Thomas Gage

Thomas Gage
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Name	Thomas Gage
Caption	Portrait by John Singleton Copley
Birth date	1719 or 1720
Death date	2 April 1787
Birth place	Firle, Sussex, Kingdom of Great Britain
Death place	Portland Place, London, Kingdom of Great Britain
Allegiance	Kingdom of Great Britain
Branch	British Army
Serviceyears	1741–1783
Rank	General
Commands	Commander-in-Chief, North America
Battles	War of the Austrian Succession, Jacobite rising of 1745, French and Indian War, American Revolutionary War
Spouse	Margaret Kemble
Children	11

Thomas Gage was a British Army officer best known for his service as the military governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay and as the commander-in-chief of British forces in North America in the crucial years leading up to the American Revolutionary War. His enforcement of the Intolerable Acts and his dispatch of troops to Lexington and Concord directly ignited the armed conflict. A career soldier with experience in the French and Indian War, Gage's tenure was marked by the difficult task of balancing imperial authority with colonial resistance, ultimately ending in his recall to Great Britain after the Battle of Bunker Hill.

Early life and military career

Born into an aristocratic family at Firle Place in Sussex, he was the second son of Thomas Gage, 1st Viscount Gage. He began his military career by purchasing a commission as an ensign in 1741 and saw his first combat in the War of the Austrian Succession at the Battle of Fontenoy. Gage later served in Scotland during the Jacobite rising of 1745 and was promoted to lieutenant colonel by 1751. During this period, he raised and commanded a new regiment of foot in North America, a unit that would later be known as the 80th Regiment of Light-Armed Foot, which pioneered new light infantry tactics.

Role in the French and Indian War

Gage played a significant role in the French and Indian War, part of the global Seven Years' War. He served under General Jeffery Amherst and participated in the disastrous Battle of the Monongahela, where General Edward Braddock was killed. In 1758, he commanded the vanguard of General James Abercrombie's failed assault on Fort Carillon. The following year, he was involved in Amherst's methodical advance and capture of Fort Ticonderoga. His military service during this conflict provided him with extensive knowledge of the Thirteen Colonies and their terrain, which influenced his later postings.

Governor of Massachusetts and the road to revolution

Appointed Governor of Massachusetts in 1774, his primary task was to enforce the punitive Coercive Acts, passed by the Parliament of Great Britain in response to the Boston Tea Party. Gage dissolved the Massachusetts Provincial Congress and attempted to seize colonial munitions, actions that inflamed tensions with groups like the Sons of Liberty. His attempt to arrest leaders such as John Hancock and Samuel Adams and to destroy military supplies at Concord led directly to the skirmishes at Lexington and Concord on 19 April 1775, the first military engagements of the revolution.

Commander-in-Chief of British forces in North America

As Commander-in-Chief, North America, Gage was responsible for British military strategy after the outbreak of hostilities. Following the colonial siege of Boston, he ordered the assault on colonial positions in the Battle of Bunker Hill, a technically British victory that came at a catastrophic cost in casualties. His cautious and conciliatory approach was criticized in London, particularly by figures like Lord George Germain, who favored a more aggressive prosecution of the war. In October 1775, he was recalled to Great Britain and replaced by General William Howe.

Later life and legacy

Upon his return to England, Gage's military career effectively ended, though he was promoted to general in 1782. He spent his final years at his family estate and later at a house on Portland Place in London. His legacy is complex; to British authorities, he was often seen as indecisive, while American patriots viewed him as a primary instrument of tyranny. His wife, Margaret Kemble Gage, was from a prominent New Jersey family, and rumors of her colonial sympathies and possible intelligence leaks to the rebels have been a subject of historical speculation. His papers provide valuable insight into the British perspective on the coming of the American Revolution.

Category:British Army generals Category:British military personnel of the American Revolutionary War Category:Governors of Massachusetts