Siege of Louisbourg (1758)

Siege of Louisbourg
Part of the French and Indian War
Siege of Louisbourg (1758): British burning warship Prudent and capturing Bienfaisant.
Date 8 June–26 July 1758 Location Louisbourg, present-day Nova Scotia, then the French province of Île-Royale Coordinates: 45°55′17″N 59°58′13″W / 45.92139°N 59.97028°W / 45.92139; -59.97028 Result Decisive British victory
Belligerents
Great Britain British America	Kingdom of France Mi'kmaq militia Acadian militia
Commanders and leaders
Jeffery Amherst Edward Boscawen James Wolfe Charles Lawrence Edward Whitmore	Chevalier de Drucour (POW) Jean Vauquelin Marquis Charry des Gouttes Beaussier de l'Isle
Strength
14,000 soldiers 12,000 sailors and marines 150 transport vessels 40 men-o-war	3,500 soldiers 3,500 sailors and marines 5 ships of the line
Casualties and losses
172 killed 355 wounded	102 killed 303 wounded 6,600 surrendered 4 ships of the line burned, 1 taken

The Siege of Louisbourg was a pivotal operation of the Seven Years' War (known in the United States as the French and Indian War) in 1758 that ended the French colonial era in Atlantic Canada and led directly to the loss of Quebec in 1759 and the remainder of French North America the following year.

The British government realized that with the Fortress of Louisbourg under French control, there was no way that the Royal Navy could sail up the St. Lawrence River for an attack on Quebec unmolested. After an expedition against Louisbourg in 1757 led by Lord Loudon was turned back due to a strong French naval deployment, the British under the leadership of William Pitt resolved to try again with new commanders.

Pitt assigned the duty of capturing the fortress to Major General Jeffrey Amherst. Amherst's brigadiers were Charles Lawrence, James Wolfe and Edward Whitmore, and command of naval operations was assigned to Admiral Edward Boscawen. The chief engineer was John Henry Bastide who had been present at the first siege of Louisbourg in 1745 and was chief engineer at Fort St Philip, Minorca, in 1756 when the British had surrendered the fort and island to the French after a long siege.

As they had in 1757, the French planned to defend Louisbourg by a large naval build-up. However, the French fleet sailing from Toulon was blockaded in Cartagena by a British force, and a relief force was defeated at the Battle of Cartagena. After this the French abandoned their attempt to reinforce Louisbourg from the Mediterranean, meaning there would be few ships available to actively oppose the British off Louisbourg.

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