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Maine Maritime Boxer Battle Celebrated

Enterprise-and-Boxer Battle off MOnheghanMARK YOUR CALENDAR

On September 5, 1813, the HMS Boxer and the USS Enterprise engaged in a naval battle off the coast of Monhegan during the War of 1812. The dominant Royal Navy engaged the developing U.S. Navy in many battles during the war, but the battle of the Boxerand the Enterprise embodied a level of honor and respect not seen in modern warfare. Read about the exhibit and special events in Portland through October 25. (Continued below) 

 

Both Capt. William Burrows of the Enterpriseand Capt. Samuel Blyth of the Boxer were struck down early in the fighting and neither survived this legendary battle. After a grueling exchange, the Boxer capitulated and the Enterprise towed her prize into the Port of Portland, as witnessed by Capt. Lemuel Moody from the Portland Observatory on Munjoy Hill.

 

The City of Portland paid its respects not only to the fallen Capt. Burrows, but also to the much admired Capt. Blyth, with a joint funeral procession through the city, culminating with a side-by-side burial in Portland's Eastern Cemetery. It is not only the battle itself, or the immortalization of the event in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem My Lost Youth, but the respect shown to Capt. Samuel Blyth by the city of Portland, honoring him with a proper funeral on equal footing with his fallen foe Capt. William Burrows, that resonates in the modern era.

 

To commemorate the bicentennial of this historic battle, the Maine Historical Society, in conjunction the Maine Military Historical Society, Great Portland Landmarks, Spirits Alive, and the City of Portland will host a series of events next week (see side column). The exhibit, Thundered Over the Tide: 200th Anniversary of the Battle of the Boxer & the Enterprise, will be on display at MHS through October 25, 2013.

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