Thomas Macdonough - War of 1812 - Battle of Plattsburgh

Battle of Plattsburgh

By late August 1814, approximately 10,0000 British troops under the command of George Prevost had assembled near Montreal at the US - Canadian border. Many of these soldiers were well-trained, regular troops who served under Wellington, already battle hardened from their recent defeat of Napoleon in Europe. Macdonough had little naval combat experience. His service in the Barbary wars was limited to gunboat actions and the capture and destruction of the Philadelphia. He had yet to experience a ship-to-ship action, being on a vessel that was receiving broadsides, surrounded by dead and wounded men. Regardless of this lack in experience, Macdonough well understood that defending and holding Plattsburgh, thus not allowing General Macomb's troops to be surrounded by British forces on land and water, was vital to winning the war. On 3 September, Prevost's army crossed the border and marched into northern New York State, advancing on Plattsburgh. The city was held by General Macomb with less than 2,000 regular troops, with the support of the New York militia, under the command of General Mooers and the Vermont volunteers, under the command of General Strong.However, Prevost who had arrived in earnest was yet aware of enemy strength and positions and refused to march on the city itself without adequate naval support to divert the American forces. A squadron under the command of Commodore George Downie sailed southward into the open lake to engage the American fleet commanded by Macdonough. In anticipation of the British fleet, Macdonough strategically positioned and anchored his fleet a short distance off shore from Plattsburgh and made further preparations for Downie's advance.

On 11 September, Downie's forces departed from Isle-aux-Noix and sailed southward along the Richelieu River into Lake Champlain. Upon encountering Macdonough's fleet waiting in Plattsburgh harbor, Downie immediately attacked, achieving the upper hand early in the battle, largely because of the great firepower of the 36-gun British flagship HMS Confiance. As the battle unfolded, the British squadron incurred considerable damage from close-range cannon fire. In the process an American cannon shot blasted a British cannon off its mount, crushing and killing Downie. Through use of anchor and cable tactics, Macdonough in command of Saratoga was able to swing his ship around the undamaged side of the British flagship, gaining firepower superiority over the British fleet. As the poorly and hurriedly equipped Confiance with its inexperienced crew attempted the same tactic, Macdonough seized the opportunity and fired a broadside, severely damaging the British vessel and forcing its surrender. Having removed the British flagship from action, the American forces captured or destroyed the remaining larger ships in the fleet.

Both commanders would have seen the parallels of Macdonough's anchorage on Lake Champlain to that of the French under Vice Admiral Francois-Paul Brueys, opposing British Rear Admiral Sir Horatio Nelson, at the Battle of the Nile in Aboukir Bay on 1 August 1798. A study of Nelson's battles was part of the professional knowledge expected of naval commanders. But Macdonough did all that Brueys did not. He expected to take advantage of the prevailing winds on Lake Champlain that constrained Downie's axis of approach. "Because nearly every circumstance that worked to Nelson's advantage proved disadvantageous to Downie, the Battle of Lake Champlain is sometimes called the False Nile" by the English. The British naval historian William Laird Clowes regarded Macdonough's False Nile victory as "a most notable feat, one which, on the whole, surpassed that of any other captain of either navy in this war." Clowes echoed Roosevelt's view, "The British sailors on the lakes were as good as our own, but no better. None of their commanders compare with Macdonough."

After the battle, Macdonough returned to the British officers their swords. Captain Pring wrote:

I have much satisfaction in making you acquainted with the humane treatment the wounded have received from Commodore Macdonough; they were immediately removed to his own hospital on Crab Island, and furnished with every requisite. His generous and polite attention to myself, the officers, and men, will ever hereafter be gratefully remembered.

Upon wresting control of Lake Champlain from the British, Macdonough's victory forced the British forces to retire to Canada, the actions of which left no grounds for any claims by the British for any territory when the Ghent peace conference convened on 24 December. For his success in forcing the retreat of Prevost into Canada, Macdonough was duly promoted to the rank of Captain. He was also awarded the Congressional Gold Medal at this time. He was also awarded by the State of New York a thousand acres of land in Cayuga county, with another hundred acres awarded to him from the State of Vermont, making the once modest commodore a wealthy man.