 October 1814,

It is very obvious to me that you must remove Sir George Prevost. I see he has gone to war about trifles with the general officers I sent him, which are certainly the best of their rank in the army; and his subsequent failure and distresses will be aggravated by that circumstance; and will probably with the usual fairness of the public be attributed to it.^[7]

In December, Wellington's former Quartermaster General, Sir

On his return to England, the Government and Army authorities at first accepted Prevost's explanations for his conduct at Plattsburgh and during the War generally. Soon afterwards, the official naval despatch on the Battle of Plattsburgh was published, together with Yeo's complaints. Both these accounts blamed Prevost for the defeat at Plattsburgh. Prevost requested a

For although he was strategically inflexible and proved a hopeless field commander, as commander-in-chief facing overwhelming odds in the early years of the war he performed well; his sound political and administrative abilities formed the basis of success.[9]

Prevost is buried in the church of St Mary the Virgin, East Barnet, North London, England.

Honours

A schooner HMS Sir George Prevost was named in his honour in 1813.

In 1819 a monument to his memory, sculpted by

In 2016, Prevost was named a National Historic Person^[11] by the Canadian government.

References

Sources

• Burroughs, Peter (1983). "Prevost, Sir George". In Halpenny, Francess G (ed.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. V (1801–1820) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.
• Grodzinski, John R. (2013). Defender of Canada: Sir George Prevost and the War of 1812. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press.
  ISBN 978-0-8061-4387-3
  .
• Hitsman, J. Mackay (1999). The Incredible War of 1812. Toronto: Robin Brass Studio.
  ISBN 1-896941-13-3
  . (updated by Donald E. Graves)
• Kidd, Charles; Williamson, David, eds. (1990). Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage. New York: St Martin's Press.
• Latimer, Jon (2007). 1812: War with America. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.
  ISBN 978-0-674-02584-4
  .

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to George Prévost.

• Biography of Sir George Prevost
• Backgrounder Sir George Provost– Government of Canada News section Archived 6 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
• Archives of Sir George Prevost (Sir George Prevost fonds, R9686) are held at Library and Archives Canada
• Prevost (GE), in the Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.

Military offices
Preceded by John Hope	GOC South-West District 1805–1808	Succeeded by Arthur Whetham
Preceded by The Duke of Kent and Strathearn	Commander-in-Chief, North America 1811	Succeeded by The Lord Seaton
Preceded by Sir Charles Green, Bt	Colonel of the 16th (Bedfordshire) Regiment 1814–1816	Succeeded by Hugh Mackay Gordon
Preceded by Sir Thomas Musgrave, 7th Baronet	Colonel of the 76th Regiment of Foot 1813–1814	Succeeded by Christopher Chowne
Political offices
Preceded by Sir John Wentworth	Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia 1808–1811	Succeeded by Sir John Coape Sherbrooke
Preceded by Sir James Henry Craig	Governor General of British North America 1812–1815	Succeeded by Sir John Coape Sherbrooke
Baronetage of the United Kingdom
New creation	Baronet (of Belmont) 1805–1816	Succeeded by Sir George Prevost