[legendsport]

PART VI - Battle of Albany & The "Strong" Move

SCHUYLER FLATTS, NEAR ALBANY, NY, SEPTEMBER 29, 1813: The Duke of Wellington (he had received notice of his investiture via courier while on the march from Cooperstown to the Hudson) stood on a hill overlooking the Schuyler Flatts - a large area of farmland just outside the city of Albany. Arrayed below him was a 30,000 man American army under the command of Major General Winfield Scott. Behind him was an army of equal size, wearing the red of His Majesty's Army.

Wellington sat his horse calmly, the light fall breeze brushing across his face. He took everything in; for example he noted the way the Americans' lines were just slightly ragged, which showed inferior training... or fear; either would redound to the benefit of his veteran army. This day could prove decisive - a resounding victory would lay open not only New England, but also New York City. He had already heard that the city's mayor DeWitt Clinton was willing to surrender the city to any British army which approached it.

A faint boom echoed across the valley below - Scott's artillery had fired. Wellington turned to his adjutant. "And so it begins. They have started the battle, we shall finish it."

The battle played out almost exactly as Wellington had foreseen. The Americans concentrated on trying to turn his left flank. Wellington had posted his best men, the Highlanders, on the left and the Scotsmen beat off three attacks over the course of the daylong battle. In the center, calvary charges were chopped down by the massed guns of the British. The hundreds of miles of hauling his men had done to carry their cannon from the Niagara River to the Hudson had paid off.

As three o'clock approached and with the day waning, Wellington struck. Massed cavalry struck the American right, already dangerously weak from their efforts against the Highlanders. The exhausted American line collapsed almost immediately even as Wellington's infantry hit the center of Scott's line. With his right flank turned, Scott had no alternative but to attempt to disengage and retreat. Things quickly dissolved into rout. As night fell, the 30,000 man American Army of the Centre was completely destroyed as a fighting force. Several thousand were dead, many had dropped their arms and fled and thousands more were captured. General Scott himself surrendered his sword to Wellington and became a prisoner for the second time (he had also been captured at Queenston).

"Congratulations, sir," Scott said dolefully. "Now nothing lies between you and New York."

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QUINCY, MA, OCTOBER 3, 1813: After several minutes of incessant knocking, Thomas Boylston Adams realized that whoever it was would not leave and opened the door. A frantic-looking man wearing the uniform of the state militia stood on the doorstep. Adams looked him up and down disdainfully and said, "Sir, have you no decency? It's time for civilized folk to be sleeping!"

The messenger bowed quickly and said, "Beg your pardon, Mr. Adams. I have urgent news for your father."

Thomas frowned. "My father is asleep sir. Can this not wait til morning?"

The messenger shook his head. "I have been sent directly by the governor, who is, at this very moment in Albany, New York."

Thomas was puzzled and a quizzical look came over his face. "Albany? Why on earth would Governor Strong be in Albany? The British Army is in Albany." News of the British victory at Albany had reached Boston two days earlier.

The messenger thought that were this John Quincy instead of Thomas Bolyston Adams, the question would have been the more astute: "Why is Governor Strong seeking an audience with the Duke of Wellington?" Since John Quincy Adams was currently ambassador to Russia and therefore in St. Petersburg, the messenger had to spell things out.

"The Governor is seeking an audience with the Duke of Wellington."

A noise from behind him caused Thomas to turn. His father, the nearly 77-year-old (his birthday would be later in October) former President of the United States, John Adams, had risen from his bed.

"See! Now you have woken my father!" hissed Thomas to the messenger.

The elder Adams reached the door. "Are we barbarians Thomas to leave a man on the doorstep in the chill of autumn?" he chided his youngest son.

Muttering, Thomas admitted the messenger and closed the door. As John took his seat near the guttering fire, he motioned for the messenger to sit beside him.

"What is so urgent young man?" asked Adams kindly.

"Sir, Governor Strong sends his greetings. He wishes me to inform you that he is going to meet with the Duke of Wellington to broker peace on behalf of the commonwealth. He seeks your support in a convention of secession from the United States and the formation of a new Union of New England states."

Adams closed his eyes, deeply disturbed by this news. He had known of course that feelings ran high throughout Massachusetts - and the other New England states - for secession. Most of the people saw the war with Britain as a folly of Southern and Western congressmen hoping to expand the frontier. He had felt the same way. But to see the nation broken, was almost more than his heart could bear.

The messenger grew concerned. "Sir? Are you alright?"

Adams opened his eyes, a weary look on his face. "I'm fine. Just mourning for our Union." He took a deep breath and released it slowly. The years seemed to weigh heavily upon him. "Inform Mr. Strong that I shall lend any support he deems necessary."

The messenger nodded and after a moment, took his leave. As the hooves of the messenger's horse pounded away into the distance, John Adams, 2nd President of the United States, looked at his son and said, "Thomas, we must dispatch a letter to John Quincy. He needs to come home. His country... his new country... shall need him."

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THE WHITE HOUSE, WASHINGTON, DC, OCTOBER 10, 1813: Dolley Madison had never seen her husband so distraught. She idolized her husband, who though small of stature at 5'4, often sickly and asocial was also author of a sizeable portion of the U.S. Constitution, one of the founding fathers of the country, and the fourth man to become President of the United States. To see him so low broke her heart.

"Jimmy, what shall we do?" she asked quietly, hoping to spark his incredible intellect, force him to focus on solving the problem instead of bemoaning it.

He looked at her and the sadness in his face was almost too much to bear. "We have no choice but to let them go," he said softly. "A better man would perhaps wish them God speed. I however, can not, for they have plunged a knife into our Republic."

The news of the decision by the legislatures of six of the original U.S. states to call for a convention of secession followed quickly by the news that five of those states (only New York was not involved in this) had negotiated an armistice with the British forces, broke over Washington like tidal waves. Even some representatives of the states involved, such as freshman Congressman Daniel Webster of New Hampshire, were appalled at the decision. This did not, however, keep Webster in Washington. He was headed home to participate in the convention, to be held in Hartford on October 30th.

Even as Wellington's army sat in the state capital of New York, the governor of New York was conspiring with the New England states and the mayor of New York City (DeWitt Clinton) to remove his state from the Union. The loss of the New England states, who had offered no assistance to the national war effort, was bad enough. But New York had provided men - and money - to the war effort and to lose the state was a crippling blow. Rumors were flying that both New Jersey and Pennsylvania were watching these events unfold with interest.

Suddenly Madison stood up. He looked at his wife and said, "I shall seek peace. There is nothing more we can gain by continuing this struggle. The British have won, it would be folly to presume we can turn the tide at this late date."

Dolley Madison began to cry. Standing beside her, James Madison asked himself whether the War Hawks would accept peace. He wasn't sure they would and wondered too, how much fight he had left.