I had almost forgotten to state that, from the first moment of our
landing, the want of cavalry, so useful in obtaining information and
reconnoitring the open country, was very sensibly felt. To remedy this
evil, as far as it could by such means be remedied, orders had been
issued to catch and bring in all the horses that were found in the
fields or stables of any houses along the road; and these orders being
punctually obeyed, there were now fifty or sixty in the camp. Upon
these some of the artillery-drivers were mounted, and the command of
the troop being given to an officer of experience, it was found of
great service during the remainder of the march.
The advanced guard having joined the main body, the whole army, with
the exception of a party which had been sent to the rear to bring up a
convoy of provisions, was now bivouacked upon a rising ground, well
defended by hedge-rows and thickets. The night, however, was not spent
in as much quietness as usual. It was late before the troops got to
their ground, consequently the piquets, for want of light, could not be
posted in their customary good order, neither had there been time to
examine the country in the neighbourhood of the position. The outposts
were, therefore, kept in a state of constant anxiety by the frequent
appearance of small parties of the enemy, who hovered about, probably
with the design of cutting off stragglers, or perhaps of surprising, if
they could, some of the piquets themselves. But whatever their
intentions might be, the vigilance of the sentries contrived to render
them abortive; nor did anything occur during the night productive of
serious alarm; and the following day, being joined by the convoy which
came up in safety, the column was again in motion, hastening across the
country into the highroad, which had been deserted for no other purpose
than to mislead the Americans.
Having started on the 24th at an early hour, our march was for some
time both cool and agreeable. The road—if road it could be called—wound
for the first five miles through the heart of an immense forest, and
being, in every sense of the word, a by-path, was completely
overshadowed by projecting branches of trees, so closely interwoven, as
to prevent a single sunbeam from making its way, even at noon, within
the arch. We continued to move on, therefore, long after the sun had
risen, without being sensible that there was not a cloud in the sky to
screen us from his influence; whilst a heavy moisture continually
emitted from the grass and weeds on both sides of us, produced a
coolness which, had it been less confined, would have proved extremely
pleasant. So far, then, we proceeded without experiencing any other
inconvenience than what was produced by the damp and fetid atmosphere
which we breathed; but no sooner had we begun to emerge from the woods
and to enter the open country, than an overpowering change was
perceived. The sun, from which we had been hitherto defended, now beat
upon us in full force; and the dust rising in thick masses from under
our feet, without a breath of air to disperse it, flew directly into
our faces, occasioning the greatest inconvenience both to the eyes and
respiration. I have stated this at length, because I do not recollect a
period of my military life during which I suffered more severely from
heat and fatigue; and as a journey of a few miles, under such
circumstances, tells more than one of thrice the distance in a cool day
and along a firm wintry road, it is not surprising that before many
hours had elapsed numbers of men began to fall behind from absolute
inability to keep up.
Yet, in spite of all this, there was that in to-day’s march which
rendered it infinitely more interesting than any we bad performed since
the landing. We had learnt, from various quarters, that the enemy was
concentrating his forces for the purpose of hazarding a battle in
defence of his capital. The truth of these rumours we had no cause to
doubt, confirmed as they were by what we had ourselves witnessed only
the evening before; indeed the aspect of various fields on each side of
the high road (which we had now regained), where smoking ashes, bundles
of straw, and remnants of broken victuals were scattered about,
indicated that considerable bodies of troops had passed the night in
this neighbourhood. The appearance of the road itself, likewise,
imprinted as it was with fresh marks of many feet and hoofs, proved
that these troops could be no great way before us; whilst our very
proximity to Washington, being now distant from it not more than ten or
twelve miles, all tended to assure us that we should at least see an
American army before dark.
It was now that we experienced the great usefulness of our badly
mounted troopers, or as they were called by the private soldiers, our
Cossacks. The country, from being extremely close, had become open on
every side to a considerable extent, although thick groves, instead of
hedges, frequently separated one field from another. This was exactly
the ground on which cavalry could act with advantage; because they
might lie in ambush behind these groves, totally unperceived, and when
an opportunity offered, charge the column, before it had time to
prepare for their reception. There were one or two places, indeed,
where such events were confidently anticipated; whole rows of paling
having been pulled up from the side of the road, and open spaces left,
through which several squadrons of horse might gallop; and the
consequence was that every man held his breath in expectation, and
prepared himself to form square in a moment. It was here that the
mounted drivers became peculiarly useful. They were divided into small
parties of six or eight, and sent out in different directions to
reconnoitre, two of them generally taking post at every suspicious
corner, that one might give notice to the column, whilst the other
watched the motions of an enemy.
It so happened that these precautions were unnecessary, for whatever
might be the strength of the Americans in cavalry, their General did
not think fit to employ it in harassing our march. But the very
knowledge that every danger was provided against, and that they could
not be attacked without having time to make ready, gave to the soldiers
a degree of steady confidence which they would otherwise have wanted;
and the want of which, had the case been different, might have been
productive of disorder at a moment when good order was of vital
importance.
BLADENSBURG.
We had now proceeded about nine miles, during the last four of which
the sun’s rays had beat continually upon us, and we had inhaled almost
as great a quantity of dust as of air. Numbers of men had already
fallen to the rear, and many more could with difficulty keep up;
consequently, if we pushed on much farther without resting, the chances
were that at least one half of the army would be left behind. To
prevent this from happening, and to give time for the stragglers to
overtake the column, a halt was determined upon, and being led forward
to a spot of ground well wooded, and watered by a stream which crossed
the road, the troops were ordered to refresh themselves. Perhaps no
halt ever arrived more seasonably than this, or bid fair to be
productive of more beneficial effects; yet so oppressive was the heat,
that we had not resumed our march above an hour, when the banks by the
way side were again covered with stragglers; some of the finest and
stoutest men in the army being literally unable to go on.
The hour of noon was approaching, when a heavy cloud of dust,
apparently not more than two or three miles distant, attracted our
attention. From whence it originated there was little difficulty in
guessing, nor did many minutes expire before surmise was changed into
certainty: for on turning a sudden angle in the road, and passing a
small plantation, which obstructed the vision towards the left, the
British and American armies became visible to one another. The position
occupied by the latter was one of great strength and commanding
attitude. They were drawn up in three lines upon the brow of a hill,
having their front and left flank covered by a branch of the Potomac,
and their right resting upon a thick wood and a deep ravine. This
river, which may be about the breadth of the Isis at Oxford, flowed
between the heights occupied by the American forces and the little town
of Bladensburg. Across it was thrown a narrow bridge, extending from
the chief street in that town to the continuation of the road, which
passed through the very centre of their position; and its right bank
(the bank above which they were drawn up) was covered with a narrow
stripe of willows and larch trees, whilst the left was altogether bare,
low, and exposed. Such was the general aspect of their position as at
the first glance it presented itself; of which I must endeavour to give
a more detailed account, that my description of the battle may be in
some degree intelligible.
I have said that the right bank of the Potomac was covered with a
narrow stripe of willow and larch trees. Here the Americans had
stationed strong bodies of riflemen, who, in skirmishing order, covered
the whole front of their army. Behind this plantation, again, the
fields were open and clear, intersected, at certain distances, by rows
of high and strong palings. About the middle of the ascent, and in the
rear of one of these rows, stood the first line, composed entirely of
infantry; at a proper interval from this, and in a similar situation,
stood the second line; while the third, or reserve, was posted within
the skirts of a wood, which crowned the heights. The artillery, again,
of which they had twenty pieces in the field, was thus arranged on the
high road, and commanding the bridge, stood two heavy guns; and four
more, two on each side of the road, swept partly in the same direction,
and partly down the whole of the slope into the streets of Bladensburg.
The rest were scattered, with no great judgment, along the second line
of infantry, occupying different spaces between the right of one
regiment and the left of another; whilst the cavalry showed itself in
one mass, within a stubble field, near the extreme left of the
position. Such was the nature of the ground which they occupied, and
the formidable posture in which they waited our approach; amounting, by
their own account, to nine thousand men, a number exactly doubling that
of the force which was to attack them.
In the mean time, our column continued to advance in the same order
which it had hitherto preserved. The road, having conducted us for
about two miles in a direction parallel with the river, and of
consequence with the enemy’s line, suddenly turned, and led directly
towards the town of Bladensburg. Being of course ignorant whether this
town might not be filled with American troops, the main body paused
here till the advanced guard should reconnoitre. The result proved that
no opposition was intended in that quarter, and that the whole of the
enemy’s army had been withdrawn to the opposite side of the stream,
whereupon the column was again put in motion, and in a short time
arrived in the streets of Bladensburg, and within range of the American
artillery. Immediately on our reaching this point, several of their
guns opened upon us, and kept up a quick and well-directed cannonade,
from which, as we were again commanded to halt, the men were directed
to shelter themselves as much as possible behind the houses. The object
of this halt, it was conjectured, was to give the General an
opportunity of examining the American line, and of trying the depth of
the river; because at present there appeared to be but one practicable
mode of attack, by crossing the bridge, and taking the enemy directly
in front. To do so, however, exposed as the bridge was, must be
attended with bloody consequences, nor could the delay of a few minutes
produce any mischief which the discovery of a ford would not amply
compensate.
But in this conjecture we were altogether mistaken; for without
allowing time to the column to close its ranks, or to be joined by such
of the many stragglers as were now hurrying, as fast as weariness would
permit, to regain their places, the order to halt was countermanded,
and the word given to attack; and we immediately pushed on at double
quick time, towards the head of the bridge. While we were moving along
the street, a continued fire was kept up, with some execution, from
those guns which stood to the left of the road; but it was not till the
bridge was covered with our people that the two-gun battery upon the
road itself began to play.—Then, indeed, it also opened, and with
tremendous effect; for at the first discharge almost an entire company
was swept down; but whether it was that the guns had been previously
laid with measured exactness, or that the nerves of the gunners became
afterwards unsteady, the succeeding discharges were much less fatal.
The riflemen likewise began to gall us from the wooded bank with a
running fire of musketry; and it was not without trampling upon many of
their dead and dying comrades that the light brigade established itself
on the opposite side of the stream.
When once there, however, everything else appeared easy. Wheeling off
to the right and left of the road, they dashed into the thicket, and
quickly cleared it of the American skirmishers; who, falling back with
precipitation upon the first line, threw it into disorder before it had
fired a shot. The consequence was, that our troops had scarcely shown
themselves when the whole of that line gave way, and fled in the
greatest confusion, leaving the two guns upon the road in possession of
the victors.
But here it must be confessed that the light brigade was guilty of
imprudence. Instead of pausing till the rest of the army came up, the
soldiers lightened themselves by throwing away their knapsacks and
haversacks; and extending their ranks so as to show an equal front with
the enemy, pushed on to the attack of the second line. The Americans,
however, saw their weakness, and stood firm, and having the whole of
their artillery, with the exception of the pieces captured on the road,
and the greater part of their infantry in this line, they first checked
the ardour of the assailants by a heavy fire, and then, in their turn,
advanced to recover the ground which was lost. Against this charge the
extended order of the British troops would not permit them to offer an
effectual resistance, and they were accordingly borne back to the very
thicket upon the river’s brink; where they maintained themselves with
determined obstinacy, repelling all attempts to drive them through it;
and frequently following, to within a short distance of the cannon’s
mouth, such parts of the enemy’s line as gave way.
In this state the action continued till the second brigade had likewise
crossed, and formed upon the right bank of the river; when the 44th
regiment moving to the right, and driving in the skirmishers, debouched
upon the left flank of the Americans, and completely turned it. In that
quarter, therefore, the battle was won; because the raw militia-men,
who were stationed there as being the least assailable point, when once
broken could not be rallied. But on their right the enemy still kept
their ground with much resolution; nor was it till the arrival of the
4th regiment, and the advance of the British forces in firm array to
the charge, that they began to waver. Then, indeed, seeing their left
in full flight, and the 44th getting in their rear, they lost all
order, and dispersed, leaving clouds of riflemen to cover their
retreat; and hastened to conceal themselves in the woods, where it
would have been madness to follow them. The rout was now general
throughout the line. The reserve, which ought to have supported the
main body, fled as soon as those in its front began to give way; and
the cavalry, instead of charging the British troops, now scattered in
pursuit, turned their horses’ heads and galloped off, leaving them in
undisputed possession of the field, and of ten out of the twenty pieces
of artillery.
This battle, by which the fate of the American capital was decided,
began about one o’clock in the afternoon, and lasted till four. The
loss on the part of the English was severe, since, out of two-thirds of
the army, which were engaged, upwards of five hundred men were killed
and wounded; and what rendered it doubly severe was, that among these
were numbered several officers of rank and distinction. Colonel
Thornton, who commanded the light brigade, Lieutenant-Colonel Wood,
commanding the 85th regiment, and Major Brown, who led the advanced
guard, were all severely wounded; and General Ross himself had a horse
shot under him. On the side of the Americans the slaughter was not so
great. Being in possession of a strong position, they were of course
less exposed in defending, than the others in storming it; and had they
conducted themselves with coolness and resolution, it is not
conceivable how the battle could have been won. But the fact is, that,
with the exception of a party of sailors from the gun-boats, under the
command of Commodore Barney, no troops could behave worse than they
did. The skirmishers were driven in as soon as attacked, the first line
gave way without offering the slightest resistance, and the left of the
main body was broken within half an hour after it was seriously
engaged. Of the sailors, however, it would be injustice not to speak in
the terms which their conduct merits. They were employed as gunners,
and not only did they serve their guns with a quickness and precision
which astonished their assailants, but they stood till some of them
were actually bayoneted, with fuzes in their hands; nor was it till
their leader was wounded and taken, and they saw themselves deserted on
all sides by the soldiers, that they quitted the field. With respect to
the British army, again, no line of distinction can be drawn. All did
their duty, and none more gallantly than the rest; and though the brunt
of the affair fell upon the light brigade, this was owing chiefly to
the circumstance of its being at the head of the column, and perhaps
also, in some degree, to its own rash impetuosity. The artillery,
indeed, could do little; being unable to show itself in presence of a
force so superior; but the six-pounder was nevertheless brought into
action, and a corps of rockets proved of striking utility.
Our troops being worn down from fatigue, and of course as ignorant of
the country as the Americans were the reverse, the pursuit could not be
continued to any distance. Neither was it attended with much slaughter.
Diving into the recesses of the forests, and covering themselves with
riflemen, the enemy were quickly beyond our reach; and having no
cavalry to scour even the high road, ten of the lightest of their guns
were carried off in the flight. The defeat, however, was absolute, and
the army which had been collected for the defence of Washington was
scattered beyond the possibility of, at least, an immediate reunion;
and as the distance from Bladensburg to that city does not exceed four
miles, there appeared to be no further obstacle in the way to prevent
its immediate capture.