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Battle of York
Major Henry Dearborn of the US Militia decided to attack York, where two British ships were known to be based. York was poorly defended, and the response was sloppy. Eventually, British General Sheaffe pulled his regulars back, leaving his militia to surrender. -
The Burning of Washington
British forces overwhelm American militiamen at the Battle of Bladensburg, and march into Washington, D.C. unopposed. The British forces dined in the empty White House before burning it, along with several federal buildings and private homes. -
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Battle of Baltimore
The British targeted Baltimore because its harbor was home to many US privateers.The militia had placed many obstacles to slow the British. Admiral Cochrane attempted to take Fort McHenry and open water routes, but to no avail. Outside the fort, the only assurance the stronghold survived was the American flag. In the morning, Francic Scott Key saw the flag was still waving, and wrote down the first verse of the Star Spangled Banner. -
Star Spangled Banner is Written
After 25 hours of British bombardment at Fort McHenry, the only assurance from the outside that the stronghold held was the U.S. flag. Francis Scott Key almost lost hope but in the morning he saw the flag still waving. He took this as inspiration and wrote the Star Spangled Banner. -
Battle of New Orleans
On December 24, the US and Great Britain signed a treaty ending the War of 1812. However, word of the treaty did not travel fast enough and the two sides met in New Orleans for one of the bloodiest battles. Due to the British having troubles navigating down rivers and battling pirates on the gulf, Andrew Jackson's militia came out as the winner, and this victory made Andrew Jackson a celebrity.
