Pirates!
And Other
Obnoxious
People!
Danger on the High Seas
• United States merchants and traders went all
around the world selling goods.
• The state of Algiers was one of several North
African lands known as the Barbary states.
• These countries practiced piracy and held
foreign citizens captive for ransom.
• Many nations, including the United States,
agreed to make payments to the Barbary
States to protect their ships and citizens.
• Eventually, the U.S. was tired of paying
the Barbary States and refused to
continue, and the U.S. Navy was sent to
end the pirate raids.
• Sailing to the Barbary States presented
even greater dangers. When the French
and British had gone to war in 1803,
both sides wanted to stop the U.S. from
supplying goods and war materials to the
other.
• In the early 1800’s, Great Britain passed a law
saying their navy could search and seize ships
carrying war supplies to France. The French
quickly stuck back and said no country could
ship goods to Britain.
• Many American merchants ignored these laws.
As a result, the British and French navies
captured many American ships. They also
searched these ships for British sailors who
had run away from the British navy. The
British then forced these people to return
with them.
• This practice of pressing, or forcing, people
to serve in the army or navy was called
impressment. Sometimes U.S. citizens
suffered impressment by accident.
A Trade War
• Debates raged in the U.S. on how to
deal with impressment. Some
Americans wanted to go to war, others
favored an embargo against Britain.
• Jefferson favored an embargo. In
December 1807, Congress passed the
Embargo Act which banned trade with
all foreign countries.
• The idea behind this was to hurt Great
Britain and France, and to protect
American ships. But, the act only hurt
American merchants. Without trade,
they lost a great deal of money.
• Jefferson’s support fell as a result of
the Embargo Act, plus it had little
effect on Britain or France.
• Congress replaced the Embargo Act
with the Non-Intercourse Act in 1809.
This act banned trade only with Britain
and France.
• It also stated that the U.S. would begin
trading with the country that stopped
violating U.S. neutrality first.
The Rise of Tecumseh
• Tensions between Great Britain and the
U.S. extended on land as well.
• In the early 1800’s, thousands of
settlers were moving into the
Northwest Territory. Great Britain
wanted to protect their interests in
Canada, but did not want to fight the
U.S. So, they gave military aid to
American Indians living in the
Northwest Territory.
• One of the most influential and
talented American Indian leaders was
Tecumseh.
• He warned other American Indians
about the dangers they faced from
settlers, and tried to unite the
Indians against the American settlers.
• Tecumseh’s brother, the Prophet,
helped him build a village for his
followers near the Tippecanoe River.
War on the Frontier
• William Henry Harrison, the governor of the
Indiana Territory, believed Tecumseh was a
serious threat to American power.
• Harrison and Tecumseh met to try to make
peace, but they were unsuccessful. Tecumseh
went to ask other Indian tribes to join forces
with them. While he was gone, Harrison
attacked his village.
• The Battle of Tippecanoe lasted all day.
Tecumseh’s village was destroyed, and the
Prophet was killed.
The War Debate
• The war on the frontier angered many
Americans. They felt that the British
had encouraged Tecumseh to attack
settlers in the west, so they blamed the
British for the war.
• Some members of Congress called War
Hawks wanted to declare war on Great
Britain. This group was led by Henry
Clay of Kentucky and John C. Calhoun of
South Carolina.
• War Hawks felt that if they didn’t go to
war with Britain, their independence
was at stake. They also thought this
would give the United States an
opportunity to expand.
• Anti-war politicians felt the U.S. was
not ready to go to war. The U.S. army
and navy were small and poorly equipped.
A Declaration of War
• James Madison, who had been elected
president in 1808, faced a dilemma.
• He described Britain’s conduct to Congress in
1812. He complained about impressment of
American sailors and criticized British
violation of American neutrality. He asked
Congress to decide what to do.
• A few days later, Congress voted to go to war.
A few months later, Madison was re-elected
and would serve as commander in chief during
the War of 1812.