"War of 1812 Chesapeake Campaign: large-scale" Topic

…British feint.

"The burning of federal buildings in the nation's capital 200 years ago this week was a psychological victory for the British, but little else, according to an Army historian.

The Chesapeake Campaign, which ended with the Battle of Baltimore in September 1814, was really a diversion, undertaken by the British to draw the Americans away from the campaign in Canada, said Glenn Williams, U.S. Army Center of Military History.

Williams said the War of 1812 was, by-in-large, a success for the U.S. Army, given the circumstances leading up to the war -- meaning a small Army (described in part one of this three-part series)…"
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Amicalement
Armand

The author mentions the 'sailors and Marines' at Bladensburg, but neglects their performance in the action, which was the best of the day. Under the command of Joshua Barney who had commanded a flotilla of gunboats in the Chesapeake, were his own flotillamen and the Marines from the Washington Navy Yard. They made a game stand in the middle of the American rout and mess and only broke up upon Barney's verbal commands. Barney himself was wounded and captured.

The American successes in the field in 1814 were a turn-around from earlier defeats. The American successes on the Niagara, at Plattsburg, and Baltimore greatly influenced the final peace treaty and the New Orleans campaign, actually conducted and the battle fought, before the war was actually over, was the icing on the cake.

Thanks Kevin!.

Amicalement
Armand