Fort Amherstburg

In 1813, the town of Amherstburg, Ontario was the most largely populated area in all of Essex county. Being in the prime location to control the path of transportation, the British built Fort Amherstburg in order to stop the American ships that traveled along the river.
From the Fort the soldiers watched the American's attack various forts nearby, but they never attempted to take over for Amherstburg. General Proctor made the difficult decision to destroy Fort Amherstburg and move his army along the river front to the Thames river. Tecumseh (chief of the native soldiers) pleaded with General Proctor to stay in position and not march to the Thames river.
This decision came as a loss to the British army, as fatigue and positioning had played a big roll in their defeat. The question remains, was it in the interest of the British to stay and protect Fort Amherstburg as Tecumseh suggested? Or was it more strategic to re-locate to an area that was more likely to be taken?

I believe that it would have been more strategic to stay in Fort Amherstburg to protect the region of Essex county, and stop the American soldiers from invading Canada. Though General Proctor had good reason to re-locate to a more idea battleground he had too many faults in the plan.  In the various battles in the War of 1812 the Fort's played a big role in the success of an army. The moment General Proctor left the ideal location of Fort Amherstburg he lost that battle. The soldiers were tired from a long march and had no fort to protect them from an attack. The British army therefore had nowhere to seek shelter and that led to their defeat.

Above is a painting of  General Harrison's (American General) batallion taking the British soldiers by surprise with an attack on land at the Thames river.