The Battle of Quebec
A blizzard. A midnight assault. And a Coffin on the ground where the war for Canada was decided.
On the last night of 1775, American forces launched a desperate assault on Quebec Cityin a howling snowstorm. It was the first major defeat of the Continental Army, and it ended any realistic chance of bringing Canada into the Revolution. The man who held the critical position at Près-de-Ville—where General Richard Montgomery was killed—was John Coffin of Boston (1729–1808), your 1st cousin, 7 times removed through Captain Nathaniel Coffin (1671), in the Long family tree.
The Stakes
By late 1775, the American Revolution was barely six months old. The Continental Congress believed that if Quebec fell, French-speaking Canadians would join the rebellion, and Britain would lose its entire North American northern frontier. Two expeditions converged on Quebec City: one led by General Richard Montgomery, who had already captured Montreal, and another by Colonel Benedict Arnold, whose men had made a brutal overland march through the Maine wilderness.
Quebec City was the last major British stronghold in Canada. Its governor, General Guy Carleton, had roughly 1,200 defenders—a patchwork of British regulars, Royal Highland Emigrants, French-Canadian militia, sailors, and civilian volunteers. The Americans had about the same number, but many enlistments expired at midnight on December 31. It was now or never.
The Plan
Montgomery and Arnold devised a two-pronged attack on the Lower Town. Montgomery would lead roughly 300 men from the southwest along the St. Lawrence riverfront, approaching through the narrow passage at Près-de-Ville, at the base of Cape Diamond. Arnold would bring 600 men from the northeast through the suburb of St. Roch, attacking the Sault-au-Matelot barricade. Two feint attacks against the Upper Town walls would distract the garrison. The goal: converge in the Lower Town, then storm upward into the fortified city.
They needed a blizzard for cover. On the night of December 27, one came—but cleared too quickly, and Montgomery called it off. That night, a sergeant from Rhode Island deserted and carried the original plan to the British. Montgomery rewrote it, keeping the same basic structure.
New Year’s Eve, 1775
Clouds fill the sky. Snow begins to fall. This is the signal. Montgomery and Arnold begin moving their forces into position in the darkness.
The feint attacks on the Upper Town begin prematurely. Drums and bells ring across the city. The garrison is alerted. Carleton orders all defenders to their posts.
Two rockets arc into the sky — the signal for the main assault to begin. Arnold's column moves from St. Roch toward the Sault-au-Matelot. Montgomery's column advances along the frozen riverbank toward Près-de-Ville.
Arnold is shot through the left leg early in the advance. He is carried to the rear. Daniel Morgan takes command and breaches the first barricade, pushing into the narrow streets of the Lower Town. His men become trapped between two barricades.
Montgomery's column reaches the barricade at Près-de-Ville. They advance to within 50 yards. Then 30. Captain Barnsfair, commanding the battery, waits. When the Americans are at point-blank range, he gives the order. Canister, grapeshot, and musket fire tear through the column. Montgomery is killed instantly, found on his back with one arm still raised. His two aides are dead beside him. The survivors flee.
With Montgomery dead and Arnold wounded, Morgan's men are surrounded in the Lower Town. Colonel Maclean counterattacks. Morgan is forced to surrender. The battle is over.
The Coffin Connection
John Coffin of Quebec (1729–1808)
John Coffin, third son of William Coffin of Boston, saw the war coming. In 1775 he loaded his wife, eleven children, and household goods onto his schooner Neptuneand sailed for Quebec. He bought land at the Près-de-Ville and began building a distillery—which became a battery when the Americans invaded.
On the morning of January 1, 1776, Coffin kept his guard under arms at the Près-de-Ville, waiting calmly for the assault. At the critical moment, he directed Captain Barnsfair’s fire against Montgomery and his staff. Montgomery fell. The assault collapsed. Contemporary accounts from Sir Guy Carleton and Colonel Maclean credit Coffin’s resolution and watchfulness with saving Quebec—and with it, British North America.
John Coffin is your 1st cousin, 7 times removed. The fork is at Captain Nathaniel Coffin (1671–1721): his son William Coffin (1699) produced the Loyalist branch; his son Benjamin Coffin (1705) is in your direct line. The same Captain Nathaniel fathered these two sons whose lines diverged: one became the patriarch of Loyalist soldiers and the other the patriarch of American reformers, including Lucretia Coffin Mott.
The Land Itself
The Près-de-Ville—the ground John Coffin owned, the ground where he built his distillery-turned-battery, the ground where Montgomery died—sits today in the Lower Town of Old Quebec, at the base of Cape Diamond beneath the Citadel. The street where it happened is literally named Rue de la Barricade. It is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site, one of the most historically preserved neighborhoods in North America.
The family owned the field where the battle was fought.
Why It Mattered
The Battle of Quebec ended any serious American attempt to bring Canada into the Revolution. Arnold maintained a loose siege through the winter, but when 8,000 British reinforcements under General Burgoyne arrived in May 1776, the Americans retreated south. No further invasion of Canada was attempted.
The consequences rippled for centuries. Had Quebec fallen, the French-Canadian population might have joined the rebellion. Canada might have become part of the United States. Instead, the Loyalist Coffins and tens of thousands of other Americans who chose Britain over the Republic settled in the provinces, founding the communities that became modern Canada.
The 8,000-man British army that arrived in Quebec in spring 1776 to relieve the siege was the same force that advanced down Lake Champlain the following year—and ultimately surrendered to the Americans at the Battle of Saratoga in 1777, the turning point of the entire war.
The Key Figures
General Richard Montgomery(1738–1775)
Born in Ireland, Montgomery served as a British officer in the Seven Years’ War before emigrating to New York and joining the Patriot cause. He captured Montreal in November 1775 and was promoted to Major General. He was the first general officer killed in the American Revolution. His body was recovered by the British and given a military funeral. It was returned to New York in 1818.
Benedict Arnold(1741–1801)
Arnold led 1,100 men from Cambridge, Massachusetts through the Maine wilderness—one of the most grueling marches in military history. Only about 600 survived to reach Quebec. He was shot through the left leg during the assault and carried from the field. He maintained the siege through the winter before withdrawing. Arnold was promoted to Brigadier General for his actions. Five years later, he would defect to the British, becoming America’s most infamous traitor.
Governor Guy Carleton(1724–1808)
Carleton served under James Wolfe during the 1759 siege of Quebec and knew firsthand the cost of leaving the city’s defenses. He organized the defense with roughly 1,200 men and chose not to pursue the Americans after the battle, waiting instead for spring reinforcements. He would later serve as Commander-in-Chief of British forces in North America and Governor General of Canada.
Daniel Morgan(1736–1802)
When Arnold was wounded, Morgan took command and breached the first barricade, pushing deep into the Lower Town. Trapped between two barricades with no support after Montgomery’s death, he was forced to surrender. He would later win the Battle of Cowpens in 1781, one of the most decisive American victories of the war.
Today
The battlefield at Près-de-Ville lies within the walls of Old Quebec, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985. The street where Montgomery fell is named Rue de la Barricade. A Parks Canada historical plaque marks the exact location at 67 de la Barricade Street, west of Saint-Pierre Street. The Citadel still stands on the cliffs above.
Quebec City remains the only fortified city north of Mexico with its original walls intact. The Lower Town, where both prongs of the American assault were stopped, is now a neighborhood of stone buildings, winding streets, shops, and restaurants—one of the most visited historic districts in North America.
Read more: The Coffin Dynasty · The Coffins in the Revolution · Lucretia Coffin Mott