Programs

Terror on the Chesapeake

Christopher T. George gives a lively, illustrated presentation on the War of 1812 in the Chesapeake, placing the war in this region in the context of the whole war. George examines issues leading up to this misunderstood war and the roles played by Great Britain’s Royal Navy, President James Madison and others. He takes a close look at major strategic events in the Chesapeake, including the British blockade of the East Coast, the destruction of Havre de Grace, General Robert Ross’s burning of Washington, D.C., the Battle of North Point, and of course Francis Scott Key and the Battle of Baltimore at Fort McHenry. High school and adult audiences. Requires screen and projector.

Christopher T. George is the author of Terror on the Chesapeake: The War of 1812 on the Bay published by White Mane in 2001. He is the founding editor of the Journal of the War of 1812 and coordinator of the National War of 1812 Symposium series held each fall since 1996. George is now at work on a biography of British Major General Robert Ross, the man who captured Washington, D.C. and who was mortally wounded trying to attack Baltimore three weeks later in a skirmish preceding the Battle of North Point. The book is being written in cooperation with Dr. John McCavitt of Rostrevor, Northern Ireland. George was born in Liverpool, England. Now a citizen of the United States, he admits to divided loyalties on the War of 1812.