Jeffrey Amherst

Jeffrey Amherst (1717-1797), British soldier, born in Riverhead, Kent. He entered the British army as an ensign in 1731. He served in the War of the Austrian Succession and in the early stages of the Seven Years' War. In 1758 he was promoted to the rank of major general and put in command of an expedition against Louisbourg, Nova Scotia, which surrendered after a short siege on July 27, 1758.

In September 1758, Amherst became commander in chief of the British forces engaged in the American phase of the war (known as the French and Indian War). He led a successful expedition against Fort Ticonderoga and Crown Point in 1759 but was too late to participate in the capture of Quebec. In 1760 he personally commanded the British forces at Montreal and captured the city. For his services he was appointed governor-general of British North America, was formally acknowledged by Parliament, and was made a Knight of the Order of the Bath. He returned to England in 1763. From 1772 to 1782 and from 1783 to 1793, he was acting commander in chief of the British army. He became a general in 1778, and a field marshal in 1796.