On eighteenth of June 1812, a war started in the United States of America. Now popularly known as the war of 1812, the war was between the British Empire and the US. By eighteenth of February 1815 when the war came to an abrupt end with no outright winner, it had claimed many casualties on both divides of the conflict. The war traced its origins in 1808 when Britain was warring with France during the Napoleonic wars. The US remained impartial throughout the war. However, an enmity developed between the British and the US when the British started a forceful recruitment of the American sailors for its Navy. The British suspected that some of its officers were running away from service and hiding in US ships. Therefore, the British decided to take over some of the US ships together with the American sailors. The raids came to be known as ‘impressment.’ The measure caused much anger and dismay among the American public. Indeed, some Americans saw it as an act of colonization and hence the reason to label the war as the ‘second fight for independence.’
As if impressment was not enough, the British further angered the Americans by assisting Indians in fighting the Western Settlers. Indians under their chief Tecumseh were united in their fight to keep settlers away from their lands. However, the Indians were defeated in 1811 at Tippecanoe settlement. The governor of Indiana territory, Governor William Henry Harrison, led the American troops to victory at Tippecanoe. Nevertheless, the war did not end. On the contrary, it was just beginning. Americans were determined to put impressment to an end, and they were also wary of the continued British support of the Indians. On the other hand, the Indians in the Northwest Territory knew that their only chance against the American troops was joining forces with the British. The congress and the senate put tremendous pressure on President Madison at the time, and they demanded his action. But the two houses remained divided on the best action to take amid Britain’s provocations. Congressmen from the western and southern states were mostly for the war while those from other states, especially from New England, were against the war. The New Englanders argued that Britain was a crucial and reliable trade partner and that those advocating for the war had nothing but and an expansionist agenda. Eventually, the United States made a declaration of war against Britain in June 1812. The Americans rallied and presented the war as a fight for the ‘second independence.’ The US miscalculated and suffered a humbling defeat when it initially tried to invade Canada. Interestingly, Detroit was surrendered without any shot fired in August 1812.
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The war took a dramatic turn when in 1814, the British Navy fired shots at Fort McHenry. Francis Scott Key, a witness of the battle, was inspired by the failure of the British navy to burn down the US fort. Also, the dazzling US flag left a huge impression on Francis, and the battle arguably led to the emergence of the Star Spangled Banner as the US national anthem. The war in 1814 led to the treaty of Ghent, where both countries acknowledged the superiority of the other and consequently laid no claim on the other’s land or coastal facilities. Some British forces were unaware of the Ghent treaty for a while, and they even attacked New Orleans. However, the Americans were the superior force tactically and technically, and the British lost the battle at New Orleans. The war resulted in new found pride in America and prosperity as waves of nationalism spread across the nation. Later, in 1816 The Monroe Doctrine was signed, and it warned European countries to stay outside the Americas, and the US would in return stay away from Europe.
