The same British soldiers that had attacked Washington now were landed at a remote country location near Baltimore. They marched toward the city with expectations that, as they found on the way to Washington. there would be little resistance.
Meanwhile the fleet of ships formed around the guardian of Baltimore's Harbor; Ft. McHenry.
The ports of Baltimore are protected by odd geography. The entrance to what might be called "Baltimore Bay" is a narrow gap guarded by Ft. McHenry. The mini-bay is a chicken-foot-shaped area of water with the middle toe being the main harbor area. It is now referred to as "the inner harbor".
British ships remained off the Maryland coast in preparation of attacking the fort, while British soldiers on land marched toward the city along the single main road.
With the disgraces of Washington burned and Alexandria plundered, and the flight and/or ineffectiveness of every assembled US force so far, the military was in no mood for half measures, delays, or excuses. Armstrong, the Secretary of War, tendered his resignation and the Secretary of State James Monroe took over and did double duty. This was not much of a matter for him as he had been Secretary of War before Armstrong was assigned, and he was always involving himself in military matters anyway.
Lots of defensive preparation was going on in Baltimore. One might wonder if it was the commercial importance of Baltimore that was more important to Americans than the "mere" patriotic importance of Washington. Activity was going on on both land and sea. Older ships were sunk in the mouth of the harbor next to the fort. A psuedo-fortification of logs and dirt was being built nearer the city to fend off a land attack. People were as busy as ants even before the British approached the city.
The Battle of North Point.
Some like to call this the Battle of Gorsuch Farm or some other "insider" title, for the battle wasn't exactly at North Point. Like Bunker Hill in the previous war, it was better to get a known name that was close than an exact but obscure name.
(more to come)
The British Marines Attack at Night.
(more later)
Bombs and Rockets Rain Down Upon the Fort.
The British ships found how far the fort's guns could fire and moved back just out of range. Meanwhile the British mortars could still reach the fort. They lobbed bombs about as fast as they could load them. There was the one rocket ship, the Erebus, shooting large naval rockets at the fort also. The trouble being typical with rockets; they just won't go where you want them to. An advantage the rockets had over the bombs was that they could be fired much quicker and easier. But, as they all feared, the rockets ended up not doing anything except helping the Americans end up with a national anthem.
Late at night, with the army having failed, the Marines having failed, and the fort sitting there like a "haughty host", the British Navy also called it a night. Their hot mortars went silent. They made ready aboard ship for an ocean voyage. When daylight came, they left.
The Battle of Baltimore was over, and the Americans had won without a doubt. There was great celebration in Baltimore.
The British left for the Atlantic Ocean and showed up a couple of months later (and a couple of regiments stronger) at New Orleans. While they had some minor military successes down there, they were about to get the worst thrashing of their lives.
No British Army failure was worse than at New Orleans, until a hundred years later in France in a region named after its simple, innocent river. A name that brought chills to World War One veterans. A name that, before, evoked images of beautiful quiet farmland and sweet fragrances. But it came to remind men of biting rats, of unceasing explosions pounding the ears day and night, of the sight and smell of thousands of rotting corpes festering in the mud for weeks, and of soldiers' hopelessness with the likelyhood of being killed almost certain. It was The Somme.