Battle of The Cedars

The Battle of The Cedars in May 1776 was a British and Native American operation that captured a significant American garrison on the St. Lawrence River and was followed by a controversy over the treatment of prisoners. American Major Isaac Butterfield commanded about 390 men at The Cedars, a post on the St. Lawrence above Montreal. British Captain Henry Forster arrived with about 140 British soldiers and a large force of Native American warriors.

Butterfield surrendered his garrison after minimal resistance — a decision that infuriated American commanders and led to his court-martial. A relief column of about 140 men under Major Henry Sherburne was also captured in an ambush. The captured Americans were at first mistreated by some of the Native American warriors, prompting an angry exchange between American and British commanders about the treatment of prisoners.

Benedict Arnold marched with a relief force and threatened retaliation if the prisoners were not properly treated. A prisoner exchange was eventually negotiated, but the incident poisoned relations further between Americans and the British command in Canada. The Cedars engagement was part of the collapse of the American Canadian campaign in the spring of 1776.