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(militaristic fanfare music)

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Inhabitants of Canada,

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the army, under my command, has invaded your country.

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The United States offers you peace, liberty and security.

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Your choice lies between these and war,

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slavery and destruction.

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We are engaged in an awful and eventful contest.

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We may teach the enemy this lesson,

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that a country defended by free men,

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enthusiastically devoted to the cause of their king

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and constitution can never be conquered.

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(gunfire)

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The Americans,

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we know them to have always been the enemy

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of the aboriginal nations.

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We shall participate in the shout of victory

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or in the grave.

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(majestic music)

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(serious music)

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By 1814, the defenders of Canada

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have repelled five separate invasions

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from the United States.

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They are running low on reinforcements and supplies

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to withstand the American assault.

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In Quebec City, the British Governor-General of Canada,

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Sir George Prevost, believed that he cannot

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hold out much longer without far more help

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from Great Britain.

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He writes desperate appeals to London.

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The period is fast approaching when a suspension

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of active operations must take place.

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Unless the support from the mother country

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is equal to the magnitude of the stake.

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In the summer of 1814,

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Sir George Prevost gets his wish.

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The defeat of France and Napoleon in Europe

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frees up tens of thousands of British troops

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to fight in North America.

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Most of the British forces are shipped over

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to Quebec City and Montreal, and put at the disposal

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of Governor-General Prevost.

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Prevost has acquired the reputation

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of being a hesitant commander.

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But his daughter Anne is convinced that this new turn

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of events would change everything.

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She confide as much to her journal.

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My father has never yet engaged in any bright affair,

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he has considered it necessary to conduct his defenses

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of the Canadas with much caution, defense

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not conquest being necessarily his object.

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But now, all murmurs will be silenced.

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Prevost devises plans for his

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first full-scale invasion of the United States.

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He will personally lead the main invasion forth

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south from Montreal, down the Richelieu River

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and into Lake Champlain.

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If he can destroy the American naval facilities there,

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he will turn his attention to control of the Great Lakes

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and the Michigan Territory,

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which the British have promised to the Indian people

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as a future country.

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The key to controlling the Great Lakes

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is the American naval base as Sacketts Harbor.

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And that is where US President James Madison

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feels most vulnerable.

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The situation at Sacketts Harbor is critical.

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I hope for the best, but have serious apprehensions.

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While the US government is concentrating

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on its defenses hundreds of miles away

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on its northern border, it neglects matters closer to home.

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In the late summer of 1814, a British fleet

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is sent into Chesapeake Bay to make a diversionary attack

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against Washington and Baltimore.

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When the lead British ships appear in Chesapeake Bay

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in August 1814, the Americans had no idea

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where they are headed or what their intentions are.

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The British sail up the Patuxent River,

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and move ashore a force of nearly 5,000 crack troops

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fresh from the battlefields of Europe.

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Among them, a young officer excited and confident

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about the bold British strategy, George Gleig.

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The capture of Washington was now the avowed object

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of our invasion, but the general was keeping the enemy

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in the dark as to his plan of operations.

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(tense music)

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In the capital, there is a curious

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lack of alarm when word arrives

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that a British invasion force has come ashore.

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At the new Congress building, there is no serious worry

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that the capital of the United States might be in peril.

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At the big white house that's called the President's Palace,

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the castle, there is little concern.

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The reason the leaders of the United States

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are so sanguine is that they have been assured

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by the Secretary of War that there is no peril.

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General John Armstrong assures the president

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that the British might attack Baltimore,

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but that the young capital is in no danger.

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(serious music)

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Dolly Madison, the president's wife, is hearing differently.

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The fears and alarms circulate around me.

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For the last week, all the city and Georgetown

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have expected a visit from the enemy.

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And we're not lacking in expressions of terror and reproach.

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(dark music)

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Mrs. Madison knows what is afoot

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better than her husband.

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The British move relentlessly on Washington,

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understanding the symbolic significance

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of attacking a nation's capital.

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The British soon get word that the only troops

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barring the way to Washington are volunteer militia units.

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In America, every man is a marksman from his boyhood

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and every man serves in the militia.

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But to bring an army of raw militiamen,

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however excellent they be as marksmen,

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into a field against regular troops could end

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in nothing but defeat.

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The British invasion force is now clearly

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closing in on the capital.

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The president is tracking down the Secretary of War,

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wondering what new steps are in the works

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to meet the final British assault.

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He is exasperated to find that there is no plan.

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General Armstrong was asked whether he had any arrangement

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or advice to offer in the emergency.

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He said that he had not.

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Adding, that as the battle was between militia

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and regular troops, our militia would be beaten.

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The 25th of August 1814,

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the British approach the heart of Washington

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down Constitution Avenue, bearing a flag of truce

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and a demand for surrender.

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Suddenly, from this house, a block

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from the Capitol Building, the truce party is fired upon.

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(gunfire)

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Every thought of accommodation was instantly laid aside.

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The troops advanced forthwith into the town,

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and having first put to the sword all who were found

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in the house from which the shots were fired

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and reduced it to ashes,

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they proceeded without a moment's delay

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to burn and destroy everything in the most distant degree

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connected with the government.

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While Washington burns,

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the president and his cabinet become fugitives,

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fleeing across the Potomac deep into the hills of Virginia.

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Dolly Madison reflects the deep sense of humiliation

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and anger enveloping the city.

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I was willing to remain in the castle

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if I could've had a cannon through every window.

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But alas, those who should've placed them there

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fled before me.

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In my whole heart, mourned for my country.

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The Madisons returned

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and to take up residence here at Octagon House,

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the home of the French ambassador.

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One of the president's first acts is to summon

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the Secretary of War.

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Mr. Madison has finally lost faith in General Armstrong.

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He said he was aware of the excitement against him,

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and that it was founded on the most palpable falsehoods.

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I added that it would not be easy to satisfy the nation

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that the event was without blame somewhere.

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And I could not, in candor, say that all that

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ought to have been done had been done and in proper time.

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The next morning, he transmitted his resignation.

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The firing of the Secretary of War

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does not end the crisis.

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The British army is now marching overland

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on the strategic port of Baltimore.

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The British soldiers who burnt the White House

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and routed the American militia around Washington

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find Baltimore much more strongly defended.

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There are thousands of American regular troops

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and Fort McHenry is bristling with cannon.

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It would be absurd to suppose that the sight

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of preparation so warlike did not, in some degree,

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damp the ardor of our leader.

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The British naval bombardment

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of Fort McHenry begins at 5am on the morning

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of September 13, 1814.

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A young American lawyer named Francis Scott Key

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watches the red glare of the British congreve rockets.

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And the bombs bursting in air over Fort McHenry.

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And writes a poem about the star-spangled banner

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that is still flying over the fort after a siege

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of three days and nights.

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("Star-Spangled Banner")

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The British give up the siege and retreat.

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The Americans have a bracing victory,

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and an account of it that would become

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their national anthem.

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Despite the US defense of Baltimore,

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the British are satisfied with their diversionary raids,

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especially the burning of Washington.

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In Canada, Governor-General Prevost proclaims

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the burning of Washington as a just retribution

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for the similar treatment given many Canadian cities,

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including York, by American troops earlier in the war.

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Prevost has now assembled a massive British strike force

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near Montreal.

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And is prepared to march south in an even bigger

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military invasion of the United States.

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The army is well-provisioned and ready to depart.

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30th August, I made breakfast for my father

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in his suite at half past six.

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Previous to their departure, I am delighted to think

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my father is commanding some thousands

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of Wellington soldiers.

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Oh, how high the pulse of hope beats at this moment.

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(bagpipe music)

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On September 3, 1814, Wellington's invicibles,

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a force of at least 10,000 soldiers,

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commanded by Sir George Prevost marches across

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the American border ignoring ragged fire

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from American militia.

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While the British army moves down Lake Champlain,

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the American troops fall back to Plattsburg,

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and prepare to make a stand.

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At the same time, the ships of the British navy

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sail down the lake, hoping to find the American fleet

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and destroy it.

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But the Royal Navy is slow to sail.

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Inside the flagship, the Confiance,

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carpenters and other shipbuilders are still hard at work

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to ready the new vessel.

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Even as she sailed, the work went on.

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Prevost sends curt orders to the Royal Navy Commander.

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I only wait your arrival to proceed.

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Your share in the operation will be to destroy or capture

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the enemy's squadron.

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I need not dwell on the evils resulting

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to both the army and navy from delay.

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Commanding the American squadron

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was Captain Thomas Macdonough,

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a bright and energetic fundamentalist,

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who believes that God helps those to help themselves.

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Realizing that the British have bigger ships

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and longer range guns, Macdonough anchors his squadron

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at Plattsburg Bay and waits.

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He has powerful short-range weapons.

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He confidently predicts the British Navy will come to him,

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and he is right.

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Under tremendous pressure from General Prevost,

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the British fleet sails into battle before it is ready.

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(dramatic music)

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In the first exchange of broadsides, 40 seaman are killed

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or wounded on the American flagship,

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one-fifth of the whole crew.

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But 15 minutes into the fateful battle,

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the British Commander, George Downey is killed

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by an American cannonball.

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For two hours, the ships pound each other with equal fury.

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At a critical moment, the Americans spring a surprise.

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MacDonough is able to winch around his flagship

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to bring a fresh broadside against the British fleet.

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It is decisive.

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The British realize they are beaten, and surrender.

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The mortifying news has arrived that our squadron

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is defeated.

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Captured and Captain Downey killed.

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After the defeat of his naval force at Plattsburg,

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the ever-cautious British Governor-General of Canada,

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Sir George Prevost, decides to pack up and go home.

266
00:18:33,676 --> 00:18:35,685
There is much anger and resentment among the troops

267
00:18:35,685 --> 00:18:37,234
under his command.

268
00:18:37,234 --> 00:18:39,074
And even his daughter senses the decision

269
00:18:39,074 --> 00:18:41,991
could prove politically disastrous.

270
00:18:49,526 --> 00:18:51,344
I feel certain that no matter how necessary

271
00:18:51,344 --> 00:18:53,677
this determination might be,

272
00:18:54,945 --> 00:18:57,945
it will bring the greatest odium on my father.

273
00:18:57,945 --> 00:19:00,574
It will not be tolerated.

274
00:19:00,574 --> 00:19:02,475
Especially when our troops have been

275
00:19:02,475 --> 00:19:04,642
so perpetually victorious.

276
00:19:09,027 --> 00:19:11,132
The American President James Madison

277
00:19:11,132 --> 00:19:13,572
is astounded by the British retreat,

278
00:19:13,572 --> 00:19:16,850
which probably saves his political career.

279
00:19:16,850 --> 00:19:18,022
He sends a triumphant message

280
00:19:18,022 --> 00:19:21,063
to the House of Representatives.

281
00:19:21,063 --> 00:19:22,571
In an attack by a powerful force

282
00:19:22,571 --> 00:19:24,547
on our troops at Plattsburg,

283
00:19:24,547 --> 00:19:27,443
the enemy after a perseverance for many hours,

284
00:19:27,443 --> 00:19:30,809
was finally compelled to seek safety in a hasty retreat

285
00:19:30,809 --> 00:19:34,226
with our gallant bands pressing upon him.

286
00:19:37,028 --> 00:19:41,813
My father's idea on the subject seems to be simply this,

287
00:19:41,813 --> 00:19:45,565
"Here are 9,000 men, all the defense I have

288
00:19:45,565 --> 00:19:48,898
"for Lower Canada, the squadron is lost.

289
00:19:50,486 --> 00:19:54,305
"The principle object of the expedition cannot be affected,

290
00:19:54,305 --> 00:19:59,185
"I shall therefore retire within our own territory,

291
00:19:59,185 --> 00:20:01,602
"and there awaits the enemy."

292
00:20:02,927 --> 00:20:05,620
The weather was very rainy.

293
00:20:05,620 --> 00:20:07,876
And the difficulty of moving artillery

294
00:20:07,876 --> 00:20:11,876
and stores, et cetera increased with every hour.

295
00:20:14,662 --> 00:20:18,829
But it is useless to dwell on such a painful subject.

296
00:20:22,730 --> 00:20:26,397
Military fame cannot be rescued by argument.

297
00:20:29,303 --> 00:20:31,428
Like women's honor, it is sullied

298
00:20:31,428 --> 00:20:34,011
even by the breath of calamity.

299
00:20:41,629 --> 00:20:43,297
The Plattsburg battle is the decisive

300
00:20:43,297 --> 00:20:45,278
engagement of the war.

301
00:20:45,278 --> 00:20:47,399
Prevost's failure ruined Britain's plans

302
00:20:47,399 --> 00:20:49,975
to seize control of American territory

303
00:20:49,975 --> 00:20:53,808
and negotiate a country for its Indian allies.

304
00:20:58,772 --> 00:21:01,385
The battle has a dramatic effect on peace negotiations

305
00:21:01,385 --> 00:21:05,552
now underway across the ocean in the European city of Ghent.

306
00:21:11,040 --> 00:21:14,859
By December 1814, both sides in Ghent are finally ready

307
00:21:14,859 --> 00:21:17,427
to make real concessions.

308
00:21:17,427 --> 00:21:20,488
The British are exhausted from their long war with France

309
00:21:20,488 --> 00:21:24,682
and have lost enthusiasm to keep fighting the Americans.

310
00:21:24,682 --> 00:21:27,233
The United States government is almost bankrupt

311
00:21:27,233 --> 00:21:31,452
and paralyzed by a growing antiwar movement at home.

312
00:21:31,452 --> 00:21:33,928
The Americans realize they are just not strong enough

313
00:21:33,928 --> 00:21:35,261
to seize Canada.

314
00:21:39,641 --> 00:21:41,736
A peace treaty between them is finally signed

315
00:21:41,736 --> 00:21:43,569
on Christmas Eve 1814.

316
00:21:49,115 --> 00:21:52,148
Tragically, the war will continue for another six weeks

317
00:21:52,148 --> 00:21:56,315
until the news reaches the combatants in North America.

318
00:22:03,139 --> 00:22:06,797
In early December 1814, a British fleet has been dispatched

319
00:22:06,797 --> 00:22:09,151
on a punitive expedition against the territories

320
00:22:09,151 --> 00:22:11,574
of the southern United States.

321
00:22:11,574 --> 00:22:14,469
Their secret objective is to seize the city of New Orleans

322
00:22:14,469 --> 00:22:17,438
at the mouth of the Mississippi River.

323
00:22:17,438 --> 00:22:21,270
The die is cast for the final battle of the war.

324
00:22:21,270 --> 00:22:23,770
(tense music)

325
00:22:33,190 --> 00:22:34,669
The defense of New Orleans is commanded

326
00:22:34,669 --> 00:22:38,588
by the steely Tennessee lawyer turned US Army General,

327
00:22:38,588 --> 00:22:39,838
Andrew Jackson.

328
00:22:42,929 --> 00:22:45,316
His letters to Washington show a determination

329
00:22:45,316 --> 00:22:47,757
not to be undermined by the hapless planning

330
00:22:47,757 --> 00:22:51,340
of the American military command structure.

331
00:22:53,190 --> 00:22:55,641
I must apprise you that the arms

332
00:22:55,641 --> 00:22:59,438
I have been long expecting have not arrived.

333
00:22:59,438 --> 00:23:02,450
All we hear is that the man who has been entrusted

334
00:23:02,450 --> 00:23:05,230
with the transportation has halted on the way

335
00:23:05,230 --> 00:23:08,761
for purpose of private speculation.

336
00:23:08,761 --> 00:23:13,042
Depend on it, this supineness, this negligence,

337
00:23:13,042 --> 00:23:15,192
this criminality, let me call it,

338
00:23:15,192 --> 00:23:17,709
of which we witness so many instances on the agents

339
00:23:17,709 --> 00:23:21,194
of government must finally lead to the defeat of our armies

340
00:23:21,194 --> 00:23:25,111
and the disgrace of those who superintend them.

341
00:23:29,017 --> 00:23:31,671
New Orleans is a difficult city to defend,

342
00:23:31,671 --> 00:23:35,167
because it lies open to invasion from all directions.

343
00:23:35,167 --> 00:23:38,178
Jackson suspects the British will come from the south

344
00:23:38,178 --> 00:23:40,866
up the the Mississippi River or even from the north shore

345
00:23:40,866 --> 00:23:43,287
closest to the city.

346
00:23:43,287 --> 00:23:46,437
As it was, the British came from the east,

347
00:23:46,437 --> 00:23:48,020
across Lake Borgne.

348
00:23:50,846 --> 00:23:53,276
The British arrive in early December,

349
00:23:53,276 --> 00:23:55,785
and in the shallows of Lake Borgne, disembark into

350
00:23:55,785 --> 00:23:59,952
a flotilla of small boats, 6,000 redcoats and marines.

351
00:24:03,843 --> 00:24:08,010
The same British force that already burned Washington.

352
00:24:10,620 --> 00:24:13,766
When the wind dies, the British force rows relentlessly

353
00:24:13,766 --> 00:24:16,208
towards the American ships guarding the eastern approach

354
00:24:16,208 --> 00:24:17,458
to New Orleans.

355
00:24:22,852 --> 00:24:25,352
The Americans are overwhelmed.

356
00:24:29,997 --> 00:24:33,150
Then comes a much more formidable obstacle,

357
00:24:33,150 --> 00:24:37,317
the reptile-infested bayou surrounding New Orleans.

358
00:24:39,380 --> 00:24:41,964
There is a sudden cold snap that December

359
00:24:41,964 --> 00:24:44,064
which proves especially hard on the black regiments

360
00:24:44,064 --> 00:24:47,645
from the Caribbean serving in the British army.

361
00:24:47,645 --> 00:24:50,228
Captain George Gleig was there.

362
00:24:53,703 --> 00:24:56,987
As night closed, it is scarcely possible to imagine

363
00:24:56,987 --> 00:24:59,737
a place more completely wretched.

364
00:25:00,828 --> 00:25:04,995
The rain generally ceased and severe frost set in.

365
00:25:07,565 --> 00:25:11,954
The consequence was that many of the wretched Negros

366
00:25:11,954 --> 00:25:16,131
to whom frost and cold were altogether new

367
00:25:16,131 --> 00:25:19,881
fell fast asleep and perished before morning.

368
00:25:22,159 --> 00:25:24,059
The British force advances from Lake Borgne

369
00:25:24,059 --> 00:25:25,825
up the Bayou Bienvenue.

370
00:25:25,825 --> 00:25:28,226
Marching along the north bank of the Mississippi

371
00:25:28,226 --> 00:25:30,470
until they stop at the Chalmette Plantation

372
00:25:30,470 --> 00:25:33,220
only five miles from New Orleans.

373
00:25:41,359 --> 00:25:44,899
Two nights before Christmas 1814 with all the men

374
00:25:44,899 --> 00:25:48,465
and weapons he could muster, Jackson leads a surprise attack

375
00:25:48,465 --> 00:25:50,632
on the British encampment.

376
00:25:51,481 --> 00:25:53,140
He is hoping to buy time to get his defense

377
00:25:53,140 --> 00:25:54,890
of New Orleans ready.

378
00:25:57,694 --> 00:26:01,195
It works, the skirmish slows the British down,

379
00:26:01,195 --> 00:26:05,244
and Jackson gets his badly needed supplies.

380
00:26:05,244 --> 00:26:09,315
Now both sides settle in for the main event.

381
00:26:09,315 --> 00:26:12,054
Both armies have remained near the battleground

382
00:26:12,054 --> 00:26:16,054
making arrangements for something more decisive.

383
00:26:16,911 --> 00:26:20,413
In a few days, we shall measure strength against strength

384
00:26:20,413 --> 00:26:24,238
when I hope to sustain the honor of our arms,

385
00:26:24,238 --> 00:26:27,655
and to secure the safety of this country.

386
00:26:32,243 --> 00:26:34,402
At the Chalmette cotton plantation,

387
00:26:34,402 --> 00:26:36,263
the American defense is carefully prepared

388
00:26:36,263 --> 00:26:38,096
by military engineers.

389
00:26:40,394 --> 00:26:44,561
Artillery is positioned behind earthen defense works.

390
00:26:46,782 --> 00:26:48,898
In front of the earth works, an old canal

391
00:26:48,898 --> 00:26:51,698
is deepened by black slaves.

392
00:26:51,698 --> 00:26:53,916
It is called the Line Jackson,

393
00:26:53,916 --> 00:26:56,615
stretching from the Mississippi 1,000 yards

394
00:26:56,615 --> 00:27:00,282
to an impassable bayou at its farthest edge.

395
00:27:05,718 --> 00:27:09,080
Now, in January 1815, on a swampy plain

396
00:27:09,080 --> 00:27:11,272
beside the Mississippi River,

397
00:27:11,272 --> 00:27:14,939
the British prepare for their final assault.

398
00:27:17,386 --> 00:27:19,112
As the British generals assemble the troops

399
00:27:19,112 --> 00:27:21,726
and make last-minute preparations,

400
00:27:21,726 --> 00:27:26,173
there is a sudden burst of optimism in the ranks.

401
00:27:26,173 --> 00:27:29,110
From the general right down to the youngest drummer boy,

402
00:27:29,110 --> 00:27:31,250
the confident anticipation of success

403
00:27:31,250 --> 00:27:33,583
seemed to pervade all ranks.

404
00:27:37,829 --> 00:27:42,726
Dawn, January 8, 1815, the British plan

405
00:27:42,726 --> 00:27:45,390
is to advance under the cover of a mist,

406
00:27:45,390 --> 00:27:47,934
but an unexpected delay leaves the advancing lines

407
00:27:47,934 --> 00:27:49,184
in plain sight.

408
00:27:51,041 --> 00:27:54,874
The troops are ordered to carry on regardless.

409
00:27:58,955 --> 00:28:02,976
At the American line, there is now a force of 3,500 men,

410
00:28:02,976 --> 00:28:07,143
Kentucky frontiersmen, Cajun pirates, Spanish riflemen.

411
00:28:08,438 --> 00:28:10,326
With Jackson on horseback directing fire

412
00:28:10,326 --> 00:28:12,243
into the British lines.

413
00:28:16,557 --> 00:28:18,409
The Americans watched the majestic procession

414
00:28:18,409 --> 00:28:20,492
of nearly 5,000 redcoats,

415
00:28:21,475 --> 00:28:24,981
the British battalion's march against Jackson's line,

416
00:28:24,981 --> 00:28:28,564
confident the Americans will break and run.

417
00:28:31,293 --> 00:28:35,965
Soon American cannonballs begin to shake British confidence.

418
00:28:35,965 --> 00:28:39,388
Scarce a ball passed over or fell short of its mark,

419
00:28:39,388 --> 00:28:42,925
but all striking full into the midst of our ranks

420
00:28:42,925 --> 00:28:45,175
occasion to terrible havoc.

421
00:28:54,387 --> 00:28:55,558
If the columns of the enemy

422
00:28:55,558 --> 00:28:58,817
continue to advance with a firmness

423
00:28:58,817 --> 00:29:02,484
that reflects upon them the greatest credit.

424
00:29:08,381 --> 00:29:10,575
The British column attacking on the left flank

425
00:29:10,575 --> 00:29:12,718
carries ladders to cross the canal,

426
00:29:12,718 --> 00:29:15,385
and they meet with some success.

427
00:29:19,649 --> 00:29:21,496
Up the line at the main attack point,

428
00:29:21,496 --> 00:29:24,815
in the fog of war the ladders are left behind,

429
00:29:24,815 --> 00:29:26,617
and the attacking redcoats are left stranded

430
00:29:26,617 --> 00:29:30,784
in the middle of a terrible crossfire from the Americans.

431
00:29:33,348 --> 00:29:36,209
Twice their column was repulsed,

432
00:29:36,209 --> 00:29:40,376
and twice they formed again and renewed the assault.

433
00:29:41,893 --> 00:29:44,643
(dramatic music)

434
00:29:48,055 --> 00:29:51,284
The British begin to die, first in bunches,

435
00:29:51,284 --> 00:29:52,949
then in platoons.

436
00:29:52,949 --> 00:29:55,532
Then entire companies perished.

437
00:30:05,837 --> 00:30:10,695
At length, however, cut to pieces they fled the field

438
00:30:10,695 --> 00:30:14,445
in confusion, leaving their dead and wounded.

439
00:30:19,369 --> 00:30:20,638
When silence finally settles

440
00:30:20,638 --> 00:30:25,169
over the battlefield, there echoes the ancient question,

441
00:30:25,169 --> 00:30:26,586
how went the day?

442
00:30:35,882 --> 00:30:38,689
For Great Britain, there is scarce anyone standing

443
00:30:38,689 --> 00:30:42,022
who could utter the word, "Catastrophe."

444
00:30:43,810 --> 00:30:47,393
I mounted my horse and rode to the front.

445
00:30:49,056 --> 00:30:53,713
Of all the sights I have seen, that which met me there

446
00:30:53,713 --> 00:30:55,723
was beyond comparison.

447
00:30:55,723 --> 00:30:58,223
Most shocking and humiliating.

448
00:31:00,576 --> 00:31:05,366
1,000 bodies, all of them arrayed in British uniforms,

449
00:31:05,366 --> 00:31:08,449
not a single American was among them.

450
00:31:14,875 --> 00:31:18,751
An American officer stood by smoking a cigar,

451
00:31:18,751 --> 00:31:22,918
counting the slain with a look of savage exultation.

452
00:31:29,282 --> 00:31:31,665
By every measure, it is an astonishing

453
00:31:31,665 --> 00:31:34,760
victory for the United States.

454
00:31:34,760 --> 00:31:39,141
The final count is 2,036 British killed and wounded

455
00:31:39,141 --> 00:31:42,838
while for the Americans, just seven men killed

456
00:31:42,838 --> 00:31:44,505
and six men wounded.

457
00:31:48,225 --> 00:31:51,438
If ever there was an occasion on which Providence

458
00:31:51,438 --> 00:31:55,374
interfered immediately in the affairs of men,

459
00:31:55,374 --> 00:31:58,599
it seems to have been on this.

460
00:31:58,599 --> 00:32:02,766
What but such an interposition could've saved this country.

461
00:32:04,554 --> 00:32:08,721
Let us mingle our joys and our thanks givings together.

462
00:32:15,352 --> 00:32:17,312
News of the American victory at New Orleans

463
00:32:17,312 --> 00:32:20,033
arrives in Washington at the same time as word

464
00:32:20,033 --> 00:32:23,116
of the peace treaty signed in Europe.

465
00:32:32,634 --> 00:32:34,962
In the treaty, both sides merely agree to return

466
00:32:34,962 --> 00:32:38,128
to what was called status quo antebellum.

467
00:32:38,128 --> 00:32:40,087
They will go back to the borders that existed

468
00:32:40,087 --> 00:32:41,837
before the war began.

469
00:32:48,024 --> 00:32:49,697
While some in the United States point out

470
00:32:49,697 --> 00:32:52,988
that the entire war has been fought for nothing,

471
00:32:52,988 --> 00:32:55,448
that America achieved none of the aims outlined

472
00:32:55,448 --> 00:32:57,739
by its government at the outset.

473
00:32:57,739 --> 00:33:00,490
Most are relieved to see the war come to an end

474
00:33:00,490 --> 00:33:02,157
on almost any terms.

475
00:33:03,242 --> 00:33:04,948
I lay before Congress copies of the

476
00:33:04,948 --> 00:33:07,697
Treaty of Peace and Amity between the United States

477
00:33:07,697 --> 00:33:10,174
and His Britannic Majesty which was signed

478
00:33:10,174 --> 00:33:12,800
by the commissioners of both parties at Ghent

479
00:33:12,800 --> 00:33:15,217
on the 24th of December 1814.

480
00:33:16,382 --> 00:33:19,134
I congratulate you and our constituents upon an event

481
00:33:19,134 --> 00:33:21,848
which is highly honorable to the nation,

482
00:33:21,848 --> 00:33:24,461
and terminates with peculiar felicity a campaign

483
00:33:24,461 --> 00:33:28,044
signalized by the most brilliant successes.

484
00:33:34,464 --> 00:33:36,175
In the United States, the war leaders

485
00:33:36,175 --> 00:33:38,758
are celebrated as great heroes.

486
00:33:45,848 --> 00:33:48,641
After New Orleans, Andrew Jackson is widely credited

487
00:33:48,641 --> 00:33:51,180
with saving the American Republic from disaster

488
00:33:51,180 --> 00:33:52,763
in the War of 1812.

489
00:33:53,844 --> 00:33:58,011
He will be twice elected president of the United States.

490
00:34:05,803 --> 00:34:07,597
There is a very different treatment for the leader

491
00:34:07,597 --> 00:34:10,725
of the British and Canadian war effort.

492
00:34:10,725 --> 00:34:13,763
Governor-General Sir George Prevost forged an alliance

493
00:34:13,763 --> 00:34:17,431
between French and English Canadians and the First Nations,

494
00:34:17,431 --> 00:34:21,938
and ultimately stopped United States from seizing Canada.

495
00:34:21,938 --> 00:34:23,873
At war's end, he is summoned back to England

496
00:34:23,873 --> 00:34:25,832
to face a trial in the House of Lords,

497
00:34:25,832 --> 00:34:29,061
because of his conduct at the Battle of Plattsburg.

498
00:34:29,061 --> 00:34:33,509
His health fails and he dies suddenly in January 1816

499
00:34:33,509 --> 00:34:36,472
before he can answer the charges.

500
00:34:36,472 --> 00:34:39,422
In the end, Anne Prevost, like many who lived

501
00:34:39,422 --> 00:34:43,089
through the War of 1812, felt crushed by it.

502
00:34:46,731 --> 00:34:48,148
God forgive me,

503
00:34:51,524 --> 00:34:55,404
but I know I felt anything but sorrow,

504
00:34:55,404 --> 00:34:57,465
and hearing of this war which has led

505
00:34:57,465 --> 00:34:59,132
to so much bloodshed

506
00:35:04,580 --> 00:35:05,497
and misery

507
00:35:08,964 --> 00:35:12,547
which was the source for all the calamities

508
00:35:15,121 --> 00:35:17,871
which have overwhelmed my family.

509
00:35:25,949 --> 00:35:27,526
Anne Prevost was only 20 when

510
00:35:27,526 --> 00:35:29,359
the War of 1812 ended.

511
00:35:32,414 --> 00:35:36,716
She was haunted by the events for the rest of her life.

512
00:35:36,716 --> 00:35:40,883
Her remarkable journal did not come to light until 1998.

513
00:36:02,605 --> 00:36:05,020
Today, in the Niagara region where most

514
00:36:05,020 --> 00:36:07,645
of the War of 1812 was fought,

515
00:36:07,645 --> 00:36:10,018
the only visible remnants of the conflict

516
00:36:10,018 --> 00:36:13,185
are the carefully manicured memorials.

517
00:36:14,941 --> 00:36:17,193
The forts and cannon that were instrumental

518
00:36:17,193 --> 00:36:19,193
in deciding the battles.

519
00:36:24,151 --> 00:36:27,277
Occasionally, however, some more graphic artifacts

520
00:36:27,277 --> 00:36:28,527
are discovered.

521
00:36:42,153 --> 00:36:44,824
In 1986, a steam shovel operator working

522
00:36:44,824 --> 00:36:47,073
on a new housing development on the Canadian side

523
00:36:47,073 --> 00:36:50,010
of the Niagara River noticed a flash of white

524
00:36:50,010 --> 00:36:52,479
at the tip of his shovel.

525
00:36:52,479 --> 00:36:56,520
Work stopped and an investigation was started.

526
00:36:56,520 --> 00:36:59,664
Before long, police and forensic anthropologists

527
00:36:59,664 --> 00:37:00,914
were called in.

528
00:37:07,620 --> 00:37:10,870
Bones had been discovered, human bones.

529
00:37:13,203 --> 00:37:17,329
Canadian anthropologist, Ron Williamson.

530
00:37:17,329 --> 00:37:21,375
Well, it's a slightly surreal experience

531
00:37:21,375 --> 00:37:24,371
to tell you the truth, because when you usually find

532
00:37:24,371 --> 00:37:26,873
a portion of a body first, you're doing an excavation

533
00:37:26,873 --> 00:37:28,459
of a unit.

534
00:37:28,459 --> 00:37:31,913
And what you find is a bit of bone that is articulated

535
00:37:31,913 --> 00:37:35,065
to another piece of bone and at that point it becomes,

536
00:37:35,065 --> 00:37:37,401
"Well, is the entire body here and what position

537
00:37:37,401 --> 00:37:38,818
"is the body in?"

538
00:37:43,650 --> 00:37:44,651
It quickly became clear

539
00:37:44,651 --> 00:37:47,649
that there were many skeletons.

540
00:37:47,649 --> 00:37:49,652
And so Ron Williamson and his team carefully

541
00:37:49,652 --> 00:37:53,819
cordoned off the area and planned a systematic dig.

542
00:37:59,650 --> 00:38:02,153
Long before the area became suburbia,

543
00:38:02,153 --> 00:38:05,173
it was known as Snake Hill, a gathering place

544
00:38:05,173 --> 00:38:06,590
of First Nations.

545
00:38:08,092 --> 00:38:10,464
When we found the Snake Hill cemetery,

546
00:38:10,464 --> 00:38:12,761
at the time we were operating we were of the opinion

547
00:38:12,761 --> 00:38:15,966
that we were dealing with an aboriginal cemetery

548
00:38:15,966 --> 00:38:19,966
until we discovered that these guys were kind of supine

549
00:38:19,966 --> 00:38:22,289
on their back with their hands folded over

550
00:38:22,289 --> 00:38:26,456
their pelvic region in a traditional Christian location.

551
00:38:29,035 --> 00:38:30,663
The next clue indicated that at least

552
00:38:30,663 --> 00:38:33,935
some of those buried were relatively well off

553
00:38:33,935 --> 00:38:37,435
dressed in some sort of a tailored jacket.

554
00:38:41,397 --> 00:38:43,063
This piece of evidence would trigger a call

555
00:38:43,063 --> 00:38:46,230
to the American Department of Defense.

556
00:38:47,399 --> 00:38:49,398
And then little metal disks with the US

557
00:38:49,398 --> 00:38:51,125
of the eagle was kind of a give away

558
00:38:51,125 --> 00:38:53,792
as to what we were dealing with.

559
00:38:56,162 --> 00:38:57,667
Clearly, these were the remains

560
00:38:57,667 --> 00:38:59,720
of American soldiers.

561
00:38:59,720 --> 00:39:01,545
One of the first Americans on the scene

562
00:39:01,545 --> 00:39:05,901
was Defense Department historian Joe Whitehorn.

563
00:39:05,901 --> 00:39:07,734
I can clearly remember when the anthropologist

564
00:39:07,734 --> 00:39:09,707
was disinterring one of them,

565
00:39:09,707 --> 00:39:11,750
and she was able to tell me virtually everything

566
00:39:11,750 --> 00:39:15,289
but his name and eye color based on the bones

567
00:39:15,289 --> 00:39:16,963
that she saw and so on.

568
00:39:16,963 --> 00:39:20,167
And his age, the back problems he had, the rickets

569
00:39:20,167 --> 00:39:22,919
he had as a kid, the condition of his teeth,

570
00:39:22,919 --> 00:39:24,335
the fact that he smoked a pipe.

571
00:39:24,335 --> 00:39:25,835
I just was amazed.

572
00:39:27,416 --> 00:39:29,672
Let's face it, we all read history, you can read

573
00:39:29,672 --> 00:39:31,004
these historical battles, you can read these

574
00:39:31,004 --> 00:39:34,011
eyewitness accounts of what was happening.

575
00:39:34,011 --> 00:39:36,839
It's quite different to read about someone writing

576
00:39:36,839 --> 00:39:39,929
about the fact that their comrade fell beside them.

577
00:39:39,929 --> 00:39:42,726
He took a musket shot in the head and he fell.

578
00:39:42,726 --> 00:39:46,263
Well, when you then find an individual, literally,

579
00:39:46,263 --> 00:39:49,894
with musket balls in their cranial vault

580
00:39:49,894 --> 00:39:53,656
with the whole front of their skull smashed through

581
00:39:53,656 --> 00:39:57,823
as we did at Snake Hill it is quite a different thing

582
00:39:58,966 --> 00:40:02,716
when you think about that eyewitness account.

583
00:40:09,169 --> 00:40:10,756
That same individual actually had

584
00:40:10,756 --> 00:40:14,191
had his right arm blown away as well.

585
00:40:14,191 --> 00:40:17,487
You feel the pain and what starts off

586
00:40:17,487 --> 00:40:20,987
as a scientific specimen becomes a person.

587
00:40:31,113 --> 00:40:33,781
And when those bodies, when the decision was made,

588
00:40:33,781 --> 00:40:35,988
when we looked at all the evidence and decided

589
00:40:35,988 --> 00:40:39,321
that they were indeed American soldiers,

590
00:40:44,171 --> 00:40:48,551
and when the US Army moved in to do their thing,

591
00:40:48,551 --> 00:40:51,879
that kind of moved it yet to another level

592
00:40:51,879 --> 00:40:54,712
when the symbolism came into play.

593
00:40:58,046 --> 00:41:00,963
28 hearses, 28 flag draped coffins,

594
00:41:03,838 --> 00:41:08,005
ceremonially transferred to the presidential guard.

595
00:41:11,215 --> 00:41:13,965
(majestic music)

596
00:41:32,301 --> 00:41:36,585
It is our policy that dead or alive,

597
00:41:36,585 --> 00:41:38,210
they are our soldiers

598
00:41:38,210 --> 00:41:40,108
and that we will do all that is necessary

599
00:41:40,108 --> 00:41:43,858
to give them a dignified final resting place.

600
00:41:47,601 --> 00:41:50,814
They have lost it all and so something

601
00:41:50,814 --> 00:41:52,647
must be done for them.

602
00:42:03,768 --> 00:42:05,809
There are still hundreds of unaccounted for

603
00:42:05,809 --> 00:42:09,103
American soldiers from the War of 1812 at rest

604
00:42:09,103 --> 00:42:12,017
under the ground in Canada.

605
00:42:12,017 --> 00:42:14,308
There are probably thousands of unknown British

606
00:42:14,308 --> 00:42:18,475
and Canadian soldiers and native warriors lying near them.

607
00:42:20,289 --> 00:42:23,670
Some of the battlefields are well marked,

608
00:42:23,670 --> 00:42:25,170
others not at all.

609
00:42:27,687 --> 00:42:31,227
Some people feel a powerful connection to these places.

610
00:42:31,227 --> 00:42:33,060
Seeing them as sacred.

611
00:42:34,100 --> 00:42:37,326
Here on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls is a woman

612
00:42:37,326 --> 00:42:40,624
who has used her meager savings to buy up properties

613
00:42:40,624 --> 00:42:43,694
adjacent to a battlefield for a memorial

614
00:42:43,694 --> 00:42:46,689
to remember 2,000 young men killed on a terrible

615
00:42:46,689 --> 00:42:48,272
July night in 1814.

616
00:42:52,575 --> 00:42:55,967
She's known as the guardian angel of Lundy's Lane,

617
00:42:55,967 --> 00:42:58,755
95 year old Ruth Redman.

618
00:42:58,755 --> 00:43:02,922
When we won this battle, we won Canada, we kept Canada.

619
00:43:10,342 --> 00:43:14,175
It was such a big battle, they fought so hard.

620
00:43:24,594 --> 00:43:27,750
Flanders' Field where the poppies grow,

621
00:43:27,750 --> 00:43:31,250
and the crosses are all in a row that mark their place

622
00:43:31,250 --> 00:43:32,500
that died then.

623
00:43:34,531 --> 00:43:36,406
But there's nothing to mark the place

624
00:43:36,406 --> 00:43:40,573
where the thousands of young fellas died here, nothing.

625
00:43:44,107 --> 00:43:46,690
(somber music)

626
00:43:54,723 --> 00:43:56,816
In the War of 1812,

627
00:43:56,816 --> 00:44:00,206
Canada fought off military conquest, setting the stage

628
00:44:00,206 --> 00:44:02,373
for its birth as a nation.

629
00:44:03,795 --> 00:44:06,956
The war cost the lives of an estimated 6,000 British

630
00:44:06,956 --> 00:44:08,789
and Canadian soldiers.

631
00:44:09,728 --> 00:44:12,395
United States lost almost 8,000.

632
00:44:27,523 --> 00:44:30,606
The First Nation suffered most of all,

633
00:44:30,606 --> 00:44:34,273
over 15,000 Indian people perished.

634
00:44:34,273 --> 00:44:36,655
Almost 20 percent of the native population

635
00:44:36,655 --> 00:44:38,405
caught up in the war.

636
00:44:39,528 --> 00:44:43,443
Their power was broken, their land lost,

637
00:44:43,443 --> 00:44:47,610
their tragedy deepened in the United States and Canada.

638
00:44:57,153 --> 00:45:00,414
Canada, the United States, and Great Britain

639
00:45:00,414 --> 00:45:05,073
drew one profound lesson from the War of 1812,

640
00:45:05,073 --> 00:45:08,406
they would never fight each other again.

641
00:45:20,570 --> 00:45:23,320
(majestic music)