Français  Contact Us  Help  Search  Canada Site Volume 1 (1000–1754) Volume 2 (1755-1871) Volume 3 (1872–2000) CHAPTER 1 The Conquest CHAPTER 2 The Revolt of Pontiac and the American Invasion CHAPTER 3 The Coveted Pacific Coast CHAPTER 4 The Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812 CHAPTER 5 Demobilization A Time For Defence Cuts The American Threat The Great Fortifications Huge Expenses! The Great Lakes - Neutral Territory Annual Review of the Upper Canadian Militia The Militia of Lower Canada Demobilization of the French-Canadian Militia Political Confrontation and Secret Societies The 1837 Lower Canada Rebellion Saint-Denis and Saint-Charles Saint-Eustache The Horrors of War The Upper Canada Rebellion New Preparations Start of the 1838 Rebellions Napierville The Invasion of Upper Canada The Legacy of the Rebellions The Aroostook War Canadian Politics and British Withdrawal Reorganization of the Militia The 1855 Volunteers In the Maritimes CHAPTER 6 The Royal Navy, Ruler of the Seas CHAPTER 7 A Decade of Turbulence APPENDIX A The British Armed Forces APPENDIX B Daily Life of Soldiers and Officers APPENDIX C Uniforms and Arms APPENDIX D Reference      CHAPTER 5 Demobilization           New Preparations ( 2 pages )           1 2      Hasty Military Build Up in Canada                Volunteers, Québec Light Infantry, 1837-1838. (Click image to enlarge) In Canada, as in London, the authorities were shaken by these two insurrections.  With navigation on the St. Lawrence blocked by ice when they broke out, the 34th, 43rd and 85th regiments stationed in New Brunswick were sent to Quebec City through the woods in the middle of winter.  But as soon as navigation became possible again, ships full of British soldiers arrived at Quebec.  In mid-1838 there were more than 10,000 British soldiers in garrison in the two colonies, four times the number the previous year.  But the increase was more spectacular still in the corps of volunteers created and raised in Canada itself.  Approximately 6,200 volunteers, on foot and mounted, were mobilized for six months of service in Lower Canada, and some 3,500 volunteers throughout Upper Canada had been equipped with weapons.           Additional Images           Click image to enlarge      1 2   Last Updated: 2004-06-20 Important Notices