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President Madison Takes Office
On March 4th 1809 President Madison took office. In this time period tension with Britain arose. The Americans were angry with Britain for arming Native Americans in the Northwest. The Americans also strongly dislike the impressment of American Sailors by the British. -
Period: to
The War of 1812
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War Hawks Take Power
On March 1st, 1810 Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun were inducted into the Hopuse of Representatives. Clay, Calhoun and their followers were War Hawks,"they were eager for war with Britain". The War Hawks Wanted an invasion of Canada in which the British were occupying.They had expectations that the Canadians would like the idea of throwing off British rule. Many new Englanders believed that trade with Britain would harm American trade. -
Relations with Great Britain Worsen
In the Spring of 1812, Britain announced to the U.S. that the impressement of soldiers would continue. Natives began to attack fronteir settlements in the Northwest. By June Congress called for war. -
Congress Declares War on Britain
British was still at war with Europe, so war with the U.S. was not a good thing. The British were not willing to meet the Americans demands to try to avoid war. The British provided Native Americans with weapons to avoid American invasion into Canada. At this time Canada was occupied by the British. -
America is not Ready for War
The U.S. was not ready war. The spending or budget cuts Jefferson had made previously, had weakened the strength of the American milatilary.The Navy had only 16 prepared warships, and there were only 7,000 men in army. -
Britain Blockades American Ports
A blockade was set up off the American coast. The British were blockading American ports with 135 warships by 1814. By the end of the war all of the American ports were closed off by the British. -
Invasion of Canada
Under the command of General William Hull, American troops invaded Canada. Hull was unsure of himself and feared that he lacked troops, he soon retreated. The British commander Issac Brock saw this retreat as an advantage. He, his British soldiers along with Native American soldiers surrounded Hull and his troops. They forced Hull to surrrender. The British captured more than 2,000 American soldiers. This was a big defeat for the Americans. -
USS Constitution Scores a Victory
The USS was a ship that defeated the British Warship Guerri're in a major sea battle. The USS was nicknamed "Old Ironsides". it got this nickname from British artillery fire that bounced the USS thick wooden hull. -
Battle of Lake Erie
The Battle of Lake Erie took place at the western part of Lake Erie at Put-In-Bay. The Battle lasted for 3 hours. There was a badly damaged American Flagship. Though the battle continued as American commander Oliver Hazard Perry switched ships. The Americans won this battle. the British retreated back to Canada as lake Erie became the Americans. -
Battle of Horseshoe Bend
The Battle of Horseshoe Bend was a Southern defeat on the Native Americans. This battle occured in the summer in which several Southern American settlements were attacked by Creek Warriors. Andrew Jackson defeated the Natives. A treaty was proposed, it ended the fighting and forced the Creeks to give up millions of acres of land. -
Washington D.C. Attacked and Burned
The British set fire to several buildings including the White House. The Americans were shocked that the army could not defend Washington. As the British started to burn the buildings the Presidents wife took the Presidents important documents and fled the White House. -
Writing of the Star Spangled Banner
On the night of September 13 the British moved to Baltimore. British warships bombarded Fort McHenry that defended the city harbor. A young man by the name of Francis Scott Key watched the attack. By the end of the attack he saw the American flag flying proudly. This showed that the Americans had won the battle.When Key saw this he wrote a poem on the back of an envelope and named it the "The Star Spangled Banner". The poem was eventually set to music and became the National Anthem in 1931. -
Hartford Convention
The Hartford Convention was a convention where A group of federalists met in Hartford Connecticut. During this convention a suggestion was mad that the New England States widthdraw from the United States. The peace treaty arrived through the debate. Once it had had arrived the war was officilay over and the convention ended. -
Treaty of Ghent
Eventually the British got tired of war. Peace was spoken of in Ghent Belgium on Christmas Eve. A treaty was proposed and signed by both opposing sides. The treaty of Ghent restored everything to normal, how they were before the war. -
Battle of New Orleans
The Battle of New Orleans was the last battle of 1812. This battle occured while the Treaty of Ghent was still reaching the United States. At the Battle of New Orleans a stunning victory was won over the British. This battle was won under forces led by General Andrew Jackson.
