Red Sash Home Guard (Canadian Militia): Difference between revisions

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{{Infobox military unit

| unit_name = Red Sash Home Guard~~<br>Écharpes Rouges~~

| unit_name = Red Sash Home Guard

| native_name = {{lang|fr|Écharpes Rouges}}

| image = The 40 Red Sashes in june 1870.jpg

| caption = Militiamen of the Red Sashes ~~(Écharpes Rouges)~~ in June 1870.

| caption = Militiamen of the Red Sashes in June 1870.

| dates = June 20, ~~1868 – June~~ 1870

| dates = June 20, 1870

| country = {{flagcountry|Canada|1868}}

| allegiance = {{flagcountry|Canada|1868}}

| branch = [[Canadian Militia]]

| type = [[Militia]]

| size = 140 (initially 40)

| nickname = Red Sashes (Écharpes Rouges)

| equipment = [[Ballard Rifle]]~~<br>~~[[Ball Carbine|Lamson & Ball Carbine]]

| equipment = [[Ballard Rifle]][[Ball Carbine|Lamson & Ball Carbine]]

| battles = *[[Fenian Raids]]

**[[Battle of Eccles Hill]]

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| commander1_label = [[Captain]]

}}

The ”’Red Sash Home Guard”’, also called the ”’Missisquoi Home Guard”’, the ”’Red Sash Guard”’, ”’Dunham’s Red Sashes,”’ or simply ”’the Red Sashes”’ ([[French ~~language~~|~~French]]:~~ Écharpes Rouges) were a [[home guard]] and [[Canadian]] [[militia]] from [[Dunham, Quebec]] which fought at the [[Battle of Eccles Hill]] during the [[Fenian raids~~|Fenian Raids~~]] on May 25, 1870.

The ”’Red Sash Home Guard”’, also called the ”’Missisquoi Home Guard”’, the ”’Red Sash Guard”’, ”’Dunham’s Red Sashes,”’ or simply ”’the Red Sashes”’ (French |Écharpes Rouges) were a [[home guard]] and [[Canadian]] [[militia]] from [[Dunham, Quebec]] which fought at the [[Battle of Eccles Hill]] during the [[Fenian raids]] on May 25, 1870.

== History ==

[[File:Asa Westover.jpg|thumb|Asa Westover, Captain of the Missisquoi Home Guards. June 18, 1870.]]

[[File:Canadian Homeguard during 1870 Fenian Raid.jpg|thumb|Canadian Home-Guard defending against Fenians in 1870. William Ten Eyck (left) and Asa Westover (right).]]

The [[Fenian raids~~|Fenian Raids~~]], first beginning in 1866, left many ~~[[Canadian]] citizens~~ living on the border with the [[United States]] feeling uneasy and fearful of the possibility of a complete invasion and takeover by the [[Fenian Brotherhood]]. In particular the citizens of [[Brome-Missisquoi Regional County Municipality|Brome-Missisquoi]] had many of their homes burned in June 7-10,1866 by Fenians who ransacked and ~~vadalized~~ farmsteads in southern [[Missisquoi County, Quebec]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-09-19 |title=L’Armée de la République d’Irlande (I.R.A ) dans Brome-Missisquoi en juin 1866 |url=https://tourismebrome-missisquoi.ca/blogue/larmee-de-la-republique-dirlande-i-r-a-dans-brome-missisquoi-en-juin-1866/ |access-date=2025-09-08 |website=Brome-Missisquoi |language=fr-FR}}</ref><ref name=”:0″>{{Cite web |last=Association |first=National Rifle |title=An Official Journal Of The NRA {{!}} Defending Canadian Homes: The Missisquoi ‘Red Sashes’ Of 1870 |url=https://www.americanrifleman.org/content/defending-canadian-homes-the-missisquoi-red-sashes-of-1870/ |access-date=2025-09-08 |website=An Official Journal Of The NRA |language=en}}</ref> To put a stop to a second Fenian invasion of the county citizens in [[Dunham, Quebec]] and the surrounding areas created a [[militia]] under the leadership of local farmer Asa Westover Jr. (~~1817-1902~~) alongside James Gibbins Pell (~~1825-1913~~) and Andrew Ten Eyck (~~1820-1898~~), all of Dunham.<ref name=”:0″ /> ~~Due to~~ the ~~fact that the~~ government ~~of [[Ottawa]]~~ refused to arm Westover’s militia with the newly-adopted [[Snider–Enfield]] rifle chambered in [[.577 Snider]], Westover resorted to privately purchasing rifles for the militia.<ref name=”:0″ /> Westover chose to arm the militia entirely with the [[Ballard Rifle]], a single shot rifle with a [[falling-block action]].<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrG6iRy5H7w |title=The Mk III Snider and the Ballard Rifle: The Battle of Eccles Hill -PART ONE- |date=2023-01-13 |last=britishmuzzleloaders |access-date=2025-09-08 |via=YouTube}}</ref> 40 Ballard rifles were purchased in [[Massachusetts]] and were chambered in [[.44 caliber]] with 30“ barrels.<ref name=”:0″ /> Westover’s personal Ballard rifle is on display at the Lac-Brome Museum in [[Brome Lake, Quebec]].

The [[Fenian raids]], first beginning in 1866, left many living on the border with the United States feeling uneasy and fearful of the possibility of a complete invasion and takeover by the [[Fenian Brotherhood]]. In particular the citizens of [[Brome-Missisquoi Regional County Municipality|Brome-Missisquoi]] had many of their homes burned in June 7-10,1866 by Fenians who ransacked and farmsteads in southern [[Missisquoi County, Quebec]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-09-19 |title=L’Armée de la République d’Irlande (I.R.A ) dans Brome-Missisquoi en juin 1866 |url=https://tourismebrome-missisquoi.ca/blogue/larmee-de-la-republique-dirlande-i-r-a-dans-brome-missisquoi-en-juin-1866/ |access-date=2025-09-08 |website=Brome-Missisquoi |language=fr-FR}}</ref><ref name=”:0″>{{Cite web |last=Association |first=National Rifle |title=An Official Journal Of The NRA {{!}} Defending Canadian Homes: The Missisquoi ‘Red Sashes’ Of 1870 |url=https://www.americanrifleman.org/content/defending-canadian-homes-the-missisquoi-red-sashes-of-1870/ |access-date=2025-09-08 |website=An Official Journal Of The NRA |language=en}}</ref> To put a stop to a second Fenian invasion of the county citizens in [[Dunham, Quebec]] and the surrounding areas created a [[militia]] under the leadership of local farmer Asa Westover Jr. () alongside James Gibbins Pell () and Andrew Ten Eyck (), all of Dunham.<ref name=”:0″ /> the government refused to arm Westover’s militia with the newly-adopted [[Snider–Enfield]] rifle chambered in [[.577 Snider]], Westover resorted to privately purchasing rifles for the militia.<ref name=”:0″ /> Westover chose to arm the militia entirely with the [[Ballard Rifle]], a singleshot rifle with a [[falling-block action]].<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrG6iRy5H7w |title=The Mk III Snider and the Ballard Rifle: The Battle of Eccles Hill -PART ONE- |date=2023-01-13 |last=britishmuzzleloaders |access-date=2025-09-08 |via=YouTube}}</ref> 40 Ballard rifles were purchased in [[Massachusetts]] and were chambered in [[.44 caliber]] with 30 barrels.<ref name=”:0″ /> Westover’s personal Ballard rifle is on display at the Lac-Brome Museum in [[Brome Lake, Quebec]].

In contrast to most units of the [[Canadian Militia]] Westover’s Red Sash militia continually met over the next several years to [[Military exercise|drill]] and conduct [[marksmanship]] training, something the regular Canadian militia did not do which greatly harmed them at the [[Battle of Ridgeway]].<ref name=”:0″ /> The militia had no official uniform, as the militia’s name implies, the only “uniform” the militia had was a [[red]] [[sash]] worn by the militiamen as a form of [[combat identification]].<ref name=”:0″ /><ref name=”:1″>{{Cite web |date=2019-09-19 |title=Dunham’s Red Sashes: A “home” guard confronts the IRA |url=https://tourismebrome-missisquoi.ca/en/blogue/dunhams-red-sashes-a-home-guard-confronts-the-ira/ |access-date=2025-09-08 |website=Brome-Missisquoi |language=en-US}}</ref>

In contrast to most units of the [[Canadian Militia]] Westover’s Red Sash militia continually met over the next several years to [[Military exercise|drill]] and conduct [[marksmanship]] training, something the regular Canadian militia did not do which greatly harmed them at the [[Battle of Ridgeway]].<ref name=”:0″ /> The militia had no official uniform, as the militia’s name implies, the only “uniform” the militia had was a red [[sash]] worn by the militiamen as a form of [[combat identification]].<ref name=”:0″ /><ref name=”:1″>{{Cite web |date=2019-09-19 |title=Dunham’s Red Sashes: A “home” guard confronts the IRA |url=https://tourismebrome-missisquoi.ca/en/blogue/dunhams-red-sashes-a-home-guard-confronts-the-ira/ |access-date=2025-09-08 |website=Brome-Missisquoi |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Role in the Battle of Eccles Hill ==

[[File:Eccles Hill, 1870, Red Sashes with Fenian Cannon.jpg|thumb|Red Sashes with a Fenian cannon at Eccles Hill, 1870. Front row: Asa Westover, Andrew Ten Eyck, Arthur Gilmour, Charles Galer and J. G. Pell. Back row:James Westover and Allen Hogaboon. (Missisquoi Historical Society Collections)]]

[[File:Eccles Hill, 1870, Border Volunteers with Fenian slaid.jpg|thumb|Border Volunteers (2 officers and a corporal) stand over a Fenian slain during the Battle of Eccles Hill, 1870. Courtesy of the Missisquoi Historical Society Collections.]]

[[File:Eccles Hill, 1870, Border Volunteers with Fenian slaid.jpg|thumb|Border Volunteers ( officers and a corporal) stand over a Fenian slain during the Battle of Eccles Hill, 1870. Courtesy of the Missisquoi Historical Society Collections.]]

On the morning of May 25, 1870, 37 of Westover’s Red Sashes and 21 volunteer soldiers from the 60th Missisquoi Battalion in Dunham, hid ~~out~~ at Eccles Hill to await the Fenians.<ref name=”:2″>{{Cite web |title=War at the Border – Canada’s History |url=https://www.canadashistory.ca/explore/military-war/war-at-the-border |access-date=2025-09-08 |website=www.canadashistory.ca |language=en}}</ref> The Red Sashes were the first Canadians to be ready for battle on the road from [[St. Albans (city), Vermont]]. Around 11:30 in the morning the first Fenian units had arrived from Vermont in the vicinity of Eccles Hill. The Red Sashes [[~~Ambush|ambushed~~]] the Fenians with intense fire from their marksmanship training, more being wounded than killed. John Rowe was the only Irish soldier killed on the Canadian side of the border during the ensuing battle.<ref name=”:1″ /> As the battle continued more of the Red Sash militia turned up to the fight, some being armed with the Lamson and Ball repeating carbine.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Smith-Christmas, Kenneth L., and Ross Jones. |date=Spring 2020 |title=The Fenian Needham Conversion Rifle : A Tangible Piece of Irish, American, and Canadian History |url=http://military-historians.org/journal/MCH_Vol72_1.pdf |journal=Military Collector & Historian |volume=72 |issue=1 |pages=71–82 }}</ref> The Red Sashes and 60th Missisquoi Battalion were eventually reinforced by [[Colonel]] [[William Osborne Smith]] and later the [[Victoria Rifles of Canada]] which tipped the battle in ~~favor~~ of the Canadians.<ref name=”:1″ />

On the morning of May 25, 1870, 37 of Westover’s Red Sashes and 21 volunteer soldiers from the 60th Missisquoi Battalion in Dunham hid at Eccles Hill to await the Fenians.<ref name=”:2″>{{Cite web |title=War at the Border – Canada’s History |url=https://www.canadashistory.ca/explore/military-war/war-at-the-border |access-date=2025-09-08 |website=www.canadashistory.ca |language=en}}</ref> The Red Sashes were the first Canadians to be ready for battle on the road from [[St. Albans (city), Vermont]]. Around 11:30 in the morning the first Fenian units had arrived from Vermont in the vicinity of Eccles Hill. The Red Sashes [[]] the Fenians with intense fire from their marksmanship training, more being wounded than killed. John Rowe was the only Irish soldier killed on the Canadian side of the border during the ensuing battle.<ref name=”:1″ /> As the battle continued more of the Red Sash militia turned up to the fight, some being armed with the Lamson and Ball repeating carbine.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Smith-Christmas, Kenneth L., and Ross Jones. |date=Spring 2020 |title=The Fenian Needham Conversion Rifle : A Tangible Piece of Irish, American, and Canadian History |url=http://military-historians.org/journal/MCH_Vol72_1.pdf |journal=Military Collector & Historian |volume=72 |issue=1 |pages=71–82 }}</ref> The Red Sashes and 60th Missisquoi Battalion were eventually reinforced by Colonel [[William Osborne Smith]] and later the [[Victoria Rifles of Canada]] which tipped the battle in of the Canadians.<ref name=”:1″ />

During the battle the Red Sashes and 60th Missisquoi charged the only cannon the Fenian invading force had brought with them from Vermont and captured it. According to P.G. Smith of [[Canada’s History]] “With great difficulty, officers restrained the jubilant Red Sash men and militia soldiers from pursuing their enemies across the border. The Home Guards retrieved the cannon, which they regarded as a great war trophy. To this day it rests on the summit of Eccles Hill as a memorial to the Canadian defenders”.<ref name=”:2″ />

On May 30, 1870 ~~[[Lieutenant-general (United Kingdom)|~~Lieutenant-General]] [[James Lindsay (British Army officer)|James Alexander Lindsay]] commander of the British forces in Canada, expressed his gratitude to the Red Sash militia and the defenders of Eccles Hill stating “Their good service, energy, and promptitude have achieved the utter defeat and the demoralization of the Fenians”.<ref name=”:2″ />

On May 30, 1870 Lieutenant-General [[James Lindsay (British Army officer)|James Alexander Lindsay]] commander of the British forces in Canada, expressed his gratitude to the Red Sash militia and the defenders of Eccles Hill stating “Their good service, energy, and promptitude have achieved the utter defeat and the demoralization of the Fenians”.<ref name=”:2″ />

== Monuments ==

[[File:Monument feniens 1.jpg|thumb|Plate on the forefront of the monument at [[~~Eccles hill|~~Eccles Hill]].]]

[[File:Monument feniens 1.jpg|thumb|Plate on the forefront of the monument at [[Eccles Hill]].]]

A monument commemorating the battle and service of both the 60th Missisquoi Battalion and the Red Sash Home Guard stands today in [[Frelighsburg]] near the Canadian border with the state of [[Vermont]]. The monument is listed on the [[Canadian Register of Historic Places]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Battle of Eccles Hill Historical Marker |url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=74541 |access-date=2025-09-08 |website=www.hmdb.org |language=en}}</ref> The cannon captured by the Red Sash militia can still be seen at the Battle of Eccles Hill National Historic Site of Canada.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Battle of Eccles Hill National Historic Site of Canada |url=https://www.pc.gc.ca/apps/dfhd/page_nhs_eng.aspx?id=614 |access-date=2025-09-08 |website=www.pc.gc.ca |language=en}}</ref>

Home guard and militia from Dunham, Quebec

Military unit

The Red Sash Home Guard, also called the Missisquoi Home Guard, the Red Sash Guard, Dunham’s Red Sashes, or simply the Red Sashes (French: Écharpes Rouges) were a home guard and Canadian militia from Dunham, Quebec, which fought at the Battle of Eccles Hill during the Fenian raids on May 25, 1870.

Canadian Home-Guard defending against Fenians in 1870. William Ten Eyck (left) and Asa Westover (right).

The Fenian raids, first beginning in 1866, left many Canadians living on the border with the United States feeling uneasy and fearful of the possibility of a complete invasion and takeover by the Fenian Brotherhood. In particular the citizens of Brome-Missisquoi had many of their homes burned in June 7-10, 1866, by Fenians who ransacked and vandalized farmsteads in southern Missisquoi County, Quebec.^[1]^[2] To put a stop to a second Fenian invasion of the county citizens in Dunham, Quebec, and the surrounding areas created a militia under the leadership of local farmer Asa Westover Jr. (1817–1902) alongside James Gibbins Pell (1825–1913) and Andrew Ten Eyck (1820–1898), all of Dunham.^[2] Because the federal government refused to arm Westover’s militia with the newly-adopted Snider–Enfield rifle chambered in .577 Snider, Westover resorted to privately purchasing rifles for the militia.^[2] Westover chose to arm the militia entirely with the Ballard Rifle, a single-shot rifle with a falling-block action.^[3] 40 Ballard rifles were purchased in Massachusetts and were chambered in .44 caliber with 30-inch (760 mm) barrels.^[2] Westover’s personal Ballard rifle is on display at the Lac-Brome Museum in Brome Lake, Quebec.

In contrast to most units of the Canadian Militia, Westover’s Red Sash militia continually met over the next several years to drill and conduct marksmanship training, something the regular Canadian militia did not do, which greatly harmed them at the Battle of Ridgeway.^[2] The militia had no official uniform, as the militia’s name implies, the only “uniform” the militia had was a red sash worn by the militiamen as a form of combat identification.^[2]^[4]

Role in the Battle of Eccles Hill

[edit]

On the morning of May 25, 1870, 37 of Westover’s Red Sashes and 21 volunteer soldiers from the 60th Missisquoi Battalion in Dunham hid at Eccles Hill to await the Fenians.^[5] The Red Sashes were the first Canadians to be ready for battle on the road from St. Albans (city), Vermont. Around 11:30 in the morning the first Fenian units had arrived from Vermont in the vicinity of Eccles Hill. The Red Sashes ambushed the Fenians with intense fire from their marksmanship training, more being wounded than killed. John Rowe was the only Irish soldier killed on the Canadian side of the border during the ensuing battle.^[4] As the battle continued more of the Red Sash militia turned up to the fight, some being armed with the Lamson and Ball repeating carbine.^[6] The Red Sashes and 60th Missisquoi Battalion were eventually reinforced by Colonel William Osborne Smith and later the 3rd Battalion (Victoria Rifles of Montreal), which tipped the battle in favour of the Canadians.^[4]

During the battle the Red Sashes and 60th Missisquoi charged the only cannon the Fenian invading force had brought with them from Vermont and captured it. According to P.G. Smith of Canada’s History “With great difficulty, officers restrained the jubilant Red Sash men and militia soldiers from pursuing their enemies across the border. The Home Guards retrieved the cannon, which they regarded as a great war trophy. To this day it rests on the summit of Eccles Hill as a memorial to the Canadian defenders”.^[5]

On May 30, 1870, Lieutenant-General James Alexander Lindsay commander of the British forces in Canada, expressed his gratitude to the Red Sash militia and the defenders of Eccles Hill stating “Their good service, energy, and promptitude have achieved the utter defeat and the demoralization of the Fenians”.^[5]

A monument commemorating the battle and service of both the 60th Missisquoi Battalion and the Red Sash Home Guard stands today in Frelighsburg near the Canadian border with the state of Vermont. The monument is listed on the Canadian Register of Historic Places.^[7] The cannon captured by the Red Sash militia can still be seen at the Battle of Eccles Hill National Historic Site of Canada.^[8]

Role in the Battle of Eccles Hill

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