Lachine massacre | |||||||
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Part of King William's War | |||||||
![]() Map of Montreal, 1687 to 1723. The Lachine settlement was located southwest of Montreal proper. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Mohawk |
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Strength | |||||||
1,500 Indians | 375 regulars and settlers | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
3 killed | 250 killed |
The Lachine massacre, part of the Beaver Wars, occurred when 1,500 Mohawk warriors launched a surprise attack against the small (375 inhabitants) settlement of Lachine, New France, at the upper end of Montreal Island, on the morning of 5 August 1689.
The attack was precipitated by the growing Iroquois frustration with the increased French incursions into their territory and the ongoing concern about French Marquis de Denonville's attack of 1687, and it was encouraged by the settlers of New England as a way to leverage power against New France during King William's War.
In their attack, the Mohawk warriors destroyed a substantial portion of the Lachine settlement by fire and captured numerous inhabitants, killing around 240.[1]