Bladensberg
August 24, 1814
The
Warrior President
Just
to the north-east of Washington, at Bladensburg, a 1500-strong
British advance force met some 6500 American militiamen,
boosted by a marine detachment and naval gunners.
Badly
led, the Americans panicked in the face of the attackers
and fled - leaving a small number of regular troops and
the naval presence to battle it out.
The
British, commanded by General Robert Ross, suffered just
under 300 casualties, while the remaining American defenders
lost 200.
The
way to the American capital was open.
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