When Great Britain threatened American Shipping on the open sea, war was declared under President Madison in 1812. From early 1813, Richmond County provided infantry, artillery and cavalry for the conflict. In December, 1814 British Forces landed at Morattico on the Rappahnnock and marched to Farnham Church where a Richmond County artillery unit of nearly one hundred men had gathered under the command of Captain Vincent Shackleford. In the ensuing skirmish, two militia soldiers were killed and two were wounded including Captain Shackleford who was captured and later paroled. That same month, the war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Ghent.
Source: Richmond County, Virginia, 1692-1992, A Tricentennial Portrait by Robert Harper, Richmond County Board of Supervisors, 1992
Historical Marker at Farnham Church, dedicated 2016 by the General and Virginia Societies of the War of 1812
