...The War of 1812 is one of the forgotten wars of the United States. The war lasted for over two years, and while it ended much like it started: in a stalemate. The invasive actions of the United States failed in almost every attempt to capture Canada. On the other hand, the British army was successfully stopped when it attempted to capture Baltimore and New Orleans. The primary causes of the war were England’s refusal to restrict trading with America, conflict with the Indians, and America’s ambition to expand. The results, however, did not reflect the desired outcome of the Indians, British, nor the Americans. In an effort to prevent any incidents that might cause America to go to war, Jefferson passed the Embargo in 1807, which created a "serious depression throughout most of the nation". Congress then passed the Non-Intercourse Act in 1809, opening trade all countries but England and France. A year later the Non-Intercourse expired, and Macon’s Bill 2 was put into effect. Macon’s Bill 2 allowed free commercial trade with the British and the French, but authorized President Madison to prohibit trade if either of the two nations violated neutral shipping. Napoleon agreed to the terms in an effort to persuade America to reestablish the Embargo against England. His efforts succeeded when the British failed to repeal a blockade on Europe on schedule. Tensions between Great Britain and America then grew beyond peace. After the revolution and the Louisiana Purchase, the settlers...
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...War of 1812 Tatiana Byrd HIST/155 May 23, 2016 Richard Burnett War of 1812 Dear Sister, How is everything at home? I shall be returning soon, since the war has finally ended, though we had not realized it soon enough. Before we had the knowledge that the Treaty of Ghent had been signed, and war was officially over on the 24th of December, we fought one last short, but brutal battle, in that following January. An army of British veterans, from the Napoleonic Wars, had attacked the port of New Orleans, to try to gain control of it. We fought, being led by Andrew Jackson, and were victorious. General Jackson held a vendetta against the British already, ever since they had held him prisoner during the Revolutionary War. Upon hearing of the British forces approach, Jackson declared martial law in New Orleans, which meant that every able-bodied man, and weapon, was brought to the defense of the city. Soon, we had over 4,000 men at our defense, but that was still far less than the British forces, which contained somewhere, near 8,000 men. After killing the commander of the first advance brought on by the British, many of their men became frantic and tried to retreat, yet many were still gunned down. We had clear sightlines, that morning, and easily fired upon the British troops. Soon after we killed the British leader, Lieutenant General Pekenham. The battle lasted only thirty minutes, but 2,000 British soldiers were killed, while we only lost less than 100 of our men. Even though...
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...War of 1812 A war that defined North America The war of 1812, a war between the United States and Great Britain allies(United Kingdom and The Canadas ), lasted for two and a half years(1812-1815). It was a story similar to rags to riches, how the developing young nation United states had proved that its not an underdog any more opposing the then super power Great Britain, the greatest naval power of the world. It was a story that tells us why the ‘Father of U.S constitution’ James Madison is remembered for something else as well. It was a story that tells how a country earned respect and why winning is not everything and loosing is not the end. It tells us a story of how the not-so-popular Canada has fought for its independence. After all, it is not a story at all. The U.S army suffered many terrible loses in the war which includes the capture and burning of their nation’s capital Washington D.C, but not before giving up a tough fight and repulsing the British forces in New York, Baltimore and New Orleans. Though the war ended with many unsolved questions even after signing Treaty of Ghent, it is celebrated as a “second war of Independence” in United States. Cause of the war: The reasons behind a war can never be known to anyone accurately except the one who started it. Historians tried to find the complex reasons and multiple factors behind the decision of war. Out of the few immediate...
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...The War of 1812 In the War of 1812, the United States took on the greatest naval power in the world: Great Britain. The War of 1812 played a very important role in the molding of America as a nation, consisting of many battles, courageous leaders, and victory. The War of 1812 had an immense impact on the young nation’s future and was celebrated in the United States as “the second war of independence”. (“War of 1812” 1) The starting of this war had multiple causes. One of the causes of the war was that the Royal Navy outraged Americans by its practice of impressment, or removing seamen from U.S. merchant vessels and forcing them to serve on behalf of the British. Form 1803 to 1812, the British impressed some 6,000 American sailors. (“War of 1812 Timeline” 1) Another big cause of the war was that the British and the French were interfering with America’s trade system. Britain and France were both in conflict with each other and in an attempt to cut off supplies from reaching the enemy, both sides attempted to block the United States from trading with the other. From 1803 to 1807, the British seized 528 U.S. flag ships and France seized 206. One other cause was that Britain was encouraging Native Americans who were residing in America to revolt and turn hostile toward Americans. There were many incidents building up that fueled to the start of the War of 1812. First, there was the Chesapeake-Leopard Affair on June 22, 1807. This was the event in which the U.S...
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...War of 1812: Battle of Ft. McHenry Stephanie Bame HIS/115 Patrick Gleaves 02/20/2014 12th of September To all my Family, The tour here is rough at times, but I am proud to stand next to those who believe what I believe in. We have just received word that the British burned down and looted the White House. We are now preparing for them to make their way towards the Baltimore Harbor. This is not going to be an easy battle for any of us, but we are doing what we have to do. 14th of September Although we were able to hold the British at North Point, the British Naval forces turned their focus on us here at Ft McHenry. Last night was one of the darkest nights yet, we were getting fired at from 19 British ships as far as we could count in the darkness. The only light we had was from the firing of cannons and guns, because all of the lights in the city where to be extinguished, thank god all of their cannons did not cause any significant damage to our barricades. We were unable to fire back, but we did manage to shoot down an attempt to land more British soldiers. On this day, we have to be thankful that the British did turn their ships away from the harbor and retreat. Now it is time for rest and the restoration of these areas. This has not been an easy few days, but I will write to you again soon. Yours Truly. I think the most significant part of this battle in American history would be the defense and defeat of the British, but also the drafting of the Star...
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...THE WAR OF 1812 (THE UNNECESSARY WAR) - America declares war against Great Britain in the summer of 1812 under the leadership of President Madison at that time. - The main cause of the war was the impressment of Americans into the British Royal Navy. - Other causes include the incitement of American Indians against the United States and blockade by the British that impaired American trade. - On July 12 1812, General William Hull enters Canada with an army of about 2000 men through Detroit which was the first invasion of Canada. - In August however, advancing British army with the aid of American Indians under the leadership of Chief Tecumseh led to the retreat of Hull back to Detroit. Continuous bombardment made him decide to abandon the fort. - The British who were at first reluctant to initiate battle with the United States, finally turns its military attention to the United States after their win against the French. - Americans were successful in taking over Lake Ontario, allowing them with raiding and burning of York (now Toronto), the capital of Canada. - Oliver Hazard Perry, who dispersed a British fleet at Put-In Bay on September 10th 1813 allowed Americans to gain control of Lake Erie. - On October 5th, William Henry Harrison led troops up the Thames River into Canada. The attack was victorious with the death of General Tecumseh. - In retaliation of Indian attacks, Andrew Jackson and his men took revenge at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, slaughtering...
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...During a time period between 1803-1812 British sailors had been tormenting American ships on the high seas. British captains would eventually take over and capture over 10,000 American citizens to man British ships. In June of 1807, three miles off the coast of Virginia, an American ship named the Chesapeake was commanded by a British ship named the Leopard to be boarded. When the Chesapeake refused to cooperate, the Leopard fired, killing three and wounding eighteen. This humiliated the United States and its people. The anti-British frame of mind was in full swing on the eve of the upcoming election. In 1812, James Madison was elected President of the United States. Aggressive southern frontiersman known as the Warhawks dominated Congress. The group included Kentuckian Henry Clay as Speaker of the house and South Carolinian John C. Calhoun. These men and others rejected Thomas Jefferson’s strategy of peaceful coercion. These speakers could ignite a crowd and stir up aggressiveness towards the British. They would talk of the humiliation and how America shouldn’t have to put up with it. They were pressuring Madison to do something. Congress wanted Madison to invade Canada and attack the Indians who had been tormenting homes on the frontier. Madison finally succumbed to their wishes and declared war on the British June 1, 1812. The timing of his actions seemed odd as over the last few months actions against each country seemed to have been at ease. There had been...
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...The War of 1812 was a conflict between the United States and Great Britain. Canada, as a colony of Great Britain, was invaded numerous times by the Americans. The United States hoped to expand their country by seizing control of Canada and Florida. The War of 1812 was a repeat of the American Revolution and is sometimes referred to as the “Second War for Independence”. The American Revolution did not end the tension between Britain and the newly independent United States. The Americans saw the War of 1812 as an opportunity to defend their freedom. The United States declared war on June 12, 1812. Although the United States had the advantage of fighting on their own soil, their army was small and poorly trained compared to Great Britain's....
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...In 1812, the United States of America decided to take on the largest, most advance naval fleet in the world at the time. That fleet just so happened to belong to the strong power, Great Britain. There are three main causes of this war that will be discussed in this paper. These causes span from America’s hunger for expanding territory, British attempts to interfere with the United States and trading, and the impressment of US sailors. The War of 1812, was not only a huge war for the US, but set a huge impact on how the future of the United States of America would be. The United States of America made it clear that they were unhappy with the way the British had been taking advantage of U.S. men. The impressment of sailors was the main factor...
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...The War of 1812 causes and consequences were Britain arming the Native Americans with weapons but the reason for this is because America was in the process of developing so they kept pushing the Native towards West. Native Americans resistance started to weaken from joining British war which conflicted with the Americans. The British imprisoned American sailors to work for them in their navy by kidnapping them from Americans ship. Also, Britain placed a blockade on France because America and France needed to get through Britain in order to trade amongst each other. But for their actions there is always a reaction, the USS Constitution defeated British ship on the 19th of August in 1812. America's Commodore, Oliver Hazard Perry, lead the...
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...The War of 1812 was a significant conflict that resulted in a change with our foreign policy. The events which led to it all were all caused by none other than Britain. The British, tied up with their own issues in Europe, attempted to block off the US from trading with France. They passed the Orders in Council, and required Americans to obtain a license from its authorities before trading with France or French colonies. This resulted in one of the momentous causes of a war that would end up changing the way the US dealt with some of the European superpowers. Ultimately, the War of 1812 had drastic results which helped shape US foreign policy. The war began as a result of three main British-derived issues. The first one was the impressment of sailors. British ships would halt US trading ships and capture men in order to have them serve on for the British. Not to mention that they would occasionally loot cargo and other possessions on the ships. The second cause was the encouragement of indigenous to attach American settlers. At the Battle of Tippecanoe, William Henry Harrison found British guns and powder were found in an Indian village. This was evidence that they had been provoking the natives to rebel against the Americans. Settlers were killed or pushed back to scattered towns. The...
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...The War of 1812 did not only involve Britain and the U.S., but the Native Americans as well. Before the war started the British made deals with the Indians which provided the British protection from possible invasion of Canada and provided the Indians with a chance to protect their lands from the greedy, land-hungry Americans. However, the unlikely British-Native alliance of 1812 is seldomly ever mentioned, and few know about that amount of dependency each side had on one another. With this said, the Native Americans wanted an alliance with the British in order to keep control over their tribal lands while the British wished to protect Canada and employ the Indians against the Americans during the war. How could an unlikely alliance be so successful?...
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...The War of 1812, also known as the "forgotten war," was a struggle to maintain American Independence from Great Britain. This second revolution asserted our American rights, and gave Americans the opportunity to show their true colors. People sometimes refer to the War of 1812 as a second war for American independence because it was caused by various types of British interference with America's independence, like the American Revolution. The engagement of war between the United States and Great Britain in both wars, is caused by British interference with America's independence. The Revolutionary War (1775-1783), is a war that began as a conflict between Britain and the thirteen colonies. This war was motivated by the colonist’s disappointment after the French and Indian War ended in 1763. In which, the British government tried to...
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...The War of 1812 was a war between the United States, the British, and the Native Americans. During this time period the British navy was relying on impressments, or the action of the British navy capturing American sailors and forcing them to serve in the British navy, to gain a bigger and stronger navy. The United States also wanted to drive out the Native Americans, in result a war between the three parties arose. This war lasted from 1812 to 1815, a three year period of war. The leadership of presidents during this time was also questioned, a number of actions taken during their presidencies led up to causes for the War of 1812. Throughout the course of time leading up to the War, there were a variety of implicating factors that lead to...
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...Dear Dad, This war we were fighting seems to have worked in our favor. We had hopes of remaining free of British Rule and to rid our states of their trading policies. In one of our last battles, the Battle of the Thames, different factors led to our feelings of achieving victory; despite the fact that no land was gained by either side. Initially I was losing faith in our army and our chances of success. The British seemed to be more prepared and organized than we were. On top of them having an excellent militia, they also were also allies with the Indians. Despite these advantages, I think that the results of the Battle of the Thames had a big effect on what was to come and what we hoped to achieve by fighting for what we believed in. The battle that preceded the Battle of the Thames was the Battle of Lake Erie. This particular battle led to a British commander fleeing Detroit and going across the Ontario peninsula. During the Battle of the Thames, about 3500 of us were led by Major General William Henry Harrison to pursue the British commander and fight the British. We met up near Moraviantown on the Thames River where we outnumbered them greatly and which led to a quick defeat. The British only had about 600 regulars and 1000 Indian allies under the prominent war chief, Tecumseh. Tecumseh was killed in the battle. He led many Indians and their families and also had a lot of power over the Indians. He was well respected by many and had allied with the British after issues with...
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