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November 11, 1813 In late December 1944 three German armies launched a major offensive against a single US army in bad winter weather. Despite their numbers and deep advance the German army, made up mostly of new recruits, was unable to achieve a victory even against small unit of determined American defenders. In the end they would up right back at the starting line having achieved nothing of importance. In 1813 that battle was Crysler's farm . . . but it was 8,000 untrained American troops that would find themselves back at the starting line with nothing to show for their efforts after facing 900 determined British. Things started on the morning of the 10 when the American army was at an eight mile long rapid in the St. Lawrence and they learned that the British had collected near the rapids, constructed a block-house, and were prepared to attack. Gen. Brown was dispatched dislodge them, and at noon the American gunboats open fire on the blockhouse. At the same time the British appeared at the army's rear, and commenced firing from the Royal Navy's gunboats. The American boats were unable to maneuver, so the guns were landed and placed in a battery. Nobody's fire proved very effective in the heavy rain. On the morning of November 11, still in a freezing rain, the battle began with confused reports with forces sighted at several locations. At John Crysler's Farm (the farm of an active British militia captain), the American army ran into the defending British on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River. Wilkinson was ill and heavily drugged, Morgan Lewis, was missing. As a result, command fell to John Parker Boyd. Boyd planned to use the brigade of Robert Swartwout to attack the British flank while Leonard Covington brigade advanced along the river. The attack fell apart almost at once, Swartwout's brigade was to advance around the flank of the British though a wooded area and drive them south towards the river. Swartwout's brigade was soon hit by sharpshooters and emerged from the woods not on the flank or behind the British but directly to their front standing knee deep in mud. This put the Americans directly under the fire of British artillery and from British gunboats on the river. The brigade attempted to move from column into line, but the units had been trained under different drill manuals and their inexperienced officers where at a lost to issue appropriate orders to get their units organized. In the end the Americans simply withdrew back to the woods. The River Attack Although it was supposed to be a coordinated attack, Covington's brigade started to move forward only after Swartwout's brigade had withdrawn into the woods. Swollen creeks emptying into the river slowed down the advance and made perfect targets for the British. Covington, leading his men on foot from the front was mortally wounded in one of the first volleys. Firing, however, continued for some time until the Americans and British were almost out of ammunition. That this point several units of Canadian Fensibles made a bayonet charge against the American line and the entire America line fell back across the rain filled creeks. Only now, at the end of the battle, did the America artillery deploy . . . as their infantry was withdrawing. The entire British force now directed its advance at the American artillery, but the 2nd US Dragoons arrived and in a series of charges bought sufficient time for all but one of guns to be withdrawn. This was the only successful move the American army achieved in the battle.
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