From 1813 to March 1815, some 6.500 American sailors were imprisoned at Dartmoor. They were both naval prisoners and impressed Americans seamen who had been discharged from British vessels for refusing to fight.
Even though this was a British prison and they were in charge, these inmates had a lot of say concerning what went on there. They had their own government and culture. Courts meted out punishment. There was even a market, theater and gambling room.
About 1,000 of them were black.
The prisoners heard about the Treaty of Ghent and expected immediate release, but the British refused parole until the U.S. government ratified the treaty (which happened on 17 February 1815. It took several weeks for the Americans at home to procure ships for prisoner transport home and this is when problems began.
--Brock-Perry
2012 marks the 200th anniversary of America's "Forgotten War," the War of 1812 that took place over three years, 1812 to 1815.
Battle of New Orleans.
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