Page "Lower Fort Garry" Paragraph 6

Every now and then there was a crisis that called for military action, and Lower Fort Garry was the obvious choice for a base of operations.

In the 1846, British troops ( 6th Regiment of the Foot ) were sent to the fort when a dispute erupted with the United States over the boundary between the Oregon Territory and what is now British Columbia.

However, some believe the request for troops was actually intended to intimidate local free traders ( as trading with anyone other than the HBC was illegal ).

In either case, by the time the troops arrived ( 1846 ), the threat of invasion was long over.

The troops ( becoming a nuisance by causing minor disturbances ) were put to work at the fort completing the construction of the walls which were finished in 1848.

When the Red River Rebellion broke out in 1870, Louis Riel occupied Upper Fort Garry, and the Quebec Rifles took the lower fort.

No wars or fights ever occurred at Lower Fort Garry as it was a peaceful settlement.