Celebrate Poe

The Conflicts of 1814 and 2021

July 04, 2022 George Bartley Season 2 Episode 124
Celebrate Poe
The Conflicts of 1814 and 2021
Show Notes Transcript

This episode weaves an account of many of the basic concepts regarding the War of 1812 with the stories of two VERY different men - the kindly and aristocratic Francis Scott Key, and the rude, obnoxious, and arrogant John Randolph of Roanoke.  The episode is based on am earlier episode called The War pf 1812 - an episode which has had more downloads than any other episode.

Some of the major causes of the conflict are discussed, as well as what the conflict did (and did not) accomplish.


  • What does the War of 1812 have to do with “loose ends”?
  • Were Americans in agreement regarding the conflict?
  • What is Klinefelter’s Syndrome? What does
  • it have to do with John Randolph of Roanoke?What was Francis  Scott Key’s
  • occupation?
    What was especially unusual about t
  • e writing of The Star Spangled Banner?
    Were Key and RAndolph friends?  How do we know?
    Compare the burning of the Capitol building in 1814 with the invasion of the Capitol in 2021.



  • 00:00 Intro
  • 01:28 Understanding the War of 1812
  • 05:28 John Randolph Intro
  • 09:10 John Randolph and others
  • 17::00 War of 1812
  • 19:05 Francis Scott Key and David Poe and John Randolph
  • 23:48 Comparison and Contrast  of Capitol Invasions  of 1814 and 2021
  • 26:49 Future episodes
  • 27’36 Sources
  • 22:21 Outro

George -plain text
Ghost of Mr. Poe - italics

00:00 Intro

Welcome to Celebrate Poe, a deep dive into the life, times, and works of America’s Shakespeare - Edgar Allan Poe.  This is episode 124 - The Conflicts of 1812 and 2021
Today we celebrate commemorating the ratification of the  Declaration of Independence, which was ratified by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. The Second Continental Congress declared that the Thirteen Colonies were no longer subject (and subordinate) to the monarch of Britain .  Many historians believe that the war of 1812 completed that separation - it has been said that the main purpose of the War of 1812 was to tie up some loose ends.

I feel some cold air - that must be Mr. Poe.

GHOST ENTER

Greetings, Mr. Bartley.

Hello, Mr. Poe.  This is a complete surprise.  It is great to have you here on this national holiday.

01:28 Understanding the War of 1812
 

I must admit that I heard the last few sentences you uttered, and I agree that an excellent way of understanding the effect of an occasionally complicated War of 1812 is to remember the observation that the conflict completed the separation between America and Britain.

One might say that - to use your current vernacular -  from the standpoint of the United States, as well as Britain, The War of 1812 tied up some loose ends.

Well, Mr. Poe that pretty well covers it.

I know that the American Revolution influenced you even though you were not alive yet.  The conflict  meant that you could be born in a free country where almost anything was possible.
And you WOULD have been physically affected by the War Between the States - such as the destruction of much of Richmond - except that your earthly life ended more than 10 years before the War Between the States began. Perhaps you would have fought on the Confederate Side.

That would have been a difficult decision to make.

Oh, I don’t know, Mr. Poe - you were too much of a Southerner during your earthly life.

This is becoming a bit uncomfortable. Mr. Bartley - not to change the subject, but
Why do people always say that when they WANT to change the subject?

Mr. Bartley, I think it would be most appropriate for us to return to our subject of the War of 1812.

Yes, and to remember the purpose of this podcast - to keep it more Poecentric.

Poecentric? I am not sure if that is a word.

Well, it is NOW!  What I mean, is I feel this podcast - while exploring areas that might really surprise and (if we’re doing well) entertain! you, Celebrate Poe needs to be PoeCentric - centered around the life, times, works, and influences of Edgar Allan Poe

Getting back to the War of 1812.  I think I am going to weave the story of the War of 1812 against the background of the stories of two individuals - one strongly against the war, and a man who is known as the writer of a song that was a result of the War of 1812.

Now, the British government was forcing American ships into their ports, so that they could tax all their goods, even if the American ships were not doing business with the British.  The Americans were trading goods with the French, and Britain did not like this at all.  In addition to any economic sanctions, the United States understandably became furious at the British practice of impressment.

Mr. Bartley, it might be advantageous for your narrative to explain what the term impressment means.

Impressment means forcing men to serve a navy by force - in this case forcing an American soldier to work without wages for the British navy.

Mr. Bartley, such a practice would seem to resemble slavery.

Yes, Mr. Poe, impressment does have elements of forced work without pay, but slavery is a much deeper evil.

Britain also set various trade restrictions and gave some support to Native American peoples who opposed United States expansion into their lands to the West.  So many American
reached the opinion that the United States should declare war on England.

Were all Americans in agreement regarding this issue?

Far from it. 

Congressman John Randolph from Virginia told a group of Congressmen who were eager to begin a war - in his high-pitched voice, "Gentlemen, you have made war -- you have finished the ruin of our country -- and before you conquer Canada, your idol [Napoleon] will cease to distract the world, and the capitol will be in ruins.”

Mr. Bartley, those words definitely sound like the words of one of the Virginia Randolphs - one of the most influential families in Virginia - perhaps the most influential in the entire United States.

Yes, and John Randolph from Roanoke was extremely firm in his belief that the war was needless and argued that war would lead to high taxes and a larger national debt.

Mr. Poe, let’s take a little detour here and talk a little bit about John Randolph since he was such an interesting figure.

Yes, he was a direct descendant of William Randolph of Turkey  Island where I celebrate my first Christmas with the Allans.  I will always have fond impressions of that occasion.  Now John Randolph was born on Turkey Island, and later moved to Roanoke, Virginia.  From that point on, he preferred to called John Randolph of Roanoke.

It is believed that Mr. Randolph suffered from a condition that hindered his maturation, perhaps Klinefelter's Syndrome.

Mr. Bartley, what is Klinefelter’ s Syndrome?
 

Klinefelter’s Syndrome results from an extra X chromosome in males.  The primary features are small, poorly functioning testicles and infertility (that would have been rough for an influential member of the Southern aristocracy.)  Intelligence is usually normal, but the person might have weaker muscles, greater height, breast growth, and less interest in sex.  Randolph never had a beard and his famous orator's voice was high pitched, some said womanly.

Yes, he WAS rather well-known for - how should I say it - the deficiencies of his unusual appearance.  In my story “The Facts of the Case of M. Valdemar,” I wanted to communicate the unusual appearance of the main character’s physique - so I wrote “his lower limbs much resembling those of John Randolph.”

Steve Vogel, a professor of biomechanics, describes Randolph this way: Randolph's small head, raised shoulders, tiny waist, and long, thin legs gave him the look of a crane - an appearance made all the more pronounced by his clothing, usually a swallowtail coat adorned with a white cravat in which he would bury his neck. Randolph was a bitter misanthrope, known in Congress as rude, merciless, and venomous.

Mr. Poe, He does sound like a person who is interesting, but not someone I would like to know.
Mr. Bartley, knowing you, I had a feeling you might want to talk about John Randolph.  Would you like to hear me relate another story regarding his colorful character.
Certainly.

 I encountered this story during a visitation to the local library.
”When I was in Richmond a few days since," said Mr. Ridgely Howard of Baltimore to a representative of the Washington Star at the New Willard, "I made one of those bad breaks which prove so embarrassing. I was a guest of a member of the crack Westmoreland club, and after a slight repast I was escorted through the building for the purpose of viewing the pictures, relics of the civil war, -etc. During the tour mentioned my attention was particularly attracted to the portrait of what I took to be a very handsome brunette. I incidentally remarked to my host that the young lady was quite pretty, when, with a low chuckle, he replied, 'Yes, quite pretty, but as a matter of fact the picture represents John Randolph of Roanoke at 18.'


Let me explain how I was caught. The hair was parted in the middle and neatly combed back of the ears; the features were of a purely feminine mold, and the expression of the eyes and face was so shy and bashful that you will readily understand how I was deceived. One can hardly conceive, looking at the portrait of Randolph at the age represented, that he could ever grow into the cynical and disagreeable creature he is reported to have been in his later years. If he ever had love affairs which went wrong I have never heard of them. As near as I can learn he never had any real ardent affection for any woman except his mother, who, it is said, was beautiful, and whom it is also said he closely resembled in beauty as a child.
"Later in the day I paid a visit to Richmond’s Hollywood cemetery a beautiful spot, and sought the grave of Randolph. I found it on a gentle slope overlooking the James. It appears that some twenty years ago, or more, the remains of Randolph were moved from the lonely spot in the forest at Roanoke to their present resting place by the state authorities. A marble slab now covers his last resting. place, on which is the following inscription: 'Here lies John Randolph of Roanoke.' The only other words on the slab are those giving the date of birth and death."  
The claim that Randolph of Roanoke never had "real ardent affection for any woman except his mother" is not fully contradicted by  Robert Meade's description of Randolph's engagement to Mary Ward who later married John's brother Edmund. John Randolph suddenly   called off the engagement in 1799. Meade believes the engagement was broken off because of Randolph's physical impairment.
It seems Randolph was not gay, he was more or less asexual due to his lack of physical development. A post-mortem examination of Randolph was conducted after his death and it was recorded that the quote  ‘scrotum was scarcely at all developed,’ with only a right testicle ‘the size of a small bean.’” There are many things we might say about John Randolph .
Mr. Bartley I know that John Randolph of Roanoke was supposed to be a bitter and angry man, but part of me feels sorry for him - a distinguished and extremely intelligent member of a highly influential family who often seemed to reject everyone and everything - pushing people away before they became close enough to hurt him - akin to individuals who automatically dismiss others as disagreeable before they are rejected as disagreeable themselves.
Mr. Poe - I had no idea you could be so compassionate and understanding.
I think we have - as you say - picked on poor John Randolph of Roanoke long enough.
When Mr. Henry Clay became Speaker of the House in 1811, he forbade Mr. Randolph to bring his hunting dogs to the floor of the house - something Mr. Randolph  had always done in the past. These were not small quiet dogs, but large, stinking, sometimes howling hunting animals.
 

Now the hatred the two men they had for each other was quite intense. Randolph considered Clay corrupt. He famously called Clay, "a man of splendid abilities, but utterly corrupt. He shines and stinks like a rotten mackerel by moonlight.”

Mr. Bartley, if I relate a story about their duel, do you propose to move on to another subject?
Sure, go ahead, Mr. Poe.

John Randolph especially disagreed politically with Henry Clay.  He even called Clay one of the worst things you could say about a person in the early 19th century - he called him a “blackleg" on the floor of the house.

Mr. Poe, what is a blackleg?

A blackleg is a cheater at cards.  I cannot imagine a gentleman being called ANYTHING worse. They then agreed to meet in Virginia because Mr. Randolph claimed only the soil of Virginia was worthy of his blood - THAT certainly sounds reasonable. Mr. Randolph confided to Senator Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri that he had no intention of hurting Mr. Clay, who was married and had a child. The duel took place on 8 April 1826 a half mile north at Pimmit Run - so this occurred a bit later than our narrative - but gives you a window into the character of John Randolph of Roanoke.

Both first shots missed their intended targets. Mr. Clay’s second shot also missed, and Mr. Randolph raised his pistol and fired it in the air. The duel then ended, and the unhurt men met each other halfway and shook hands. The duel proceeded almost comically. Mr. Randolph accidentally fired his pistol before the duel began when he inadvertently touched the hair-trigger. Although Randolph had expressed an intent not to fire at Mr. Clay, he was unnerved by the mis-fire and on the first round did fire at Mr. Clay. Both gentlemen missed on the first round and, proclaiming themselves unsatisfied, went on with the second. On the second firing, Mr. Clay put a bullet through the skirt of Mr. Randolph’s expensive coat, and Mr. Randolph made the grand gesture he had originally planned on, firing into the air and saying, "I do not fire at you, Mr. Clay." When met half-way to shake hands, Mr. Randolph remarked, "You owe me a coat, Mr.Clay." Mr. Clay replied, "I am glad the debt is no greater.”

17::00 War of 1812

In any case, political opinion reached a boiling point, and America declared war on Britain.  Britain had the most powerful navy in the world, while the United States navy was much smaller in comparison.

.In 1814, the British invaded Washington D.C.  While it was the capital city of the country, at the time, Washington D.C. city was considered just a muddy village on the Potomac. When Dolley Madison, wife of the President, realized that the British were coming, she became determined to leave nothing of value for the enemy.  Among the treasures were a copy of the Declaration of Independence and boxes of presidential papers.  She told her servants,
If you can’t save them, destroy them

She refused to leave without Gilbert Stuart’s portrait of George Washington.  She had it pulled down, taken out of its frame, rolled it up, rolled it up like a scroll, and personally carried out of the White House.

Now Gilbert Hunt also served in the War of 1812.Mr. Hunt  worked in the US Army day and night during the War of 1812.  He helped build, prepare, and mount cannons for his country's defense.
Yes, you may remember Mr. Hunt from the previous episode in this podcast as the blacksmith who saved 12 ladies during the Richmond Theatre Fire of   1811.

After the destruction of Washington, it probably seemed the next logical step (from the British point of view) to attack the nearby city of Baltimore - which at the time was the third largest city in the United States and a center of ship building. 
19:05 Francis Scott Key
Francis Scott Key, a highly successful and respected Baltimore lawyer, was on a British ship negotiating the release of a prisoner held by the British.  The British then forced them to stay on the ship because they were afraid the American men on board had somehow become familiar with British strength and their ship’s position. 
This really amazed me.  I grew up thinking - I don’t know exactly what I thought - but I assumed that Francis Scott Key was some guy who watched a battle from the shore and wrote The National Anthem.  I had NO IDEA that he was basically held prisoner when he wrote it - that this was not just some idle patriotic statement - but this rather aristocratic lawyer had such a personal INVESTMENT in what was going on, and did not know if he was going to live or die.
It was dawn before Mr. Key could see an American flag waving in victory, and he wrote a poem about his experience called “Defense of Fort McHenry” which later became the United States National Anthem.

Possibly one of the oldest men to fight at Fort Henry was 71 years old, and none other than my grandfather David Poe Sr. from Baltimore.  Now David Poe, Sr. had served his country in the Revolutionary war as Assistant Deputy Quartermaster General of Baltimore.  Amazingly, he served in BOTH the Revolutionary War and War of 1812. 

And when General Lafayette came to the United States in 1824, General Lafayette came to Baltimore to visit my grandfather. but unfortunately by then my grandfather was no longer alive.


After two years of fighting, both countries decided to declare a peace treaty.    To be honest, not a great deal was changed.  From what I understand, the issue of impressment was not really dealt with.  But the war did give the United States a stronger sense of nationhood, and allowed Canada to remain part of the British Empire.

19:05 Francis Scott Key and David Poe and John Randolph

Mr. Bartley,  I am exceedingly curious about Mr. Randolph and Mr. Key.  They were quite different and ran in different political circles. It would be intriguing if they met.  I can only imagine such a confrontation. Mr. Key was considered a very kind and giving individual, while Mr. Randolph was of a - how should we say - of an arrogant, and even BITTER disposition with a tongue that could be both cruel and sharp.

In one of the curiosities of history, Mr. Key and Mr. Randolph were actually close friends.
When Mr. Randolph lost his seat after opposing the war, he left Washington in April of 1813 so quickly that he left behind "books, letters, papers, also a gun, flask, an d shot-belt, c." in his rooming house. Mr. Randolph wrote Mr. Key and asked him to hold on to them. Mr. Key later wrote his friend in September to say,"My Dear Sir, T'was thinking of your gun a few days before I received your letter, and determined to rub off some rust, and try if I could kill Mrs. Key a bird or two. She has just given me another son, and of course deserves this piece of courtesy.”

I could think of better gifts to your wife when she just had a child than a dead bird, but maybe that was useful back then.

Mr. Bartley, I believe Mr. Key was referring to a turkey!

Pardon me, Mr. Poe.  That does make sense.

Mr. Randolph of Roanoke made Mr. Key one of the executors of his will which freed all of  Mr. Randolph’s 400 slaves.  And Mr. Key fought to see that the will was honored, and that the now freed slaves owned sufficient land to support themselves.

That is most interesting.  Well, Farewell, Mr. Bartley - I must take my leave.
GHOST EXIT

23:48 Comparison and Contrast  of Capitol Invasions  of 1814 and 2021`

In conclusion, I would like to briefly compare one of the most destructive acts of the War of 1812 - the burning of Washington D.C. (specifically the destruction of the Capitol building in 1814) with the attack on the Capitol building in 2021.  In 1814, British troops destroyed the Capitol building, but the Capitol building was rebuilt several years later. On January 6, 2021, the Capitol was attacked in a more insidious way that may be more difficult to repair.
We tend to look on the burning of the Capitol in 1814 from a historical perspective - that what we know about the destruction in 1814 is basically “set in stone” and we understand its ramifications.  But the attack on the Capitol in 2021 was an attack on democracy - and the personal and mental destruction is far from over.  Just last week, we heard testimony that the attack was directly connected to the many of the very leaders that we elect.
I believe that next year we will know a great deal more about the attack of 2021 - and hopefully be able to view it from a more historical perspective.
And while the burning of the Capitol building by British troops in 1814 was the result of external forces. the attack on the Capitol in 2021 was the result of internal forces that have the potential of destroying  democracy in the United States.
Speaking on January 6 - 1 year after the 2021 insurrection - the great historian  Jon Meacham warned in The Guardian  “What you saw a year ago today was the worst instincts of both human nature and American politics and it's either a step on the way to the abyss or it is a call to arms figuratively for citizens to engage." Fellow historian Doris Kearns Goodwin added, "We've come through these really tough times before. We've had lots of people who were willing to step up and put their public lives against their private lives. And that's what we've got to depend on today. That's what we need in these years and months ahead.”
Ever the eternal optimist, I personally believe that despite current events - especially the loss of freedoms - if we hold on, there is reason to celebrate this fourth of July, as well as the possibility of better days in the future - The choice of a happier time is ours to make.

26:49 Future episodes

The next episode will drop July 11 - at the regular time of Monday around midnight.  And after three days where I did a podcast for three days in a row, this almost comes as a vacation.  The next episode is what will be the final episode - at least for now - dealing with Poe at the University of Virginia.  The ghost of Mr. Poe will join me to talk about some of his experiences at the University, a few of his escapades, and the death of Thomas Jefferson in Virginia and John Adams in Massachusetts on the same day.  This episode will also deal with some of the stories about a possible meeting between Thomas Jefferson and Edgar Poe.

27:36 Sources

Sources include , Historains Mark the Anniiversary of January 6 by Joan E. Greve in The Guardian, The Civil War of 1812: American Citizens, British Subjects, Irish Rebels, and Indian Allies by Alan Taylor, John Randolph of Roanoke: A Study in American Politics by Russell Kirk, Fort McHenry: Home of the Brave by Norman G. Rukert, Edgar Allan Poe: A Critical Biography by Arthur Hobson Quinn, The Poe Log: A Documentary Life of Edgar Allan Poe by Dwight R. Thomas and David K. Jackson, Edgar Allan Poe: The Man by Mary E. Phillips

22;21 Outro

Thank you for listening to celebratepoe.