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“Le soulèvement de Châteauguay”

Watercolor representing 3 distinct scenes. The first one, in sepia color, illustrates patriots transporting, in a cart, British dignitaries taken prisoner. The second, in shades of blue, depicts patriots ready for an attack. And the third, in black and white, shows the patriots as they pass through Kahnawake in an attempt to take the arms depot.

Source: Collection Maison LePailleur

Artist: Stéphane Poirier

Towards the end of the afternoon on November 3, 1834, two brigades of patriots headed up and down the Châteauguay River. Their goal was to obtain weapons and ammunition while neutralizing the Tories (supporters of a British conservative political philosophy): eighteen were taken prisoner by the Châteauguay patriots.

The next morning, 150 patriots marched towards Sault Saint-Louis (Kahnawake) under the orders of their leaders Henry Newcomb, François-Maurice LePailleur, Joseph Duquet, Joseph-Narcisse Cardinal and the notary Desmarais. They went to get the firearms they so badly needed, hoping that they would be given to them without any major problems.

Unfortunately for the patriots, events did not go as they planned. They were quickly arrested and taken to the Pieds-du-Courant prison in Montréal.