In the summer of 1814, dark storm clouds hung over the nation’s capital. Having sacked Washington and brought Alexandria to its knees, the British forces targeted Baltimore. The nation’s third largest city and major port fielded more and better defenses than Washington, but its capture would be the biggest prize for the enemy.
In mid-September, Admiral Cochrane and General Ross sailed their fleet up the Chesapeake past Annapolis. Two weeks earlier, the British had arrested Dr. William Beanes, a friend of the Key family at Upper Marlboro. President Madison, who selected Key for his “polished gracious manner” (Delaplaine), sent him to the British brass to ask for Beane’s release.
General Ross agreed to free the good doctor, but his approval coincided with the start of the assault on Baltimore. The three Americans were now on board one of the 40 British ships headed to Baltimore. Since they knew of the British plans, their release would come after the battle.
On Monday, September 12, Cochrane’s fleet arrived at North Point, about a dozen miles east of Baltimore. Their strategy would unfold with a two-pronged attack. Pound Fort McHenry into submission, sail past it to Baltimore, and with the soldiers and sailors retreating, send in the ground troops to take the city.
Major General Samuel Smith, a veteran of the Revolutionary War, led the defense of Baltimore. Thousands of militia and volunteers, many from Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania, had poured into the city. The American forces would protect Baltimore with in a triangle-shaped position east of the harbor.
Fort McHenry, manned with a thousand men and its guns and batteries, bolstered the front point. To their left, troops manned guns at Rodgers Bastion on Hampstead Hill. On the right flank, a series of earthworks would protect any sneak attack from the south. The men were not as seasoned as the British, and knew they would be in for the fight of their lives. Commodore Rodgers led a small and highly-skilled group of sailors and marines.
On the afternoon of Monday, September 12, the British ground forces encountered the American line in the “Battle of North Point.” General Ross was mortally wounded by a sharpshooter, a kick in the gut to the morale of the British Army. But the British continued to fight and forced the American troops to retreat back to Baltimore.
On Tuesday, the 13th, the British infantry waited while the British vessels began their pounding of Fort McHenry. All day and all night they fired, an estimated 1500 to 1800 shells.
At midnight, an attack on the earthworks south of Ft. McHenry failed. The bombing resumed and lasted until the morning. Realizing a victory was not at hand, the British withdrew. Baltimore rejoiced.
If the “Battle of Baltimore” was a movie, this would be the end. Francis Scott Key, however, had something to say about the heroic American defense of Fort McHenry. As the cartel ship he was on sailed into Baltimore, the poet-lawyer and successful diplomat pulled out a letter from his pocket and began writing down some verses.