84th Regiment of Foot ( Royal Highland Emigrants ) The 84th Regiment of Foot ( Royal Highland Emigrants ) was a British regiment in the American Revolutionary War that was raised to defend present day Ontario , Quebec and Atlantic Canada from the constant land and sea attacks by American Revolutionaries . The 84th Regiment was also involved in offensive action in the Thirteen Colonies ; including North Carolina , South Carolina , Georgia , Virginia and what is now Maine , as well as raids upon Lake Champlain and the Mohawk Valley . The regiment consisted of 2 , 000 men in twenty companies . The 84th Regiment was raised from Scottish soldiers who had served in the Seven Years ' War and stayed in North America . As a result , the 84th Regiment had one of the oldest and most experienced officer corps of any regiment in North America . The Scottish Highland regiments were a key element of the British Army in the American Revolution . The 84th Regiment was clothed , armed and accoutred the same as the Black Watch , with Lieutenant Colonel Allan Maclean commanding the first battalion and Major General John Small of Strathardle commanding the second . The two Battalions operated independently of each other and saw little action together . First Battalion . Historical context - Quebec and Ontario . The British Province of Quebec ( which included much of the present - day provinces of Quebec and Ontario ) was the target of an invasion by Continental Army forces in 1775 . Lieutenant Colonel Allan Maclean , Commander , 1st Battalion . The distinguished war hero , Lieutenant Colonel Allan Maclean of Torloisk , ( 1725 – 83 ) , was authorized by Lieutenant General Thomas Gage to raise a regiment from Scottish communities in Canada , New York and the Carolinas . The 84th Highland Regiment was the first to be raised from American Loyalists . The soldiers were drawn from those who had served Britain in the Seven Years War – the 42nd Regiment of Foot ( Black Watch ) , 77th Regiment of Foot ( Montgomerie ' s Highlanders ) , and 78th Regiment of Foot ( Fraser ' s Highlanders ) . The prospect of raising regiments in the Thirteen Colonies was a dangerous mission . Only two battalions of the five originally requested were raised because of the difficulty of recruiting . When Maclean arrived in New York not long after the war broke out , he was warned not to disembark in his uniform for fear of attack . As a result , when travelling alone he dressed as a doctor . The dangers of recruiting American Loyalists became even clearer after the Battle of Moore ' s Creek Bridge in North Carolina . Battle of Moore ' s Creek Bridge , North Carolina . Members of the 84th Highland Regiment were in the Battle of Moore ' s Creek Bridge , North Carolina in early 1776 . On 27 February 1776 , the 84th Regiment , with a number of new recruits , was marching to the port of Wilmington , North Carolina . There they were to join with a force arriving from Europe and participate in operations in the southern colonies . The recruited force , at first numbering 1 , 600 American Loyalists but reduced during the march by desertions to fewer than 800 , faced off against 1 , 000 American Patriots . The American Loyalists ' movement was blocked by Patriot forces on two occasions , but the Loyalists managed to bypass them to reach the bridge over Widow Moore ' s Creek . Captain McLeod , who had survived the Battle of Bunker Hill , was killed leading the charge at Moore ' s Creek Bridge . Half of the regiment was captured and thirty were killed ; with ninety six officers and men taken prisoner . The majority of the Carolina recruits were never able to join the regiment since the Loyalist forces were scattered after the battle . Lt . Col . Donald MacDonald helped with the recruiting in North Carolina and fought in the Battle of Moore ' s Creek Bridge . Both MacLean and MacDonald were taken prisoner . Sorel , Quebec , Headquarters , 1st Battalion . In 1777 the Headquarters moved from Quebec to Sorel . Military operations – Quebec . Under McLean ' s command , the First Battalion acted primarily to defend Quebec from American Patriot forces . It marched from Quebec in an attempt to repel Brigadier General Richard Montgomery ' s invasion in the Siege of Fort St . Jean , Quebec . The regiment made two attempts to relieve the fort , but eventually return to Quebec , where it helped to stiffen the resolve of the civil population until Carleton ' s return from Montreal . The regiment was also involved in the Battle of Quebec ( 1775 ) . Montgomery and Benedict Arnold , who led an expedition through the wilderness of what is now Maine , combined forces and mounted attack on Quebec City . At a crucial moment in the battle , Captain McDougal led 120 of the 84th and 60 Royal Navy sailors against a force of New Hampshire troops commanded by Henry Dearborn . They overwhelmed Dearborn ' s men , forcing the survivors to surrender . Military operations – Thirteen Colonies . Later in the war , they took part in raids upon Lake Champlain in 1778 and into the Mohawk Valley in 1780 , 1781 and 1782 . Second Battalion . Historical context – Atlantic Canada . The 84th was tasked with defending British maritime provinces from American Revolutionary attacks by land and sea . Throughout the war , American privateers devastated the maritime economy by raiding many of the coastal communities . There were constant attacks by American privateers , such as the Sack of Lunenburg , Nova Scotia ( 1782 ) , numerous raids on Liverpool , Nova Scotia ( October 1776 , March 1777 , September , 1777 , May 1778 , September 1780 ) and a raid on Annapolis Royal , Nova Scotia ( 1781 ) . There was also a naval engagement with a French fleet at Sydney , Nova Scotia , near Spanish River , Cape Breton ( 1781 ) . In the fall of 1775 General George Washington authorized some ship ' s captains to engage in privateering activities . In violation of their charter ( which allowed the taking of ships but not raids on land targets ) , the privateering ships " Hancock " and " Franklin " made an unopposed landing at Charlottetown , Prince Edward Island on 17 November 1775 . Three days later , they sailed to Nova Scotia and raided Canso , Nova Scotia . In 1779 , American privateers returned to Canso and destroyed the fisheries , which were worth £50 , 000 a year to Britain . To guard against such attacks , the 84th was garrisoned at forts around the maritime provinces . One such fort was Fort Howe , at the mouth of the Bay of Fundy at what is now Saint John , New Brunswick . As soon as the fort was built , it was immediately pillaged and burned by American privateers ( August , 1775 ) . Saint John was raided three more times in the span of two months ( 1777 ) before the 84th was able to rebuild Fort Howe . In Newfoundland , American privateers sacked numerous ports such as Chateau Bay ( 1778 ) and Twillingate ( 1779 ) . Off the coast of Newfoundland , the 84th Regiment were the first to defeat an American privateer in the Battle of the Newcastle Jane ( 1776 ) . Major Small also had companies from the 84th Regiment stationed in Fort Frederick , Placentia , Newfoundland . The 84th Regiment also defended Nova Scotia , attacking an American privateer off Lunenburg , Nova Scotia ( 1775 ) . The 84th was led by Captain John MacDonald . They boarded the warship when part of its crew were ashore seeking plunder . They captured the crew and sailed her into Halifax . There were also Patriot attacks on Nova Scotia by land , such as the Battle of Fort Cumberland ( also known as the Eddy Rebellion ) . There was the constant fear that American Patriots would attack Halifax , Nova Scotia by land . The threat involved American Patriots landing in Windsor and marching to Halifax . As a result , in the summer of 1778 , Major John Small moved the headquarters of the 84th Regiment from Halifax to Fort Edward ( Nova Scotia ) in Windsor . Major General John Small , Commander , 2nd Battalion . When Col . Allan Maclean landed in America , he discovered that Major General John Small , was already mobilizing American Loyalists from the 13 Colonies as well as present day Ontario , Quebec and Atlantic Canada to create a Highland Regiment . Along with getting soldiers who fought in Montgomerie ' s Highlanders and 78th Regiment of Foot ( Fraser ' s Highlanders ) , Small was recruiting soldiers from the 42nd Regiment of Foot ( Black Watch ) ; the same regiment that he had served with in the Seven Years War . The regiment was known as the " Young Royal Highlanders " until it turned into the 84th Regiment . Small was involved with also recruiting new immigrants as they arrived off transports from the British Isles . On one occasion , the transport " George " arrived in New York with 172 immigrant Highlanders . Major Small went aboard , explained the situation , and pressed the men into service . Small gave them assurance that their families would be well taken care of by the regiment . The same thing happened on October 3 , 1775 , with Scottish immigrants arriving in New York on the ship " Glasgow " . On that occasion , there were 255 immigrants ( men and their families ) . Upon Small redirecting the immigrants to Halifax , the officer in command in Halifax reported that their amount of luggage was enough to " fill St . Paul ' s Church . " Battle of Bunker Hill , Boston . Major John Small was engaged to establish the Royal Highland Emigrants on 13 June 1775 . Five days later , on June 17 , before recruits could be found , Small and a number of other officers of the 84th Regiment were in the Battle of Bunker Hill . Small was a central figure in the battle , leading the 38th and 43rd Regiments in storming the hill . Along with three other members of the 84th Regiment who were wounded , Small was also wounded in the arm by cannon fire . He relayed his experience to John Trumbull , who then painted his famous painting " The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker Hill " , in which Major Small is one of the central figures in the painting . Although the British won the battle , it was very costly : 226 were killed and 828 were wounded . Boston was evacuated in March 1776 and Major Small and the first wave of American Loyalists arrived in Halifax with his newly formed Highland Regiment . A few months later on June 11 , 1776 , Small and some of his Highlanders left for New York . Fort Edward , Headquarters , 2nd Battalion . Fort Edward ( Nova Scotia ) in Windsor was the Headquarters for the 84th Regiment in Atlantic Canada . Initially , the headquarters for the 84th Regiment was in Halifax . During the nine years of the war , members of the Battalion served on Detachments around Halifax : the Redoubt & Fort Needham ( Halifax ) , Fort Sackville ( Bedford ) , Fort Charlotte ( Georges Island ( Nova Scotia ) , Fort Clarence ( Eastern Battery , Dartmouth ) . The 84th Regiment was also stationed at four locations around the Bay of Fundy : Fort Edward ( Windsor ) , Fort Anne ( Annapolis ) , Fort Cumberland ( Amherst ) , and Fort Howe ( Saint John ) . There were also forts that the 84th were stationed at on Cape Sable , Fort Cornwallis ( Kentville , Nova Scotia ) , Sydney Mines Battery ( Spanish River , Sydney ) , Fort Frederick ( Placentia , Nfld . ) . The Regiment was also at Fort Hughes ( Oromocto , New Brunswick ) . As well the 84th Regiment was stationed at forts in the 13 Colonies : Brooklyn Heights ( New York ) and Ft . Augusta ( Georgia ) . Because of the threat of a land assault on Halifax by landings in Windsor , Small moved the headquarters for the 84th Highland Regiment from Halifax to Fort Edward , Windsor ( 1778 ) . The 84th operated on land and sea . In June 1779 , for example , the 84th Regiment at Fort Edward had captured twelve American privateers , who had plundered many small vessels and neighbouring inhabitants on the Bay of Fundy . The prisoners were wounded . The prisoners were almost rescued by another American privateer vessel the " Statagem " , from Marblehead which had a crew of nine . Upon seeing the fate of the prisoners , however , they abandoned the rescue mission for fear of sharing the same fate . One report stated , " It is to be hoped that if they dare return they will fare no better . " Small assigned Captain Allan Macdonald , husband of the famous Scottish heroine Flora MacDonald ( Scottish Jacobite ) , to be the commander of Fort Edward for five years . Flora MacDonald . Captain Allan Macdonald had fought in the Battle of Moore ' s Creek Bridge in North Carolina , where he was captured . He was imprisoned for two years until a prisoner exchange in 1777 , when he was sent to New York and then to Fort Edward in Windsor , Nova Scotia . Major Small gave him command of the Second Battalion , 84th Regiment , at Fort Edward ( Nova Scotia ) . He served there along with two of his sons , Ranald and Charles , who were among the young officers of the regiment . In 1750 , at the age of 28 , Flora married Captain Allan Macdonald of Kingsburgh , and in 1773 together they emigrated to Montgomery County ( formerly Anson ) , North Carolina . Flora actively participated in recruiting men for the 84th Highland Regiment , displaying once more her resolution . She exhorted the 84th Regiment at Cross Creek , North Carolina ( present - day Fayetteville ) before the went off to fight in the Battle of Moore ' s Creek Bridge . After Flora ' s husband was taken prisoner , Flora remained in hiding while the American Patriots ravaged her family plantation and she lost all her possessions . When her husband was released from prison , she travelled with him out of out of North Carolina to New York and then to Fort Edward in Windsor , Nova Scotia in the fall of 1778 . Flora only stayed in Nova Scotia for one year at Fort Edward , Windsor . In 1779 Flora returned home to Dunvegan Castle in Isle of Skye , Scotland . After the war , in 1784 , Allan followed her . There is a plaque at Fort Edward which reads : " Flora MacDonald : A name that will be mtioned in history , and if courage and fidelity be virtures , mentioned with honour " - Samuel Johnson The preserve of Bonnie Prince Charlie spent the winter of 1779 here with her husband , Captain Allan Macdonald of the Royal Highland Emigrants , when returning to her old home in Skye . After exile from her home in North Carolina . Her loyalty and devotion in the midst of troubled days have long been told in Scottish song and story . Military operations – Atlantic Canada . Battle of the Newcastle Jane , Newfoundland . On October 23 , 1776 , under the Captain Murdock MacLaine , the 84th Regiment was in the Battle of the Newcastle Jane . This battle was the first in which a merchant British vessel defeated an American Privateer vessel . The 84th Regiment was on the transport ship " Newcastle Jane " off the coast of Cape Race , Newfoundland . On board the ship was 20 , 000 pounds sterling and 3 , 000 sets of uniforms , much of which was for the 84th Regiment . On October 23 at 4 : 00 am American privateer came within 30 yards of the " Newcastle Jane " . The American had ten carriage guns and twelve swivel guns and the " Jane " had only 6 three - pound carriage guns and a few swivels . The ships opened fire on each other . After a 24 - hour standoff , the 84th Regiment had outmanoeuvred the Americans , leaving them with many wounded and a damaged vessel . By the time the battle was over , the " Newcastle Jane " only had two rounds of shot left . Lachlan Macquarie . One of the crew in the Battle of the " Newcastle Jane " was a young recruit Lachlan Macquarie , who eventually became known as " the Father of Australia . " Macquarie began his military career in 1776 at the age of fourteen when he sailed from Scotland to the New World . The attackers were repulsed and , six months later , on 9 April 1777 , he obtained an ensigncy in the 84th Regiment . He did garrison duty , first in Nova Scotia , and then in New York and Charleston . He was commissioned a lieutenant in the 71st Regiment in January 1781 . In 1784 he returned to Scotland from his posting in Jamaica , and was reduced to half - pay . Siege of Saint John ( 1777 ) . Machias , Maine was used as a base for privateering against Nova Scotia and as a staging and supply point for American Patriot attacks on Fort Frederick , Saint John and Fort Cumberland . In 1776 , privateers from Machias had burned Fort Frederick at Saint John to the ground . In 1777 , American forces briefly controlled Saint John . In response , Major John Small personally led a force to drive out the Americans . When the 84th Regiment landed at Saint John on June 30 , 1777 , the Americans retreated to the woods . The 84th marched through the woods and were ambushed by the American . Twelve Americans and one member of the regiment were killed . Weeks later , on July 13 , 1777 , American privateers again attacked Saint John and were repulsed by the 84th . In August 1777 , the Americans attacked yet again and were successful , carrying off 21 boatloads of plunder . The 84th immediately began to replace the low - lying Fort Frederick with Fort Howe , which overlooked the settlement . Fort Howe became instrumental in curtailing privateer action and was used as an assembly point for attacks on the 13 Colonies . Raid on Cape Sable Island , Nova Scotia . On September 4 , 1778 , the 84th Regiment , under the command of Ranald MacKinnon , was in the Raid of Cape Sable Island . Privateers were threatening Cape Sable Island when the 84th arrived ; they surprised the ship in the night and destroyed it . For his aggressive action , MacKinnon was praised highly by Brigadier General Eyre Massey . In response , one of his friends , Captain MacDonald , wrote to Major John Small , " McKinnon was embarrassed by the praise of the General and requested it not be inserted in the record since he only did his duty . " Annapolis Royal , Nova Scotia . On October 2 , 1778 , the 84th Regiment , under the command of Captain MacDonald , was involved in the defeat of an American privateer at Annapolis Royal , Nova Scotia . Captain MacDonald arrived at Annapolis by ship , only to find a large privateer ship raiding the port . He destroyed the privateer vessel , which mounted ten carriage guns . Captain MacDonald also caught the attention of General Massey , who wrote that he " highly approved " of his conduct . Captain Campbell of the 84th Regiment , in December 1778 , took seven men with him to retrieve an American privateer that was abandoned on Partridge Island . They returned the ship safely to Annapolis Royal . In another raid on Annapolis Royal in 1781 , prisoners were captured by the crew of an American privateer and later released on parole on promise of exchange for an American prisoner at Halifax . Military operations – Thirteen Colonies . Maine . In November of 1777 , the 84th Regiment was involved in the raid of a fort at Castine , Maine , a privateering port at the mouth of the Penobscot River . The caputure of this vital port interrupted its as a staging area by privateers to attack Nova Scotia . Southern theater . Upon leaving New York , the Second Battalion , 84th Regiment was engaged in the Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War . The Southern theater was the central area of operations in the second half of the American Revolutionary War . During the first three years of the conflict , the primary military encounters had been in the north , focused on campaigns around the cities of Boston , New York , and Philadelphia . Earlier in the war , the 2 / 84th Regiment was involved in trying to take Charleston , South Carolina in the Battle of Sullivan ' s Island . On June 24 , companies of the 2 / 84th Regiment from Boston and New York left their ports to descend upon Fort Sullivan ( later renamed Fort Moultrie ) , South Carolina . Four days later the 84th Regiment from New York , on June 28 , 1776 , engaged in the Battle of Fort Sullivan ( see Fort Moultrie National Monument ) . The fleet bombarded the fort and suffered excessive damage by return fire . The attack was a failure ; 38 of the regiment died . The 84th Regiment did not return to Charlestown , South Carolina until 1780 . The 2 / 84th Regiment was involved in a skirmish at Wiboo Swamp , Savannah River , Clarendon County , South Carolina ( 1781 ) . 3 of the 84th Regiment were killed as were about 18 American Patriots . ( See Wiboo Swamp Skirmish ) . The 2 / 84th Regiment was then involved in protecting the Loyalist stronghold of Augusta , Georgia . The first skirmish was at Wiggin ' s Hill , Savannah River , Georgia in April 1781 . ( See Skirmish at Wiggin ' s Hill ) . The Patriots surprised the regiment at Wiggin ' s Hill , but were twice repulsed . The 84th then took prisoners , killed many of them and burned their homes . Captain McKinnon tried to stop what he considered his own regiments " barbarity " . The 84th was also involved with trying to protect Fort Motte in the Siege of Fort Motte , Georgia ( 1781 ) . The 2 / 84th Regiment was forced to surrender on May 12 and were taken prisoner . Siege of Ninety - Six , South Carolina . On June 18 , 1781 , the 2 / 84th Regiment was involved with the relief of the American Loyalists besieged by Americans Patriots in the Siege of Ninety - Six . The American Patriots were trying to defeat the American Loyalists who were trapped in an earthen fortification known as the Star Fort . The American Patriots had 1 , 000 troops in a siege against the 550 American Loyalists . On the 28th day of the siege , Lord Rawdon , along with the 2 / 84th Regiment arrived . The American Patriots retreated and those in the Star Fort were saved , although Ninety - Six was abandoned by the British not long after . John Bond . One of those in the Star Fort who belonged to the Ninety - Six Militia was Captain John Bond . Along with the rest of the American Loyalists from Ninety - Six , John Bond eventually left South Carolina and settled in Rawdon Township ( see Rawdon , Nova Scotia ) , the place being named after Lord Rawdon who had saved them in the siege . Battle of Eutaw Springs . The American Patriots attacked Orangeburg , South Carolina , with 2 , 600 troops . The 2 / 84th were part of a British force of 2 , 300 , which stopped their advance at the Battle of Eutaw Springs on September 8 , 1781 . In the battle , the 84th Regiment lost 6 killed , 22 wounded and 2 missing . Skirmish at Fair Lawn . In the last months of the war , the Second Battalion , 84th Regiment , defending Charleston , was involved in the Skirmish at Fair Lawn ( also known as Fair Lawn Barony , Colleton House , " below Monck ' s Corner " ) . The battalion was in the area of the hospital where many of their fellow wounded soldiers were located . They were also stationed at a blockhouse near Baggen ' s Bridge , which lead directly to Charleston . They had few soldiers in the area and the captain in charge was forced to choose between either protecting the hospital or protecting the bridge that led to Charleston . He chose to protect the bridge . On November 17 , 1781 , the American Patriots attacked the undefended hospital ; pillaging it and then burning the building to the ground . Most of the wounded were dragged into the surrounding woods and swamps , where they died from exposure and maltreatment . ( See Fair Lawn Skirmish ) After this incident , the 2 / 84th Regiment went to Georgia , Florida and Jamaica . In Georgia , they were involved in the skirmish on the Ogeechee River , Burke County ( 1781 ) . ( See Oggeechee Skirmish ) . Uniform and equipment . The 84th was the only Highland regiment to keep and use its traditional highland uniform ; plaids and swords , for the duration of the war . General Gage specified that the new military unit would be " cloathed Armed and accoutred in like manner with His Majesty ' s Royal Highland Regiment " , indicating that they would wear the Highland Scots military uniform , unlike the more conventional uniforms worn by other Provincial units . The original uniform of the first battalion was the green Provincial uniform , consisting of a long , green coat , tri - cornered black hat , breeches , and gray hose . They were armed with surplus King ' s Long Land Muskets from the Seven Years ' War . In the second quarter of 1777 , they received kilts , belted plaid s ( or perhaps both ) in the government sett and wore these with their green Provincial coats ( which were shortened ) until these wore out , at which time they were replaced with the red coats of regulars . The Second Battalion did not do as well ; having to provide for their own uniforms until the local governor was formally ordered to clothe and arm them in the autumn of 1776 . Upon their incorporation into the Regular Establishment , their uniform was standardized to the short Highland - style coat with dark blue facings and white turnbacks . The regimental lace is presumed to have been white tape , with one blue worm between two red ones : but this description is based on a later 84th Regiment ' s practices . No contemporary descriptions of the regimental lace have been discovered . Buttons had one of three variations ; all of which incorporated " 84th " with the customary Highland embellishment . The men were issued plaids or kilts of government sett . Each man was also issued a bonnet , multiple shirts and a white wool waistcoat with regimentally marked buttons . In addition , each man was issued two pairs of gaitored trousers , one of linen for the summer and one of blue wool for the winter . Companies in the South Theater were issued brown wool gaitored trousers for the winter instead of blue wool . Officers ' uniforms used gold lace and buttons . In winter , it was common for the men to wear trousers and plaids simultaneously . Members stationed in Canada were issued a wool waistcoat , a blanket coat , overshoes , a watch cape , mittens , ice creepers , and snow shoes . Disbanded . After the American Revolution , the soldiers of the 2nd Battalion , 84th Regiment became part of the migration of the United Empire Loyalists to Nova Scotia . The 2 / 84th Regiment evacuated Charlotte , North Carolina and went to New York in April 1782 and then on to Halifax , arriving on October 24 , 1782 . Major Small followed them , arriving on the frigate " Jason " on November 12 . Small arrived with a number of the settlers that the 84th Regiment had saved in the Siege of Ninety - Six . These men founded Rawdon Township ( currently , Rawdon , Nova Scotia and area ) . After the 2nd Battalion was disbanded at the headquarters for the 84th Regiment Fort Edward ( Nova Scotia ) on October 10 , 1783 , many of the 84th Regiment settled beside Rawdon Township in the newly formed Douglas Township ( Kennetcook , Nova Scotia and surrounding area ) . Major Small purchased Malachy Salter ' s grant ( present day Selma , Nova Scotia ) and built a manor house on an estate which he named " Selma " , after which the community is named . Small had hoped to establish the Feudal Barony of Straloch in Selma but his last will and testament was not honoured . The First battalion settled mainly in Kingston , Ontario . A few took passage , instead , to Britain . This unit , the " old 84th " , was completely disbanded and has no direct descendants in the military of the modern United Kingdom . Later regiments to bear this number ( 84th ( York and Lancaster ) Regiment of Foot ) have no historical nor traditional connection to it . However , the Canadian Army considers the 84th to be continued in the Stormont , Dundas and Glengarry Highlanders . 84th Regiment soldiers in Hants County , Nova Scotia . The following is a list of the soldiers from the 84th Regiment who settled in Douglas Township in Hants County , Nova Scotia after the war : For list of the 84th Regiment soldiers who settled in the Douglas Township see Duncanson , John ( 1989 ) . " Rawdon and Douglas : Two Loyalists Townships in Nova Scotia . " Ontario : Mika Publishing Company .