Answering what was the Battle of New Orleans is a question more complex than it might seem. Some facts are not in dispute. The battle took place just outside the city of New Orleans in January of 1815. The contestants that day were the United States and Great Britain. Andrew Jackson commanded on the American side, Sir Edward Pakenham for the Brits. The Americans won easily despite being outnumbered.

So far, so good. But the rest of the question what was the Battle of New Orleans will take a little more effort to explain. Likewise with its consequences and why we might care about them today. It’s worth the time and effort, though, so let’s get to it.

What Was the Battle of New Orleans – The Timing

It easy to describe the Battle of New Orleans as being part of the War of 1812 between the United States and Great Britain. That’s not technically true, however. That war ended with the Treaty of Ghent, signed in December of 1814. The battle of New Orleans took place on January 8 of 1815.

The reason for the discrepancy lies in the speed of communication in 1814. Telephones, telegraphs, and other means of instant communication did not exist. News could travel only as fast as a ship could sail the Atlantic Ocean, which in the pre-steamship days of 1814 was not very fast. (Ghent, where the two sides agreed to peace, is in Belgium.) So, the most famous battle of the War of 1812 was certainly the most tragic—it need never have been fought and literally had zero impact on the outcome of the war.

Yet, despite this, it seems the only battle connected to the War of 1812 that anyone ever remembers. Why?

The Rest of the War of 1812

From the American side, the War of 1812 was not a particularly successful one. In retrospect, one can make a quality argument that the U.S. never should have declared war. The reason was that the Americans had little naval power with which to challenge the British. Great Britain had been at war with France for a generation by 1812. In that time, it had achieved naval supremacy, both in quality and quantity. The U.S. had a 0% chance of successfully sending troops to Britain to invade.

The only plan the Americans had was to conquer Canada, then trade Canada for peace on their terms. No Plan B existed, due to the naval inferiority just mentioned.

Problem was, the invasion of Canada never materialized. The U.S. tried once (the Battle of Queenston Heights, 1812) and when that didn’t succeed, they gave up the offensive.

Really, what saved the U.S. from severe defeat in the war was Napoleon. The Napoleonic Wars in Europe lasted until 1814, so Britain was spending nearly all of its resources to defeat France, and only a small fraction of its military resources against the U.S.

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What Was the Battle of New Orleans – The Battle

Like I wrote above, the Battle of New Orleans was an easy American victory. Andrew Jackson, the American commander, had mobilized everyone in sight to defend the city. He had some regular soldiers, drafted civilians from the city for its defense, armed former slaves and local Choctaw Indians, and even enlisted the help of notorious pirate Jean Lafitte to hold back the Brits. (Read here for my blog about Jackson & Lafitte.) Incidentally, the composition of Jackson’s forces at New Orleans are a great reminder of how multicultural the American West was in 1814.

The British tried to advance against the American defenses on January 8 of 1815. They came under heavy fire immediately, mainly from cannons. The British leader, Sir Edward Pakenham, took a bullet and died. Within two hours, British forces were in retreat. They suffered between 2,000 and 3,000 casualties, while the Americans took about 65.

I wish I could write some dramatic things about amazing American heroism that saved the day, but really, that wasn’t necessary. All the men did was to stand behind their defenses and fire away while cannon fire thinned the British ranks. The British, advancing across open ground, took a severe pummeling and fell back. End of battle.

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Why It Matters

The battle, despite its irrelevancy in the outcome of the War of 1812, had important consequences. That’s why we care about it now. Here are a few.

It made Andrew Jackson a national figure in the U.S. He’d gained some notoriety for his military campaigns against Native Americans already, but this victory gave him national standing. Enough national standing that he successfully ran for president in 1828, translating military success into political success. His election had numerous consequences for the future direction of the United States. But that is a story for another blog post, perhaps.

Another consequence was the effect on national opinion in the U.S. regarding the war. Although the Americans had done little that worked during three years of conflict, this battle made it seem as though the war had been more successful than it actually had been.

Here is another consequence, and an overlooked one. The American government continued functioning during the war. Elections took place as planned. Democratic government remained in place. No military dictator arose to capture power, as Napoleon had in France. In effect, the War of 1812 proved that democracy could work, even under the strain of war. Success in the Battle of New Orleans helped make that happen.

As of 1815, this remained in question. Could government by the people last in the face of war? It hadn’t lasted in France after the French Revolution, the most similar case in recent memory.

I’ll close with one more consequence that also flies under the radar most of the time. The battle, and the War of 1812, proved the last hurrah of serious British interference in American affairs to date. Prior to this, Native Americans could, at times, play off the Americans and the British against each other. But the War of 1812 ended that. Left on their own against the onslaught of the United States, Native Americans between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River were in trouble, and the U.S. policies known collectively as Indian Removal soon followed.

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