The Franklin Mint History Of The United States, 1776-1973
Manufacturer
The Franklin Mint
DateNo Date
MediumSilver
DimensionsOverall: 1 3/4 in. (45 mm.)
ClassificationsDecorative arts
Credit LineGift of Dr. Eugene F. Poutasse
Object number76.81.40
On View
Not on viewThe 1815 medal: Jackson Repels British at New Orleans
Although it was no secret that the British planned military action against New Orleans, General Andrew Jackson did not arrive until December 1, 1814, to check the defenses of the city. By this time the British were sailing from Jamaica with 7,500 troops. On December 14 the British captured the five gunboats on Lake Borgne and on December 23 they occupied Villere's plantation and might have taken New Orleans, seven miles away, had they not decided to wait for reinforcements. The British figured there was no rush - the Americans had run at Bladensburg, they would run again. They were mistaken and a sharp battle was fought here. On December 27 and on January 1 the British attacked but did not break the American lines although by then they had advanced until their batteries were only 700 yards from the fortifications that Jackson was erecting.
The decisive battle was to come at dawn of January 8 when General Pakenham ordered a frontal assault. When the fog lifted there were rows and rows of British troops with fixed bayonets moving toward the American breastworks. At 500 yards Jackson's artillery opened up. Great gaps were torn in their lines but still they came. It became a massacre instead of a battle. General Pakenham and his top generals were killed; over 2,000 others were killed, wounded or missing. The Americans lost 13 killed and 58 wounded. The British retired and on January 18 sailed away. The peace treaty had already been signed when the battle was fought but this was not yet known in America. Instead of a tepid compromise the war ended in a blaze that erased the tarnish of earlier bungling and defeats.
