Brock's Monument War of 1812 Battle of Queenston Heights

In June, 1812, the United States declared war on Britain. The first major battle was fought in October, 1812 when the American army attacked British forces near the Canadian town of Queenston, in Upper Canada, now the Province of Ontario. Oueenston is situated on the Niagara River just south of Lake Ontario. This attack can be viewed as equivalent in significance to Canadians as the Bunker Hill Battle of the American Revolution is to Americans . British, Canadian, and First Nation forces defended against the American attack. British General Isaac Brock, then age 42, and his aide-de-camp Lieutenant-Colonel Macdonell were both killed in the action. They are buried in the monument. Earthen works used by the defenders can still be seen near the monument. The War ended in 1817. There was no victor. Most important, however, were the several treaties which resulted from its conclusion. The most important of these treaties contained the guarantee of an unfortified border stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans, a treaty that is still honored today by both the US and Britain's successor, Canada, which received its Articles of Confederation in 1867. The monument was completed in 1859.