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> The Poisoning of the Well

20 January 2006, 12:34

"Chesapeake campaign, The Star-Spangled Banner
The best known of the destructive British raids was the "Burning of Washington" (the burning of public buildings, including the White House, in Washington) by Admiral Sir George Cockburn and General Robert Ross. This expedition was carried out between August 19 and August 29, 1814. On the 24th, the inexperienced American militia, who had collected at Bladensburg, Maryland to protect the capital, were soundly defeated, opening the route to Washington. While Dolley Madison saved valuables from the White House, President James Madison was forced to flee to Virginia; American morale was reduced to an all-time low. The British viewed their actions as fair retaliation for the Americans’ burning of York (later renamed Toronto) in 1813, although there are suggestions that the burning was in retaliation of destructive American raids into other parts of Upper Canada.

Having destroyed Washington’s public buildings, the British army next moved to capture Baltimore, a busy port and a key base for American privateers. The subsequent Battle of Baltimore began with a British landing at North Point, but the attack was repulsed and General Ross was killed. The British also attempted to attack Baltimore by sea on September 13, but were unable to reduce Fort McHenry, at the entrance to Baltimore Harbor. The defense of the fort inspired the American lawyer Francis Scott Key to write a poem that would eventually supply the lyrics to "The Star-Spangled Banner," the national anthem of the United States."

Have I missed something here, jt, or have you? The above passage sounds like an invasion of American soil by the Brits, even though much of the 1812 war was fought in Canada and other territories not strictly part of what constituted the US then. And, yes, I know that the US was the initial aggressor in this war, invading Canada, etc. The fact remains, though, that US soil WAS invaded. It doesn’t really matter that the Brits were reacting to initial attacks by the Americans. An invasion is an invasion. Or, do you want to argue that the British still viewed Washington and Baltimore as part of the British Empire? No revision going on here - just a recitation of historical fact. Sorry, old boy. Cheers!