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Macon's Bill No. 2
Treasury Secretary Gallatin urged Representative Nathaniel Macon of North Carolina to introduce legislation in order to remove all commerce with France and Britain. This bill authorized the president to reapply the principle of non-intercourse to either of the major powers. This would only be applied if the other should "cease to violate the neutral commerce of the United States." -
Battle of Tippecanoe
The Indians in 1811 were organizing in an attempt to drive the white settlers off their land, causing alarm between the settlers. General Harrison, marched to Prophetstown, and engaged in conflict with the Indians. Though it ended in a draw, it destroyed the Indian confederation as they lost confidence. The settlers, unwilling to acknowledge that their behavior on the frontier had caused this, they instead blamed the British and began a cry for war. -
US declares war on Britain
James Madison sends a message to congress detailing American grievances against the British without directly calling for war. War is declared four days later by votes of 79-49 and 19-13 by the House and Senate respectively. While the Orders of Council were technically repealed before war was declared, word did not reach the United States in time. -
Britain Suspends the Orders of the Council
The Orders of Council (which the United States found to be abusive) were repealed in June of 1812 by Lord Liverpool. Liverpool gained power after the assassination of Prime Minister Perceval and was seeking a more amicable and practical relationship with America. Unfortunately, word of the suspension of the Orders of Council reached America after their declaration of war. -
Captain Perry Defeats British in Lake Erie
Captain Perry was assigned by the President to defeat the British squadron in control of Lake Erie, which threatened communications. After winning this battle, Detroit was untenable for the British, forcing them to fall back. -
Napoleon Falls From Power
After Napoleon falls from power, the British put all of their focus on America, by dispatching 14,000 soldiers to Canada -
British Devise New Strategy to Fight US
The British planned a three prong attack. A army of 11,000 soldiers would march from Montreal, following the same route General Burgoyne had in the revolutionary war. A second force was to attack the Chesapeake Bay, threatening Washington. A third force would form in Jamaica and attack New Orleans and the west. -
"The Star Spangled Banner"
Francis Scott Key boarded a British ship during the War of 1812 in order to retrieve an American doctor who was taken in custody. Key watched the war take place and observed the American flag hung above a fort and the light coming from rockets and bombs during that night, but in the morning the next day, he again saw the flag waving above the fort. This gave him inspiration to write "The Star Spangled Banner," which later became the national anthem for the United States. -
The Battle of New Orleans
US (led by Andrew Jackson) and British (led by Sir Edward Pakenham met in New Orleans in mid December 1814, after the Treaty of Ghent. Jackson dropped back 5 miles into a defensive position between the Mississippi and a swampland. The battle lasted about a month. British made full scale assault on January 8, during which Pakenham was killed. British suffered 2,100 casualties compared to the Americans' 13. This defeat solidified the notion that America was not open to European meddling. -
Treaty of Ghent
Treaty signed between the United States and Britain formally ending the War of 1812. This treaty released all prisoners and returned to Americans roughly 10 million acres of captured lands near Maine and the Great Lakes, thus resetting land to pre war holdings. Both nations agreed to also begin to put an end to the international slave trade.
