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President Madison Takes Office
March 4, 1809 was when James Madison took office. It was the first inauguration of James Madison. He was the fourth president of the United States. The inauguration was held at the House Chamber in the United Stes capitol. The inauguration marked the commencement of the first four year term of James Madison as president. -
War Hawks take power
The War Hawks were a group a Republicans. They had persuaded Congress into supporting a declaration of war against Britain. They were convinced that war was necessary, especially for everything the Bristish had done to the Americans. Most congressmen were opposed to the war. -
Relations with Great Britain Worsen
Both Britain and France refused to honor America's neutrality. They both tried to prevent the United States from trading with the other. The British navy sometimes seized American sailors. Britain eventually had ended its orders against neutral American trade. This British action was not learned of in time. -
Congress declares war on Britain
British warships blockaded some American ports, in order to prevent Americans from trading with France. This drifted the United States and Britain close to war. The War Hawks were also pressuring and urging Congress to prepare for a war against Britain. Some people in Congress agreed with declaring war. But others strongly opposed the views of the War Hawks and believed that war was not necessary. But eventually, President Madison asked congress to declare war on Britain on June 1, 1812. -
America is not ready for war
The British were surprised by the Americans declaration for war. Like the British, the Americans were unready for war. Jefferson had believed in a small federal government and had reduced spending on defense, so therefore the United States was not ready for war. The United States did not have a very strong navy. They also did not have a lot of money. -
Britain Blockades American Ports
British warships blockaded American ports. They did this in order to prevent Americans from trading with France. They also did this with hope to add strength to their army by shutting off any American ports. They hoped to cut off the Americans supplies from getting to them. The British hoped this would leads the Americans to surrender. -
Invasion Of Canada
James Madison had decided to invade Canada. The invasion had gone terribly. The United States army was a poor force of only 7,000 men. Many of them were untrained. Hull had surrendered his 2,500 troops. He did this because he had been told that a vast Indian War party was heading his way. -
USS Constitution Scores a Victory
As Isaac Hull, the captain of the "Constitution", was sailing he spotted a British ship called "Guerriere." The "Contitutions" guns roared. They tore holes in the sides of the British ship and had tore off both masts. Hull then asked the captain of the British ship if they surrendered. The British captain was shocked, but ened up surrendering. -
Battle of Lake Erie
The Americans wanted to win control of Lake Erie. Oliver Hazard Perry had decided to build his own ships because he had no fleet. He had built a very tiny fleet, which he sailed against the British. Perry's ship ended up getting destroyed and he took his flag down and rowed to a different American ship. He raised the colors again and the fight continued. The Americans ended up winning the battle. -
Battle of Thames
The Battle of Thames was a decisive U.S victory in the war of 1812 against Great Britain. During the battle, a Shawnee chief Tecumseh died, which led to the destruction of the Native American coalition which he had led. The victory gave the Americans control over the Northwest Frontier. Procter planned to trap General William Henry Harrison on the banks of the Thames. Which would lead the Americans to frive off the road with cannon fire. -
Horseshoe Bend
The battle of Horseshoe bend was fought during the war of 1812. It was fought in central Alabama. United States forces and Indian allies defeated the Red Sticks. They opposed American expansion. This ended the Creek War. -
Washington D.C Attacked and Burned
Britain had burned Washington D.C. After defeating the Americans at the Battle of Bladensburg, a British force set fire to many public buildings. This included the White House, and the Capitol. The British commanders orders were to burn only public buildings. Britain is the only country to have ever burned the White House or Washington. -
Attack on Baltimore
After the British attacked Washington D.C, they moved on to attack Baltimore. The British's first objective was to attack Fort McHenry. The British warships attacked the forst during the night of September 13, 1814. A young American, Francis Scott Key, had watched the entire attack. On an old envelope, he had written a poem, called, "The Star-Spangled Banner." -
Writing of the Star Spangled Banner
A man, Francis Scott Key, had watched Baltimore get burned and destroyed. He had written a poem. It was about what he had seen and what had occured while Baltimore was being burned. It was called, "The Star Spangled Banner." Later, it became the national anthem of the United States. -
Hartford Convention
Delegates that had come from New England. They all met in Hartford, Connecticut, on December 15, 1814. Most of the people were Federalists and they disliked the president, who was Republican.They also disliked the war. The delegates to the Hartford Convention had threatened to leave the Union if the war had continued. -
Treaty of Ghent
The Treaty of Ghent was a peace treaty. It ened the war of 1812 between the United States and Britain.It restored the borders of the two countries. Since there wasn't much telocommunications it took weeks for the United States to know about the peace treaty. The Treaty of Ghent was not into effect until it was ratified by the U.S senate on February 18,1815 -
Battle of New Orleans
The British had hoped to attack New Orleans and then sail up the Mississippi river. But ironicaqlly, Andrew Jackson was already expecting the British. Jackson had thousands of frontiersmen fighters. And many of them were expert riflemen. Many citizens from New Orleans joined the army to defend their city.To defend themselves, American soldiers dug trenches. British soldiers marched to the American's trenches. Over 2,00 British died from the American sharpshooters and cannons.
