Customer Reviews

Oliver Hazard Perry and the Battle of Lake Erie

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
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Written for those who already understand the causes of the War of 1812, this slim volume offers a balanced examination of the most significant naval action of the war. When Oliver Hazard Perry, commodore of the Lake Erie fleet, defeated the British on the water he prevented His Majesty's Forces from mounting a serious threat against U.S forces west of the Niagara. Without drowning the reader in a mass of details, the author provides the best descriptions of naval warfare and naval terms that I have ever read. Visitors to the Oliver Hazard Perry Peace Memorial at Put-in-Bay, Ohio, one of the lesser known national parks, would be wise to pick up this book as would anyone interested in life aboard a wooden ship during wartime.

I really enjoyed this book. It is a brief (67 pages + appendixes) summary of the major naval battle on Lake Erie in the War of 1812, with just a brief summary of the events leading up to it. It concludes with a nice well-done chapter on the following land battle at Moraviantown as the US followed the retreating British and Indian forces, in which Perry also participated. The author's naval battle descriptions are outstanding (including footnotes to explain the naval terms used), and you can easily put yourself into the situation and feel the terror of the action. One appendix at the end gives short but very informative bio information on many of the characters mentioned by name in the book. There are several maps, as well as sketches depicting the various locations of the ships though time during the battle.

Do not buy this book if you are looking for a biorgraphy of Oliver Perry (which I was not doing), as the author gets right into the action. My only criticism of the book is that it does not contain a full reference complialtion at the end. The "Notes" section at the back, which correlates to numbers in the text for reference, in may cases gives only partial reference information. There was a huge amount of information in the book that came from letters and historical communication from participants in the battle.

I would strongly recommned this book to anyone interested in this period of American history or the history of that part of the US and Canada.

One last note, the book I received (purchased through Amazon), came signed by the author.

You will find this book entertaining as well as informative. Among the notable insights offered is an excellent description of the size (or lack thereof) of the fleets involved in the much-aggrandized battles on the Great Lakes. This is very enjoyable History.

I really enjoyed this book. It made me feel like I had something at stake, in this battle, despite the fact I was born many generations later. The book gives a (tales of the tape) reveiw of the two opposing Commanders. This book will fit right in with any history book on your shelf and will give you alot of insight into the Perry's wonderful victory.