DC -- Octagon House -- Exhibit: War of 1812:
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- Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
- OCT18_141018_01.JPG: The Steps to War:
War of 1812: A Nation Forged by War:
The War of 1812 arose from disputes -- over the rights of neutrals at sea rights, American ideas of citizenship, and westward expansion in North America -- set against the background of constant war between France and Great Britain.
Britain ruled the sea and France dominated Europe; each took aim at neutral US merchant ships to hurt the other. The British also outraged US citizens by pressing American sailors into its navy, claiming them as subjects. Even frontier Americans resented Britain for her Indian alliances, which create[d] a barrier to expansion.
In response to these affronts, real and imagined, and the increasing pressure of a sizable pro-war party, President James Madison asked Congress for a declaration of war on Great Britain on 18 June 1812.
"The final step ought to be taken; and that step is WAR."
-- Henry Clay, "War Should be Declared," Washington National Intelligence, 1812
- OCT18_141018_05.JPG: After Congress declared war on Great Britain in June 1812, "broadsides," or posters, went up across the US dramatizing American grievances and calling citizens to avenge the country's honor.
- OCT18_141018_11.JPG: War on the Sea:
War of 1812: A Nation Forged by War:
Facing numerical odds of 20 to 1, the US Navy initially took advantage of Britain's commitments fighting France, and won a series of ship-to-ship duels in 1812.
By the next year, the British used their superior numbers to blockade American ports, trapping much of the Navy in home waters. By 1814, however, several US ships had broken free, and fought duels from Britain to the Pacific.
"We had retired from the combat with the stripes yet bleeding on our backs."
-- London Times, 30 December 1814
Alone and on the run, the remaining American warships plagued British shipping. They took more than 500 enemy merchantmen and drove up prices in already war-weary Britain.
By 1815, the US Navy had achieved greatness wholly out of proportion to its size, stunned the world, and upheld American resolve until an honorable peace was won.
- OCT18_141018_15.JPG: On 29 December 1812 HMS Java became the third British frigate lost to an American ship, and the second lost to USS Constitution.
- OCT18_141018_24.JPG: War At Home
War of 1812: A Nation Forged by War:
War in the territories of the United States, bound by inland waterways, required close cooperation between military and naval forces. The strategic focus of both sides was the US-Canadian border, a vast and bountiful wilderness with few defenses.
Though American generals expected great conquests at the border, only the British made real gains. The deteriorating land war stabilized when US Navy squadrons won total victories on the Great Lakes.
Commitments in the Canadian theater left other regions under-defended. By 1814, British amphibious forces were poised for a knockout blow aimed at Washington, Baltimore, and New Orleans.
Wherever the British landed, the Navy was there to share in the defense, along with Army and militia forces. Unable to break American resolve, the British sought a diplomatic solution, concluding with peace in 1815.
"We have met the enemy and they are ours..."
-- Dispatch from Master Commandant Oliver Hazard Perry to Major General William Henry Harrison, 1813
- OCT18_141018_27.JPG: In September 1813, Oliver Hazard Perry led a newly-built US Navy squadron across Lake Erie and attacked the British fleet. The Americans became divided as British fire disabled Perry's flagship. Rowing to the US Brig Niagara, Perry led a second attack that broke the British line.
- OCT18_141018_30.JPG: In September 1814, the British targeted Baltimore, Maryland. To coordinate a land and sea attack they had to pass Fort McHenry, guarding the city's harbor. After a 25-hour bombardment of the fort, the Americans defiantly waved an enormous flag, and the British were forced to withdraw.
- OCT18_141018_37.JPG: On Land and Sea:
War of 1812: A Nation Forged by War:
The US Marines served with distinction in the War of 1812, in all the celebrated naval actions and major land battles. At sea, Marines kept order and served as sharpshooters; ashore, they guarded naval bases.
Their most memorable sea actions included the loss of USS Chesapeake, where the Marines resisted to the bitter end, and the duel between USS Wasp and Reindeer, where the Marines' musketry turned the tide.
In the climactic campaigns of 1814, Marines served with distinction alongside soldiers and militia defending Washington, Baltimore, and New Orleans. Valiant in victory and defeat, they set a shining example everywhere.
Although rarely numbering a hundred men at any one post, the US Marines served in every theater of the war, on both land and sea, and left a proud legacy for today's servicemen and women.
"The... Marines... promised all that could be expected from a cool intrepidity, and a high state of discipline."
-- Letter from Secretary of the Navy Jones to Congressman Richard M. Johnson, 3 October 1813
- OCT18_141018_41.JPG: US Marines contributed in many celebrated naval actions of the War of 1812, but none so much as this one, where their musketry "picked off the British officers and men in every part of the deck," repelled British boarders, seen here, and gave American Sailors an opening to board and take Reindeer.
- OCT18_141018_45.JPG: The British defeat at New Orleans marked the last offensive of the war and the greatest land victory of American armed forces, including 66 Marines from the Navy Yard who held "Line Jackson" against British highlanders of the 93rd Regiment of Foot.
- OCT18_141018_50.JPG: Upon the Coasts:
War of 1812: A Nation Forged by War:
Before the US established the Navy, the Treasury Department's Revenue Cutter Service watched its shores. During the War of 1812, the Service did inshore patrol duty, freeing the Navy's ships for blue-water cruises.
Several of the Service's cutter crews distinguished themselves in combat during the war. In fact, the honor of capturing the first enemy ship fell to the cutter Thomas Jefferson in June of 1812.
"Your gallant and desperate attempt... excited such admiration..."
-- Letter from Lieutenant John Crerie, Royal Navy, to Captain Travis, US Revenue Cutter Service, 1813
The next year, the cutter Vigilant captured a famous British privateer off Rhode Island, while the cutter Eagle fought to the last ounce of powder against a [sic] two larger British warships, before escaping overland.
A century after its display of dedication and courage in the War of 1812, the Revenue Cutter Service was converted into the US Coast Guard, which continues its proud traditions today.
- OCT18_141018_53.JPG: On 11 October 1814, the cutter Eagle fell in with two British warships: an 18-gun brig and armed tender. Eagle's captain beached the cutter and had her guns dragged up a nearby bluff. Eagle's men held the enemy at bay for two days, until they ran out of ammunition.
- OCT18_141018_56.JPG: On the night of 12 June 1813, armed boats from the frigate HMS Narcissus attacked the cutter Surveyor while she lay at anchor near Yorktown, Virginia. Outnumbered nearly 3 to 1, the cutter's crew was overwhelmed after 10 minutes of desperate fighting.
- OCT18_141018_58.JPG: On 4 October 1813, the US revenue cutter Vigilant fell in with Dart, a British privateer that had taken a score of prizes in Long Island Sound. In the dark, Vigilant's men delivered a broadside and boarded in the smoke, taking Dart in minutes.
- OCT18_141018_63.JPG: Postwar Times:
War of 1812: A Nation Forged by War:
Peace negotiations began in the Netherlands in late 1814. Aided by the American victories at Plattsburgh and Baltimore, US diplomats signed the Treaty of Ghent, which dictated a return to the status quo ante bellum, the state before the war.
Fighting the world's leading empire to a draw brought international acclaim to the United States, especially to the Navy. Congress voted to expand the Navy shortly after the peace, to ensure future national security.
Moreover, the War of 1812 gave Americans a sense of destiny; that the United States and its unique freedoms were meant not only to endure but to shine before the whole world.
"... in a short time the nation became a young Hercules in their eyes."
-- Reverend George Jones, Sketches of Naval Life, 1829
- OCT18_141018_70.JPG: Signed in the Netherlands on Christmas Eve 1814, the Treaty of Ghent did not address the grievances that caused the war -- rendered moot by France's defeat -- but it restored all territory, property and prisoners to each side and set up a commission to clarify the US-Canadian border.
- OCT18_141018_73.JPG: Long before it was our national anthem, Americans were singing "The Star-Spangled Banner" to celebrate the American victory at the Battle of Baltimore. The author, Francis Scott Key, witnessed the battle and his song helped many Americans express their newbound sense of patriotism during and after the war.
- OCT18_141018_76.JPG: Eight days after the Treaty of Ghent was ratified, Congress declared war on the pirate-state of Algiers. The US Navy soon destroyed the corsairs and dictated peace terms, winning the Navy the continuing support of Congress. Here USS Constellation captured the Algerian flagship, Meshuda.
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