Montgomery, Richard

MONTGOMERY, RICHARD. (1738–1775). Continental general. Ireland and New York. Richard Montgomery was born in Swords, Ireland, on 2 December 1738. The son of an Irish member of Parliament, he became an ensign in the Seventeenth Foot in 1756. Going to Canada the next year (1757), he took part in the siege of Louisburg (1758), was promoted to lieutenant, and served under Jeffery Amherst in the successful operations against Ticonderoga, Crown Point, and Montreal. Meanwhile, he became regimental adjutant in 1760. In the West Indies he was at the capture of Martinique and Havana (1762), becoming a captain by the end of those actions. Returning to Great Britain, he became a friend of Edmund Burke and Charles James Fox, two prominent Whig politicians of the time, and was greatly influenced by their liberal views. Disgusted with the British patronage system and his failure to advance further in the army, he sold his commission on 6 April 1772 and emigrated to America, settling on a 67-acre farm he had bought at Kings Bridge, New York. Having married Janet Livingston, the daughter of Robert R. Livingston, Montgomery became quickly involved in American politics and was elected a delegate to New York's first provincial congress in May 1775. He accepted a commission as Continental brigadier general on 22 June 1775.

Leaving his young wife and their new home near Rhinebeck (her estate), Montgomery went north to become second in command to General Philip Schuyler in the invasion of Canada in 1775 and 1776. With Schuyler soon evacuated for illness, Montgomery showed real military ability in leading an offensive into Canada, despite the poor quality of troops and subordinate leaders at his disposal and the logistical problems he faced. After taking St. Johns on 5 September-2 November 1775, and Montreal shortly afterwards, he pushed on to make the unsuccessful attack on Quebec (31 December-1 January 1776). He was killed in the latter action, never knowing that Congress had made him a major general on 9 December 1775. In death, Montgomery became a hero and martyr to the cause of American independence.

SEE ALSO Canada Invasion; Quebec (Canada Invasion); St. John's, Canada (5 September-2 November 1775).

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Shelton, Hal T. General Richard Montgomery and the American Revolution. New York: New York University Press, 1994.

                                revised by Michael Bellesiles