The Republic of Canada was a declared government proclaimed by William Lyon Mackenzie on December 13, 1837. The self-proclaimed government was established on Navy Island in the Niagara River in the latter days of the Upper Canada Rebellion after Mackenzie and 200 of his followers retreated from Toronto.
On December 29, Royal Navy Commander Andrew Drew and seven boatloads of Canadian militiamen crossed the Niagara River to Fort Schlosser. They captured the American supply steamer Caroline used by William Lyon Mackenzie and his rebels on Navy Island (see Caroline Affair). Drew's forces set the ship alight and sent it adrift towards Niagara Falls, resulting in the death of one American.
On January 13, 1838, Mackenzie abandoned Navy Island under heavy fire from British troops. He fled to Buffalo, New York, and was sentenced in the U.S. to 18 months imprisonment for violating neutrality laws between the United States and the British Empire.
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