Battle of New Orleans (1815): Andrew Jackson's Famous Victory

The Battle of New Orleans was fought on 8 January 1815 at Chalmette, a few kilometres downriver from New Orleans, Louisiana. A mixed American force under Major General Andrew Jackson, protected by earthworks along a dry canal, threw back a frontal assault by British veterans under Sir Edward Pakenham. It was the last major battle of the War of 1812 and one of the most one-sided American victories in history, making Jackson a national hero.

Background

After the defeat of Napoleon in 1814, Britain sent veteran troops to North America. Following the burning of Washington and the failure at Baltimore, the main British effort turned to the Gulf Coast. Vice Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane planned to seize New Orleans, the city that controlled the mouth of the Mississippi.

New Orleans, founded by the French in 1718, had passed to the United States with the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. Its population of around 25,000 was a mixture of French-speaking Creoles, Americans, free people of colour, enslaved Africans and recent refugees from Saint-Domingue. Some in Washington doubted the loyalty of this new territory.

Andrew Jackson, a Tennessee militia general, had defeated the Red Stick Creeks at Horseshoe Bend in March 1814 and been made a major general in the US Army in charge of the Gulf region. In November he seized Pensacola in Spanish Florida, then hurried to New Orleans, arriving on 1 December 1814.

The approach

The British fleet entered Lake Borgne, east of the city. On 14 December armed boats captured the small American gunboat squadron there, giving the British control of the lake. Troops were ferried to a landing point and advanced along Bayou Bienvenue to reach the east bank of the Mississippi at the Villeré plantation, about 13 kilometres below the city, on 23 December.

Jackson reacted quickly. That same night he attacked the British camp, supported by the armed schooner USS Carolina firing from the river. The confused night action caused casualties on both sides and made the British cautious. Jackson then pulled back to the Rodriguez Canal, a dry millrace running from the river to a cypress swamp, and built a long earthen rampart behind it.

Pakenham, the Duke of Wellington’s brother-in-law, arrived on 25 December to take command. A British reconnaissance in force on 28 December and an artillery duel on 1 January 1815 both failed to break the American line.

The battle of 8 January

Pakenham planned a dawn attack with about 5,000–6,000 men on the east bank, while a smaller force under Colonel William Thornton crossed the river to capture American guns on the west bank and turn them on Jackson’s line. Delays in moving boats meant Thornton crossed late with fewer men than planned.

Jackson had about 4,000–5,000 men on the main line. They included US regulars, Tennessee and Kentucky riflemen and militia, Louisiana militia, two battalions of free men of colour, Choctaw warriors and Baratarian privateers loyal to Jean Lafitte, who manned several of the cannon.

The main British assault began shortly after 6 a.m. As the morning fog lifted, the columns advanced across open fields in full view. The 44th Regiment, ordered to carry fascines and ladders to cross the ditch and climb the rampart, failed to bring them forward in time. American artillery and musket fire cut down the attackers. Pakenham was killed, Major General Samuel Gibbs was mortally wounded and Major General John Keane was wounded. One British column briefly took an advanced redoubt near the river but could not hold it.

On the west bank, Thornton’s force routed the outnumbered Americans and captured their guns, but the main attack had already collapsed. Major General John Lambert, now in command, recalled Thornton and decided against renewing the assault. The core of the battle had lasted well under an hour.

By the numbers

Figures follow commonly cited official returns; totals for the whole campaign from December 1814 were higher on both sides.

Aftermath and the Treaty of Ghent

British ships bombarded Fort St Philip, downriver, for more than a week without success, and the army withdrew from Louisiana in mid-January. In February the British captured Fort Bowyer near Mobile, but news of peace soon ended the campaign.

The Treaty of Ghent had been signed in Belgium on 24 December 1814, two weeks before the battle. However, the treaty itself stated that hostilities would end only after both governments ratified it. The US Senate approved it on 16 February 1815, and the war formally ended when ratifications were exchanged on 17 February. The battle therefore took place while the war was still legally under way.

In New Orleans, Jackson kept the city under martial law for weeks after the victory and jailed a federal judge, Dominick Hall, who then fined him $1,000 for contempt. Congress refunded the fine with interest in 1844.

Key people

Andrew Jackson’s energy, his use of every available fighter and his choice of a strong defensive position were decisive. Edward Pakenham, a respected officer of the Peninsular War, was undone by a plan that depended on poor coordination and attacking a fortified line across open ground. Jean Lafitte and the Baratarians, who had been wanted men, won a pardon from President James Madison for their service.

Legacy

Although the battle did not change the peace terms, it shaped how Americans remembered the war: as a triumphant second war of independence. Jackson became the most celebrated man in the country, and his fame helped him win the presidency in 1828. His later policies, including the forced removals that led to the Trail of Tears, are part of the same career.

The battlefield is preserved as the Chalmette Battlefield, part of Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve. The battle also lives on in popular culture, notably in the 1959 hit song The Battle of New Orleans.

Myths and facts

Popular songs and later legends credited the victory mainly to sharpshooting Kentucky and Tennessee riflemen. Historians point out that American artillery and ordinary musket fire did much of the damage, and that many Kentucky militiamen arrived poorly armed. Another myth is that the battle was pointless because peace had already been made. Since neither government had ratified the Treaty of Ghent, a British victory might have complicated the peace, and contemporaries could not know how events would unfold.

Timeline

• 1814, 1 December: Andrew Jackson arrives in New Orleans.
• 1814, 14 December: British boats capture the American gunboats on Lake Borgne.
• 1814, 23 December: British reach the Mississippi; Jackson launches a night attack.
• 1814, 24 December: Treaty of Ghent signed in Belgium.
• 1815, 1 January: Artillery duel along Jackson’s line.
• 1815, 8 January: Main British assault fails; Pakenham is killed.
• 1815, 18 January: British army begins withdrawing from its positions.
• 1815, 16 February: US Senate ratifies the Treaty of Ghent.

Why it matters

The Battle of New Orleans secured American control of the Mississippi’s outlet, boosted national pride after a difficult war and launched Andrew Jackson toward the White House. It also stands as a classic example of the cost of a frontal attack on a well-defended position.