Out-Foxing the enemy ene
IF you ask Brian Kilmeade to give an elevator pitch for the 1814 battle that’s the focus of his new book, “Andrew Jackson and the Miracle of New Orleans: The Battle That Shaped America’s Destiny,” (Sentinel), expect a tornado of enthusiasm.
“OK, picture a country that starts a war and doesn’t have the wherewithal to defend itself,” he says, referring to the War of 1812 between the United States, the United Kingdom and their respective allies. “We had a reason and motivation but lacked the standing army or navy to compete with a superpower that had defeated Napoleon. And the British wanted revenge. They never accepted the outcome of the Revolutionary War. They burnt Washington, DC, to the ground [in August 1814], stopped at Baltimore and said ‘We’ll meet you in New Orleans.’ When they landed there, they thought they could walk to the city and party on Bourbon Street. They thought the city would be more loyal to the French than the Americans. And the United States? They’re outnumbered two to one, they don’t have the firepower. But they needed to let Britain know that they were in the fight of their lives. Jackson attacks them with hatchets, guns, he builds a berm, a moat and empties the canal . . . ”
If Kilmeade’s description of this historical event sounds like fastpaced sports commentary, that’s for good reason. The “Fox & Friends” co-host, who wrote the book with journalist Don Yaeger, is a longtime history buff and political-science major who joined the Fox network as a sports reporter in 1997.
“Andrew Jackson and the Miracle of New Orleans” is Kilmeade’s fifth book; others include sports books “The Games Do Count” and “It’s How You Play the Game” and history books “George Washington’s Secret Six” and “Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates.”
Kilmeade’s enthusiasm for this particular battle lies not only in the unlikelihood of the victory, but in the makeup of the team fighting for Maj. Gen. Andrew Jackson: a group that included Army troops, pirates, Choc- taw Indians, Navy sailors, freed black slaves, Marines and state militiamen from Tennessee, Kentucky, Mississippi and Louisiana. It was a truly diverse crew, banded together by a combination of fear and respect for the man leading them. “They hated letting hihim down and feared it,” sasays Kilmeade. “He was ininspirational. He had a mmini-parade to get everyonone fired up in the town [bbefore the battle], and he sasaid, ‘We’re burning [New OOrleans] down before we lelet the British get it.’ And I tthink the burning of the WWhite House mobilized ththe country. Everyone felt it was on the brink.” While the battle itself tooktook placeplace oon Jan. 8, 1814, on the Chalmette plains just outside the city, and took less than an hour, there were several smaller skirmishes in the weeks before. Casualty numbers for the battle differ, with one British infantry captain reported “three generals, seven colonels, 75 officers . . . a total of 1781 officers and soldiers had fallen in a few minutes.” The American losses: about a dozen dead. It would be the final battle in the war. Had the United States lost, the consequences would have been huge. “England would have held New Orleans and stopped us from moving westward,” says Kilmeade. “The Spanish would not have left Florida. And there would have been no President Jackson, clearly.” The lesson from the battle that really resonates with him is the power of different people banding together and winning. “America is strongest when we combine all creeds and colors for one single cause,” he says. “England wanted to send a message, but we were the ones that sent a message: Never invade us again. When pushed to the brink, Americans put their differences aside and rally.” Brian Kilmeade will have a book signing on Monday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m., Book Revue, 313 New York Ave., Huntington, NY.