Andrew Jackson and the Miracle of New Orleans: The Battle That Shaped America's Destiny

by Brian Kilmeade

Yet even for the most powerful military in the world, an attack on New Orleans would be no simple matter. The Royal Navy might lead the siege, but to get to New Orleans its ships would have to sail a hundred miles up the Mississippi. Along the way, they would face American guns, changing tides, and several sharp turns in the river, making for a slow and dangerous approach to their objective. Though he had no naval experience, Jackson understood these obstacles and guessed that the British would avoid a river assault. Assuming the British would launch an overland attack against the city, Jackson considered his possibilities. The Mississippi delta south of New Orleans, a swampy morass of bayous, would be practically impossible to march across. And the British had no easy land access from the north. Thus, Jackson and his advisers concluded that their enemy would come from the east.