NOLA History: Christmas, Battle of New Orleans Style

On December 16, 1814, two British officers disguised as local fishermen made their way from the lake up Bayou Bienvenue, heading towards New Orleans. They made it up to the Villere and Delaronde Plantations, plotting out a path for the British troops to move from their ships anchored in Lake Borgne inland to capture the city of New Orleans.

But they weren’t getting to the city without a fight.

The Royal Navy anchored off what is now the Mississippi Gulf Coast on December 8. Ships from the British squadron entered Lake Borgne on December 14, capturing or destroying the American gunboats patrolling the lake. Unable to just come up the river because of the American presence at Forts Jackson and St. Philip, the British decided to approach from the east, via Lake Borgne and the swamps that are now St. Bernard Parish. Major General Andrew Jackson, commander of the American forces, expected the British to enter Lake Pontchartrain and land in Gentilly, moving down into the city from the north. Because of this, the eastern route through the swamp was unprotected.

The British officers reconnoitering Bayou Bienvenue reported back to Major General John Keane, the commander of the British forces until the arrival of General Sir Edward Pakenham. Keane ordered his troops off the ships to Pea Island, and from there, westward towards the city. The British advanced up the bayou towards the Villere plantation. On December 23, Keane ordered his troops into a night attack on American outposts along the bayou and the Villere Canal. Thirty Americans were captured, including Major Gabriel Villere, son of Jacques Villere, owner of the plantation and later Louisiana’s second governor. Major Villere escaped British custody, returning to New Orleans to report the troop movements to Jackson.

The British had made it as far as the Villere Plantation (named “Conseil”). The remaining Americans fell back to the Rodriguez Canal, which is where Jackson decided to make his stand.

General Sir Edward Pakenham arrived on Christmas Day, 1814, and assumed command of the British expedition. A brother-in-law of the Duke of Wellington, Ned Pakenham distinguished himself in Wellington’s Peninsular Army, fighting the French in Portugal and Spain. He was given the command of the New Orleans expedition in recognition of his success against Napoleon’s forces.

Pakenham spent “Christmas in Chalmette” at the Villere Plantation. His troops bivouacked in the fields near the main house. It was a cold, wet, mosquito-y, Christmas for the British. Even though American attempts to break the levee on the Mississippi river between the Rodriguez and Villere Canals were ineffective, the battle-hardened troops of His Majesty’s Army had a damp time of it. They were stuck at the Villere Plantation until heavy cannon from the ships in Lake Borgne could be brought to his position. With the exception of one reconnaissance in force on December 28, the British were bogged down in the swamps through New Year’s, 1815. It wasn’t until January 4-5, 1815, that Pakenham had his guns and was able to order a proper advance.

The British force moving on New Orleans was part of one of the finest armies in the world. These were men who helped drive Napoleon’s troops back into France, freeing Spain, and would later in 1815 be part of the epic battle at Waterloo. They were well-disciplined, but life in the swamps was something their officers did not count on. The damp conditions took their toll on men, horses, and equipment alike, in ways never experienced in Europe.

All the while, Jackson, his Kentucky and Tennessee militiamen along with New Orleans residents, and of course, the pirates, strengthened their defenses along the Rodriguez Canal for the battle.

This is part one in a series of two articles on the Battle of New Orleans. Part two will outline the battle itself.

Edward Branley is the author of Maison Blanche Department Stores, New Orleans: The Canal Streetcar Line, and Brothers of the Sacred Heart in New Orleans, books in Arcadia Publishing’s Images of America series. He is a partner in Yatmedia LLC, and is @Yatpundit on Twitter.

Tagged as: 1814, battle of new orleans, British army, General Andrew Jackson, New Orleans History, Villere Plantation