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war of 1812 Archive

The Two Greatest Uses of Trash Talk in the History of (Naval) Warfare

As I’ve mentioned a few times (here, here, here and here), I’m a huge fan of Cracked.com. I love them because they’re hilarious, but also because they seem to have three or four people on staff dedicated solely to writing historically themed articles, and those three or four people always manage to inform me about things I didn’t [...]
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American Warships of the Age of Sail

Navies are born out of a spirit of independence and under the threat of war, nurtured into maturity by the urgent demands of defense and sharpened by conflict. So it was with the first American Navy. The story of American ships and sailors is an epic of blue water which seems singularly remote, almost unreal, [...]
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Logistical Challenges of Sea Power in the Age of Sail

A naval force usually does not possess the ability to accomplish to the satisfaction of its commanders all of its wartime tasks. Whether the conflict is in home waters or across an ocean, naval commanders are confronted by a broad spectrum of potential responsibilities. They can include fleet-on-fleet battle, blockade, convoy escort, coastal patrol, and amphibious operations, conducted [...]
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A Word of Captain Caution: Myths About Privateers in the War of 1812

“But is not a privateer a man-of-war?” asked Stephen. Jack and Mowett pursed their lips and looked disapproving. “Why,” said Jack after a moment, “I suppose strictly speaking you could call them men-of-war, private men-of-war; but no one ever does.” – The Reverse of the Medal While no one ever called privateers “private men of war”, in [...]
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Letters of an American Privateer and British POW, 1813 – 1815

Perez Drinkwater was lieutenant of the privateer schooner Lucy when he was captured by the British Navy brig Billerikin in the last days of 1813. He was landed, with the rest of his crew, in the southwest of England, as he wrote to his brother Elbridge Drinkwater at home. It is obvious that he wrote [...]
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A Birthday Timeline of the United States Navy

The official birthday of the United States Navy is October 13, 1775, which means it turned 235 last week. America’s naval history dates all the way back to the pilgrims who first settled the New World; after all, they had to get there somehow. As a colony of England, maritime commerce was of primary importance. [...]
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A Brief History of Sailcloth During the Age of Sail

If one were to wonder what the Age of Sail was really all about, the clue is in the title. Without “Sail”, all you have is “Age of”, and that’s no fun for anyone. The fact is that at the height of the Age of Sail, the cut and fabric composition of sails was of [...]
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Napoleonic Era Naval Tactics (4/5): Marines in the Fighting Tops

In the earlier form of ships the top was a species of crows nest placed at the head of the mast to hold a look-out, or in military operations to give a place of advantage to archers and slingers. They appear occasionally as mere bags attached to one side of the mast. As a general [...]
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Account of the Action Between HMS Macedonian and USS United States

“…Then United States, forty-four, and our Macedonian, thirty-eight, had a fight off the Azores, and Macedonian struck to the Americans. Two of our frigates and a sloop have struck to the Americans, and not one of theirs to us.” – Jack Aubrey to Stephen Maturin, The Fortune of War The War of 1812 did not [...]
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Naval Duels of the War of 1812

In Desolation Island and The Fortune of War, Jack Aubrey and the rest of the Royal Navy are portrayed as being quite depressed over America’s unexpected victories at sea. The fact is that though Britain was an established naval power, the Americans fared surprisingly well against them for the whole of the War of 1812. [...]
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All To Seek: Cross-Reference

Subjects Commonly Addressed