Battle of Saint - Eustache The Battle of Saint - Eustache , fought on December 14 , 1837 , was a decisive battle in the Lower Canada Rebellion in which British forces defeated the principal remaining Patriotes camp at Saint - Eustache . Prelude . After the victory at Saint - Charles , the British were in a position to prepare attacks on Patriote camps to the north , including those at Saint - Benoît and Saint - Eustache . The British force , led by John Colborne , numbered 1 , 280 regular soldiers from the 1st and 32nd Regiments of Foot and reinforced by the newly arrived 83rd Regiment of Foot , supported by artillery and 220 Loyalist volunteers . The Patriote organization was primitive ; many members did not even have firearms . They thought they could get 800 combatants , but eventually fielded only 201 men , led by Jean - Olivier Chénier and Amury Girod . They lay barricaded in the convent , the church , the rectory and the manor in the centre of the village . Amury Girod left as the skirmish was sparked , supposedly to get reinforcements at Saint - Benoît . Suspected of treason , fellow Patriotes went after him , and he would eventually commit suicide . Battle . At the battle site , Colborne placed his troops around the village and had his soldiers advance systematically to tighten the vice on the defenders . Towards noon , he ordered the artillery to open fire on the centre of the village and then to advance up the main street and break down the doors of the church , where many Patriotes had taken refuge . Two companies of the 1st Regiment of Foot were able to take the rectory nearby , and they set it on fire so that the smoke would make it difficult for those defending the church to see . The grenadiers of the 1st Regiment of Foot then took the manor and set it on fire as well . They were then able to enter the church through the vestry , which they also torched prior to withdrawing under the fire of the Patriotes in the balcony . Caught in the burning church , the Patriotes tried to get out by jumping from the windows , where Jean - Olivier Chénier finally attempted an escape . However , he was swiftly killed . At this point the British troops made a final assault in a merciless struggle . This disastrous battle for the Patriotes lasted at least 4 hours ; 70 Patriotes were killed , against only three British soldiers . Aftermath . In the days that followed , soldiers and volunteers terrorized the county of Deux - Montagnes . Saint - Eustache and Saint - Benoît were looted and burned . In Saint - Joachim , Sainte - Scholastique and Sainte - Thérèse , the army burned the houses of the rebellion ' s leaders . Some of the rebels tried to make it to the American border , but hundreds were taken prisoner . Patriote leaders Dr . Wolfred Nelson and the journalist Jean - Philippe Boucher - Belleville were among them . Some were taken to the penal colony of New South Wales in Australia . The suburb of Canada Bay in Sydney is named for these prisoners who helped build the area . Note . The church was burnt and destroyed , except for the facade , which still exists . The rest of the church has been rebuilt . The facade still shows the marks of British cannon impacts .