The British targeted Baltimore in September 1814 during the War of 1812 to destroy a major center of American privateering, which they dubbed a "nest of pirates" damaging their shipping. Following the burning of Washington D.C., they sought to crush American morale, eliminate a key economic hub, and seize a strategic port.
The British response was an attempt to seize the privateers' homeports and strike blows against America's economy as well as its morale. They hoped to destroy Baltimore's ship building facilities at the Fell's Point Naval Yard, where the large frigate USS Java was nearing completion, along with stockpiled naval stores.
Militarily, Baltimore was a far more important city than Washington because of its thriving port and strategic location. The British hoped the loss of both Washington and Baltimore would cripple the American war effort and force peace.
Why did the British march on Washington and Baltimore?
During the War of 1812, the British were urged to attack the former colonies after American troops attacked Canada and burned government buildings. Washington was picked as the target because of its symbolic importance, its easy access from the sea, and the inability of inexperienced American troops to defend it.
The 1814 Battle of Baltimore was a turning point in the War of 1812. The port city had strong defenses both in the harbor and on Hampstead Hill (Patterson Park) where a mile of trenches held 100 cannons and 15,000 militia and regulars.
Why Britain Didn't Destroy the U.S. During the Civil War
Was Baltimore a British colony?
Named for the king's wife, Henrietta Maria, Maryland was to become the first proprietary British colony in the New World. As its head, Lord Baltimore held nearly absolute control over the colony, in return an agreement to pay the king a share of all gold or silver discovered on the land.
The Battle of Lundy's Lane was the bloodiest and bitterest contest of the War of 1812 and it broke the American thrust in 1814 to take Upper Canada. Sources: Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, Minutes, October 1937, October 1963, October 1966, December 2007.
In Britain's effort to control the world's oceans, the British Royal Navy encroached upon American maritime rights and cut into American trade during the Napoleonic Wars. In response, the young republic declared war on Britain on June 18, 1812.
What city did the British burn in the War of 1812?
On August 24, 1814, British forces invaded America's young capital of Washington D.C. following a victory at Bladensburg, Md. They captured the city with ease, and proceeded to setting a majority of the federal buildings on fire including the U.S. Capitol and the White House.
The migrations of Southern and Appalachian African Americans between 1910 and 1970 brought thousands of African Americans to Baltimore, transforming the city into the second northernmost majority-black city in the United States after Detroit.
A Baltimore accent, also known as Baltimorese and sometimes humorously spelled Bawlmerese or Ballimorese, is an accent or sub-variety of Delaware Valley English (a dialect whose largest hub is Philadelphia) that originates among blue-collar residents of Baltimore, Maryland, United States.
On August 24, 1814, during the War of 1812 between the United States and England, British troops enter Washington, D.C. and burn the White House in retaliation for the American attack on the city of York in Ontario, Canada, in June 1813.
They fought because they didn't have self-government. When the American colonies formed, they were part of Britain. Britain increased taxes for colonists on things they bought and used every day, like tea. Many colonists were angry because no one represented their needs in the British government.
Why did the British decide to abandon Philadelphia?
When France recognized the United States and declared war on Great Britain in February 1778 British war strategy changed to meet the new threat, and the army evacuated Philadelphia on June 18, 1778.
Though the Americans retreated, the battle was a successful delaying action that inflicted heavy casualties on the British, halted their advance and, consequently, allowed the defenders at Baltimore to prepare for an attack.
The citizens of Maryland voted to abolish slavery, but only by a 1,000 vote margin, as the southern part of the state was heavily dependent on the slave economy.
“My favorite state has not yet been invented. It will be called Montana, and it will be perfect.” Abraham Lincoln said this shortly after Montana became a United States territory, but about 25 years before it became a state.
Maryland soon became one of the few predominantly Catholic regions among the English colonies in North America. Maryland was also one of the key destinations where the government sent tens of thousands of English convicts punished by sentences of transportation. Such punishment persisted until the Revolutionary War.
The War of 1812 was fought over maritime rights, national honor, and control of the North American interior. It ended in a draw that looked bloodless only on parchment.
Annexation was never a very popular choice. Many Canadians were loyal to the Crown and Great Britain, especially the descendants of the United Empire Loyalists. French Canadians worried about being an even smaller minority in a larger union, and were concerned about American anti-Catholicism.
The deadliest single-day battle in American history, if all engaged armies are considered, is the Battle of Antietam with 3,675 killed, including both United States and Confederate soldiers (total casualties for both sides were 22,717 dead, wounded, or missing Union and Confederate soldiers September 17, 1862).
The war lasted from June 1812-February 1815, a span of two years and eight months. When did the War of 1812 end? Peace negotiations began in late 1814, but slow communication across the Atlantic (and indeed across the United States) prolonged the war and also led to numerous tactical errors for both sides.
