The Second War For Independence: The War of 1812

By: Airen Lowenstein

Objective •Describe what caused the war and what

ended it.

Background Info. Between America and Britain Lasted from 1812-1815 Fought on Atlantic Ocean Land Water ways of North America

Beginnings

• U.S declaration of war in 1812• Series of trade restrictions introduced by

Britain to impede American trade with France, a country Britain was at war with. (U.S illegal under international law)

• Forced recruitment of U.S citizens into the Royal Navy

• British military support for American Indians who were offering armed resistance to the expansion of the American frontier to the Northwest.

Where? • Oceans- warships and privateers of both

sides preyed each others merchant shipping• Atlantic coast- blockaded with increasing

severity by the British who also mounted large scale raids

• Long Frontiers- running along the Great Lakes, Saint Lawrence River which separates U.S from Upper and Lower Canada (Ontario and Quebec

• Along cost of Mexico

United States of America, still young • Not prepared for war• President Madison assumed that state militias

would easily seize Canada and negotiations would follow

• 1812-amry of less than 12,000 men• Congress authored expansion of army to-

35,000 men• Service was voluntary and unpopular• Poor pay• Very few trained and experienced officers

USA, still young (cont.)Militia called in to aid the regulars objected

to serving outside their home statesWere not amenable to disciplinePreformed poorly in presence of enemy

outside of their home states.Only 22 ships in the navy

Blockades • No blockade of New England at first

attempted• British naval forces had some difficulty

blockading the entire U.S coast • Delaware River and Chesapeake Bay were

declared in the state of blockade on December 26, 1812

• American coast blockaded on May 31, 1814• Later tightened so that most American

merchant ships and naval vessels were confined to port.

IMPORTANT BATTLES Sir John Coape Sherbrooke led 500

British troops in the "Penobscot Expedition". In 26 days, he raided and looted Hampden, Bangor, and Machias, destroying or capturing 17 American ships

He won the Battle of Hampden (losing two killed while the Americans lost one killed) and occupied the village of Castine for the rest of the war

IMPORTANT BATTLES CONT. Harrison's army was defeated at

Frenchtown along the River Raisin on January 22, 1813.

May 27, 1813, an American amphibious force from Lake Ontario assaulted Fort George on the northern end of the Niagara River and captured it

1813, the Americans abandoned the Canadian territory they occupied around Fort George

IMPORTANT BATTLES CONT. British retaliation following the Capture

of Fort Niagara on December 18, 1813, and similar destruction at Buffalo on December 30, 1813.

1812–13, the Americans launched a series of raids from Ogdensburg on the American side of the river, hampering British supply traffic up the river

IMPORTANT BATTLES CONT. 1813, after much argument, the

Americans made two thrusts against Montreal

on August 19, the Constitution engaged the British frigate HMS Guerriere. After a 35-minute battle, Guerriere had been dismasted and captured and was later burned.

Battle of New Orleans: fought to keep the British from gaining control of the Mississippi River which would allow them to regroup with the Canadian British Army and control east America.

INVASION OF CANADA American leaders assumed that Canada could be easily overrun. President Jefferson optimistically referred to the conquest of

Canada as "a matter of marching American army under the command of William Hull invaded

Canada on July 12, with his forces chiefly composed of militiamen. Once on Canadian soil, Hull issued a proclamation ordering all British subjects to surrender, or "the horrors, and calamities of war will stalk before you." He also threatened to kill any British prisoner caught fighting alongside a native. The proclamation helped stiffen resistance to the American attacks.

The senior British officer in Upper Canada, Major General Isaac Brock, decided to oppose Hull's forces, and felt that he should make a bold action to calm the settler population in Canada, and to try and convince the aboriginals that were needed to defend the region that Britain was strong. Hull was worried that his army was too weak to achieve its objectives, and engaged in minor skirmishing

SURRENDER OF FT. DETROIT Brock advanced on Fort Detroit with

1,200 men. Brock sent a fake correspondence and allowed the letter to be captured by the Americans, saying they required only 5,000 Native warriors to capture Detroit. Hull feared the natives and their threats of torture and scalping. Believing the British had more troops than they did, Hull surrendered at Detroit without a fight on August 16.

The USS Constitution defeats the HMS Guerriere, a significant event during the war.

Treaty • December 24, 1814, diplomats from the two countries,

meeting in Ghent, United Kingdom of the Netherlands (now in Belgium), signed the Treaty of Ghent. This was ratified by the Americans on February 16, 1815.

• Released all prisoners and restored all war lands and boats, that is, returned to America approximately 10,000,000 acres (40,000 km2) of territory near Lakes Superior and Michigan, in Maine, and on the Pacific coast. The treaty made no major changes to the pre-war situation, but did make a few promises. Britain promised to return captured black slaves, but instead a few years later paid the United States £350,000 for them The British proposal to create an Indian buffer zone in Ohio and Michigan collapsed after the Indian coalition fell apart. The United States ignored the guarantees it made in article IX regarding American treatment of the Indians

Battle of New Orleans

What Battle was the most important?

• 1. Battle of New Orleans• 2. Constitution vs. HMS Guerriere• 3. Ft. Detroit

Why?

• 1. What the battle did for the Americans• 2. What the battle did for the British • 3. How well known it is today