Broke of the Shannon: And the War of 1812

by Tim Voelcker

Overview

Captain Broke's victory in 1813 over Captain Lawrence of USS Chesapeake, which was to have far reaching influence on the future of North America, did much to restore the morale of the Royal Navy, shattered by three successive defeats in single-ship duels with US frigates, and stunned the American nation which had come to expect success.2013 sees the bicentenary of the battle and this new book seeks to reverse the neglect shown by most modern historians of one of Britain's finest frigate captains, who by his skill, determination and leadership won one of the bloodiest naval duels the world has seen. Even now both Britain and the USA claim to have won the war but only Canada, the third country heavily involved, can fully claim to have done so, for the peace that followed established her as an independent nation.Leading historians from all three countries have joined to give their sometimes conflicting views on different aspects in a way to interest and entertain general readers, as well as challenge academics. It is a tale of political and military blunders, courage and cowardice in battle, a bloody ship-to-ship fight, and technical innovation in the hitherto crude methods of naval gunnery. It also tells the human story of Broke's determination to achieve victory so he could return to his wife and children after seven lonely years at sea.The near-fatal wound Broke received in hand-to-hand fighting as he boarded the Chesapeake meant that he never served again at sea, but his work on naval gunnery, paid for out of his own pocket, transformed Admiralty thinking and led to the establishment of the British naval school of gunnery, HMS Excellent. This Bicentenary year of his victory is timely for an up-to-date, wide-ranging work incorporating the latest thinking; this is the book.As seen in the East Anglian Daily Times and the Ipswich Star.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781473831322
Publisher:	Pen & Sword Books Limited
Publication date:	01/24/2020
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	226
Sales rank:	717,549
File size:	10 MB

About the Author

Tim Voelcker is the author of Admiral Saumarez Versus Napoleon -The Baltic 1807-12. He lives in the United Kingdom.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations and Maps vii

Preface and Acknowledgements xi

Notes on Contributors xiii

Introduction Tim Voelcker ix

Historical Note and Brief Family Tree xxiii

1 The War of 1812: A Perspective from the United States John B Hattendorf 1

2 Sideshow? British Grand Strategy and the War of 1812 Andrew Lambert 17

3 Canada and the War of 1812 Chris Madsen 40

4 Prize Laws in the War of 1812 Gabriela A Frei 51

5 Victories or Distractions, Honour or Glory? Tim Voelcker 57

6 Broke - His Youth and Education John Blatchly 74

7 In Arctic Waters Michael Barritt 81

8 Letters to his Wife 'Loo' Ellen Gill 86

9 A Gunnery Zealot: Broke's Scientific Contribution to Naval Warfare Martin Bibbings 103

10 The Battle Martin Bibbings 127

11 Broke's 'Miraculous' Recovery Peter Schurr 152

12 Representing Nations: Caricature and the Naval War of 1812 James Davey 157

13 Halifax and its Naval Yard Julian Gwyn 170

14 HMS Shannon's Later Commissions Martin Salmon 177

15 Chesapeake Mill John Wain 182

16 Ballads and Broadsides: The Poetic and Musical Legacy of the Shannon and the Chesapeake Richard Wilson 188

17 The Peace and its Outcome Colin Reid 210

Broke's Rewards 213

Selected Bibliography 215

Index 221