The Battle of New Orleans is considered one of the most important American victories in the War of 1812, and one man helped to turn the fight against the British from a lost cause to a triumph that would seal the end of the Second War of Independence…
Hungry, sleep deprived, exhausted, and inadequately dressed for harsh winter conditions, one thousand Kentucky militia, poorly provisioned, with very little ammunition – most with as little as ten rounds, and sparse military training or experience – marched nearly 400 miles from their home state, up through the horrid black Ohio swamplands into the frozen Michigan Territory. They covered very few miles per day, instead of the usual fourteen to fifteen, stretching their planned one-month journey into five long months – all of which were painfully slow and incredibly arduous.
Setting out in mid-August of 1812, believing they’d arrive in thirty days or less, the group encountered many unanticipated obstacles along their circuitous route to Frenchtown. Most suffered agonizing sores on their feet, legs, and arms, and insufficiently nursed nagging wounds incurred from the rough, unforgiving terrain and brutal surprise attacks by Indian tribes. Boots wore down to flimsy tatters and several men nearly froze to death making their way through deep snow drifts and over icy grounds. Temperatures fell below freezing practically every day in December, greatly impeding their already slow pace.
The bitter, biting, excruciating cold never relented. Day after day, night after night, it clenched every square inch of their bodies, right through their shivering skin down to their weakened, brittle, trembling bones. There was no escape from its paralyzing effects – not even under the bright rays of the midday sun.
Outright starvation was a frightening concern for a vast majority, without proper provisions and limited foraging, hunting, and fishing, hunger pangs became constant, bleak reminders of their predicament. Under orders to take the British-Canadian outpost, they couldn’t turn back. Even if they did turn around, they’d face the same daunting, demoralizing challenges. Better to persevere and capture the enemy station to take its plentiful supplies than to starve or be slaughtered by Indians.
The amateur citizen-soldiers made the difficult, lengthy trek because they were given an important, courageous mission – to defeat a British-Canadian garrison amply supplied with weapons, food, and clothing – an existential threat to their fellow countrymen who also opposed the King’s overreach. When the Kentucky militia finally arrived and confronted the Royal troops the next year, the first Battle of Frenchtown ensued, resulting in a surprising victory, leading to a false sense of superiority and security.
So, the triumphant Americans did not take further strategic action, neglecting to build up critical defenses. They failed to fortify their position, despite knowing substantial British-Canadian reinforcements were already on their way. Without any trenches or earthworks for protection and many militia members standing in open fields, the superior adversarial force soon arrived, strengthened by eight-hundred ferocious Indian warriors.
This time, to his dismay, General Winchester, commander of the Kentucky troops, was easily overwhelmed and forced to surrender in short order. But, the other wing of the American army fought on valiantly, even though they quickly ran out of ammunition. Eventually, the British and Indian forces surrounded the remaining American troops, who raised a white flag in surrender.
When it was all over, 400 Kentucky militia were captured and 500 narrowly managed to escape. Of the remaining, 65 men were brutally murdered by the Indians, seeking to exact revenge on any foreign settlers whose compatriots previously raided their native land and villages. Many of the sixty-five killed were shot or stabbed. But, some were scalped alive and others burned to death while hiding in empty British quarters.
A few historical accounts of the events even claim the Indians went so far as to behead as many as one hundred dead Americans, spiking their decapitated heads along a fence to serve as a warning to any who passed by the British fort not to dare to attack it again.
It was January 22nd, 1813, the end of The Battle of River Raisin, now more infamously known as “The River Raisin Massacre.” Among its survivors, badly wounded and barely alive, was Trenton Dask, a veteran of the American Revolution’s Siege of Yorktown, and a now 49-year-old Virginian patriot who recently joined the Kentucky militia, incensed by the ongoing British impressment of American sailors and the Royal Crown’s obtuse and insulting refusal to allow westward expansion, a tyrannical proscription that personally hurt his farming business.
Bloody, hurt, and alone, Trenton Dask hid in the woods until sundown, before seeking shelter from a nearby farmhouse where he could get much-needed aid. Uncontrollably shivering in the frigid air, the badly wounded militia soldier concealed himself in the underbrush, anxiously waiting for dusk to veil him under the cover of darkness. While it would help to camouflage his movements, the night’s black would also be a difficult obstacle, forcing him to navigate unfamiliar terrain, in a forest populated by wolves, bears, wolverines, and venomous slithering reptiles, like the Eastern Massasauga, a notorious and feared pit viper.
It would take weeks for Trenton Dask to recover from his wounds and shake off the permeating gelid that penetrated so deep, he could still feel its effects even when standing right next to a roaring fire. But, he genuinely believed all his suffering to be worthwhile. It was a sacrifice many other of his colonial brethren would selflessly make, in order to guarantee their way of life and liberty, particularly to secure it indelibly for the greater good of future generations.
Born in 1764 in Virginia, Dask first joined the patriot cause at the age of seventeen, fighting alongside many others who sought independence from the British Crown, serving under then none other than General George Washington at Yorktown, the last major battle of the American Revolution, resulting in General Lord Charles Cornwallis’ surrender.
During the siege, Trenton suffered a life-threatening wound, inflicted by a redcoat’s Brown Bess, a muzzle-loading smoothbore flintlock, that fired a .69-caliber lead musket ball which pierced his skin, bore into his chest, and exited under his armpit. A true miracle of survival, according to the Continental surgeon who attended to his perilous battlefield injury. Though he made a full recovery, Dask would never forget the pain and agony and carried an intense grudge against the British Empire.
At the age of twenty-two, his father, Bartholomew, who was born in 1741 and fought in the French and Indian War or Seven Years’ War, suddenly died in 1786, leaving the flailing family farm in peril. But, with a lot of hard work and a little luck, Trenton turned his family’s fortunes around, rescuing it from certain failure and transforming it into one of the most prosperous among his peers.
But, because King George III declared all lands west of the Appalachian Divide off-limits to colonial settlers in October 1763, Dask could not expand his business. And, with Canadian companies exploiting the edict to enrich their own economy, Trenton harbored a deep resentment, due to the unfairness of the entire situation.
Still, Trenton Dask was far from alone. His fellow countrymen shared his sentiment and were likewise outraged. By the end of the eighteen century, an increasing majority of Americans grew angry over the British Empire’s actions, all of which inflicted direct, profound harm on their fledgling nation in several ways.
It wasn’t just the Royal Proclamation of 1763, either. Though that particular decree raised significant ire among settlers, there were additional causes for their escalating nationalism.
British outposts were supplying Native American Indians with food, guns, and ammunition to stop American colonists who attempted to disobey the declaration, resulting in unnecessary conflicts and tragic deaths.
The Royal Crown also forced American trade ships into British ports to levy taxes against them, even if those ships weren’t trading with its Empire. Simultaneously, numerous U.S. sailors suffered impressment, with approximately 10,000 men impelled into service to fight in the Napoleonic Wars.
Furthermore, attempts by the U.S. to open trade with Spanish, French, Dutch, and other colonies were repeatedly squelched by the Crown, as the monarchy and its aristocracy despised the friendly relationships between America, France, and other European nations.
By June of 1812, all of the tension came to a head, when the tiny U.S. Navy clashed with the frigate HMS Belvidera. Later, on July 15th, a lengthy chase by a British squadron lead to the capture of the U.S.S. Nautilus, and on July 17th, Royal forces seized Fort Mackinac. Now, outright war was well underway and the United States had to fight once again to establish its own independence once and for all.
In August, the U.S. frigate Constitution defeated the Royal frigate Guerriere in an unprecedented sea battle after the British cannon balls failed to penetrate the American ship’s sides, earning the vessel the nickname “Old Ironsides.” But, in mid-October 1812, the United States suffered its second major defeat at Queenston Height, suffering one hundred casualties and losing over nine-hundred fifty to capture.
The two belligerents fought battle after battle, with victories occurring on both sides. But, when the news of July 25, 1814, reached Dask, he realized the independence of his country was in real peril. The Battle of Lundy’s Lane resulted in one of the hardest-fought engagements of the entire war. The forces clashed in the early evening and the battle continued past midnight. When it was over, the British suffered 84 losses, but American casualties were more than double, with 173 dead and another 117 captured or missing, forcing the Americans to withdraw in the early morning hours. One British eyewitness later recalled, “Red coats, blue and gray were promiscuously intermingled, in many places three deep.”
Trenton Dask followed the news and gossip as well as any of his fellow patriots. But, he abstained from joining the war effort, given his obligations to his business, his age, and increasingly poor health. His war wound, though not mortal, took a long, hard toll on his body. To complicate matters, he contracted measles in his late thirties, an advanced age for the disease, and also an age where complications were far more prevalent, leaving Dask suffering from a shortage of breath if overexerted, morphing into a case of latent asthma. But now, with such defeats, it was clear he could no longer stand by. Within a month, he returned to the battlefield, under Major General Andrew Jackson.
At this point, every man and asset counted. The nascent republic had little to fight with. In 1812, the Royal British Navy included 130 ships of the line with 60-120 guns and 600 frigates and smaller vessels. But, the U.S. sea fleet was considerably smaller. Only 7 of its frigates were fit for sea, three of which badly needed repairs. The American Navy possessed just 8 schooners or sloops, and 165 gunboats – of which 103 were under refit.
The U.S. also had less than 12,000 soldiers in its army when the war began, due to poor pay rates, and very few experienced officers to train new recruits. Plus, the majority of Americans did not support a second war with Britain. Meanwhile, the settlers who did support the war were quite busy. While the Napoleonic Wars raged in Europe, American excursions in late 1812 pushed into Canada to help the neighboring country to the north break away from Great Britain. However, those efforts failed and Canadian forces pushed back.
The Americans just didn’t have the equipment, material, or personnel to wage a war with the most powerful empire of the day. Even countries sympathetic to the U.S. couldn’t lend much support because they were caught up in the Napoleonic Wars. That caused the new nation to rely solely on itself. Luckily, among its ranks were some of the bravest and craftiest.
General Andrew Jackson had already proven himself amply able to lead his troops to victory. In November 1813, the man from the Waxhaw settlement commanded the Tennessee militia, a group that broke up the siege of Fort Leslie by the Red Stick faction, killing 300 occupiers, while taking just 15 American casualties in the Battle of Talladega.
About a year later, Jackson’s men drove the British from Spanish Pensacola. In retaliation, the Royal Navy captured a U.S. flotilla of gunboats and secured Lake Borgne on Gulf Coast. But, it wasn’t just the British military facing off against U.S. forces. In mid-December 1814, anti-war Federalists in New England held the Hartford Convention to make their grievances known.
America was becoming divided in a profound way – in ways not seen since the Revolution when there were far more colonists fighting on the side of the Crown than for the patriot cause of independence from Britain. Although many Americans greatly disliked the actions of the King more than two decades later, they were not enthusiastic or willing, to go to war with England all over again.
But Trenton Dask did not share that sentiment. He’d been there, right in the heat and agony of battle during the Siege of Yorktown in 1781. It was there nearly ninety of his fellow patriots were killed and over three hundred were wounded, himself included. The so-called rebels managed to kill as many as three hundred-plus redcoats and capture more than 7,500. Though victorious, it now felt like all that sacrifice was steadily being eroded day after day.
The America that made him so very prosperous was again threatened by tyranny and he would give his last breath to stop the creeping oppression – even as what was considered in that day and age as an old man. Regardless of his condition, he carried a fighting spirit deep in his heart that longed for true autonomy from foreign forces and influences.
Without hesitation, Trenton Dask made his way south to join up with his fellow countrymen in Louisiana. He, like many others, heard a huge battle was forthcoming, one that could turn the fortunes of their nation around – a fight so important, losing simply wasn’t an option. The Americans had to prevail if they had any hope of winning the war.
The River Raisin Massacre taught him one immutable lesson – the British would never stop. If the United States was going to be a truly sovereign nation, its citizens had to rise up to defend its independence and fight fiercely. It was not only patriotic but necessary for the very survival of the country as the British continued their advance, setting their sights on the city of New Orleans in the summer of 1814, just as rumored.
Capturing the vital Mississippi River port town would give the Crown another strategic advantage for bringing in reinforcements, serving as a barricade against American ships, and an important bargaining chip in peace talks once the U.S. was soundly defeated.
An expeditionary force, led by Sir Edward Michael Pakenham, brother-in-law to the Duke of Wellington, set out to take New Orleans, with over 8,000 troops and bolstered by recent skirmish victories, the British landed in late December, well-supplied, trained, and armed.
Surprised by the size and speed of the invaders, General Andrew Jackson, charged with defending the city, made the bold decision to take a rag-tag team under cover of darkness to repel the enemy. But, the Americans were unable to turn the British back and after hours of fighting, Jackson retreated to the Rodriguez Canal.
Trenton Dask, being well-antiquated with battlefield tactics and construction, helped the team to build a rampart, forever known as “Line Jackson.” It was so large, so well constructed, that Sir Pakenham knew a full-out, frontal assault would only fail. The British would have to find a weakness to exploit instead.
In light of this realization, Pakenham sent out a reconnaissance group who concluded an artillery barrage would help their infiltration, demoralizing the American forces, and thereby giving the Crown the momentum to take the port city. But, time was quickly running out. Every day the colonials had without confrontation gave them more opportunities to reinforce their position. If Pakenham was going to be successful in laying siege and taking the fort, he had to move fast and deliberately.
Andrew Jackson knew the British’s concerns all too well and immediately sent for a veteran – someone who could bring much-needed experience and inspiration to rally his troops and recruit new ones. Trenton Dask was that man. At 51 years old, his wisdom and grit gave him a reverence that encouraged his fellow countrymen.
Dask got right to work, enlisting the help of the Tennessee militia, along with businessmen from New Orleans and Choctaw warriors. He even paid a visit to his old outfit, the Kentucky militia, who enthusiastically joined the cause. When he was done, Trenton brought well over one thousand volunteers back to New Orleans, increasing the American strength to more than 5,700, some two-thousand three-hundred short of parity with the British. It was as even odds they could get, given such little time.
News of the coming lopsided confrontation made its way around the city in short order. Facing such bleak odds, city residents poured into the Ursuline Convent’s chapel, gathered in the church, and prayed for victory. Then, On New Year’s day 1815, British forces began their assault on New Orleans.
“Dask! Where is Trenton Dask? Bring him here immediately!”
“Yes, right away, General Jackson!”
“Dask, see to the artillery, posthaste! The enemy is nigh!”
“At once, General Jackson!”
“Dask, to ensure you don’t suffer any guff from the ranks, you are now officially Major Trenton Dask. You there, fetch this man the right accouterments so everyone knows on sight, this man is a high-ranking officer!”
“Thank you, General! I won’t disappoint you!”
With the British menacingly approaching Dask orders artillery to fire on the advance, forcing the enemy to pause and return fire with their own artillery. The fight went on and on, intensifying as it proceeded until both sides ran out of ammunition. But, the battle was far from over.
“Major Dask, status report!”
“We’ve pinned down the redcoats!”
“Excellent, Major, excellent effort!”
“Thank you, General Jackson!”
“Now, we must prepare for the inevitable. Pakenham will press his Royal forces no matter the cost. Do what’s necessary, Major to ready our troops for an unprecedented assault!”
Jackson’s assessment was right. Sir Pakenham, starkly aware of the situation, quickly surmised with great accuracy their faltering circumstances. He ordered Royal Major General John Keane to advance along the river on one side. Meanwhile, he directed Royal General Robert Gibbs to lead another wing of troops to penetrate the left center of the American line and take the position. On the morning of January 8th, the British unleash an all-out attack.
“Who is that coming up alongside the Mississippi, Major Dask?”
“I believe it’s Sir Keane, General Jackson. It seems the redcoats have split up, my men tell me Sir Gibbs is headed toward the center-left! They’re coming at us from both sides!”
“They’re flanking two positions simultaneously, Major, an old tactic of the Crown. See to the river advance and I’ll take the left center!”
“Right away, General!”
Sir Keane’s men managed to breach the fortification but they fail to advance any further. At the same time, Sir Gibbs’ forces took heavy musket and cannon fire from Line Jackson. When the last skirmish ended, the British suffered a remarkable two-thousand casualties in less than 30 minutes, including Pakenham, Gibbs, and Keane.
The Battle of New Orleans was all over.
The English retreat, suffering not only thousands of casualties, but nearly 1,300 wounded, missing, and captured. By contrast, the Americans lost just sixty to seventy men, with less than twenty missing or captured, and 39 wounded.
The next day, Trenton Dask and General Jackson visit Ursuline Convent’s chapel. When they enter the church, the congregation fell silent, anxious to hear the news.
With Dask by his side, Jackson quietly took the podium, looked around the chapel, and declared, “By the blessing of heaven, directing the valor of the troops under my command, one of the most brilliant victories in the annals of war was obtained!”
The conflict took place only fifteen days after Britain and America signed the Treaty of Ghent. It would still take six weeks for news of the truce to reach the U.S. The Battle of New Orleans remains widely considered the most decisive victory in the War of 1812.
