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The War of 1812 Essay

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The War of 1812 was fought between the United States of America and the provinces of the British North America, especially the Upper Canada (Ontario), Lower Canada (Quebec), New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Cape Breton Island and Bermuda. It took place between 1812 and 1815 and was staged mainly at the Atlantic Ocean and the waters along the Northern Americas.

There are many immediate causes that led United States to declare the war. It all began in 1807 when Britain came up with trade restrictions to hinder the United States from trading with France, which was a strong rival of the Britain. The United States argued that according to the International laws of trade it was wrong to impose the restrictions.

Apart from that, the British military had assisted the American Indians to attack American settlers in the Northwest further worsening their failing relations. The Indians attacks prevented the U.S. from expanding towards the Northwest Territories, which is currently occupied by states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan. The British argued that the aim of the U.S. was to annex some parts of Canada (Pearson, 254).

Another cause of the War of 1812 was the fruitless attempt of the United States to exploit its irredentist and imperialistic interests and uphold its honors as they considered the Britain challenge to be insult. This war led to massive loss of lives and property but neither of the irredentists lost their territories.

The war ended with signing of the Treaty of Ghent, which created the “status quo ante bellum” assuring the rivals to retain their territories. Unites States and the British North America later came up with the Treaty of 1818, which adjusted borders. The British North America considered the War of 1812 as a success as they defended their territory and it instilled confidence and the militia myth, which led to nationalism among the Canadians.

The Battle of York was staged on 27 th April 1813, at York, which is nowadays known as Toronto. During the War of 1812, an American unit backed by a navy flotilla docked on the Lake Ontario shore near the West, fought the defensive British unit and captured the city and its dock.

The victory of the mission was blemished by acts of plunder and stealing done out by the American units on the British supply chain, which later justified the Burning of Washington by the British units.

The Battle of Stoney Creek was staged in 6 th June 1813 at the time of the War of 1812 in what is nowadays known as Stoney Creek, Ontario. The Americans had victoriously fought the Battle of Fort George, which made the British armies to attack the American camps during the night. The British emerged victors in the war due to the capture of two senior officials of the American unit and the overconfidence of the Americans over the British (Pearson, 310).

The Battle of Beaver Dams was fought on 24 th June 1813, at the time of the Anglo American War of 1812. The battle broke out after Laura Secord delivered a warning of an American effort to attack a British colony at Beaver Dams, Fort George. The Americans were ousted by Native warriors and later surrendered to the commander of the small British deployment.

Major-General Sir Isaac Brook was a British Army official, in charge of Upper Canada since 1802 defending the Upper Canada from the Americans.

Whereas many people in Canada and Britain thought that war could be avoided, Brock was preparing his regiment for a battle that was foreseeable and when the War of 1813 broke out, Brock and his army were ready and easily defeated the Americans in Fort Mackinac and in Detroit. Brock was killed at the Battle of Queenston Heights, which British won.

Tecumseh was a Native American leader of the Shawnee and a great tribal confederacy, which fought against the Americans at the Tecumseh War and at the War of 1812. At the time of the War of 1812, Tecumseh and the tribal confederacy united with the British troops in Canada and assisted in the capturing Fort Detroit.

The American unit under the leadership of Harrison, an American commander, initiated a counterattack on Canada, which led to the Battle of the Thames where Tecumseh died (Pearson 344).

Works Cited

Pearson, Greg. Canadian history: a sense of time . Vancouver, BC: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 2006. Print.

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War of 1812

By: History.com Editors

Updated: April 24, 2023 | Original: October 27, 2009

In the War of 1812, the United States took on the greatest naval power in the world, Great Britain, in a conflict that would have an immense impact on the young country’s future. Causes of the war included British attempts to restrict U.S. trade, the Royal Navy’s impressment of American seamen and America’s desire to expand its territory. 

The United States suffered many costly defeats at the hands of British, Canadian and Native American troops over the course of the War of 1812, including the capture and burning of the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C., in August 1814. Nonetheless, American troops were able to repulse British invasions in New York, Baltimore and New Orleans, boosting national confidence and fostering a new spirit of patriotism. The ratification of the Treaty of Ghent on February 17, 1815, ended the war but left many of the most contentious questions unresolved. Nonetheless, many in the United States celebrated the War of 1812 as a “second war of independence,” beginning an era of partisan agreement and national pride.

Causes of the War of 1812

At the outset of the 19th century, Great Britain was locked in a long and bitter conflict with Napoleon Bonaparte’s France. In an attempt to cut off supplies from reaching the enemy, both sides attempted to block the United States from trading with the other. In 1807, Britain passed the Orders in Council, which required neutral countries to obtain a license from its authorities before trading with France or French colonies. The Royal Navy also 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.

In 1809, the U.S. Congress repealed Thomas Jefferson ’s unpopular Embargo Act, which by restricting trade had hurt Americans more than either Britain or France. Its replacement, the Non-Intercourse Act, specifically prohibited trade with Britain and France. It also proved ineffective, and in turn was replaced with a May 1810 bill stating that if either power dropped trade restrictions against the United States, Congress would in turn resume non-intercourse with the opposing power.

After Napoleon hinted he would stop restrictions, President James Madison blocked all trade with Britain that November. Meanwhile, new members of Congress elected that year—led by Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun—had begun to agitate for war, based on their indignation over British violations of maritime rights as well as Britain’s encouragement of Native American hostility against American westward expansion .

Did you know? The War of 1812 produced a new generation of great American generals, including Andrew Jackson, Jacob Brown and Winfield Scott, and helped propel no fewer than four men to the presidency: Jackson, John Quincy Adams, James Monroe and William Henry Harrison.

The War of 1812 Breaks Out

In the fall of 1811, Indiana’s territorial governor William Henry Harrison led U.S. troops to victory in the Battle of Tippecanoe . The defeat convinced many Indians in the Northwest Territory (including the celebrated Shawnee chief Tecumseh ) that they needed British support to prevent American settlers from pushing them further out of their lands. 

Meanwhile, by late 1811 the so-called “War Hawks” in Congress were putting more and more pressure on Madison, and on June 18, 1812, the president signed a declaration of war against Britain. Though Congress ultimately voted for war, both House and Senate were bitterly divided on the issue. Most Western and Southern congressmen supported war, while Federalists (especially New Englanders who relied heavily on trade with Britain) accused war advocates of using the excuse of maritime rights to promote their expansionist agenda.

In order to strike at Great Britain, U.S. forces almost immediately attacked Canada, which was then a British colony. American officials were overly optimistic about the invasion’s success, especially given how underprepared U.S. troops were at the time. On the other side, they faced a well-managed defense coordinated by Sir Isaac Brock, the British soldier and administrator in charge in Upper Canada (modern Ontario). 

On August 16, 1812, the United States suffered a humiliating defeat after Brock and Tecumseh’s forces chased those led by Michigan William Hull across the Canadian border, scaring Hull into surrendering Detroit without any shots fired.

War of 1812: Mixed Results for American Forces

Things looked better for the United States in the West, as Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry’s brilliant success in the Battle of Lake Erie in September 1813 placed the Northwest Territory firmly under American control. Harrison was subsequently able to retake Detroit with a victory in the Battle of Thames (in which Tecumseh was killed). Meanwhile, the U.S. navy had been able to score several victories over the Royal Navy in the early months of the war. With the defeat of Napoleon’s armies in April 1814, however, Britain was able to turn its full attention to the war effort in North America. 

As large numbers of troops arrived, British forces raided the Chesapeake Bay and moved in on the U.S. capital, capturing Washington, D.C ., on August 24, 1814, and burning government buildings including the Capitol and the White House .

Inspiration for 'The Star Spangled Banner'

On September 11, 1814, at the Battle of Plattsburgh on Lake Champlain in New York, the American navy soundly defeated the British fleet. And on September 13, 1814, Baltimore’s Fort McHenry withstood 25 hours of bombardment by the British Navy. 

The following morning, the fort’s soldiers hoisted an enormous American flag, a sight that inspired Francis Scott Key to write a poem that would later be set to music and become known as  “ The Star-Spangled Banner .” (Set to the tune of an old English drinking song, it would later be adopted as the U.S. national anthem.) British forces subsequently left the Chesapeake Bay and began gathering their efforts for a campaign against New Orleans .

End of the War of 1812 and Its Impact

By that time, peace talks had already begun at Ghent (modern Belgium), and Britain moved for an armistice after the failure of the assault on Baltimore. In the negotiations that followed, the United States gave up its demands to end impressment, while Britain promised to leave Canada’s borders unchanged and abandon efforts to create an Indian state in the Northwest. On December 24, 1814, commissioners signed the Treaty of Ghent , which would be ratified the following February. 

On January 8, 1815, unaware that peace had been concluded, British forces mounted a major attack in the Battle of New Orleans , only to meet with defeat at the hands of future U.S. president Andrew Jackson ’s army. News of the battle boosted sagging U.S. morale and left Americans with the taste of victory, despite the fact that the country had achieved none of its pre-war objectives.

Impact of the War of 1812

Though the War of 1812 is remembered as a relatively minor conflict in the United States and Britain, it looms large for Canadians and for Native Americans, who see it as a decisive turning point in their losing struggle to govern themselves. In fact, the war had a far-reaching impact in the United States, as the Treaty of Ghent ended decades of bitter partisan infighting in government and ushered in the so-called “Era of Good Feelings.” 

The war also marked the demise of the Federalist Party , which had been accused of being unpatriotic for its antiwar stance, and reinforced a tradition of Anglophobia that had begun during the Revolutionary War. Perhaps most importantly, the war’s outcome boosted national self-confidence and encouraged the growing spirit of American expansionism that would shape the better part of the 19th century.

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Sir Amédée Forestier, The Signing of the Treaty of Ghent, Christmas Eve, 1814, 1914, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Sulgrave Institution of the U.S. and Great Britain.

War of 1812

The “Second War of Independence”

Sometimes referred to as the “Second War of Independence,” the War of 1812 was the first large scale test of the American republic on the world stage. With the British Navy impressing American sailors, and the British government aiding Native American tribes in their attacks on American citizens on the frontier, Congress, for the first time in our nation’s history, declared war on a foreign nation: Great Britain. Battles raged on the high seas. British soldiers invaded American soil, captured Washington D.C., and even burned the White House. In the end the Star-Spangled Banner waved “O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.” Explore the battlefields and personalities of this critical time in American history.

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The War of 1812

Division of public programs.

1910 painting by Edward Percy Moran of Battle of New Orleans.

Courtesy of Library of Congress

For two and a half years, Americans fought against the British, Canadian colonists, and native nations in a war that divided the United States so deeply that the nation almost broke apart. Watch the NEH-funded film THE WAR OF 1812 online, supplemented by bonus video material, classroom lesson plans, essays on aspects of the conflict, and a guide to historic battle sites. 

Forging America: the War of 1812 Legacy

This essay about the War of 1812 explores its significance as a pivotal moment in American history, often overshadowed by other conflicts like the Revolutionary War and the Civil War. It highlights the factors leading to the war, including tensions between Britain and France and British impressment of American sailors. Despite initial struggles, the war showcased American naval capabilities and ended with the Treaty of Ghent in 1814. The essay emphasizes how the war shaped American national identity, solidifying sovereignty and fostering a sense of unity among citizens. Additionally, it discusses the impact on British foreign policy and the lasting legacy of the conflict on international relations.

How it works

War of 1812 stands how a central moment in American history, what is often darkened by Revolutionary War that was preceded that is why and Civil War, that goes. However, his value can not be zdrobnia. Then there was a conflict that formed the trajectory of the united states, hardening his status how people and influencing on his mutual relations with the second world states.

Roots of War of 1812 tracks back to a several linked factors. One of primary catalysts was strong tension between Britain and France, both, that competes for influence Europe.

Practice of Royal Navy of British of requisition, for help what they force recruited the American sailors to service, farther strained mutual relations between the united states and Britain. Additionally, British support of the Native American tribes, what leans to American expansion in North-western Territory additional fuel to the fire. on June, 18, 1812, President James Madison signed declaration of war against Britain, marking the official beginning to the conflict. War was opened on frequent facades, with substantial battles militated on dry land and at sea. In the early phases of war, American zmusza militates against prevailing British military, cladding defeats in battles for example Siege of Detroit and Battle of Height of Queenston. However, American marine victories, exceptionally triumph of Constitution of military ship of the USA above Hms Guerriere in August 1812, provided a very necessary moral increase and proposed callow national marine capabilities on a shop-window. As war behaved, how parties experience successes, so and remains. The British blockade of American ports in earnest influenced on the American economy, conduces to economic difficulties and dissatisfaction among a population. Meantime, American zmusza, under guidance figures for example General Andrew Jackson, attained decision victories, most exceptionally in Battle of new Orlean in January 1815, that took place since Agreement of Ghent was signed but before the news of agreement attained fighters. This victory propped up American morale and fixed national sense to unity and pride. Agreement of Ghent, engaged on Decembers, 24, 1814, actually sheathed the Sword 1812. Not without regard to what side, what arrives at expressive victory, an agreement renewed pre-war distances and was capable not to appeal to the problems that foremost sparkled conflict, for example requisition and Native American resistance. However, war had deep consequences how for the united states, so and Britain.

For the united states, War 1812 marked a turning point in his national identity. A conflict served, to harden national sovereignty and independence from Britain, laying foundation for his appearance how the world state. To that, war tucked in a fuel sense of nationalism and unity among Americans, encouraging public that would stand for generations spirit. International, War of 1812 existent substantial values for Britain. While then saved his status as global superpower, a conflict separated the calls of support of control above remote child’s camps and territories, especially in the face of certain resistance. In addition, war assisted the overvalue of the British foreign policy, conduces to the anymore conciliator approaches in the direction of the states united in years, that goes.

Upon completion, War 1812 was a moment, what yields to transformation, in American history, forming a national identity and his mutual relations with the second world states. While often darkened by the second conflicts, his inheritance prolongs to philosophize, reminds us about a fight and sacrifices, then torowa?o a road, that the united states became people, viz. today.

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Home — Essay Samples — History — American History — The Lasting Impacts of the War of 1812 on the United States

The Lasting Impacts of The War of 1812 on The United States

• Categories: African American History American History

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Words: 452 |

Published: Jan 29, 2024

Words: 452 | Page: 1 | 3 min read

Table of contents

Political impacts, economic impacts, national identity impacts.

• Latimer, J. (2007). 1812: War with America. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.
• Perkins, B. (2002). Castlereagh and Adams: England and the United States, 1812-1823. London: Leicester University Press.
• Heidler, D. S., & Heidler, J. T. (2004). Encyclopedia of the War of 1812. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.

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1812: War and the Passions of Patriotism

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Carroll Smith-Rosenberg, 1812: War and the Passions of Patriotism, Journal of American History , Volume 100, Issue 2, September 2013, Pages 507–508, https://doi.org/10.1093/jahist/jat198

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The War of 1812, known primarily for its military disasters—the burning of Washington, the near capture of Baltimore, the failure to seize Canada—and the diplomatic stalemate that marked the war's end, is easily dismissed as an event of little significance. Not so, Nicole Eustace tells us in her powerful analysis of the political rhetoric the war generated. Despite U.S. military defeats, the war ended the British–Native American coalition, opening the West to rapid white settlement. It transformed a people bitterly divided along class, regional, and ideological lines into an ebullient nation, energized by the task of establishing white dominance over the American continent and confidently embracing a revitalized national self-image as a virtuous, freedom-loving empire. Insisting that the pen is mightier than the sword, Eustace presents the war more as a cultural event than a military one and examines the nation that emerged from the war, re-formed by aggressive Republican party rhetoric.

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