The French military commander in the region, François Gaston de Lévis, was resolved to make a last stand in the city despite the overwhelming numerical inferiority of his troops.

During the winter British forces under James Murray held Quebec but due to the frozen Saint Lawrence River they had to wait until the spring of 1760 until reinforcements and supplies came down.

They were unable to leave due to the Royal Naval blockade of the Saint Lawrence and so the trapped French ships were then defeated in the Battle of Restigouche in July.

The British then set out a strategy for capturing Montreal, the last major French stronghold, where they would not be able to retreat deeper into the North American continent except for maintained posts in the backcountry.

They established a base of operations on Lake Ontario at Oswego and constructed a small fleet which consisted of snows HMS Onondaga, Mohawk and several row-galleys and gunboats, with a view of transporting an army down the Saint Lawrence River to Montréal.

[11] At the same time the British were fighting the Anglo-Cherokee War which had broken out earlier in the year in the Carolinas, and after a desperate appeal by Governor William Lyttelton Amherst was able to spare 1,373 troops but no more.

[12] Three forces would set out: Amherst's would advance Eastward from Lake Ontario along the Saint Lawrence River aiming to cut off the retreat of the French army westward to Détroit where it would have to protract the war longer.

William Haviland's force of two battalions of regular infantry and provincials numbering 3,500 men included the 17th, 22nd, 27th, 40th and the 60th regiments of foot as well as Robert Rogers' famed Rangers.

[10] In total Amherst had at his disposal some 18,000 men who about 60 percent (fewer than 11,000) were regulars; the remainder included more than 6,500 provincial soldiers, drawn from every colony north of Pennsylvania, and more than 700 Iroquois warriors.

[14] On their return journey the British and Mohawks then repelled French ambushes before arriving back to Crown Point to give Amherst the details of the raid.

He was delighted with the result and praised Rogers – the British took over 100 soldiers and militia captive, burned or captured valuable supplies and gained vast knowledge on the French defensive works up to Montreal.

[19] The principal French posts barring the lines of Haviland's advance along the Richelieu River were Forts Chambly, Saint-Jean and Île aux Noix.

2,000 men would march along the bank whilst the rest were embarked on a fleet of armed vessels and bateau which contained heavy guns and supplies from the Royal Navy in case a protracted siege came about – his advance was the second longest of the three.

[23][25] Murray delayed by winds finally reached the French defences at Trois-Rivières by mid August but was able to bypass them much to the annoyance of Dumas who realised that he was by now unable to stop them.

[28] The last place of significant defence was at Varennes - Murray sent ahead a detachment of Rangers as well as four companies of grenadiers and light infantry which landed there on 31 August.

[30] Murray had made a remarkable achievement; he succeeded in his advance disarming the inhabitants of the riverside parishes and had caused the vast majority of the Canadian militiamen able to bear arms to desert in their thousands on which the French depended for resistance.

This was defended by the few remaining French warships composed of the sloop La Vigilante, the schooner Waggon and several gunboats, and was anchored close to the shore.

With all their vessels seized French river communications were now severed; Haviland's force was then ferried across the bank to take Fort Saint-Jean on August 29.

Rogers' Rangers having arrived in whale and floatboats came across Fort St Jean's smouldering ruins the next day - and moved forward along the Montreal road and were able to capture seventeen French stragglers including a major and a captain.

[42] A detachment from Haviland's force numbering 1,000 men including siege guns under Darby arrived to join Rogers the next day and came upon Fort Chambly.

[36] As Amherst approached nearly all Canadians had deserted and here too nearly all the remaining force of Canada, consisting less than 2,200 regular troops and some 200 men of the Compagnies Franches de la Marine.

[47] The following day Amherst encamped above the place on the eastern side with the main British army began bringing up his siege guns from Lachine.

Vaudreuil called a council of war the same day – it was resolved that since all the militia and many of the regulars had abandoned the army, and the Indian allies of France had gone over to the British, further resistance was impossible.

Vaudreuil then laid before the assembled officers a long paper that he had been drawn up, containing 55 articles of capitulation to be proposed to the British; and these were unanimously approved.

[50] Then Lévis tried to shake his resolution, and sent him an officer with the following note: "I send your Excellency M. de la Pause, assistant quartermaster-general of the army, on the subject of the too rigorous article which you dictate to the troops by the capitulation, to which it would not be possible for us to subscribe."

Amherst answered the envoy: "I am fully resolved, for the infamous part the troops of France have acted in exciting the savages to perpetrate the most horrid and unheard of barbarities in the whole progress of the war, and for other open treacheries and flagrant breaches of faith, to manifest to all the world by this capitulation my detestation of such practices;" and he dismissed La Pause with a short note, refusing to change the conditions.

All persons who might wish to retire to France were allowed to do so, and the Canadians were to remain in full enjoyment of feudal and other property, including black and Indian slaves.

[38] The following morning a British detachment of grenadiers and light infantry with some artillery led by Colonel Frederick Haldimand entered into Montréal and took position on the Place d'Armes.

Rogers' Rangers detached himself from Haviland and were able to seize the fort; a ship of war, 33 pieces of cannon, many stores, the military chest, 2,500 troops and one stand of colours.

"The Surrender of Montreal" which was exhibited in the Music Hall rotunda and annex of Vauxhall Gardens in 1761 with the words chiselled in Power exerted, conquest obtained, mercy shown.