1. On the high road, and immediately adjoining the river, two 18-prs., with 50 rounds a gun, to fire upon the enemy’s defences on the right: officer in charge, Captain Lemprière. This battery was the most advanced of all.

2. A little in rear, and to the right of No. 1, was a battery of three 5½-inch mortars, with 30 shells each, under Captain Lawrence. A little in front of this battery, Captain Lane with the rocket battery was stationed.

3. To the right of the rocket battery a 7-gun battery was erected for Major Michell’s two 9-prs. and one heavy howitzer, and Captain Carmichael’s three 6-pounders (one of the disabled 6-prs. having been repaired) and his light howitzer. This battery was to be employed against the enemy’s guns, and the centre of his line.

4. On the centre road, which was parallel to the river and main road, and at right angles to the enemy’s entrenchments, there was a 10-gun battery, consisting of six 18-prs. under Captain Crawford, R.A., and four 24-pr. carronades under Captain Money, R.N. These guns were to be employed in the first instance against the enemy’s artillery, and afterwards to break down the entrenchment a little to the left of the centre.

5. To the right of the 10-gun battery was a second rocket battery under Lieutenant Crawley.

As these batteries had to be erected between 8.30 P.M. on the 31st December, 1814, and 5.45 A.M. on the following day, they could not be very strong. They were constructed of sugar casks filled with earth not rammed, one cask in thickness, and backed up. They were only one cask in height, and, as the platforms were also a little raised, it followed that the gunners, when standing erect, were head and shoulders above the parapet. The platforms were very ill-laid, uneven, and unsteady.

The night was very dark, and the working parties were not collected without much difficulty; but on Sunday morning, New Year’s Day, 1815, at daylight, all was ready. A heavy fog, however, came on at 4 o’clock, and not until 9 o’clock was it possible to see the enemy’s works. During the interval, the columns of Infantry moved to their respective posts to be in readiness for the assault.

On the fog clearing away, the English batteries opened vigorously, and at first a little confusion was apparent among the Americans. This soon disappeared, however; and, as their batteries were strong, and the embrasures strongly constructed with cotton bags, they soon served their guns admirably, and their heavy shot, penetrating the slight English batteries, caused a considerable number of casualties. After about three hours’ firing, the ammunition in the 10-gun English battery was nearly exhausted, the 7-field-gun battery had been silenced, a cheek of the heavy howitzer carriage was shattered, and several other injuries to the gun-carriage had been received. The heavy guns had, fortunately, received no injury; but want of ammunition soon compelled them to be silent also, to the great delight of the enemy. Even, however, if the ammunition had not failed, the nature of the batteries was such that the men could not have gone on much longer. The Americans fired from ten to twelve guns in their lines, and from four to five on the other side of the river, many of them being heavy guns—32-pounders and 24-pounders;—and although several of them had been dismounted by the fire of the English, the remainder were as active at the last moment as at any time during the day. The casualties among the Royal Artillery were as follows:—

Lieutenant Alexander Ramsay: mortally wounded.
12 Artillerymen killed.
13 Artillerymen wounded.

Owing to the uneven and loose state of the platforms, the ship carriages were found to be very awkward and unmanageable, so that the fire did not attain the necessary precision, nor could it be kept up with the rapidity necessary to silence the enemy’s guns. The carronades recoiled off the platform every round. The insufficient strength of the batteries, and the fact of the men being so unprotected, also tended to make the fire less active, and to prevent its silencing guns which were protected by good and solid cover. Colonel Dickson, in his report, said that if he had had heavy ordnance on proper travelling carriages, he was convinced that, with the same quantity of ammunition, he would have silenced or dismounted every gun in the American lines. It has been urged, and with reason, that it was a mistake to commence with so small a quantity of ammunition; but it must be remembered that there was no immediate certainty of a further supply, and the necessity of doing something had become every hour more urgent, as the Americans were busy daily in strengthening their position.

In consequence of the failure on the 1st January, Sir Edward Pakenham resolved to defer further action until the arrival of some reinforcements which he knew to be on the way, and in the meantime to withdraw the guns from the batteries, and the troops from the advanced position which they had taken up. The removal of the guns was not effected without great difficulty. The rain, which was falling continuously, had made the batteries and roads knee-deep with mud; but, thanks to the energy of Sir Edward himself, the whole was effected before daylight on the 2nd.

Although superfluous, it will confirm what has been so often said in the course of this history, with reference to the supply department of the Ordnance, if a few words written by Colonel Dickson be now quoted, with reference to the expedition against New Orleans, which had begun so unfortunately, and was to end so disastrously. “With respect,” he wrote, “to our own ammunition and stores, great quantities of articles have been sent that are perfectly unnecessary and never have been demanded, whereas others greatly required have never been sent, although demanded in the most urgent manner.” In this respect the narrative of the services of the Royal Artillery is singularly monotonous.

On the 3rd January, General Lambert arrived at head-quarters, and on the following day the 7th and 43rd Regiments marched in. The attack, which was now decided upon, cannot be understood without some preliminary explanation. It must be borne in mind that the Americans did not content themselves with remaining idly behind their entrenchments. They had erected flanking works at each end of their line, and had also made and armed batteries on the other side of the river, which were useful both for direct and enfilade fire. It was therefore resolved to send a column across the river, to attack and, if possible, capture the batteries there, prior to the general assault on the enemy’s main work. To do this it was necessary to obtain boats: and a canal was dug from the head of the lake to within a few yards of the river, up which forty-two ships’ boats were brought, ready to be launched in the river on the night of the attack. Considerable changes were made in the position and armament of the English batteries. In order to support the attack on the other side, the following guns were placed so as to command the river and fire at the enemy’s batteries on the right bank:—

4 18-prs. manned by R. A.Under the superintendence of Lieutenant Speer.
2 18-prs. manned by seamen
2 24-pr. carronades, manned by Marine Artillerymen.
4 field-guns, under Captain Carmichael.