Forty years after the 1775 revolution against the British by the American settlers, the Americans invaded Canada. This invasion stemmed from old grievances that had not been settled following the American Revolution.

General Isaac Brock's greatness, in the face of greatly superior enemy forces at the outbreak of the War of 1812, was his realization that the best hope for defending Canada lay in a vigorous offensive. After his victory at Detroit had removed the threat to Upper Canada's western frontier, Brock turned his attention to the Niagara peninsula. There, Brock defeated a much larger American force, though he himself was killed.

The tunic shown here is reputed to be the one that Brock was wearing when he was fatally wounded at the Battle of Queenston Heights on October 13, 1812.