Jeffery Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst
Field Marshal Jeffery Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst, KB (1717 – 1797) served as an officer in the British Army and as Commander-in-Chief of the Forces.
Amherst is best known as the architect of Britain's successful campaign to conquer the territory of New France during the Seven Years' War. Under his command, British forces captured the cities of Louisbourg, Quebec City and Montreal, as well as several major fortresses. He was also the first British Governor General in the territories that eventually became Canada. Numerous places and streets are named for him, in both Canada and the United States.
Amherst's legacy is controversial due to his expressed desire to exterminate the race of indigenous people during Pontiac's War, and his advocacy of biological warfare in the form of gifting blankets infected with smallpox as a weapon, notably including at the Siege of Fort Pitt. This has led to a reconsideration of his legacy. In 2019, the City of Montreal removed his name from a street in the c…more
Amherst is best known as the architect of Britain's successful campaign to conquer the territory of New France during the Seven Years' War. Under his command, British forces captured the cities of Louisbourg, Quebec City and Montreal, as well as several major fortresses. He was also the first British Governor General in the territories that eventually became Canada. Numerous places and streets are named for him, in both Canada and the United States.
Amherst's legacy is controversial due to his expressed desire to exterminate the race of indigenous people during Pontiac's War, and his advocacy of biological warfare in the form of gifting blankets infected with smallpox as a weapon, notably including at the Siege of Fort Pitt. This has led to a reconsideration of his legacy. In 2019, the City of Montreal removed his name from a street in the c…more
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