page_title: John Le Couteur
section_title: War of 1812
hierarchical_section_title: John Le Couteur / War of 1812
caption_attribution_description: English: Image of John Le Couteur as a subaltern officer, c.1811.
context_page_description: Sir John Le Couteur, Colonel, was a British Army officer and Aide-de-camp for Jersey to William IV and Victoria. Son of Lieutenant General John Le Couteur, he is best known for his War of 1812 memoirs of his service as a lieutenant in the 104th Foot, published in 1993 as Merry Hearts Make Light Days.
context_section_description: In November 1811, at the age of 17, Le Couteur was promoted from Ensign in the 96th Regiment (on Jersey) to a Lieutenant in the 104th Regiment of Foot and was ordered to join his regiment in New Brunswick. During the Anglo-American War of 1812, the 104th was ordered to march 700 miles from Fredericton, in the less vulnerable region of New Brunswick, to defend Kingston in the threatened area of Upper Canada. This was necessary because the Commander-in-Chief in Canada, Sir George Prevost, found himself with only 3000 troops to defend 1100 miles of frontier. The march of the 104th, of which Le Couteur's journal provides a detailed account, lasted from 21 February to 12 April 1813. The men marched across difficult terrain in extreme winter conditions and, with temperatures dropping as low as −27 °F (−32 °C), few escaped frostbite.
  Le Couteur later took part in the Siege of Fort Erie, the battles of Sackett's Harbour and Lundy's Lane and thirty-three skirmishes.
  In his journal, Le Couteur expresses admiration for the bravery of the First Nation allies, but considers them 'very savage' and cruel to prisoners.
  After the war, in 1816, Le Couteur was appointed Aide-de-camp to his father, Lieutenant-General John Le Couteur, in Curaçao before returning to Canada the following year.
caption: Image of John Le Couteur as a subaltern officer, c.1811.
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