1. The War of 1812
“I prefer the troubled sea of war, demanded by the honor and independence of this country, with all its calamities and desolation, to…peace.”
~Henry Clay
The War Hawks made a profound impact on Madison’s decisions in the early 1800s, and together they demonstrated that America was not to be taken lightly…

2. 1.War Looms
-France and Britain at war, both rely on America as a trading partner
America stays neutral
-France seizes neutral ships; Britain forces neutral ships to stop in Britain before trading with the rest of Europe
-Britain claimed the right to stop and search American ships for former British subjects, and force them back into service (impressment)
Many American sailors kidnapped into British navy
-British attack the Chesapeake, Jefferson responds with the Embargo Act of 1807
-Failure of embargo leads War Hawks to push for a declaration of war
Led by Henry Clay (House) and John C. Calhoun (Senate)
For centuries, Britain secured sailors by a legalized form of kidnapping known as impressment. Sailors were impressed in port and taken off merchant ships at sea. British sailors frequently deserted and signed on with American vessels, where the conditions and pay were better. Sometimes, a British warship calling in an American port found it difficult to sail away because so many of the crew had deserted. To combat this problem, Britain claimed the right to stop American ships, search for former British subjects, and force them back into service.

3. 2.“Mr. Madison’s War ” of 1812
-James Madison (Democratic- Republican) elected President in 1808
-British continue harassment of U.S. trade and settlers
Impressment, seizing ships, aiding natives
-U.S. declares war on Britain, June 1812
U.S. has a small army and navy
-Proposal to include France in the war declaration defeated in Senate 18-14
U.S. fighting on its own
U.S. fails to invade Canada
British beat U.S. out of Canada, but U.S. kills Tecumseh
By the spring of 1812, President Madison decided to go to war against Britain. Madison believed that Britain was trying to strangle American trade and cripple the American economy. Congress approved the war declaration in early June.

4. 3.Failure to Conquer Canada
-Conquest of Canada stalled because U.S. military forces were unprepared
Army (6000 men) scattered throughout the frontier
No commanding general
No overall strategy
-Madison urged states to form militia to make up for small army; New England governors refused
British aided by natives (Tecumseh’s League)
-British and natives defeat Americans at the Battle of Detroit and Lake Michigan
-Americans win Battle of the Thames and invade Canada under leadership of William Henry Harrison
Americans capture and kill Tecumseh
-Fight stalls at Canadian border once British War with France is over
General Andrew Jackson expressed a popular opinion when he predicted that the conquest of Canada by the United States would be a “mere military promenade.” Canada was sparsely populated, and French Canadians were not very loyal to their British rulers. The narrow strip of settlement along the St. Lawrence River and north of Lake Ontario was close to the U.S. and open to attack. Montreal, the strategic center of Canada, was only 30 miles from New York state.

5. 4.British Attack U.S.
-Britain sends two expeditions into the U.S.—one to attack Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, the other to take New Orleans
-4,000 British troops march to the capital and nearly captured Madison
-British burn public buildings in D.C., including White House (1814)
By 1814, the superior British were raiding and burning towns all along the Atlantic coast. The redcoats brushed aside some hastily-assembled soldiers and entered Washington, D.C. In retaliation for the U.S. victory at the Battle of York, the capital of Upper Canada, in which U.S. forces burned the governor’s mansion and the legislative assembly buildings, the British burned the Capitol, the White House, and other public buildings. On August 24, Madison and other federal officials had to flee from their own capital.
“May God protect us! A wagon has been procured, and I have had it filled with…the most valuable portable articles…”
~Dolly Madison, 1814

6. 4.British Attack U.S.
-Britain turns to Baltimore Harbor, are turned back by American forces
-During the bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore, Francis Scott Key wrote the “Star Spangled Banner”
Poem is now the U.S. national anthem
Francis Scott Key writes the Star Spangled Banner after the all-night bombardment at Fort McHenry

7. At the beginning of the war, the small U. S
At the beginning of the war, the small U.S. navy appeared to be no match for the British fleet. Only four small ships plus a few gunboats for coastal defense had been built during the Jefferson and Madison administrations. During John Adams’ term in office, however, half a dozen frigates, medium-sized warships, had been built. These frigates had more firepower than any European ships of the same size and were speedy enough to escape from larger ships.
When war broke out, the frigates put to sea and within a few months won victories over British vessels. These victories had little effect over Britain, though, since its navy outnumbered the U.S. navy 20 to 1. Still, Britain ruled the sea for so long that even a few defeats by the U.S. came as a shock to British rulers. In addition to the frigates, the U.S. sent more than 500 privateers to sea, capturing more than 1,300 British vessels.
As the war went on, American sea victories were fewer and fewer. With superior numbers, the British blockaded the entire Atlantic coast, and U.S. trade with other countries ceased.

8. ~Albert Gallatin, U.S. Minister to France
5.The War of 1812 Ends
-10,000 British troops reach mouth of Mississippi River in December 1812
-General Andrew Jackson of Tennessee gathers army of 4,500 soldiers, militia, free blacks, and natives to surprise attack British
Set up defenses behind cotton bales for protection
-U.S. wins Battle of New Orleans, killing 2,000 British soldiers
Unified country, restored patriotism
-Treaty of Ghent had been signed in Europe two weeks earlier, officially ending the War of 1812
No territory changed hands, two nations agreed to stop fighting
U.S. recognized as a strong nation
“The war had renewed and reinstated the National feelings and character, which the Revolution had given…The people…are more American: they feel and act more as a nation.”
~Albert Gallatin, U.S. Minister to France

9. 6.Opposition to War
-In December 1814, New England delegates met in secret in Hartford, Connecticut to debate New England’s part in the war
Lost money due to blockade/no trade
-Hartford Convention wants Constitutional amendments to increase New England’s power
-Sent commissioners to Washington to present demands; arrived at same time as news of victory in New Orleans and signing of Treaty of Ghent
Went home with nothing
-Demonstrated signs of sectionalism