Early in the war of 1812, the United States plan to invade and conquer Canada. Western us politicians wanted to remove the British influence from the frontier and obtain more land for settlement.
The American militia outnumbered British troops, but the British relied on key bodies of water lakes, eerie on Ontario and Champlain to quickly move men and resources.
Naval battles fought on two of these lakes would affect the war’s outcome. The battle of lake Erie also known as the battle of Putin bay took place in September 1813, British control of lake Erie had given them control of American territory, including Detroit to break that control.
The Americans built a fleet of small ships in the sheltered Harbor at Erie, Pennsylvania under the supervision of shipwright Noah Brown and master commandant Oliver hazard Perry months earlier Perry’s friend, captain James Lawrence was mortally wounded in the devastating loss of USS Chesapeake.
Commodore Perry was inspired by his friend’s dying command. Don’t give up the ship and had a flag made, bearing those words, which he flew with the ma head of his flagship, the Lawrence name for his fallen friend as Perry’s fleet rapidly took shape.
British Commodore Barkley was quick to reinforce his own fleet building HMS Detroit to defend the lake against the anticipated American attack on September 10th, a day with light wind Perry brought out his ships against his British counterpart.
His flagship Lawrence engaged a center of the British line and was battered by the enemy’s long guns. Taking down his flag from his badly damaged ship.
Perry was rode to the Brigg Niagara, where he resumed the fight at that moment, the wind picked up giving Niagara and the rest of the American ships, a decisive advantage when Barkley surrendered, the Americans regained control of the lake and their territory.
The battle of lake Champlain in September 1814 found us master command dot Thomas McDonough’s fleet in control of the waterway, the British plan to invade New York from Canada and seized American territory before negotiators could finalize a treaty to end the war, but a successful invasion would require them to take control of lake Champlain from the Americans.
Knowing an attack was coming and that he was outgunned McDonough anchored his ships in Plattsburgh bay in such a way that the British ships would have to sail directly into his broad side.
With light winds, the British flagship was unable to properly maneuver and also dropped anchor trading close fire with McDonough’s flagship Saratoga with both ships badly damaged McDonough’s advanced planning gave him the advantage.
He had anchored his vessels close together and was able to turn them using anchor cables only in doing so. He shifted Saratoga around and resumed fire from her UNAM side.
The British flagship compliance was unable to match this maneuver and surrender. The British invasion forest was forced to retreat from American soil because the strategically important waterway remained in us hands.
Thank you for the video Daniel Dayton.
