The Battle of New Orleans, 1815
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The last major battle in the War of 1812 was a huge win for the United States against the British. The battle was fought on this day in 1815, in New Orleans, LA. The United States troops at this battle were commanded by Andrew Jackson, known as “Old Hickory”. Jackson, assembled some 5,000 men and they frantically threw together earthworks to defend the Port City.
This win could have changed if not for Jean Lafitte, a French-born gentleman pirate refusal to help the British. (They bribed him not only money, but a command in the Royal Navy). Instead Lafitte offered his assistance to the United States, which Jackson took instantly.
The British with their 8,000 troops came at United States at daybreak; when the main attack began the British fired rocket. It is said that Jackson was calm and not alarmed by this, but said:
Don’t mind those rockets…They are mere toys to amuse children.
Jackson decided as the British advanced to have his artillery to “elevate them guns a little lower”. At the end of the battle British lost 2,000 either in death, wounded, or captured, while the United States toll was a staggering 13 dead and 58 wounded or missing. It can be stated that the United States defended the port city and defeated the British.
The most interesting part about this battle was two weeks before the battle United States and British negotiators had signed the peace treaty in Ghent, Belgium. It was still a lasting victory for not only the United States, but for Jackson. He later becomes the nation’s 7th President.
The Adamsist 