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| Gorham's Rangers | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1744–1762 |
| Country |  Great Britain |
| Allegiance | British Crown |
| Branch | Provincial troops: Rangers |
| Type | Reconnaissance, Counter-insurgency, and Light Infantry |
| Role | Reconnaissance, counter-insurgency, amphibious and light infantry operations |
| Size | One Company |
| Garrison/HQ | Annapolis Royal (1744–1749) Halifax (1749–1762) |
| Engagements | King George's War
|
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Captain John Gorham Major Joseph Gorham Lieutenant William Bourne |
Gorham's Rangers was one of the most famous and effective[1] ranger units raised in colonial North America. Formed by John Gorham, the unit served as the prototype for many subsequent ranger forces, including the better known Rogers' Rangers.[2][3] The unit started out as a Massachusetts provincial company, which means it was not part of the province's normal militia system.[4] Recruited in the summer of 1744 at the start of King George's War, Governor William Shirley ordered the unit raised as reinforcements for the then-besieged British garrison at Fort Anne in Annapolis Royal. The unit was primarily used to secure British control in Nova Scotia, whose population consisted primarily of hostile French Acadian and Mi'kmaq. Initially a sixty-man all-Indian company led by British officers, the original Native American members of the unit were gradually replaced by Anglo-Americans and recent Scots and Irish immigrants and were a minority in the unit by the mid-1750s. The company were reconnaissance experts as well as renowned for their expertise at both water-borne operations and frontier guerrilla warfare. They were known for surprise amphibious raids on Acadian and Mi'kmaq coastal or riverine settlements, using large whaleboats, which carried between ten and fifteen rangers each. This small unit was the main British military force defending Nova Scotia from 1744 to 1749. The company became part of the British Army and was expanded during the Seven Years' War and went on to play an important role in fighting in Nova Scotia as well as participating in many of the important campaigns of the war, particularly distinguishing itself at the Siege of Quebec in 1759.
- ^ Cox, Rob S., "John Gorham papers", William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan
- ^ Grenier, John. The Far Reaches of Empire: War in Nova Scotia, 1710-1760 (University of Oklahoma Press, 2008)
- ^ Carroll, Brian D., "'Savages' in the Service of Empire: Native American Soldiers in Gorham's Rangers, 1744-1762," New England Quarterly 85, no. 2 (2012): 383-429.
- ^ Anderson, Fred. A People's Army: Massachusetts Soldiers and Society in the Seven Years' War, (University of North Carolina Press, 1983)