10.5 The War of 1812

10.5 The War of 1812

Multiple Choice

Americans were unhappy with Britain in the early 1800s because the British were:

• arming Native Americans with British muskets

• Attacking Spain

• placing unfair taxes on colonists 

• George Washington

Multiple Choice

A ban on trade with a certain country is known as a(n):

• confederation

• judicial review

• embargo

• constitution

Multiple Choice

In June 1812 President Madison asked ________ to declare war on Britain

• Supereme Court

• Congress

• Spain

• George Washington

​Early Days of War

• ​Many Americans welcomed the news of war with Britain

• ​Other Americans were less enthusiastic. New Englanders especially did not want war

• ​The American declaration of war surprised the British

• ​They were fighting Napoleon already and could not spare troops to fight the United States

​Unprepared for War

• ​The United States was not ready for war

• ​Because Thomas Jefferson had reduced the spending of defense, the navy had only 16 ships to fight the huge British fleet

• ​The army was small and ill equipped

• ​There were few regular troops, so the government relied on volunteers

• ​Congress offered more money to attract more soldiers

• ​They were poorly trained, with little experience in battle

​Fighting at Sea

• ​The British navy blockaded American ports to stop American trade

• ​American captains won surprising victories

• ​The USS Constitution defeated the British ship HMS Guerriere near newfoundland

• ​These victories cheered Americans but did little to win the war

​Invasion of Canada

• ​One goal of the War Harks was to conquer Canada

• ​They were convinced that Canadians would welcome the chance to get rid of British rule

• ​General William Hull moved American troops into Canada from Detroit

• ​British general Isaac Brock had his soldiers wear red coats to make it appear that they were experienced troops and made it appear that many Native Americans were fighting with him

• ​Hull retreated from Canada and other attempts also failed

​Battle of Lake Erie

• ​In 1813 the Americans set out to win control of Lake Erie

• ​Captain Oliver Hazard Perry had no fleet, so he designed and built his own ships

• ​In spetember 1813, he sailed his fleet against the British

• ​During the Battle of Lake Erie, Perry and the Americans defeated the British forces

​Native American Losses

• ​After losing control of Lake Erie, the British and their ally Tecumseh retreated from Detroit into Canada

• ​General William Henry Harrison chased after them

• ​The Americans won a victory at the Battle of the Thames

• ​Tecumseh died in the fighting

• ​Without Tecumseh's leadership, the Indian confederation soon fell apart

​The British Burn Washington

• In 1814, Britain and its allies defeated France​, meaning they could send more troops and ships to the United States

• ​In August 1814, British ships sailed into Chesapeake Bay and landed an invasion force 30 miles from Washington, D.C.

• ​The British troops defeated American soldiers at Bladensburg, Maryland and marched to the capital

• ​The British troops set fire to the White House and other buildings

• ​The British then attacked Fort McHenry at Baltimore

• ​Francis Scott Key wrote the Star-Spangled Banner after watching the battle

​Battle of New Orleans

• ​In late 1814, the British prepared to attack New Orleans

• ​However, Andrew Jackson was waiting

• ​Jackson had turned his frontier fighters into a strong army

• ​He took Pensacola in Spanish Florida to keep the British from using it as a base

• ​He then marched through Mobile and set up camp in New Orleans

• ​Jackson's forces included thousands of frontiersmen and Choctaw Indians

• ​The American soldiers dug trenches to defend themselves

• ​British soldiers marched toward the American trenches

• ​More than 2,000 British fell from sharpshooters

• ​Americans cheered the victory at the Battle of New Orleans

• ​​Andrew Jackson became a national hero

​African Americans in the War

• ​The Battle of New Orleans was not the only place where black and white soldiers fought side by side

• ​Throughout the War of 1812, African Americans joined in defending the nation against the British

• ​After the British attacks on Washington and Baltimore, African American volunteers helped defend Philadelphia against a possible attack

• ​Bishop Richard Allen and the Reverend Absalom Jones recruited more than 2,000 men to help build Philadelphia's fortifications

• ​New York organized two regiments of black volunteers to serve in the army

• ​African Americans also served in the navy. They helped win the Battle of Lake Erie as well as other naval battles

​Protest and Peace

• ​In the early 1800s, news took weeks to cross the Atlantic Ocean

• ​As Jackson was preparing to fight the British at New Orleans, New Englanders were meeting to protest the war

• ​The British blockade had hurt New England's sea trade

• ​Delegates from New England met at the Hartford Convention and threatened to leave the Union if the war continued

• ​News of the peace treaty then arrived

• ​The Hartford Convention ended quickly

• ​With the war over, the protest was meaningless

​"Nothing Was Settled"

• ​The Treaty of Ghent was signed on December 24, 1814 and ended the War of 1812

• ​the peace treaty was signed in the city of Ghent, Belgium

• ​John Quincy Adams described the treaty, "nothing was adjusted, nothing was settled"

• ​Britain and the United States agreed to go back to prewar conditions