THE WAR OF 1812
EQ: What were the causes and effects of the
War of 1812?
Anchors:
8.1.9. C: Analyze the fundamentals of historical
interpretation
8.3.9. B : Identify and analyze important primary source
documents…important in U.S. History from 1787 to 1914
Causes of the War of 1812
1. Please read James Madison’s (he was President
at the time) war message to Congress
2. Underline or
the reasons Madison
gives for wanting to go to war.
3. Minute Spit-It
4. Record what your group came up with
Reasons for Going to War
•British cruisers continued to practice the violation of
the American flag, seizing & carrying off persons sailing
under it.
•Hover over and harass our entering and departing
commerce.
• Great staples of our country have been cut!
• Avowed a determination to persist in them against
the US until the markets of her enemy are open to
British
• Drawn to the warfare just renewed by the savages.
Other Reasons for Going to War
Nationalism
 Pride in one’s country
 Belief that our country
is better than
everyone else’s
Other Reasons for Going to War
War Hawks
 People such as Henry Clay and John C.
Calhoun who agitated for war with Britain
In June 1812, the U.S.
Declared War on Britain
The U.S. finds itself
unprepared!!
 Because of Jefferson’s
earlier cuts of the
government, the U.S.
very weak
 16 warships and 7,000
soldiers (Britain had
over 200 warships)
The British are still in
a war!!
 The British had to fight
the War of 1812 and
the Napoleonic Wars
at the same time
The Tactics of Both Sides
The U.S.
 Invade British
Territory in Canada
 Gain control of the
Great Lakes and
keep control of the
Mississippi
The British
 Blockade all U.S. ports
to prevent supplies
 Enlist the help of the
Native Americans
Bell Ringer
1. What were 3 causes of the War of 1812?
2. Who were the two most famous war hawks?
3. Who was president during the War of 1812?
4. Why was the U.S. unprepared for war?
5. What was the British strategy for the war?
The Invasion of Canada
Fort Detroit
 Attempted to invade
Canada through Detroit
 General William Hull
began to retreat and was
quickly surrounded by
British soldiers andNative
American warriors
 This was a huge defeat for
the U.S.-British captured
over 2,000 soldiers
The Invasion of Canada
Lake Erie
 Commander Oliver
Hazard Perry led huge
victory
 British were forced to
return to retreat to
Canada
 First time in history that an
entire British Fleet was
defeated and captured by
the enemy
The Invasion of Canada
Thames
 As British and Native American allies retreated,
General William Henry Harrison and his
troops pursued them
 Followed British into Canada and defeated them
Conflict in the South
Horseshoe Bend
 Andrew Jackson in command of U.S. forces in
Georgia
 Creek tribes had attacked American settlements
 Jackson defeated them at Horseshoe Bend and
forced them to give up millions of acres of land
Final Battles
Washington
 In 1814, the British
defeated Napoleon and
could bring all their
troops to the U.S.
 Set fire to many
government buildings
including the White
House
Final Battles
Fort McHenry
 British attacked fort
which defended
Baltimore’s harbor
 British warships
bombarded the fort
throughout the night
but, American fought
off the attack
Oh, say can you see by the dawn's
early light
What so proudly we hailed at the
twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright
stars thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched
were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket's red glare, the
bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that
our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled
banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the
home of the brave?
Battle of Fort McHenry,
1814
Oh Say Can You See
By the Dawn’s Early Light…
-- Francis Scott Key
Gave proof through the night,
That our flag was still there…
The End of the War
Treaty of Ghent
 The war was a draw, Britain tired of fighting: too
costly
 On Dec. 24, 1814 agreed to Treaty of Ghent
 Agreed to go back to the ways things were before the
war
 Britain never gave the Native Americans the land they
had promised
 The issue of impressment was never mentioned in the
treaty
 War helped U.S. gain respect as a nation, called
“Second War for Independence”
People that Didn’t Get the Message
The Hartford Convention
 There was much
opposition to the war
 Federalist critics called it
“Mr. Madison’s War”
 New Englanders
especially, were against
the war because the naval
blockade had hurt trade
 December 1814, a group
of Federalists met in
Hartford, CT
People that Didn’t Get the Message
The Hartford Convention
 Some delegates at the Hartford Convention
suggested seccession from the U.S.
 When news of peace arrived at the convention
the convention quickly ended
People that Didn’t Get the Message
The Battle of New
Orleans
 General Andrew
Jackson did not get
the news of the
Treaty
 Fought and won
stunning victory at
New Orleans