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What Caused The War Of 1812

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The years Thomas Jefferson and James Madison took office were in many ways difficult for the United States. Several events which compounded upon each other lead to the American-British War of 1812 which ended officially in 1814 with the peace Treaty of Ghent. None of the issues which instigated war were really resolved and it would seem that for the US, the War of 1812 was just a series of failures and few triumphs that, in the end, cost the Natives more than anyone else. The war began with fired-up Americans seeking resolution to their deep-seated resentments toward the British; hard feelings which only festered during the French Revolutionary Wars. Since the American Revolution, the Untied States had long been provoked by the …show more content…

In fact, during the European embargoes, thousands of American sailors were forcibly impressed by the British because Royal Navy life was so awful and unrewarding it caused British men to desert their own country en masse for the better-paying, better quality life of American maritime. In response to the Chesapeake affair, Jefferson, U.S. president at the time, made the Embargo Act which prevented Americans from trading with any ports outside the United States. The act really hurt American economics and trade and created such uproar in people that it was soon replaced with a more sensible act. The Non-Intercourse act forbade American trade with Britain, France and their colonial allies until their own embargoes were dissolved. While impressments and embargoes were in flux, a growing number of Republicans grew deeply upset over the neutrality of Jefferson and Madison. The War Hawks, as they were called, were utterly infuriated that the British were apparently allowed to continue to violate American maritime. James Madison, president at this time, announced that unless Great Britain revoked its embargoes, the U.S. would have an embargo against them beginning in 1811. England did uplift its European blockade on June 16, 1812. Unfortunately, news in general travelled much too slowly in this time period. So, the raging demands for war from the

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