Washington Burning: The 200th Anniversary of The War of 1812

Washingtonian ^ | August 2012 | Adam Goodheart

[kiryandil]

August 24, 1814.

"During the War of 1812, British troops burned much of Washington DC. And to think we never had the decency to thank them."
~Larry J

Must-watch Youtube video:

War of 1812 - Three Dead Trolls in a Baggie

[Bryanw92]

Americans should celebrate the anniversary by burning Washington DC again.

[cripplecreek]

Remember the River Raisin!

[SunkenCiv]

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[chopperman]

If the Brits tried that again, they’d have my support. There’s a few other towns they should torch - NY, LA, SF, Chicago.

[yarddog]

I believe an act of God saved the Capital from being occupied by the British.

At the height of their looting and burning both a hurricane and thunderstorm hit the capital. It was so severe that several British soldiers were killed and many injured.

They were forced to abandon the capital.

That really does sound like an act of God.

[Tennessee Nana]

My 3rd great grandfather fought in the War of 1812...

The Americans burnt down his widowed mothers house in the hamlet of St Davids July 1814...

[clearcarbon]

"Americans should celebrate the anniversary by burning Washington DC again."

[cripplecreek]

That really does sound like an act of God.

Yes it does.

[Fiji Hill]

I'll see you're War of 1812 by Three Dead Trolls in a Baggie and raise you The Eighth of January by Jimmy Driftwood

[cripplecreek]

George Armstrong Custer hosts a reunion of survivors (Kentucky Militia) of the River Raisin massacre at Monroe Michigan. It was the greatest single loss of American life in the war of 1812 with nearly 500 killed in 2 days of fighting or massacred in captivity by indian guards

[X-spurt]

YES!

[Verginius Rufus]

So today is the anniversary of the burning of Washington, D.C., in 1814, and also of the eruption of Vesuvius in A.D. 79 that destroyed Pompeii and Herculaneum.

The only thing the two events have in common, besides happening on the same day of the year, is that both were the fault of George W. Bush.

[ROTB]

That really does sound like an act of God.

Yes it does.

***

What about the drought happening right now?

[yarddog]

I have no idea about the drought.

[Tennessee Nana]

Was that Tecumseh ???

he was down in that area...

[combat_boots]

Wow. Interesting family!

[cripplecreek]

The British indian allies were Roundhead (Wyandot) and Walks in Water (Huron).

The British Commander was Henry Proctor who found that he wasn't the great war hero he expected to be and was basically shamed for the rest of his life. On at least 2 occasions he left wounded prisoners in the care of indians who massacred them.

Canadian historian Pierre Berton wrote,

"To the Americans he remains a monster, to the Canadians a coward. He is neither--merely a victim of circumstances, a brave officer but weak, capable enough except in moments of stress, a man of modest pretensions....The prisoner of events beyond his control, Procter dallied and equivocated until he was crushed. His career is ended.

Which was about as kind as history is with Proctor.

On the other hand 9 Kentucky counties are named after men who died in the battle.

[Squawk 8888]

Canada Ping!

[Figment]

Yeah they burned DC in 1814. It wasn’t long after they turned tail and ran away. The “Battle of New Orleans” was also in 1814, 2 weeks after the war was over

[exit82]

The Battle of New Orleans was January 8, 1815.

[Snowyman]

Battle of Fort Bowyer February 11, 1815.

[Pharmboy]

Thanks...loved the author’s version.

[fanfan]

The British Commander was Henry Proctor who found that he wasn't the great war hero he expected to be

CC, that's what book learnin’ gits ya.

http://1812.gc.ca/eng/1314982425662/1314982700685

Historical Overview
Major Battles
War of 1812-1815

[cripplecreek]

Everything I’ve read about Proctor indicates he was not well respected despite promotions. To be as fair as possible, I’d have to say that he was an average leader working with limited resources. At Frenchtown the majority of his troops appear to have been natives and not great at following orders.

I’m afraid “book learnin” is about all there is at this point because not to many of his personal friends are available for questions.

[cripplecreek]

A more complete history of Proctor.

http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/articles/henry-procter-proctor

[cripplecreek]

Any opinions on Henry Proctor?

[LS]

Nope. Nobody I spent any time on.

[cripplecreek]

Just thought I’d ask.

Personally I think he was just plain tired of war.

[fanfan]

I’m afraid “book learnin” is about all there is at this point because not to many of his personal friends are available for questions.

LOL, that wasn't my point. I had never heard of the man before, so I googled him.

I should have added the link to Wiki where I also found the Pierre Burton quote you posted.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Procter_%28British_Army_officer%29

He is best known as the commander who was decisively defeated in 1813 by the Americans and left western Ontario in American hands. Procter is regarded by many as an inept leader who relied heavily on textbook procedure. His "going by the book" is attributed to his lack of any combat experience before coming to Canada.

[cripplecreek]

I got’cha.

I personally think the man was simply burned out and reading from a textbook written for the last European war.

I wish there was more better history on the wars in this region. It was brutal fighting in this frontier. The Raisin river was named for the tangle of wild grape vines all across this part of southern Michigan.