John Coape Sherbrooke
Sir John Coape Sherbrooke | |
---|---|
The Halifax Club | |
Born | 29 April 1764 Oxton, Nottinghamshire |
Died | 14 February 1830 (aged 65) Calverton, Nottinghamshire |
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service/ | British Army |
Years of service | 1780-1818 |
Rank | General |
Battles/wars | American Revolutionary War
|
Awards | Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath |
Spouse(s) | Katherina Pyndar (m. 1811-1830) |
Early life
John Coape Sherbrooke was born in Oxton, Nottinghamshire, on 29 April 1764, the third son of the wealthy country squire William Coape JP and his wife Sarah Sherbrooke.[1][2] The surname comes from Shirebrook, Derbyshire. Upon his marriage Sherbrooke's father had taken his wife's surname as his own.[3]
Army career
Early career
Sherbrooke joined the
After an attempt to join the
The Peace ended in May 1803 with the start of the
Peninsular War
Sherbrooke was next given command of 4,000 men to assist Spanish patriots in
At Talavera, Sherbrooke's 1st Division included four brigades:
Sherbrooke commanded the 1st Division through the retreat to Portugal, where he threatened to hang his commissary officer if he did not provide the required food for his division, and for his service at Porto and Talavera was appointed a
War of 1812
Sherbrooke arrived at Halifax on 16 October 1811, as military commander of the Provinces of Nova-Scotia, New-Brunswick, and their Dependencies, including the Islands of Newfoundland, Cape Breton, Prince Edward and Bermuda. The area of command was referred to as the Halifax Command or Nova Scotia Command.[14]
When the War of 1812 began Sherbrooke initially fought a phoney war, allowing trade to continue with Maine to the benefit of British merchants.[13] Having complained at the lack of defences available to protect the colony and that the extant fortifications were dilapidated, he mounted guns at harbour entrances across the colony and placed the militias in a state of readiness to repel attacks. Sherbrooke's tactic of informally continuing trade with the neighbouring American states while still making sure that his own territory was amply protected provided an opportunity for the Atlantic-facing provinces of Canada to enhance their place in international trade; they were able to flourish at a time when other areas were stifled by war.[2]
When the Napoleonic Wars ended in April 1814 more troops were made available for North America; Sherbrooke used this opportunity to attack the disputed area of
While the majority of Sherbrooke's tenure as Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia was spent concentrating on the war, he also made a significant effort to increase support for the Church of England, as most of the population were dissenters. While largescale changes were voted down by the Nova Scotia House of Assembly, he provided small sums of money for the Church via taxation and allotted undeveloped land to it for the construction of religious buildings. At the same time Sherbrooke was aware that his support of the Church was not popular and so he held a careful balance between the two religious factions, ensuring for example that religious appointments were taken up by moderates and not zealots.[16]
British North America
His active defence of the colony during the
Retirement and death
Sherbrooke continued to work actively into 1817, concentrating on reforming the colony's public finances, but once again was set back by his failing health. He found that the cold Canadian winters helped bring on recurrences of his malaria, and also suffered a paralytic
Family
Sherbrooke married Katherina (died 15 May 1856), the daughter of Reginald Pyndar, rector of Madresfield, on 24 August 1811 at Areley Kings.[3] They had no children.[13][2]
Personality and legacy
Sherbrooke was well-known for his short temper and abrasive language, with Wellington noting that he was the most passionate man he had ever met.[13] Henry Edward Bunbury said of him that:
"the brigade he commanded winced a little under the sharpness of his discipline, while they revenged themselves by comical stories of his rough sayings and impetuous temper...A short, square, hardy little man, with a countenance that told at once the determined fortitude of his nature. Without genius, without education, hot as pepper, and rough in his language, but with a warm heart and generous feelings; true, straight forward, scorning finesse and craft and meanness, and giving vent to his detestation with boiling eagerness, and in the plainest terms. As an officer, full of energy, rousing others to exertion, and indefatigable in his own person."[13][2]
While he resided in Nova Scotia, his home was at Birch Cove on Bedford Basin, near Halifax.[19] Named Sherwood, it eventually lent its name to the neighbourhoods of Sherwood Park and Sherwood Heights. The community of Sherbrooke, Nova Scotia also bears his name.[20] Other honorific eponyms are listed below:[20][21][22][23]
- Geographic locations
- Nova Scotia: Sherbrooke
- Nova Scotia: New Ross, formerly known as Sherbrooke
- Quebec: Sherbrooke
- Quebec: Rue Sherbrooke, Montreal
- Buildings
- Sherbrooke Station, Montreal
- Sherbrooke Halifaxharbour.
- Fort Sherbrooke (Maine)
- Vessels
See also
- Military history of Nova Scotia
- The Sherbrooke Hussars
Citations
- ^ a b c d Heathcote, Wellington's Peninsular War Generals, p. 113.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Burroughs, "Sherbrooke, Sir John Coape".
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, "Sherbrooke, Sir John Coape".
- ^ "No. 12146". The London Gazette. 19 December 1780. p. 2.
- ^ Heathcote, Wellington's Peninsular War Generals, pp. 113-4.
- ^ a b c d e f g Heathcote, Wellington's Peninsular War Generals, p. 114.
- ^ "No. 15600". The London Gazette. 9 July 1803. p. 833.
- ^ Oman 1995, p. 645.
- ^ Oman 1995, p. 523.
- ^ Oman 1995, pp. 538–539.
- ^ a b Oman 1995, pp. 540–543.
- ^ Oman 1995, p. 530.
- ^ a b c d e f Heathcote, Wellington's Peninsular War Generals, p. 115.
- ^ "Staff of The Army the Provinces of Nova-Scotia, New-Brunswick, and their Dependencies, including the Islands of Newfoundland, Cape Breton, Prince Edward and Bermuda". The Quebec Almanack and British American Royal Kalendar For The Year 1813. Quebec: J. Neilson. 1812.
- ^ Heathcote, Wellington's Peninsular War Generals, pp. 115-6.
- ^ a b c d Heathcote, Wellington's Peninsular War Generals, p. 116.
- ^ "GOVERNOR". THE QUEBEC ALMANAC; AND BRITISH AMERICAN ROYAL CALENDAR, For the Year 1818. Quebec: J. Neilson. 1817.
- ^ a b Heathcote, Wellington's Peninsular War Generals, p. 117.
- ^ Dawson, The Mapmaker's Legacy, pp. 44-5.
- ^ a b "Place-Names and Places of Nova Scotia; Sherbrooke". Nova Scotia Archives. 20 April 2020. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
- ^ "William Ross & His Settlement". History of Nova Scotia. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
- ^ "Place-Names and Places of Nova Scotia; New Ross". Nova Scotia Archives. 20 April 2020. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
- ^ "Sherbrooke". The Canadian Encyclopaedia. Retrieved 5 August 2021.
References
- Burroughs, Peter (1987). "SHERBROOKE, Sir JOHN COAPE". In Halpenny, Francess G (ed.). Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. VI (1821–1835) (online ed.). University of Toronto Press.
- Dawson, Joan (2007). The Mapmaker's Legacy: Nineteenth-century Nova Scotia Through Maps. Halifax: Nimbus. ISBN 9781551096070
- Heathcote, T.A. (2010). Wellington's Peninsular War Generals & Their Battles: A Biographical and Historical Dictionary. Barnsley, South Yorkshire: Pen & Sword. ISBN 978-1-84884-061-4
- ISBN 1-85367-215-7.
- "Sherbrooke, Sir John Coape". doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/25358. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
External links
- National Assembly biography (in French)
- Archives of Sir John Coape Sherbrooke (Sir John Coape Sherbrooke fonds, R2513) are held at Library and Archives Canada
- Lloyd, Ernest Marsh (1897). . Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 52. pp. 70–71.