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The War of 1812
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President Madison Takes Office
- Americans felt his approach was to timid. They felt America should stand up to foreign countries and Native Americans.
- People felt that the nation could not grow with Native Ameriacans in the way.
- Also they thought the country couldn't win respect while the French and British navies seized American ships. *Although the cost of was big, they couldn't let their seamen be enslaved. *Madison was quiet and smart. As president, he wanted to keep America out of war.
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War Hawks Take Power
- War Hawks are people who were eager to go to war with Britain.
- Henry Clay of Kentucky became a leader of The Hhouse Representatives.
- John C. Calhoun also became a leader of The House of Representatives.
- Caly, Calhoun, and people who supported them were called War Hawks.
- Opposition to what war hawks thought was strongest in New England.
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Relations With Great Britain Worsen
- America and Britain weere slowly drifting closer to war. *British ships blockaded some American ports to stop trade with France.
- Britain continued to seize American shipsand impress American seamen. *People in Congress opposed the war. *New England Congress representatives were especially worried about Britain attacking their ports.
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America is not Ready for War
- Initially, Americans were confident in winning the war.
- Americans soon reralized they weren't ready for war with Britain. *The military was weak because of Jefferson's spending cuts. *There was only 16 warships ready for the navy. *The army only had about 7,000 men, a very small amount.
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Congress Declares War on Britain
*President Madison took a long time to give in to the idea of war.
*Both the House of Representatives and the Senate voted in favor of the war. The House vote was 79 to 49, and the Senate vote was 19 to 13.
*Many Americans were happy when they found out about the war. Some even celebrated when they got the news about the war.
*Americans who liked tghe war wanted America to attack Canada.
*Other Americans, like New Enflanders, disliked the war. -
Invasion of Canada
*War Hawks wanted an invasion of Canada, expecting Canadians to willingly throw off British rule.
*American troops, led by General William Hull invaded Canada.
*Fearing he had too few soldiers, Hull retreated.
*British Commander General Isaac Brack toook advantage of Hull and surrounded the American army.
* The American army.
* The Armerican army surrendered. -
Britain Blockades American Ports
- A blockade is the action of shutting a road or port to prevent people/ supplies forming coming and/or leaving an area.
- At the beginning of the war, a blockade was set by Britainalong the American coast.
- Brtain blockaded American ports tio stop trading with France and Spain.
- These two countries were Vritain's enemies.
- This cut of the Americans from getting food/supplies from countries overseas.
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USS Constitution Scores a Victory
- The American ship, the USS Constitution, won the most famous sea battle in the War of 1812. *The USS Constitution won this battle over the British ship, Guerriere. *The Constitution was nicknamed "Old Ironsides." *The ship got it's nicknamed because, according to tradition, British artillery fire bounced off of the ship's wooden hull. *Americams thought it seemed as if the ship wasmade of iron.
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Battle of Lake Erie
- This battle ended in an American victory.
- Americana gained control of Lake Erie.
- The American commander, Oliver Hazard Perry had o switch ships mid-battle, but kept fighting until they won.
*Both side swanted control of the lake.
*The Britsih army had to retreat to Canada.
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Battle of Thames
*This battle is also known as the Battle of Moriaviantown.
*The battle came to a U.S. victory.
* The Americans were led by William Henry Harrison.
*The British army was led by Henry Procter.
The battle was fought near Ontario, Canada. -
Horshoe Bend
- Andrew Jackson took command of the American troops in the Creek War. *At this battle, Jackson won the war. *THe Creeks' leader walked into Jackson's camp alone to surrender. *The Cherokees helped Jackson.
- Native Americans had to give up their land to whites.
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Washington, D.C. Attacked and Burned
- The British had a new strategyto attack America's capital.
- the Britich marched into the Capial and attacked.
- They set fire to several gov't buildingd, including the White House.
- The first lady, Dolley Madison, fled the White House after gathering her husbad's important papers.
- The Americans were in shock that their army couldn't defend the capital.
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Writing of the Star Spangled Banner
- A young American watched the Attack on Baltimore. His name was Francuis Scott Key. *In the morning, Key saw thhe American flag flying.
- Key wrote a poem named" The Star Spangled Banner." *He told the story of the night's events in his poem. *Congress made Key's poem the national anthem in 1931.
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Attack On Baltimore
- The British attacked Fort Mchenry. *This fort defended Baltimore's harbor. *The british attacked throughout the night. *The attack was also known as the Battle of Fort Mchenry. *The American were victorious in this battle.
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Hartford Convention
*A group of federalists met in Hartford, Connecticut.
*The New England states disliked the war because of the British Blockade.
*Some people at the convention suggestedthat the New Englnad states should secede(withdraw) from the United States.
*While debating about the New England states, the news of the Treaty of Ghent reached the U.S.
*Because of the war's end, the Hartford Convention ended quickly. -
Treaty of Ghent
- Britain began tiring of the war. *People started talking about peace in Ghent, Bbelgium. *On Christmas Eve, the war ended with both sides agreeing to the Treaty of Gent.
- The Treaty made things the same way they were before the war. *The news of the treaty took several weeks to reach the U.S.
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Battle Of New Orleans
*This was the final major battle of the war.
*This battle took place after the Treaty of Ghent was signed, nut before the news reached America.
*The Americans, led by Andrew Jackson, won a great victory over Britain
* America had the intent of gaining New Orleans and the Louisianna Territory.
* The Brittish were led by General Edward Pakenham.
