章 15: Consolidating Occupied Quebec
When General Kim and his men marched into the city of Montreal, they weren't greeted with fanfare and celebration. Instead, they were welcomed to the sight of nervous French Canadians, with many of them whispering and pointing to the marching soldiers of the Continental Army as they took control of one of the largest cities in Quebec. The city was not defended, and the three regiments under General Kim's command faced no resistance as they occupied Montreal on the morning of September 20th. It seemed as though Guy Carleton, the leader of the British forces in Quebec, chose to evacuate the city like in the other history due to the lack of preparations and the rapid collapse of the defenses at Fort St. Johns. While the general was a bit disappointed at the British retreat, mainly since Quebec City was some distance away in the north, the occupation of Montreal was a huge morale victory. With the victory over the British at St. Johns and the occupation of Montreal, the Continental Army managed to achieve some legitimacy in the eyes of the locals.
Now was the time to rest his tired forces, spread propaganda, and establish a fair and noticeable government in Montreal to turn the French Canadians against the British and establish a patriot stronghold in the north.
The Native American cavalry company, along with two dozen marines on horseback (seized after the battle of Fort St. Johns within the fort itself), was on its way to Fort Ticonderoga with the captured British soldiers. They were ordered to deliver the prisoners to the garrison at the fort and head back up to Montreal to prepare for another offensive. During that time, General Kim would busy himself with administrative work and would prepare his men for the inevitable march to Quebec City.
For the next five days, General Kim tasked his soldiers to establish defenses around Montreal and assist with rebuilding and humanitarian efforts to help the locals. While the British did not damage the city much, they did ransack stores and any forms of ammunition to deny the advancing Continental Army supplies. General Kim also ensured to send scouts out to the north to watch for any potential British offensives and sent a detachment to the nearby countrysides to spread the word of Montreal's capture and the new government set up in Montreal.
For good measures, General Kim made a series of declarations as the temporary military governor of Quebec (until General Putnam, who was in Boston, arrived in Montreal to take on the role of military governor). Firstly, he declared that the French Canadians rights, beliefs, language, and culture be respected. Catholics were allowed to practice their religion freely, and the clergy was free to continue their practices and ways of life. Any soldiers of the Continental Army and any individuals from the colonies were to obey local laws and traditions. Secondly, he assured that the province would be free from any taxes and tariffs until 1785, and no property or goods of any Quebecois would be seized by force. This was a show of goodwill and guarantee to the locals that the Continental Army would not forcefully take their goods or possessions during their campaign. Thirdly, he proclaimed that no French Canadians would be forcefully drafted or recruited into the Continental Army. Instead, the French Canadians were offered a place in the Continental Army as equals to any other soldiers, with the same pay, supplies, and training. With this point, he made sure to point out that Governor Carleton was forcefully recruiting men into local militias to defend Quebec City and harassing locals to ensure British victory. Finally, General Kim declared that the people of Quebec were guaranteed the right to self-determination and were given a formal offer to elect a representative to participate in the Continental Congress once Quebec City was seized and liberated. While he was unsure how the Quebecois would respond to such an offer, he didn't want to force the people of Quebec to accept rule from the Continental Congress. They would need to decide how to proceed on their own, and hopefully, with his gestures of goodwill, they would choose to at least ally with Congress in their struggle against the British. The declarations were printed through local presses and machines and spread through the city and the surrounding countryside.
To say the French Canadians were suspicious was an understatement. While some optimists celebrated their "liberation," most of the population remained cautious of the Continental Army. Even after several days had passed and with the declarations being followed by the soldiers of the Continental Army, the populace remained suspicious of the Continental Army. While General Kim had offered much to the locals, the Quebecois were decently well off under the British (as General Kim knew the Quebec Act went a long way to win British support amongst the locals). Regardless, General Kim continued and began actively meeting with local leaders through a translator and making sure he and his regiments were seen throughout the city. Mainly to show the locals that the Continental Army was not an occupying force but a liberating force.
After five days had passed, with small steps of progress being made, Major Knowlton marched into Montreal with his Recon Company. And to the surprise of General Kim, he was also accompanied by hundreds of French Canadians and additional recruits from the colonies, along with loads of supplies and munitions. There were three leaders of the additional forces: (self-proclaimed) Colonel Ethan Allen, James Livingston, and Major John Brown. Colonel Allen had entered Quebec on his own upon hearing of General Kim's advance and recruited locals for the patriot cause. James Livingston, a grain merchant from New York living in Quebec at the time of the invasion, procured supplies. Major Brown was sent from Fort Ticonderoga with three hundred militiamen from the Massachusetts militia to help with the invasion of Quebec upon Colonel Prescott's request.
While the main forces of General Kim's army were attacking Fort St. Johns, Colonel Allen, along with Major Brown and Livingston, had managed to seize the nearby Fort Chambly and take the supplies within. The brainchild of the plan was Major Brown, who saw that the British forces were distracted with the siege of Fort St. Johns and ordered an assault onto the undermanned Fort Chambly and forced the defenders to surrender after a short siege and battle. The men were welcomed wholeheartedly by General Kim, explained the situation of the current campaign and administrative affairs, and were tasked with assisting the other regiments. He guaranteed to the two hundred French Canadian volunteers (who were placed as the "First Canadian Regiment," another Extra Continental Regiment) and the Massachusetts militiamen that they would be just as well as the other soldiers for their service.
General Kim allowed the Marine Recon Company to rest within the city for several days before tasking with them to spread the word up north and scout out Quebec City's defenses with great caution, as he knew the city was the last stronghold of the British in the Quebec region. The French Canadian volunteers were tasked with helping mend the unease relationship between the Continental Army and the locals, serving as translators and negotiators between the two parties. Allen was officially granted a lieutenant colonel rank to lead the newly established Canadian regiment. At the same time, Major John Brown was designated as the official commanding officer of the "1st Massachusetts Militia Regiment." Livingston was the official liaison between the colonial forces and the Quebecois, who often taught General Kim about the local culture and helped him with negotiations.
During this time, General Kim also contacted Christophe Pelissier, who owned an ironworks in Trois-Rivières, a town halfway between Montreal and Quebec City. A radical and a firm believer of liberty, Pelissier was already known to General Kim, who studied about the Invasion of Quebec in the other history. It was also a reason why General Kim planned to hold any elections after the capture of Quebec City, as the locals wanted security in the face of British military might. Regardless, the two exchanged pleasantries, and General Kim formally negotiated to utilize Pelissier's ironworks to supply his regiments with ammunition and cannonballs. Additionally, the general assured Pelissier that he and his army were in Quebec to help bring liberty to the province and protect them from "British imperialism," with elections promised after Quebec City was formally secured. Pelissier often met with General Kim and was also a crucial proponent in promoting cooperation between the colonial forces and locals.
After eighteen days had passed after the occupation of Montreal, both General Putnam and the cavalry detachment sent to Fort Ticonderoga returned. The general and his militiamen from Connecuitcut were encountered by the marine cavalry company, who were warned of General Putnam's arrival and escorted the group to Montreal. Additionally, another group of one hundred Native American warriors joined with the group, several from local villages and others sent from the Iroquois Confederacy for the invasion. It was at this time that General Kim received two crucial pieces of information. The first was that the Iroquois, excluding the Mohawks and the Onondaga, had invaded Quebec through Niagara and moved westward to pressure the British in the area. The second was that General Washington, along with 15,000 men of the Continental Army, successfully managed to force the defenders of Fort Cumberland (which was only manned by six hundred members of British regulars and local militiamen) to surrender after two weeks and was moving to cut off the British forces in Fort Edward. He was also marching the central core of the army to Fort Sackville, the last bastion before the city of Halifax.
The British were being pressured from all sides, and now was the time to strike.
General Putnam and his militiamen, all three hundred of them, were tasked with guarding Montreal while the other regiments of the Continental Army began their trek towards Quebec City. General Kim was reassured by General Putnam's promises of a light-handed approach to handling affairs with French Canadians and promises to abide by the Asian officer's previous declarations, which were already being supported by a number of locals. The general also reminded his senior that he needed to win the hearts of the lower classes, the merchants, and the clergy to earn the loyalty of the Queboics. By the time General Kim left, the locals were cautiously accepting of their new administrators.
On October 10th, nearly a whole month after the invasion of Quebec began, General Kim began his march to the final British stronghold in Quebec. With him were 600 marines (a small detachment was left behind to protect Montreal), 800 men of the 1st Pennsylvania Regiment, 700 men of the 3rd Connecticut Regiment, 250 warriors of the "Marine Cavalry Company," 300 members of the 1st Canadian Regiment, and 300 men of the 1st Massachusetts Militia Regiment (for a total of 2,950 total men). Supporting these men were plenty of munition and supplies bought from locals and seized from the British forts, twelve howitzers, four twelve-pound cannons, and a firm conviction to seize the city before winter set in.
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