Reasons for the War of 1812
English – American Relations
 in 1763, France, England and Spain signed the Treaty of Paris to end
the Seven Years War
 France ceded Québec to England, giving England control of almost all
of North America
 in 1783, England signed another Treaty of Paris which recognised the
independence of the United States
 according to the treaty of 1783, England gave the Ohio Valley to the
United States – western expansion was extremely important to the
new American nation
 the colonists in Lower Canada were upset about losing access to a
region they considered their own (in the Québec Act of 1774, England
gave the Ohio Valley to Québec)
First Nations' Interests
 the Treaty of Paris did not consider First Nations' concerns –
continued western expansion of colonists into native territory was
causing conflict
 some First Nations groups led raids against the colonists in hopes of
regaining and keeping their territories
 since the English still hadn't ceded the Ohio Valley, the Americans
believed the English were encouraging these raids
 the English worried the First Nations would eventually attack Québec
- the governor of Québec asked England to keep the western region in
order to regain the trust of the First Nations
The Treaty of Jay
 the Americans seemed ready to settle all disputes on the battle field
 England was at war with France and hoped to avoid a war with the
United States
 they signed the Treaty of Jay in 1796 and agreed to give the western
region to the United States
The Repercussions of the War in Europe
 from 1803 to 1809, England was at war with France
 both countries established economic blockades that stopped neutral
and enemy ships from reaching port to exchange goods - the British
navy also inspected ships for deserters
 many of these ships were American
 these incidents encouraged the United States to declare war on
England, but the majority of Americans didn't agree
 the British North American colonies profited from the situation in
Europe and the economic blockades – the quickly became the source of
products like wood, wheat, fish and furs that were previously
purchased from the United States
 the ports of Nova Scotia & New Brunswick became important
commercial bases
America Declares War on England
 The English knew that many American officers and government
officials were ready for war
 American complaints: intrusion into American waters, economic
blockades, interference in trade
 as a result, England decided to abolish the decrees that caused these
conflicts – they stopped boarded American ships etc.
 this decision was made 17 June, 1812
 the 18th of June, 1812, the United States declared war against
England – why?
 They didn't know that England had revoked the decrees! News didn't
travel very fast in those days – there was no telephone, no email etc.
 Historians often debate whether the Americans would have made a
different decision if they'd heard the news from England sooner –
what do you think?
The Two Canadas and the War of 1812
 the Americans believed that Upper & Lower Canada would be easily
defeated (Thomas Jefferson said “It is merely a question of
marching!”)
 they also believed that the American army was not invading British
North America, but actually “liberating” the people living there
The United States
British North America
 8 000 000 inhabitants
 500 000 inhabitants
 Just won the War for
Independence
 Is at war with France
 There are lots of former
Loyalists living in Upper Canada
– the Americans believe they
will support the American side
 The people of Lower Canada
remained neutral during the
American Revolution
The War Begins:
 to the surprise of both sides, BNA wasn't as easy a prey as they
thought
 most of the 'former Americans' (Loyalists) didn't want to be seen as
traitors; they were already forced to flee the U.S. and didn't want to
have to flee another country
 there were many people in the U.S. who didn't want to go to war –
they were still recovering from the American Revolution
 the people of New England were against the war – they had a truce
with the Maritime colonies
 First Nations people saw the conflict as a chance to fight their longtime enemies (the Americans) and joined the British army
Brock Leads the English to Victory:
 Sir Isaac Brock was a charismatic leader who inspired others with his
words and actions
 Brock also excelled at negotiations with First Nations; Tecumseh held
him in high regard – Tecumseh & Brock formed an important alliance
 Brock believed in attacking quickly and aggressively to stop the
Americans and to give the people of BNA confidence
 the First Nations helped a small troop of British troops take Fort
Michilimackinac from a large American troop – this event convinced
the people of Upper Canada that they could defend themselves
 in August 1812, Brock and his troops took Fort Detroit – American
leader William Hull was terrified of Brock and his First Nations allies
and surrendered the fort without firing a shot
 on October 12, 1812, a strong American force was met by a smaller
British force, and were forced to retreat to Queenston Heights
 when American reinforcements arrived from Lewiston, Brock led a
force of 300 British soldiers to confront them
 although his leadership and courage led the British to victory, Brock
was killed by a single American shot
The Rest of the War
 after Brock's early victories, battles were sporadic and both sides
took losses: Tecumseh was killed at the battle of Moraviantown on
October 5, 1813
 On June 14, 1814, the war in Europe ended – English defeated France
and turned her attention to BNA, sending thousands of experienced
soldiers and a large number of ships
 in August 1814, the British invaded Washington, and burned many of
the public buildings
 on December 24, 1814, England and the U.S. signed an armistice to end
the fighting
 strangely, the war didn't change much between the two countries –
the two sides agreed to return the territories that had been taken
and return the borders to what they had been before the war began