The Battle of Lake Erie Further Reading An Overview of the Battle of Lake Erie British Background to the Battle of Lake Erie American Background to the Battle of Lake Erie The British at the Battle of Lake Erie

The Americans at the Battle of Lake Erie Perry continues the fight until all of the Lawrence’s guns are knocked out of commission. By this point, the bulk of his crew is either dead or too injured to man the guns. Jesse Elliott finally begins to close in with Niagara. He apparently believes that Perry is dead, and perhaps hopes to save the day and crown himself with glory. Perry however, is still very much alive. Lowering a boat, he rows over to the Niagara and, much to Elliott's surprise, climbs aboard and orders Elliott to row out and tell the straggling American gunboats to close up. He then proceeds to hoists his personal pennant up Niagara’s mast. Elliott complies with this latest order and, taking charge of one of the gunboats, fights bravely for the rest of the engagement. Within minutes of taking over Niagara, Perry sails directly through the British line, “within a half pistol shot,” as he later reports. His cannons double-shotted for maximum damage, Perry fires his full starboard broadside at the Detroit and Queen Charlotte as he closes in. At the same time, he fires his port broadside on two of the smaller British ships, Chippawa and Lady Prevost. By now, all the senior British officers are seriously injured or dead, and all the British ships are commanded by inexperienced junior officers who soon surrender. Two gunboats, Chippawa and Little Belt, attempt to escape but are soon overtaken. At three o'clock, the battle is over. Perry now finds time to write a brief message to William Henry Harrison, the first sentence of which will become famous: “We have met the enemy and they are ours. Two Ships, two Brigs, one Schooner and one Sloop. Yours with greatest respect and esteem, O.H. Perry” It is indeed a major victory: this is the first time in history that an entire British fleet has been defeated and captured. In his official report, Perry acknowledges Elliott in such glowing terms that Congress takes the unusual step of ordering a victory medal struck for Elliott, as well as Perry. Other officers are not pleased and rumours of Elliott's strange behavior during the battle soon spread. The ensuing controversy rages on for much of the nineteenth century, long after the people involved are in their graves.