Existing comment:
Sailors Fighting Sailors:
US Chesapeake Flotilla vs Royal Navy:
Sailors provided the backbone of Baltimore's defense during the War of 1812. A strong detachment of US Navy seamen defended trenches on the outskirts of the city while members of the US Chesapeake Flotilla served Fort McHenry's largest cannons in the Water Battery. Here, eighteen men strained to load, aim, and fire, each of the 12,000 pound cannons as enemy bombs and rockets burst overhead.
The 471 men of the US Chesapeake Bay Flotilla protected local residents of the Chesapeake Bay region and fought numerous battles with the Royal Navy before coming to Baltimore. Their combat experience and teamwork proved vital in repulsing the British ships.
"The houses in the city were shaken to their foundations for never, since the invention of cannon to the present day, were the number of pieces fired with so rapid succession."
-- 1814 newspaper report
"Bay and River craft men, seamen, ordinary seamen who have families, riggers, and naval mechanics out of employ will engage in this service."
-- Excerpt from an 1814 recruiting notice describing the type of men who joined the Flotilla |