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Details match those of 1813 privateer The mystery surrounding the wreckage of a ship at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico may have moved a few steps closer Monday toward being solved. Details that investigators have been able to piece together about the vessel match those of a ship that capsized in the Gulf in November 1813 after being chased by a British ship that was part of a naval blockade during the War of 1812, said Jack Irion, a marine archaeologist with the federal Minerals Management Service. In that incident, all eight crewmen were rescued by the British...

Full title: Author of Star-Spangled Banner fought slavery! & little-known story of Randolph's land for freed slaves On SEPTEMBER 13, 1814, just weeks after they burned the U.S. Capitol, British forces attacked Baltimore, Maryland -- the third largest city in America. Britain had the largest global empire in world history, controlling 13 million square miles -- almost a quarter of the Earth's land -- and nearly half billion people -- one-fifth of the world's population at that time. Out of nearly 200 countries in the world, only 22 were never controlled or invaded by Britain. As the War of 1812...

During a testy phone call with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, U.S. president Donald Trump reportedly cited the War of 1812 in order to justify seeing Canada as a security threat. “Didn’t you guys burn down the White House?” he told Trudeau, according to sources cited by CNN. The reason for the call was the U.S. imposition of tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum, which Trump has justified on national security grounds. The new tariffs, announced last week, sparked disbelief from across the political spectrum in Canada. For more than a century, the United States has had no problem building military...

Trump is right about the War of 1812.In late May, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had a crotchety phone argument about trade with President Donald Trump. As CNN reports, Trudeau objected to the idea that Canada was a “national security” problem (the legal justification for the tariffs Trump was introducing). Trump responded, “Didn’t you guys burn down the White House?” Trump was referring to the famous burning of Washington conducted during the War of 1812. (The event actually took place in 1814). Pedants immediately jumped in to accuse Trump of an error. After all, wasn’t the torching of the White...

I didn't realize how bad the NFL's concussion problem was until many of its players developed kneeling sickness during the singing of the national anthem. . The kneelers claim they are protesting racism, but kneeling is usually done as a form of submission, not a form of protest. In the NFL, a player who fields a kickoff in the end zone will kneel to show he doesn't plan to run with the ball. Late in the game the quarterback on the team that is leading will "take a knee" to run out the clock. Kneeling is what a slave may...

In a relatively rare admission for an American scholar, a leading U.S. historian who authored a provocative new tome about North American military conflicts states bluntly that Canada won the War of 1812. Johns Hopkins University professor Eliot Cohen, a senior adviser to former U.S. secretary of state Condoleezza Rice, writes in his just-published book Conquered Into Liberty that, “ultimately, Canada and Canadians won the War of 1812.” And Cohen acknowledges that, “Americans at the time, and, by and large, since, did not see matters that way.”

During the War of 1812, the British enlisted the aid of black Americans to join them in the fight. These regiments were called the “Colonial Marines”, some of which fought on the side of the British during the attack on Ft. Mc Henry, where Francis Scott Key was inspired to write The Star Spangled Banner. The song had four verses, the first of which is what is typically heard when the anthem is played. The third refers to “hirelings and slaves”. While this may refer to the Colonial Militia, it could refer to the fact that the British commonly employed...

It pays to check those musty old boxes in your attic. An unidentified family in the Deep South made the discovery of a lifetime when they found a letter written by Founding Father Thomas Jefferson in which the third president extols the virtues of American independence and hails victory in the War of 1812. “As in the Revolutionary War, [the British] conquests were never more than of the spot on which their army stood, never extended beyond the range of their cannon shot,” Jefferson wrote in the letter, penned at his Monticello home on Valentine's Day, 1815. "We owe to...

MONROE, MI — Michigan isn't necessarily known for its war history. That could be the reason why many Michiganders are unaware of the details of the deadliest day of war on Michigan soil. Another possible reason, according to Daniel Downing, is America doesn't love to talk about the times we lose. "It's a great American defeat and we don't like to brag about our defeats," said Downing, who serves as chief of education, interpretation and operation for River Raisin National Battlefield Park. Left without sufficient ammunition, more than 300 Americans were killed Jan. 22, 1813 during the War of 1812's...

The latest Civil War-related historical roadside marker will be dedicated during a special ceremony next month in Cleveland. The marker commemorates the difficult time during the Civil War when much of Bradley County lay between Union and Confederate lines. During this period, homes and businesses were vandalized and robbed by both pro-Union and pro-Confederate forces who took advantage of the prevailing lawlessness. This marker also commemorates the courageous actions of War of 1812 veteran Joseph Lusk II, who at 73, defended his home with determination against a group of outlaws attempting to steal his mules. He shot and killed one...

Old Ironsides’ Now Ready for Virtual Touring 'Old Ironsides' hosts Medal of Honor recipientsAmerica’s oldest warship afloat is headed into dry dock next month at the Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston, but Google Maps and the U.S. Navy have made it possible for everyone to digitally visit the USS Constitution. Just as Google made it possible to zip virtually up and down city streets almost anywhere in the world, it can now put you on and below deck of “Old Ironsides,” the still-commissioned Navy warship that made a name for itself in campaigns against the French, North African pirates and...

The Battle of New Orleans on 8 January 1815 was a result of Britain and America's War of 1812. US forces defeated a British army in the clash, which is still commemorated in the States today. The Battle of New Orleans on 8 January 1815 was a result of Britain and America's War of 1812. US forces defeated a British army in the clash, which is still commemorated in the States today.

Moving from the Capitol, British Navy Rear Admiral George Cockburn, Army Major General Robert Ross, and 150 redcoats marched to the White House. Rocca asked Allman what the Britons' impression of the White House would have been as they walked in the door: "I think that it was a pretty good-sized house, but not a palatial one. No Buckingham Palace. No Versailles. That it was, you know, reasonably well decorated." The biggest surprise? A dinner set for 40. So the British feasted in the White House dining room before burning the mansion down. Here, too, the walls survived. But little...

Old Ironsides sailed through Boston Harbor Friday for the last time until 2018, as the 216-year-old warship prepares to undergo a three-year restoration beginning early next year. The USS Constitution has sailed unassisted by a tug boat only twice since 1881, in 1997 and 2012. This summer it sailed with the help of a tug, but still moved by its own power. Friday was the final unassisted sail until the ship has completed its restoration. Aside from making the usual repairs for wear and tear, the restoration aims to return Old Ironsides to an image of its 1812 self... ...For...

State Has Awarded $5.5 Million in Grants for Celebrations, Research and Education A historian gives cutlass lessons to children at Fort McHenry in Baltimore on Thursday. Melissa Golden for The Wall Street Journal BALTIMORE—Maryland officials are on a campaign to elevate the profile of the War of 1812, a historically unpopular conflict that ended in a draw with Britain and has long been overshadowed by the Revolutionary and Civil wars. The state is planning a weeklong festival next month to mark the 200th anniversary of the city's defense in 1814, which inspired Francis Scott Key to pen the poem that...

British Embassy ✔ @UKinUSA Commemorating the 200th anniversary of burning the White House. Only sparklers this time! pic.twitter.com/QIDBQTBmmL

On Aug. 24, 1814, the British started a fire — and ultimately kindled a capital’s future. The day began like so many days in Washington, with a painfully long meeting marked by confusion, misinformation and indecision. The British were coming. They were on the march in the general direction of Washington. The precise target of the invaders remained unclear, but their intentions were surely malign. James Madison, the fourth president of these young United States, had raced to a private home near the Navy Yard for an emergency war council with top generals and members of his Cabinet. The secretary...

June 4th is the date of the death of Captain James Lawrence, who died of wounds received on the USS Chesapeake during the battle with HMS Shannon on June 1st, 1813. As the Chesapeake was being attacked, Lawrence gave his final command, "Don't give up the ship." Lawrence's friend, Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, had the words stitched into a blue ensign, and flew this flag during his victory at the Battle of Lake Erie. The original is now on display at the Naval Academy Museum.

Forces march to take their positions Saturday during the annual re-enactment on the 201st anniversary of the Battles of the River Raisin on the battlefield adjacent to the Monroe Multi-Sports Complex. Read more at: http://www.monroenews.com/news/2014/jan/19/gallery-remember-raisin/

Today marks the anniversary of the Battle of New Orleans, the final major battle of the War of 1812, fought in 1815 after the signing of the Treaty of Ghent in Europe but before this fact was discovered by forces in this battle. The American victory over the British in this battle raised American morale in the final days of the war and also made Andrew Jackson a household name. In honor of the American victory, we raise the Star-Spangled Banner today, the flag of 15 stars and 15 stripes which was the standard during the War of 1812.