George Prevost

Sir George Prevost, 1st Baronet (19 May 1767 – 5 January 1816) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator who is most well known as the "Defender of Canada" during the War of 1812. Born in New Jersey, the eldest son of Genevan Augustine Prévost, he joined the British Army as a youth and became a captain in 1784. Prevost served in the West Indies during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars, and was commander of St. Vincent from 1794 to 1796. He became Lieutenant-Governor of Saint Lucia from 1798 to 1802 and Governor of Dominica from 1802 to 1805. He is best known to history for serving as both the civilian Governor General and the military Commander in Chief in British North America (now part of Canada) during the War of 1812 between Britain and the United States. Early life George Prevost was born on 19 May 1767, in New Barbadoes Township (now Hackensack), New Jersey. His father was Augustin Prévost, a French-speaking Protestant from the Republic of Geneva, and a lieutenant-colonel in the British Army. His mother was Anne Francoise Marguerite "Nanette" Grand. George Prevost was educated at schools in England and in the North American continent. Early military career 1779–1790 On 3 May 1779, Prevost was commissioned at the age of eleven, as an ensign in the 60th Regiment of Foot, in which his father was a senior officer. In 1782, he transferred to the 47th Regiment of Foot, as a lieutenant, followed in 1784 by a move to the 25th Regiment of Foot as a captain. He then returned to the 60th Foot on 18 November 1790 with the rank of major, at the age of 23. Prevost's maternal grandfather was a wealthy banker in Amsterdam, and his money is considered to have certainly been responsible for his grandson's quick advancement up the chain of command in the British Army, as promotion could then be obtained "by purchase".