Charles P. Neimeyer

In early 1813, Britain launched a campaign on the Chesapeake Bay to try and divert American regulars from the Canadian border and put pressure on the United States to come to terms. Wishing to keep the Regular Army on the northern front, Secretary of War John Armstrong chose to rely on local forces and state militias to protect the Chesapeake Bay region, believing British raids posed more of a distraction than a serious threat. This defensive approach meant that towns, ports, and even the nation’s capital were left vulnerable to attack, and the responsibility for protection largely fell to less experienced, hastily organized militia units. While American forces successfully defended Craney Island near Norfolk, staving off British occupation, British forces routed an American force at Bladenburg, opening the path to Washington, where they set fire to public buildings, including the White House and the Capitol. This symbolic victory was followed by the Battle of North Point and the defense of Fort McHenry, where Americans managed to turn back British forces in Baltimore. Although the British raid on Washington was a symbolic coup, it did not disrupt the U. S. government or significantly affect the war. The failed attempt to capture Baltimore, combined with a decisive American victory at Plattsburgh, New York, underscored American resilience and contributed to Britain’s decision to end the war without any territorial concessions. Illustrated with photographs and maps, The U. S. Army in the Chesapeake Campaign 1813–14 examines this campaign’s key engagements.

The War of 1812 is perhaps the United States' least known conflict. Other than Andrew Jackson's 1815 victory at New Orleans and Francis Scott Key's poem "The Star-Spangled Banner" written in 1814 during the British attack on Baltimore, most Americans know little about the country's second major war. This book will give you a full insight into the second largest military conflict that took place on the soil of North America. Contents: Defending a New Nation 1783-1811 The Campaign of 1812 The Canadian Theater, 1813 The Creek War of 1813–1814 The Chesapeake Campaign, 1813–1814 The Canadian Theater, 1814 The Gulf Theater, 1813-1815

In the early nineteenth century, the United States of America was far from united. The United States faced internal strife over the extent of governance and the rights of individual states. The United States’ relationship with their former colonial power was also uncertain. Britain impressed American sailors and supported Native Americans’ actions in the northwest and on the Canadian border. In the summer of 1812, President James Madison chose to go to war against Britain. War in the Chesapeake illustrates the causes for the War of 1812, the political impacts of the war on America, and the war effort in the Chesapeake Bay. The book examines the early war efforts, when both countries focused efforts on Canada and the Northwest front. Some historians claim Madison chose to go to war in an attempt to annex the neighbouring British territories. The book goes on to discuss the war in the Chesapeake Bay. The British began their Chesapeake campaign in an effort to relieve pressure on their defences in Canada. Rear Admiral George Cockburn led the resulting efforts, and began to terrorize the towns of the Chesapeake. From Norfolk to Annapolis, the British forces raided coastal towns, plundering villages for supplies and encouraging slaves to join the British forces. The British also actively campaigned against the large American frigates- seeing them as the only threat to their own naval superiority. War in the Chesapeake traces these British efforts on land and sea. It also traces the Americans’ attempts to arm and protect the region while the majority of the American regular forces fought on the Northwest front. In the summer campaign of 1814, the British trounced the Americans at Bladensburg, and burned Washington, D. C. Afterwards, the Baltimoreans shocked the British with a stalwart defence at Fort McHenry. The British leaders, Vice Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane and Major General Robert Ross, did not expect strong resistance after their quick victories at Bladensburg. War in the Chesapeake tells the story of some of the earliest national heroes, including the defenders of Baltimore and naval leaders like John Rodgers and Stephen Decatur. The following December 1814, the United States and Britain signed the Treaty of Ghent, ending hostilities and returning North America to a peaceful status quo. The United States and neighbouring Canada would not go to war on opposing sides again. The United States left the war slightly more unified and independent of the British.

Nearly everyone in the U. S. has studied the Revolutionary War. Too often, however, historians of the Revolution focus on the activity of the army without noticing what was taking place inside the army. Making liberal use of diaries and correspondence by the soldiers and their families, Charles P. Neimeyer tells the stories of the men and women who fought for the young country's independence. Sometimes starting off as rag-tag groups of men shooting off their muskets at geese just for the thrill of the sound, the soldiers became more disciplined and focused. The army recruited a significant number of African American soldiers, who fought side by side with whites. Women also fought and served in the army, either masquerading as male soldiers or providing support for army operations in camp and on the march. Suffering through times of numbing cold and starvation where men boiled their shoes for food, the sheer perseverance of the soldiers in the ranks ultimately won the war for independence. Presenting stories from letters and diaries of the men and women of the time, this volume reveals the stories of fear, exhaustion, hard work, grief, and exhilaration of the people in the camps and on the march. Highlights include: ; Recruitment, which included just about any healthy man willing to serve, including immigrants and enemy POWs ; General Washington's attempts to create a model, respectable army ; Attempts at medical treatment, and the ravages of smallpox, which left men dying at makeshift hospitals ; African American soldiers in the War ; Women's contributions to war efforts, whether in disguise as soldiers, or in filling in for husbands killed in battle ; Daily life in the camp: the monotony, the lack of food and supplies, drinking, sleeping in huts and out in the open, games, letter writing and religious observations ; The failure to fairly pay the soldiers as they mustered out of serviceThe book also includes a timeline that puts dates and events in better perspective; a comprehensive, topically arranged bibliography; and a thorough index.