Battle of New Orleans

:For other uses of the name, see Battle of New Orleans (disambiguation)

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The Battle of New Orleans, also known as the Battle of Chalmette Plantation, took place on January 8 1815 during the War of 1812, when the United States forces defeated the British.

Related Topics:
January 8 - 1815 - War of 1812 - United States - British

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In December of 1814 British forces under Major General Sir Edward Pakenham landed along the lower Mississippi River. At first they met with only minor resistance. The Americans, led by Colonel Andrew Jackson, set up defensive positions at Chalmette, Louisiana, some five miles (8 km) downriver from the city of New Orleans. The first British troops reached the American position on January 1, and in an exchange of artillery fire, the Americans held their ground. Packenham decided to wait for his entire force of over 10,000 men to assemble before launching an attack. On the 8th he ordered three large, direct assaults on the American positions, all of which were cut down by American fire. Pakenham himself was mortally wounded in the third attack. The British had fought bravely but suffered defeat because ladders needed to scale the earthworks defended by the Americans were never brought forward to the soldiers. All the British infantry could do was to stand out in the open and be shot by the Americans behind defenses that the British could not assault. General John Lambert, who assumed command upon Pakenham's death, ordered the British withdrawal, despite the fact that Pakenham, before dying, ordered him to continue the battle. The British had suffered a loss of some 700 dead and 2000 wounded or taken prisoner, while the Americans only had 13 dead with 58 wounded.

Related Topics:
Edward Pakenham - Mississippi River - Andrew Jackson - Chalmette, Louisiana - New Orleans - January 1 - John Lambert

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Throughout the battle, the Americans were greatly aided by Jean Lafitte, and his group of pirates. Lafitte's men fought alongside the Americans, their pirating in the seas south of Louisiana having been largely ignored by the US government, as they, as a rule, attacked only the Spanish and other pirates. It is an interesting sidenote that Lafitte's men wore red shirts as their uniform, which caused much confusion in the British ranks, also clothed in red. Some daring pirates came down from Gen. Jackson's ramparts and merged with the British ranks, thus allowing them to kill small pockets of isolated troops before they realized there was an intruder. Also aiding the Americans were quite a few liberated Haitian slaves and a group of men from the mountains of Kentucky, wielding long rifles.

Related Topics:
Jean Lafitte - Pirates

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