not much given to caution, interpreted this re-
sponse as an unequivocal “yes.”
On February 22, 1813, Prevost departed
Prescott, and Macdonnell drew up his force
for the attack. He assembled 800 men, regu-
lars, and militia and for several days drilled
them on the ice in full view of the American
garrison. That morning, the men were drilled
as always—then Macdonnell led them on a
sudden dash across the frozen river. Forsyth
quickly overcame his surprise and engaged a
smaller column of 300 men under Capt. John
Jenkins of the Glengarry Fencibles. This gal-
lant officer made repeated charges against
the riflemen, only to be blasted back with
heavy losses and wounds to both arms. Mac-
donnell, meanwhile, led a larger column of
500 men directly against the town, where he
scattered the militia force defending it. The
victorious British then turned toward
Forsyth’s riflemen in the fort, attempting to
cut off their retreat. Forsyth boldly scoffed at
Macdonnell’s summons to surrender and,
after more fighting, cut his way out to free-
dom. But through this bold stroke, Macdon-
nell had resecured British communications
along the St. Lawrence River. Forsyth’s depar-
ture was also welcomed by the residents of
Ogdensburg who, being Federalists, opposed
war with England and resumed open trading
with the enemy. Macdonnell, who had been
wounded, subsequently received a promotion
to lieutenant colonel.
Little transpired in the St. Lawrence region
until the fall of 1813, when a large force of
4,000 men under Gen. Wade Hampton ad-
vanced up the Champlain Valley in an attempt
to attack Montreal. Macdonnell at that time
was at Kingston commanding the First Light
Infantry Battalion, an ad hoc formation pulled
together from several companies of militia
battalions. Prevost, apprised of Hampton’s in-
tentions, directed Macdonnell to sail his bat-
talion down the St. Lawrence River to the
vicinity of Chateauguay and reinforce Lt. Col.
Charles-Michel d’Irumberry de Salaberry.
Macdonnell performed his task with consider-
able speed, covering 200 miles in less than
three days without losing a man, and arrived
just as the Americans were about to attack on
October 26, 1813. Once deployed, he was as-
signed to protect the rear and flank of the
British position. In the course of the day an
American flanking force of 1,000 men under
Col. Robert Purdy attempted to turn Sal-
aberry’s position in the woods, but the deter-
mined stand by several of Macdonnell’s com-
panies turned him back. He otherwise was
not closely engaged in the comedy of errors
that followed, for after several hours of com-
bat, neither side lost more than 20 men. His
presence was a great psychological boost to
Salaberry’s defenders, however. Hampton
subsequently withdrew back to his base in
New York, ending another major threat to
British communications. Macdonnell re-
mained as the St. Lawrence’s guardian for the
rest of the war, and in the fall of 1814 he also
assumed responsibilities as inspecting field
officer of the militia. In this capacity he had a
direct role in the training and equipping of
soldiers from the Stormont, Glengarry, and
Cornwall districts. Immediately after the
peace he performed similar duties at Niagara,
York, and Kingston, before receiving a leave
of absence in 1816.
Macdonnell returned to England in 1816,
where he married and settled down. He con-
tinued as an officer of his old unit, and in 1821
he arranged a transfer to the 79th Regiment.
However, he grew dissatisfied by the govern-
ment’s lack of recognition for his wartime ser-
vice, and he made repeated appeals for finan-
cial compensation to enhance his status. With
age he also began circulating widely exagger-
ated claims about his war experience, insist-
ing that the victory at Ogdensburg was of 100
times more political significance to England
than Nelson’s victory at Trafalgar! Moreover,
he boasted to have originated the idea for the
Rideau Canal at the suggestion of the late
Governor-General Prevost, who had promised
him a large financial reward for doing so.
“Red George” became regarded as little more
than a quixotic braggart by the time he died at
Wardour Castle, Wiltshire, on May 16, 1870.MACDONNELL, GEORGE