THE SUN DID NOT SET IN 1815

Updated Sunday 15 May, 2011 12:18 PM

THE SUN DID NOT SET IN 1815….

To Great Britain, the War of I8I2 was only a bothersome addition of its greater

struggle against Napoleonic France. To the Canadians it was clearly a case of

American aggression. But to the Americans it was neither simple nor clear. The

United States entered the war with confused ambitions and divided loyalties, and

made peace without settling any of the issues that had induced the nation to go

to war.

The War of 1812 is one of the forgotten wars of the United States. The war

lasted for only three years, and while it ended much like it started; in

stalemate; it was in fact a war that once and for all confirmed American

Independence.  The war itself, sparked national pride, and the American industry

prospered because it made more goods at home when trade stopped with Britain.

Also, the British recognized U.S. boundaries and stayed out of the Northwest

Territory. President Madison’s war message to Congress, did after all, make a

strong case for the need to fight with Britain for Neutral Rights, when the U.S.

merchant vessels became a prey to the Royal Navy warships.

               The US was broke after its misadventures in the Canadas and on the seas – and

Britain had lost its opportunities, it was time to end the squabble and embrace

the status quo, the rest was little more than posturing for the Peace Table.

During the peace talks, the British presented the American diplomats with many

demands, but the U.S. refused to comply. After a few months, the Treaty of Ghent

was signed and it included none of Britain’s original demands of the Americans.

It ended the fighting and restored the status quo antebellum (the state of

things before the war). Neither country gained territory and many matters were

left unresolved, such as the freedom of seas issue and neutrality rights.

            The offensive actions of the United States failed in every attempt

to capture Canada. On the other hand, the British army was successfully stopped

in it attempts to capture Baltimore, New York, and New Orleans. There were a

number of American naval victories in which American vessels proved themselves

superior to similar sized British vessels.

When we look at world history, the war that broke out in North America in 1812

was greatly overshadowed by the war between France and Britain in Europe.

America’s involvement in the War of 1812 was confusing to many people living in

1812 and is still confusing to many people today. So to look at this prospective

could gives some understanding how such a war that had “little impact”, might

have changed history, as we know it.

Our story comes at the Battle of New Orleans. This event, when I first read it,

seemed quite interesting. This came from a what-if question, what would happen,

if on January 8, the British had defeated a small American force, with the

intention of seizing New Orleans, the crown of the South?

In late 1814, New Orleans was home to a population of French, Spanish, African,

Anglo and Creole peoples dedicated to pursuing economic opportunism and the joys

of life. It also occupied a strategic place on the map. Located just 100 miles

upstream from the mouth of the Mississippi River, the City offered a tempting

prize to a British military still confident over the burning of Washington, D.C.

in 1814. To capture the city, Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane of the British Navy

planned out a naval fleet of more than 50 ships to transport 10,000 troops from

Jamaica, - a large number of them experienced veterans from the Wellington’s

campaign in Europe. Sir Edward Pakenham, the 37-year-old brother-in-law of the

Duke of Wellington and a decorated general, would lead them.

 On Christmas Day, Pakenham arrived at the mouth of the Mississippi to find his

troops disposed on a narrow isthmus below New Orleans between the Mississippi

River and the river swamp. They had landed two weeks earlier, while Jackson’s

5000 defenders consisting of regular soldiers, militia, Indians, black troops

and even pirates, began constructing strong defensive earthworks of logs and

cotton bales. Their position had a clear field of fire across the ground the

British had to advance over. Pekenham had 7500 men under his command. While a

solid and brave second-in-command, any military logic must have left Pakenham

before the battle, as his plan of attack for a frontal attack was unimaginative

and deadly.

The fog that was supposed to help the British in their advance was creating more

problems than anticipated. It was thick enough to create problems for the

artillery units, who are having trouble finding their positions and setting up.

As the artillery opened up to signal the advance, British regiments on opposite

ends of the field headed out to capture and silence the gun batteries in front

of the American lines.

Suddenly, the fog began to lift. As the morning mist disappears, and Pekenham

loses his element of surprise, and Andrew Jackson has a clear view of the enemy

army that has plagued him for weeks. The artillery from Jackson’s line and the

ships on the river commence a relentless fire on the redcoats. The exposed

British are helpless since they are too far away to respond with their muskets.

Advancing, the British were hit with an overpowering rain of cannon and musket

fire but continued their attack.

Taking charge of the crucial attack in person, Pakenham was wounded in the knee,

and then, as he tried to remount his horse, was hit in the arm. Seconds later

came a mortal wound. Later, the British retreated, crossing the river and seeing

their glimpse at the carnage on the battlefield.  After having withdrawn from

the battlefield, for ten days the shattered remnants of Pakenham’s army remained

in camp, then re-embarked and sailed away.

New Orleans was an unfortunate tragedy for the British as it was an unnecessary

battle. Peace with America had been signed with the Treaty of Ghent on Christmas

Eve, but the combatants did not learn of it until after the clash. In two

fateful hours, more than 2000 British troops - including two senior generals -

had been killed, wounded or captured. Jackson lost eight killed and 13 injured.

Unaware that a peace treaty had been signed, the two sides continued fighting in

Louisiana. Led by General Andrew Jackson, the Americans scored the greatest

victory of the war. General Andrew Jackson's leadership at New Orleans changed

everything. The battle with British on January 8, 1815, is among the most

decisive American military victories in our history. It was because of this

spectacular victory, Congress ratified the Treaty of Ghent ending the War.

But what if the uninformed British had defeated the American force. There were

at several times, instances were the battle could have easily been lost to the

Americans. After the British established their base at Pine Island on Lake

Borgne in December of 1814, Lt. Col. William Thornton of the 85th regiment, led

part of the advance forces that moved up the Bayou Bienvenu to the Villere

Plantation when the British first arrived in New Orleans. Thornton urged his

senior commander, John Keane, to move on New Orleans, while the Americans were

still unaware of their proximity to the city. Keane decided to wait for Sir

Edward Pakenham’s reinforcements instead. This decision cost the British their

best chance for capturing New Orleans, but it wasn’t their only.

Another, and the most noticeable example occurred at the west bank of the city.

While amidst the devastation, the battle on the west bank had yet suddenly

become critical. Jackson did not make adequate preparations to meet the advance

there until the British began their movement, and by then it was too late. The

heavy guns of a battery posted on the west bank were not placed to fire along

that side of the river and only about 800 militiamen, divided in two groups a

mile apart, were in position to oppose the British forces there. The British,

under Thornton, pressed on, routed them, and overran the battery. Their rout was

only called off when Pakenham's successor in command, appalled by the deadly

numbers of the main assault, ordered his forces to withdraw from the west bank

and rejoin the main force. Had the British continued their advance, Jackson’s

position would have been critical to the outcome of the battle.

Suppose Pekenham hadn’t been killed by his mortal wound, and had been able to

take to the field without having Thornton’s troops being forced to withdraw.

Although his plan seemed outrageous, he had the experience, unlike his

successor, to take advantage of Thornton’s breakthrough.  Jackson may as well

have found himself outflanked by the redcoats, and forced to retreat.

Subsequently, the British would have gained a victory, but a ruinous victory

with many casualties. At a heavy cost, the British have found themselves in

control of the Southern Crown, which was New Orleans.

If they captured New Orleans, what would the British have done? Would they have

chosen to give New Orleans back, and walk away from the key to North America, or

would they have fully capitalized on it?

The British were active in North America diplomatically. But truthfully, it’s

hard to see any real desire for imperial recovery or expansion in North America

in British actions during the period after the Revolution. Some can agree, that

everything the British did after that was largely defensive, in that it had to

do with supporting and defending Canada or propping up the Spanish. I think the

British wanted trade supremacy, not expanded territory.

Though with that said, possession of New Orleans would have been incredibly

tempting. New Orleans was the navel of the American interior. They could have

used possession of it, at the very least, to extract concessions on Canadian

fishing rights, drawing a favorable border between Maine and New Brunswick, etc.

Or, it might have reawakened the desire to control the interior of North

America, linking it with the Oregon territory and Canada and keeping the U.S.

pinned up in the East with two-thirds of its territory draining into the

Mississippi, whose outlet the British could control.

For the United States this would have been an unstable situation, which would

have presented several problems. New Orleans was the only strong American

presence in a region, and at the time, was essentially cut off from the rest of

the country by the effective British naval blockade. It was the only American

naval station on the Gulf Coast and was geographically cut off from the rest of

the country by Spain’s territories. Since acquiring Louisiana, the US had made

no secret of its desire to acquire these lands, but to the British, it would

have given them entire control of the shoreline from the Gulf right up to the

Atlantic seaboard. Moreover, New Orleans was overflowing with millions of

dollars worth of tradable goods, including cotton, sugar, tobacco, ext. If the

British took the city, a considerable portion of this prize would be theirs.

Many British commanders were also convinced that the mixed population of Indian,

Spanish, French and black slaves would be eager to escape American domination.

Admiral Cochrane wrote to Earl Bathurst of England, saying that he believed that

the majority of the inhabitants (of Louisiana) preferred being under the British

Government and next to that the Spanish. Nevertheless, the priority would then

would have been Europe not Louisiana, regardless of the original plan! It is

possible then that the British may have given Louisiana to Spain (Britain’s ally

during the Peninsula Wars who already held the Floridas, but their influence was

rapidly fading in the face of American expansion).

Many where also convinced in England, that possession of New Orleans would throw

a wrench in America’s plans to expand their borders, and could cripple their

already shaky economy. The economic livelihood of Great Britain was domination

in maritime trade and the US was expanding and catching up fast. Worse it was

anti-British! As an economic and trade rival the US, if it continued to grow at

an almost exponential rate, it would eclipse Great Britain within a few years.

Remembering of course, Napoleon's intimate connection with Louisiana, the US and

Great Britain could arguably be taken seriously on such an issue New Orleans.

From the British side, if Pakenham won at New Orleans they would probably have

sought to limit and contain the US as a future trading competitor not ‘conquer’

it though.

Of course had the British won at New Orleans the war must surely have gone on.

If the U.S. was prepared in the early 1800s to go to war over New Orleans, then

surely they would have done so again especially if the British held it. Had the

British taken New Orleans, the Treaty of Ghent would have been a DOA, dead on

its arrival in North America. Congress would never have ratified it unless the

British specifically clarified that they were willing to withdraw from

Louisiana. There is no way that the Southern and Western states would have given

the approval for ending the war without reclaiming New Orleans. The northeastern

states might have insisted on ending the war without getting New Orleans back,

and the stubborn New England states would have automatically gone against the

demands of their hated southerners.

So now that war has continued, what happens now? Although it favored to be

humiliating at one point, the war at least taught the Americans several lessons.

The Americans were proud of their reputation as the world’s best riflemen,

however, the rifle played only a minor role in the war. On the other hand, the

American soldier displayed unexpected superiority in gunnery and engineering.

Artillery contributed to American successes at the battle of Chippewa, the

defense of Sackett’s Harbor and Norfolk, the siege of Fort Erie, and New

Orleans. The war also boosted the reputation of the Corps of Engineers, a branch

that owed its efficiency chiefly to the West Point Military Academy. Academy

graduates completed the fortifications at Fort Erie, built Fort Meigs, planned

the harbor defenses of Norfolk and New York, and directed the fortifications at

Plattsburg. If larger numbers of infantrymen had been trained, as well as

artillerymen and engineers, the course of the war would have been entirely

different.

But no invasion plan could be carried out, unless the political crisis was not

to be resolved. Madison’s government is suffering from bankruptcy. To restart

war would be disastrous, especially when Britain is capable of sending more

skilled men to the continent, while Napoleon remains defeated. Five American

diplomats, all negotiators of the unsuccessful Treaty of Ghent, traveled to

London in order to work out a compromise. The five American peace commissioners

included representatives from different political parties of different parts of

the U.S. They were: Henry Clay, the prominent war-hawk who had helped trigger

the war; John Quincy Adams, a experienced envoy and diplomat; Albert Gallatin, a

elegant Swiss-born former cabinet member; Jonathan Russell, ambassador to

Sweden, and James Ashton Bayard, a Delaware senator.  Will their diplomacy be

successful, or will both the British and Americans prove unable to prevent the

renewal of war. What do thing looks like at this point…

We arrive in New Orleans, 1815. After the British occupation is installed, the

life doesn’t look particularly difficult for the British there. The British

seemed to enjoy themselves and settled down to a lifestyle not markedly

different from that they lived in the hill-stations of Spain. The city is quiet

and it was not long before General Pekenham and most of the army would return to

England. For a while, things seem to go quite well. Some disgruntled resident

leaders are bribed with gold, others jailed by punitive suspicions. They arrange

race meetings, play polo, enjoy amateur plays, and play cricket, a common

tradition in England’s sporting life. Food is plentiful and the Caribbean

merchants are eager to do business with their new visitors.

So confident is Pekenham that he sends the government his celebrated message in

which he declared that all was quiet 'from the shores of New Orleans to the

bayous of the Mississippi’.  After Sir George Provost’s court martial and death,

Pekenham was searing for the post of Governor-General of Canada, one of the top

three positions in British North America, and perhaps his eagerness to leave New

Orleans clouded his judgment. Others were more discerning. General John Keane

and other officers saw the rising tide of discontent. In New Orleans there was a

serious cause for alarm. Prices had risen with the arrival of so many well-paid

red-coated consumers.  Greedy merchants had foolishly raised taxes to pay for a

lifestyle many southerners felt unnecessary and inappropriate. Men were highly

vocal in their whispered claims of outrage and welcomes overstayed. The

bitterness of these men would stir up the fires of New Orleans discontent and

help lead to disaster.

Not only did Keane see discontent among the Natives, but of his own soldiers.

Keane inspected the British Army after occupation, only to see disgruntlement

and unhappiness. His men had been exhausted and worn out from constant overseas

service. They were unfit for active service and he constantly expressed his

disapproval of them very publicly and, in particular, with their officers.

Between the 20th December 1815 and 7th Jan 1815 both regiments suffered from

desertions and even had officers placed under open arrest.

They had been in service for so long, some up to 15 years without seeing home

for a rest that they were simply exhausted. Pakenham, forcing every officer on

active duty, gave them a critical task, which was their old reputation, one the

worn out men could not longer give up to anymore. The men were simply were too

exhausted and demoralized to fight anymore now that Napoleon was gone, the US

“beaten” and they wanted to go home!

Meanwhile, Jackson, defeated, not captured, and his small rag-tag army are now

seeking refuge in the swampy southern wilderness. Most of his army, residents of

New Orleans, had abandoned him. Although a few 800-1,000 admiring men remain

with the charismatic and able commander, everyday he risks losing men to

desertions and constant raids.  He must take actions his men have long waited,

which was to liberate the city. Continued attacks on the Georgia frontier by

Creek Indians and runaway slaves based in Florida led Jackson to contemplate to

take action against the remnant of the defeated Creek Indians, in fears that

they might re-join their former allies to the British.

A couple of weeks after the take New Orleans, they British appear in Mobile on

February 8, confirming Jackson's fear for a planned an attack in that area. They

overwhelmed Fort Bowyer, a garrison manned by only 600 Regulars at the entrance

to Mobile Harbor (in actual timeline, only 360 men guarded it, a little more

pressure on Jackson would add more numbers). Before they could attack the city

itself, word arrived that a treaty had been signed at Ghent on Christmas Eve,

two weeks before the Battle of New Orleans. The officers do not know what they

should do. Should they withdraw now that a treaty has been signed, or stay, in

case war will restart? The British officers rightly decide to halt their advance

while awaiting approval from their superiors. (In OTL, they withdraw, because

the treaty was not only signed, but also ratified by both countries).

Elsewhere, things are getting heated up. As soon as President Madison alerts the

military of a possible renewal of war in February 1815, Congress, forced to meet

at Blodgett's Hotel after the Capitol laid in blackened ruins, acted promptly to

resolve the crisis over New Orleans. In Congress, there are many factions who

express different beliefs for a continued war. The most prominent of these

hotheads are John C. Calhoun. Leading the Southern-Western factions of both

houses, he calls on an immediate renewal of war, if the British are to get any

concessions from New Orleans.

Others, like Langdon Cheves of South Carolina, and Felix Grundy of Tennessee,

have gone so far as to send aid and militia to Jackson, still waging a mini-war

against the British.  Moderates, like John Rudolph, made a coalition of parties

and men, merchants, and all men of the Federalist faction vigorously opposed

renewing war (in OTL, the Federalists were largely dead by now, after the news

of the Treaty of Ghent ending the war, and news of the Jackson victory. Though

with that said, the war still seems uncertain in this TL).

In London, things also look bad. When Clay and others come to England, they were

prepared to allow the British free shipping rights on the Mississippi river.

However, he is enraged to find the British looking for concessions in other

places were they’ve already been defeated. The British diplomats present a list

of perverse demands, which had violated their former written treaty. First, they

wanted to acquire the land within the former Louisiana Territory that lied north

of the Platte River. Second, they wanted free navigational rights on the

Mississippi, which included unhindered access to New Orleans. Third, they wanted

to establish an Indian Protectorate, where the Indians themselves had already

been defeated. Fourth, they wanted to construct warships and build a series of

forts on the Great Lakes. And fifth, they wanted a stricter border between Main

and New Brunswick.

Henry Clay and others are in an intense dispute with British diplomats of the

Prince Regent. Clay was willing to allow the British passage into New Orleans,

but to have major accessions elsewhere seemed ludicrous. When news of the

provisions of the treaty reaches America there is uproar from Congress. News of

the unsuccessful negotiating sparks more calls for renewing war. Many from

London do not want to re-enter the war during their recovery after facing

Napoleon. But the arrogance and the ambitions and interest of high-level men of

the Prince Regent cause tortuous compromise between their Yankee counterparts.

As the American and British diplomat continue their rising dispute, the British

troops coming to Canada have problems of their own. While traveling enroute to

Canada, an envoy fleet of 3,000 men becomes entangled in a heavy trans-Atlantic

fog and becomes separated. While most of the ships made it to the Naval station

of Halifax safely, three ships were delayed. Two coming to a clearing in the

Fog, found themselves face to face with an American privateering ship. A

worrisome moment, but they were at peace, weren't they? (Of course one was never

sure back then. In those days, word was passed by ship, and sometimes one would

not know the most current news for months). The American ship comes broadside to

the British vessel. The British commander, who was aware of the negotiations in

London, cried out to the American captain, “Are we at Peace, or War?” The

captain replied “War!”, and a short exchange began when the guns of the American

ship spitted fire through the side of the British vessel. Almost all hands on

that ship were lost. Clearly the peace was little more than a figment of one's

imagination.

Angered by this attack, King George demanded that the peace talks be ended, and

withdrew his entire staff of negotiators from the peace table. Although the

Treaty was signed, it was not ratified. The war had officially continued, and

something was definitely in the making.

Madison know that this senseless war, which after several attempt to end, was

about the continue, and its sun rising. However, in sharp contrast, the American

military machine would prove itself superbly ready and well tested after several

years of defeat and victory. Congress called on an army of 50,000 recruits. Many

were taken by the outcries of the war-hawks, claiming to resolve the deaths of

thousands who had were about to die for nothing. Within days of mobilization,

starting on January 23, Madison and his press wielding war-hawks were able to

field a unheard of 14,300 men, compared to the 5,000 who had signed up in 1812.

War seemed approaching the corner, and the armies of the United States and

Britain are to again clash…

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