The Battle of Lake Erie Ruins of Fort 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 Americans at the Battle of Lake Erie   Books: A Signal Victory The Lake Erie Campaign, 1812-1813 Gerard T. Altoff, David C. Skaggs

The British at the Battle of Lake Erie Commander of the British Navy, Robert Barclay, had a simple battle plan; since his ships had more long-range guns than the Americans, they would concentrate their fire on American commander Oliver Perry’s flagship, and try to pound it to pieces before it got close enough to use its short-range carronades. They would subsequently pick off the other American ships one-by-one. This strategy might well have been successful if the wind hadn’t changed direction and favoured the Americans. As Perry slowly moved towards Barclay’s line, the British opened fire. There was little Perry could do, being armed almost exclusively with short-range guns. The British took full advantage of this situation until the wind suddenly shifted. Barclay appreciated this new threat; the wind change would foil Perry's long-range strategy. Barclay soon suffered another major setback. All the senior officers on his second largest ship, the Queen Charlotte, were dead or wounded. Lieutenant Robert Irvine took over the command of the vessel, but he was inexperienced and the ship no longer had any real chain of command. Barclay had effectively lost his main support. Things looked better for Barclay elsewhere in the battle. Perry's flagship, the Lawrence, had been so badly battered that its guns were no longer firing. Feeling a certain degree of confidence, Barclay went down below his own decks to seek medical treatment for his badly- wounded thigh. Oliver Perry was not about to surrender. In an extraordinary feat he abandoned his crippled flagship and rowed through the cannonballs and shot to take over command of the unharmed vessel Niagara. The bandaged Barclay returned above deck to discover that he faced every naval captain’s nightmare: Perry was preparing to cut through the British line. The American commander would be able to rake the British ships on both sides, with roaring broadsides. Barclay had no choice but to try to turn the Detroit around 180 degrees, so he could fire his unused guns at the Niagara before the Americans came abreast of him. Before Barclay was able to complete the maneuver however, he was badly wounded a second time. Barclay had already lost an arm while fighting the French. Now he was left with a gaping wound in the shoulder of his good arm. He was forced to give up command of his ship. Lieutenant George Inglis tried to complete the Detroit’s turn but the Queen Charlotte had come in too close. Both vessels were now in the hands of inexperienced junior officers and their rigging became entangled. By now the two senior officers on every British vessel were either dead or so badly wounded they could no longer command. After sustaining terrible damage from the Lawrence’s broadsides, the British fleet had no choice but to surrender. Two small gunboats tried to escape but they are quickly overtaken and captured. It was the first time in history that an entire fleet of the British Navy had been defeated and captured by the enemy.