Maybe, if Duke Wellington had commanded the British troops, our national anthem would be “East St. Louis Toodle-Oo” … oh, wait, wrong Duke.
I, for one, was relieved when we changed the anthem to God Bless the USA… wait, we didn’t? Well, we should, it’s a song that never grows old, and is infinitely easier to sing “I’m proud to be an Ameri-CAN!” …oh, wait, that’s not it either.
How about “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” by Bob Marley? I’d say that of all the countries in the world, the US is the one I’d most like to be a little more mellow about things.
:cough: Bobby McFerrin :cough:
Gah! Bob McFerrin!
Actually, IIRC he was asked to go and refused. I may be thinking of someone else though.
I don’t think Wellington would have made a huge difference one way or the other. Had he been at New Orleans in the same situation as actually happened I could certainly see him ordering his troops forward in the same way…he never did like sieges and his usual method was to throw bodies at them until they folded.
The only thing that would have made a big difference is if the Brits had committed a large field army to the war…and I doubt they had much left TOO commit, even after Napolean folded and was safely put away. They had to be scraping the bottom of the barrel both in terms of troops and money by that point…and taking on America, even weak as she was then would have been a MAJOR undertaking.
As for who won the war of 1812, myself I’d give it to the US (of course, given I’m an American :)). Yes, we failed to invade and conquere Canada, but we managed to fight a major world power (hell, with Bonapart gone THE world power) to a realative standstill, and assert our soverienty. The war was one of the springboards that opened up the west to expansion (‘west’ being relative at the time…anything not on the coast was ‘west’ 
).
Though the Brits managed to burn the capital and eat dinner in the WH before burning it, no one really cared that much about DC at the time. Had they managed to take and burn Baltimore or New York…now THAT would have been something. DC was relatively undefended so it wasn’t like it took a brilliant military machine to move in and burn it. It was mostly a propaganda victory…and it kind of backfired on the Brits in any case.
Taking and holding New Orleans though…THAT would have been major, as it would have essentially cut the nation in two. I have serious doubts that, having taken New Orleans the Brits would have just handed it back, treaty or not treaty. It would have had a major effect on the growth of the US had the Brits won at NO. So…that was a major and decisive victory for the US…not, as seems the common wisdom here, just a backwater sideshow of no consequence. At least IMO…non-historian that I am.
-XT
I have also read that Wellington was asked and turned it down. I don’t think he was offered the position until after Waterloo, though.
I doubt that timetable.
Treaty of Ghent was signed on December 24, 1814.
Battle of New Orleans was on January 8, 1815.
Waterloo was on June 18, 1815.
Ah, you are correct. My book says that he “preferred to rest upon his Napoleonic laurels”, but that was still before Napoleon “rose again”. Wellington was apparently offered Sir George Prevost’s position as governor-general of Canada after Lake Champlain. But that was not until September 1814, so even had he accepted it would likely have had little effect.
I think Wellington would have made little or no difference. It wasn’t, really, incompetence on the part of the British commanders that cost them victory.
In short, I think Wellington would have gone with the basic outline of the British strategy - a three part invasion (Chesapeake Bay, Lake Champlain and New Orleans) which ultimately failed on all fronts - or were unsustainable.
I would ask where would Wellington value add: **A. ** the British invasion force of 10,000 men retreated to Canada after the Naval loss in Lake Champlain, B. after the failure to take Baltimore, the Chesapeake expeditionary force evacuated (after burning Washington). **C. ** So the only place he could have made a difference is, perhaps, organizing the assault at New Orleans differently - but like Xtisme - I truly cannot see that - or even if New Orleans fell how it would not end like the Chesapeake Campaign, seize the object - fumble around a bit – evacuate.
I have said on the SDMB before I think the most underappreciated aspect of this War is that the U.S. floating forces (official and unofficial) gave the British Navy fits.
The U.S. won in Lake Champlain, inflicted significant losses on the RN in Chesapeake Bay [before being completely and utterly destroyed], and most shockingly essentially (using privateers) won a series of completely unexpected Naval victories over the RN. Here’s a link to tonnage captured.
You will no doubt note that the RN could not bombard D.C. in 1812. Oh say can you see that they could not force their way past the Forts at Baltimore to take the city in 1812. It was British shipping which could not be protected in this war. Wellington would not have changed this one bit.
It was those mini-ball loaded alligators with powdered-up tails.