Perilous Fight: America's Intrepid War with Britain on the High Seas, 1812-1815

Among America’s less glorious wars, 1812 was the most justified. Battling Napoléon Bonaparte for a decade, Britain had been seizing U.S. ships and impressing their crews into its navy. Unlike America’s bungled 1812 land campaign, its naval effort was led by competent, aggressive commanders who won spectacular victories.