THE WAR OF 1812: SECOND WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE Failed Invasion of Canada
PECULIAR WAR War avoidable; it began when causes diminishing Declaration of war came at time when ban on trade and peaceable coercion beginning to work Treaty of Ghent resolved virtually none of the issues that officially caused the war The most decisive American victory occurred after the treaty ending war had been signed. The war was a draw, diplomatically and militarily. U.S. ill-prepared for war and suffered more defeats than victories U.S. emerged from war stronger U.S.S. Constitution
CAUSES Determination to defend American commerce, national interests, the national honor, and republican independence Territorial aggrandizement Violations of American neutrality and maritime rights Blockades Impressment (e.g. Chesapeake-Leopard Affair, 1807) Belief that British inciting Native Americans uprisings War Hawks; emergence of Liberal Republicans Desire to prove that the republican experiment could succeed Economic distress in East and South
EMBARGO ACT OF 1807 Peaceable coercion Jefferson hoped that U.S. refusal to export any goods or to buy any products from abroad would put sufficient economic pressure on Britain and France to make them respect U.S. neutral rights. The embargo failed to hurt the combatants enough to change their actions. The trade ban devastated the U.S. economy. Seamen unemployed. Merchants and farmers who dependended on foreign sales ruined. New focus on domestic manufacturing (unintentional result). Thomas Jefferson
PEACEABLE COERCION When neither economic coercion nor negotiation changed British policies, war sentiment grew in the U.S. Jefferson expanded his definition of executive power to enforce the embargo. Highly unpopular, the embargo was repealed by Congress in 1809 and was replaced by the Non-Intercourse Act. Both Jefferson and Madison overestimated the value of American commerce to Britain and France. Non-Intercourse Act (1809): opened trade to all nations except Britain and France and authorized Congress to restore trade with those nations if they stopped violating American neutral rights. It expired in 1810 and was replaced by Macon s Bill Number 2.
FOREIGN TRADE
FAILURE OF ECONOMIC COERCION Macon s Bill Number 2 opened trade with Britain and France, but the first belligerent who agreed to cease its interference with American trade would be rewarded by an embargo on the remaining belligerent. When France expressed interest in agreeing to terms, the U.S. ceased trading with Britain. This too failed to stop the seizure of ships or impressment. Peaceable coercion failed to change British policy, and it hurt the American economy. Also, it left only two alternatives war or retreat. James Madison
WAR HAWKS Coalition of aggressive young Republicans from the West and the South who favored war with Britain Defend American commerce and national honor Retaliate against British for inciting Indians along Great Lakes frontier On to Canada! Gain territory Preserve republicanism and American rights Revitalize republic and demonstrate new strength Speaker of the House, Henry Clay
SPIRITED RESISTANCE Albeit in different ways, Shawnee brothers Tenskwatawa and Tecumseh worked tirelessly in a quest for the revitalization of Native American culture and the securing of an independent nation for all Native Americans. Indians faced with a trail of broken treaties, the onslaught of incessant white encroachment, the decline of the fur trade, a loss of autonomy, the debilitating effects of alcohol, the ravages of disease, and utter chaos Shawnees believed the chaos was caused by the loss of lands, economic deterioration, injustice, alcohol, and those who had abandoned the traditional ways of their fathers. The Shawnees believed they were the Master of Life s chosen people who had fallen from grace.
SHAWNEE BROTHERS Tecumseh Tenskwatawa
TENSKWATAWA I Tenskwatawa, the Prophet, and other Shawnees associated Americans with disorder, witchcraft and forces of evil. He urged Indians to stop drinking and committing acts of violence against each other. He preached that husbands and wives should remain monogamous. The Prophet also pleaded with warriors to stop quarreling. Revitalized some facets of traditional tribal culture and promised new deliverance.
TENSKWATAWA II Teachings: return to communal ways; refrain from consuming American manufactured goods; if pure and faithful, Master of Life will restore order and prosperity; believed himself to be the chosen one; reject Americans and their ways Intolerant of deviance and opposing views; demonized opposition; suspicious of acculturation; witch hunts Converted countless Indians. Opposed American expansion and Treaty of Fort Wayne (signed by chiefs unauthorized to do so).
TECUMSEH I Shawnee chief and political leader who challenged his brother s leadership in 1810, believing that the nativistic revitalization movement alone could no longer protect the Shawnees land base and that a political and military solution was necessary. Tecumseh used the widespread religious base to build a confederacy of tribes that nearly succeeded in impeding westward expansion and unifying Indian peoples of the Old Northwest and South. Battle of Tippecanoe
TECUMSEH II Unfortunately for Tecumseh, the War of 1812 disrupted his plans of a pan-indian political and military alliance before he could fully implement them. In a speech meant to recruit Indians into his confederacy, Tecumseh said, Where today is the Pequo[t]? Where are the Narragansetts, Pocanokets, and many other once powerful tribes of our race? They have vanished before the avarice and oppression of the white men, as snow before the summer sun. In 1810 Tecumseh explained to William Henry Harrison: The only way to stop this evil is for all [of us] to unite in claiming a common and equal right in the land, as it was at first and should be now. No tribe has a right to sell, even to each other, much less to strangers, who demand all, and will take no less. Sell a country! Why not sell the air, the clouds and the great sea, as well as the earth? Did not the Great Spirit make them all for the use of his children?
WARRIORS
TIPPECANOE When some Potawatomis killed some white men in Illinois in July 1811, General Harrison used the incident as justification for striking against Tecumseh and his confederacy. While Tecumseh was in the South recruiting Creeks into his confederacy, Tenskwatawa convinced his followers that they could easily achieve victory over the Americans, which contributed to their disastrous attack on Harrison s forces at the Battle of Tippecanoe. Harrison routed the Indians and destroyed Prophet s Town. William Henry Harrison
UPRISING Seething with anger upon his return, Tecumseh banished Tenskwatawa, who eventually died in obscurity. Uprisings pushed Tecumseh into war with Americans before he could carry out his designs for pan-indian unity. Tecumseh formed an alliance with the British against the Americans. For a time, Tecumseh s warriors were able to weaken American control over the Old Northwest. Tecumseh and his warriors fought bravely against Harrison and his men at the Battle of the Thames. Tecumseh died in the battle never realizing his dream of an Indian nation.
MR. MADISON S WAR President Madison in the years 1811-12 faced the difficult task of arousing the country and threatening war with Britain if she refused to repeal her Orders in Council. He tried to give Britain a way to avoid war and to prevent a possible preemptive attack before the nation was adequately prepared. But he failed miserably because his policies and pronouncements lacked the clarity and boldness necessary to meet a crisis and the perils of a fractious republic. Many viewed Madison as indecisive and overly hesitant. The failure of the embargo and diplomatic protest exhausted the patience of the young republic.
PRESIDENT MADISON Greatest accomplishments as constitutional lawgiver; weak and ineffectual as president Never believed that vigorous executive leadership was necessary for sound republican government Possessed healthy respect for dangers of unchecked executive authority; believed in executive independence but with responsibility; thought that president should not usurp legislative authority 3 factors severely hampered his foreign policy Divided Republican party Believed should not preempt Congressional deliberations Overestimated value of American commerce to Britain and France
LAST OF THE FATHERS U.S. troops poorly armed, poorly led, and poorly provisioned Ultimately placed decision of whether or not to declare war on Britain with Congress His naïve hope that preemptive assaults on Canada might gain a lasting strategic advantage enabled War Hawks to prevail. Faced daunting troubles: problems securing cooperation of Congress, New England refused to support war, incompetent secretary of navy, and insubordinate secretary of war.
MADISON ADMINISTRATION Although Madison s leadership as chief executive during wartime may have been inept, the nation did emerge from the war with a greater sense of unity and self-confidence. In his War Message to Congress Madison declared: Whether the United States shall continue passive under these progressive usurpations and accumulated wrongs, or, opposing force to force in defense of their national rights is a solemn question which the Constitution wisely confides to the legislative department of the Government. In the aftermath of war, with a renewed sense of optimism, Madison enjoyed popularity once again.
OPPOSITION The U.S. went to war ill-prepared as well as deeply and bitterly divided. Federalists charged Republicans with failing to negotiate effectively with Britain, political maneuvering, being warmongers, possessing base territorial ambitions, favoring the French, deliberately avoiding the disgrace of retreat, leading the nation into an unnecessary and immoral war. Republicans charged Federalists with plotting in favor of secession, aristocracy, Britain, and monarchy at the expense of American unity, republicanism, and independence.
DIVISION Some Federalists and Republicans had doubts as to whether the nation and republicanism could survive. The majority of Republicans agreed with Madison that war was the only alternative other than submission; however, some Republicans favored delay until the U.S. was ready. Others believed the U.S. should fight a limited war, confined to the sea. Still others opposed war because they believed the U.S. was unprepared. Continuing struggle between republicanism and liberalism
MAP
STRATEGY AND EARLY CAMPAIGNS War characterized by more American defeats than victories General American strategy Invasion of Canada on three fronts: along Lake Champlain toward Montreal, across the Niagara frontier, and from Detroit into upper Canada Campaigns of summer and fall of 1812 disasters Unexpected performance of small American navy British navy successively blockaded American coast, leaving it open to hit-and-run raids American attempts to invade Canada in 1813 failed yet again.
KEY BATTLES Captain Oliver Hazard Perry s fleet won the Battle of Lake Erie (Oct. 1813). General William Henry Harrison defeated the British and the Indians at the Battle of the Thames in Canada (Oct. 1813). American forces successfully resisted the British at the Battle of Chippawa and Lundy s Lane on the Niagara frontier (July 1814). Americans prevented the British from taking Baltimore. Thomas Macdonough s fleet defeated the British decisively at the Battle of Plattsburgh Bay on Lake Champlain (Sept. 1814), forcing the invading British back to Canada. The British lost interest in continuing the war.
DISASTERS Failed invasions of Canada A low point came when the British invaded and burned Washington D.C. in August 1814. American morale low Country faced bankruptcy as a result of the British blockade Federalists of New England opposed war effort openly and ruthlessly
WHITE HOUSE
IMAGES Battle of Lake Erie Dolley Madison
IMAGES
TREATY OF GHENT Restored prewar status quo Mutual restoration of territory captured by both sides With ending of European war, violations of American rights as a neutral no longer a major issue The Battle of New Orleans had no bearing on the outcome
BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS Fought two weeks after Treaty of Ghent sealed General Andrew Jackson s ragtag army of 4,000 defeated 8,000 disciplined British regulars in resounding fashion. The British suffered 2,000 casualties, while Americans sustained less than two dozen. The battle transformed Jackson ( Old Hickory ) into a national hero and made him the most popular man in America. Battle of New Orleans
VICTORY
JACKSON: WAR HERO Won series of battles against Creeks Crushed Creeks at Battle of Horshoe Bend (March, 1814), winning fame as an Indian fighter Political career launched as a result of war record Andrew Jackson
NATIONALISM U.S. emerges stronger Heightened spirit of nationalism (loyalty and pride in one s nation) Nation growing and dividing at same time War of 1812 eliminated Federalists as a party Republicans convinced that America could fight a war and maintain liberty, republicanism, and sovereignty Surge of liberalism Movement for economic self-sufficiency and unity Era of Good Feelings ; sectional harmony breaks down because of the slavery issue and its spread westward
EXPANSIONISM AND EXCEPTIONALISM Republicans embraced some Federalist doctrines and agendas American System: Clay s program to spur national economic growth, independence, and unity. Build army; pay national debt; develop infant industries New national bank, protective tariff, and internal improvements Era of nationalism in which Americans, given greater freedom from interference from Britain and other European powers, turned their energies to inward into occupying and developing a growing territorial sphere in North America Fulfill national destiny to overspread continent and advance republicanism
THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER Francis Scott Key, author of national anthem, lawyer, poet Sent to secure release of friend who had been captured by British, Key was held in temporary custody aboard a prisoner-exchange ship. Throughout the night, Key witnessed the British attack on Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor. The next morning, the sight of the American flag still flying over the fort inspired him to write the poem on the back of and envelope. The words were set to the music of To Anacreon in Heaven, an English drinking song. Congress proclaimed it the national anthem in 1931.
ATTACK ON FORT MCHENRY British Invasion of Baltimore
SECTIONALISM Simultaneous rise of nationalism and sectionalism Sectionalism: loyalty to and love a state or region Hartford Convention Slavery issue Each section demanded its own special interests; conflicting ideas on tariff, Second National Bank, internal improvements, slavery, right to vote, virtually everything Lacking serious opposition, Republican party disintegrates into squabbling factions
SECTIONALISM Different economic interests led to the death of the Federalist party and the breakdown of the Republican party during the Monroe administration, just as the polarization over the slavery issue caused the breakdown of the national political parties into northern and southern factions in the waning years prior to the Civil War (1861-5)
HARTFORD CONVENTION A secret meeting of New England Federalists to protest the Republican management of the War of 1812 (Dec. 15, 1814 Jan. 5, 1815) Loss of trade and power 26 delegates representing New England states met and passed resolutions declaring the right of the states to nullify (declare null and void) federal laws Asserted states rights and did not quite advocate disunion; a proposal of secession was discussed but rejected Set early precedent for the idea that secession was an available choice for states dissatisfied with national policies
HARTFORD CONVENTION Disastrous timing; viewed as traitorous plot Resolutions aimed at strengthening New England within the Union Abolish 3/5 clause Require 2/3 vote to declare war and admit states into the Union Limit president to single term Prohibit election of two successive presidents from the same state Ban embargos exceeding 60 days Rapid demise of Federalist party Political Cartoon
MADISON S ANNUAL MESSAGE Madison s Annual Message of 1815 seemed to support the American System Passed Congress in 1817 Vetoed bill because he believed a constitutional amendment was necessary Believed federal aid to internal improvements to be unconstitutional Squandered magnificent opportunity over constitutional scruples Concluded his actions as president preserved the Union and Constitution and the political values these institutions embodied
CONCLUSIONS Had the British decided to do so, they quite possibly could have reversed the American Revolution. But the British had been exhausted by the long, protracted conflict with France. So, they decided to accept the terms of the Treaty of Ghent. The War of 1812 nearly ended in disaster; however, Americans felt reassured that republicanism and their independence would long endure. But the rebirth of nationalism coincided with sectionalism. Nationalism it seemed would be strong only when it was expedient. Sectionalism would contribute significantly to the economic, political, and social tensions building toward the American Civil War decades later.
BIBLIOGRAPHY Brown, Roger H. The Republic in Peril: 1812. New York: Columbia University Press, 1964. Calloway, Colin G. First Peoples: A Documentary Survey of American Indian History. Boston: Bedford, St. Martin s Press, 1999. Dowd, Gregory Evans. A Spirited Resistance: The North American Indian Struggle for Unity, 1745-1815. Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press, 1992. Edmunds, R. David. Tecumseh, The Shawnee Prophet, And American History. Western Historical Quarterly. Volume 14. 1983. 261-76.
BIBLIOGRAPHY Ellis, Joseph J. Thomas Jefferson. In: To The Best of My Ability : The American Presidents. Edited by James M. McPherson. New York: Dorling Kindersley Publishing, 2000. 28-35. Fehrenbacher, Don E. The Era of Expansion: 1800-1848. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1969. From the Heart: Voices of the American Indian. Edited and with narrative by Lee Miller. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1995. 186-203. Horsman, Reginald. War of 1812. In: The Reader s Companion to American History. Edited by Eric Foner and John Garraty. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1991. 1129-31.
BIBLIOGRAPHY Josephy, Alvin. The Patriot Chiefs. New York: Viking, 1989 (1958). McCoy, Drew R. The Elusive Republic: Political Economy in Jeffersonian America. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1980.. James Madison. In: The Reader s Companion to American History. Edited by Eric Foner and John Garraty. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1991. 688-89. Rakove, Jack N. James Madison. In: To The Best of My Ability : The American Presidents. Edited by James M. McPherson. New York: Dorling Kindersley Publishing, 2000. 36-42.
BIBLIOGRAPHY Remini, Robert V. Andrew Jackson. In: To The Best of My Ability : The American Presidents. Edited by James M. McPherson. New York: Dorling Kindersley Publishing, 2000. 56-65. Watts, Steven. The Republic Reborn: War and the Making of Liberal America, 1790-1820. Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press, 1987.