Battle of Fort Pitt
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Fort Pitt
was part of a Cree
uprising coinciding with the Métis
revolt that started the North-West Rebellion
in 1885. Cree warriors began attacking Canadian
settlements on April 2. On April 15, they captured Fort Pitt from a detachment of North-West Mounted Police.
refused to negotiate with its disaffected citizens. While the Métis under Louis Riel
declared a provisional government
and mobilized their forces, Cree chief Big Bear
was not planning any militarization or violence toward the Canadian settlers or government. Rather, he had tried to unify the Cree into a political confederacy powerful enough to oppose the marginalization of native people in Canadian society and renegotiate unjust land treaties imposed on Saskatchewan
natives in the 1860s.
This nominally peaceful disposition was shattered in late March by news of the Métis victory over government forces at Duck Lake
. Support for Riel was strong among native peoples. On April 2, Big Bear's warriors attacked the town of Frog Lake
, killing nine civilians. Big Bear, against his wishes, was drawn into the rebellion.
Similar attacks continued, with Cree raiding parties pillaging the towns of Saddle Lake, Beaver Lake, Beaverhill Lake, Bear Hills, and Lac St. Anne in neighboring Alberta
. These events prompted the mobilization of an Alberta field force under Thomas Bland Strange
. The Cree would later defeat the Albertans at the Battle of Frenchman's Butte
.
) capitulated and agreed to negotiate with the attackers. Big Bear released the remaining police officers but kept the townspeople as hostages and destroyed the fort. Six days later, Inspector Dickens and his men reached safety at Battleford.
Fort Pitt, the scene of the Battle of Fort Pitt, is a Provincial Park and National Historic site where a National Historic Sites and Monuments plaque designates where Treaty six was signed.
Fort Pitt, Saskatchewan
Fort Pitt is a fort built in 1830 by the Hudson's Bay Company and was a trading post on the North Saskatchewan River in Canada. It was built by Chief Factor John Rowand, previously of Fort Edmonton, in order to trade for bison hides, meat and pemmican...
was part of a Cree
Cree
The Cree are one of the largest groups of First Nations / Native Americans in North America, with 200,000 members living in Canada. In Canada, the major proportion of Cree live north and west of Lake Superior, in Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories, although...
uprising coinciding with the Métis
Métis people (Canada)
The Métis are one of the Aboriginal peoples in Canada who trace their descent to mixed First Nations parentage. The term was historically a catch-all describing the offspring of any such union, but within generations the culture syncretised into what is today a distinct aboriginal group, with...
revolt that started the North-West Rebellion
North-West Rebellion
The North-West Rebellion of 1885 was a brief and unsuccessful uprising by the Métis people of the District of Saskatchewan under Louis Riel against the Dominion of Canada...
in 1885. Cree warriors began attacking Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
settlements on April 2. On April 15, they captured Fort Pitt from a detachment of North-West Mounted Police.
Background
In the Canadian North-West, a period of escalating unrest immediately preceded the rebellion as OttawaOttawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
refused to negotiate with its disaffected citizens. While the Métis under Louis Riel
Louis Riel
Louis David Riel was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political and spiritual leader of the Métis people of the Canadian prairies. He led two resistance movements against the Canadian government and its first post-Confederation Prime Minister, Sir John A....
declared a provisional government
Provisional government
A provisional government is an emergency or interim government set up when a political void has been created by the collapse of a very large government. The early provisional governments were created to prepare for the return of royal rule...
and mobilized their forces, Cree chief Big Bear
Big Bear
Big Bear or Mistahi-maskwa was a Cree leader notable for his involvement in the North-West Rebellion and his subsequent imprisonment.-Early life and leadership:...
was not planning any militarization or violence toward the Canadian settlers or government. Rather, he had tried to unify the Cree into a political confederacy powerful enough to oppose the marginalization of native people in Canadian society and renegotiate unjust land treaties imposed on Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
natives in the 1860s.
This nominally peaceful disposition was shattered in late March by news of the Métis victory over government forces at Duck Lake
Battle of Duck Lake
The Battle of Duck Lake was a skirmish between Métis soldiers of the Provisional Government of Saskatchewan and Canadian government forces that signalled the beginning of the North-West Rebellion.-Prelude:...
. Support for Riel was strong among native peoples. On April 2, Big Bear's warriors attacked the town of Frog Lake
Frog Lake Massacre
The Frog Lake Massacre was a Cree uprising during the North-West Rebellion in western Canada. Led by Wandering Spirit, young Cree warriors attacked the village of Frog Lake, North-West Territories on 2 April 1885, where they killed nine settlers.- Causes :Angered by what seemed to be unfair...
, killing nine civilians. Big Bear, against his wishes, was drawn into the rebellion.
Similar attacks continued, with Cree raiding parties pillaging the towns of Saddle Lake, Beaver Lake, Beaverhill Lake, Bear Hills, and Lac St. Anne in neighboring Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
. These events prompted the mobilization of an Alberta field force under Thomas Bland Strange
Thomas Bland Strange
Thomas Bland Strange , known as 'Gunner Jingo', was a British soldier noted for his service with the Canadian militia during the North-West Rebellion of 1885. Strange was a retired Major-General at the time of the rebellion, and was raising cavalry horses near modern Calgary, Alberta...
. The Cree would later defeat the Albertans at the Battle of Frenchman's Butte
Battle of Frenchman's Butte
The Battle of Frenchman's Butte, fought on May 28, 1885, occurred when a force of Cree, dug in on a hillside near Frenchman's Butte, was unsuccessfully attacked by the Alberta Field Force.-Background:...
.
Battle
On April 15, 200 Cree warriors descended on Fort Pitt. They intercepted a police scouting party, killing a constable, wounding another, and captured a third. Surrounded and outnumbered, garrison commander Francis Dickens (son of famed novelist Charles DickensCharles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
) capitulated and agreed to negotiate with the attackers. Big Bear released the remaining police officers but kept the townspeople as hostages and destroyed the fort. Six days later, Inspector Dickens and his men reached safety at Battleford.
Legacy
In the spring of 2008, Tourism, Parks, Culture and Sport Minister Christine Tell proclaimed in Duck lake, that "the 125th commemoration, in 2010, of the 1885 Northwest Resistance is an excellent opportunity to tell the story of the prairie Métis and First Nations peoples' struggle with Government forces and how it has shaped Canada today."Fort Pitt, the scene of the Battle of Fort Pitt, is a Provincial Park and National Historic site where a National Historic Sites and Monuments plaque designates where Treaty six was signed.