Why we Fought in the War of 1812 Essay

The War of 1812 was fought between the United States and Great Britain from June 1812 to the spring of 1815 (Findling, 15). When the war began, it was being fought by the Americans to address their grievances toward the British, though toward the end, the issues eventually were unjustified and reasons manipulated. There is no single cause for the War of 1812 but instead, several related causes, such the influence of the War Hawks, the impressments as well as the Embargo and Non-Intercourse acts, and the British's possible interference with the Indian Nations, and land ownership disputes between the Natives and Americans, ultimately leading to the Battle of Tippecanoe.

The War of 1812 has always been a part of American history not very exiting to learn about for most Americans. It was a tumultuous time for the New Republic and some of the battles of the war shamed the new nation. The War of 1812 did not have the same glorious, honorable, and just cause of the American Revolution. The British made fools of the American people and even burned the Capitol and the White House, the centers of American politics, to the ground. However as shameful as the war was, it also had some good benefits and it demonstrated to Great Britain and the rest of the world that the United States of America was its own sovereign nation, and not some British Sphere of Influence. Although the treaty of Ghent failed to address

As his presidency continued Jefferson began drifting further away from the original ideals of the Republican Party. His decisions no longer reflected a strict interpretation of the Constitution, but resembled the loose construction of the Constitution employed by the Federalists. When he made the decision to purchase the Louisiana Territory in 1803, effectively doubling the territory of the USA, he loosely interpreted the Constitution like that of a federalist by working around the Constitution. No where did the Constitution state that the president had the power to make such a purchase, but by using the “necessary and proper” clause as a loop pole he made the purchase. He went against his party doctrine of strict interpretation in order to expand American domain and to protect the US from the threat of a resurgent France. Another show of Republican movement away from being strict constructionist was when Jefferson passed The Embargo Act of 1807, which banned all foreign exports. Supported by Document C, the Embargo Act was extremely unpopular with the American public. No where in the listing of the presidential powers did it state that a law such as the Embargo Act could be passed. When Jefferson passed this Act,

The passing of the Embargo Act in 1807 banned all trade with European nations during the Napoleonic Wars in an attempt for the United States to steer clear of war and to prove to the European Nations that American goods were essential to their economies. Alexander Anderson's cartoon, drawn one year after the bill was passed, shows how the American people were affected by the Embargo Act. They resorted to smuggling goods in order to make money during the economic depression caused by the act. After Jefferson's poor decision with the Embargo Act, his party members began to loose faith in him and his Federalist opponents gained a great amount of popularity. By refusing to trade, the United States experienced the bad aspects of war with none of the potential gains through the signing of treaties. After the Embargo Act, the American citizens begin to

The United States of America was undertaking a major task in setting out to conduct its first war after the drafting of the Constitution. The British Empire had encroached just too far for President Madison, and the waterways in which the United States depended were threatened by British naval vessels repeatedly. There were three stated causes to the beginning of the War of 1812, and each of them has to do with specific problems that the British had put into place before the Americans.

The war in Europe dominated James Madison's Presidency. The previous policy of the Embargo Act had failed, and Madison repealed it with the Non-Intercourse Act, which allowed trade with any country except the belligerents. When this became unenforceable, the Macon Bill, stating that the United could trade with any country agreeing to respect US neutrality, replaced it. Napoleon agreed to this stipulation, the British refused, so the United States began trading with France but not with Great Britain. This led to increased tension with the British, manifested both in the continued impressment of American sailors by the British and an increasingly hostile Indian population in the Northwest supposedly incited by the British.

On June 1, 1812, the United States’ fourth President James Madison signed a declaration of war against Britain approved by Congress. This is obscurely known as the War of 1812, which was also the first war of the 19th century and lasted from 1812 to the spring of 1815. The War of 1812 is widely known as the “forgotten war” because the war has left very little to the popular memory. Despite the opposition from an entire region, mainly the Federalists, of the United States for the War of 1812, there were many reasons for the United States to commence the war. The War of 1812 was caused by numerous reasons including British impressment of American sailors and their refusal to acknowledge American neutrality rights, the United States’ widespread belief the British were encouraging Indian rebellion, the actions of some newly-elected Congressmen dubbed the “War Hawks,” and the American desire for more land.

The Embargo Act closed all US export trade. Although the purpose of this act was to deprive Great Britain and France from food and war essentials so that they would finally abide by the neutral rights and stop harassing American ship vessels, it only created an economic depression. This act ruined the Northeast since they mostly

The Acts were passed due to both France and England pressuring the United States to pick an alliance in the Napoleonic Wars. Jefferson had no desire to become involved in the wars and passed the Embargo Act prohibiting trade with European countries believing it would make both countries stop pressuring the United States. This would make the United States move towards an agrarian economy as trading would almost become useless as European’s countries were the only ones to trade with the United States. Jefferson presidency having helped the average man especially farmers would not Continue as he would make choices that would oppose the ideals that his presidency had promised.

across 6 states, allowing the nation to be tied together and to be utilized for internal commerce. Later in Jefferson’s term he set a law that potentially was one of the worst notions during his presidency. In 1807 the Embargo Act was placed with the purpose of attempting to prevent foreign tension with France and Britain by not allowing American ships to any foreign ports and eliminated international trade. “The embargo, however, backfired and brought greater economic hardship to the United States than Britain” (Newman and Schmalbach. 136). While Jefferson’s attempt to preserve the economy failed once he passed the Embargo Act, he later at least recognized his doings during his presidency that it must be repealed. The embargo eventually got repealed in 1809, during James Madison’s term.

He then believed in a strict interpretation of the Constitution, and thought a federal bank was unconstitutional as well, although the Federalists wanted to interpret it loosely. Jefferson believed that the Constitution “delegated to the federal government certain definite powers, reserving, each state to itself…the right to their own self-government” (Doc. B). He did a total reversal on his beliefs on states’ rights, and thought the federal government should be more powerful, which distanced himself from his party. He enacted the Embargo Act of 1807 during his presidency. This is thought of as one of his worst decisions ever. Instead of declaring war, as he would have done during the 1790’s, Jefferson had the Embargo Act passed, which prevented the U.S. from trading with any foreign nation. However his stubbornness did not succeed however, the Embargo Act really hurt the American economy and American merchants more than either Britain or France. The hatred for this stubborn act of neutrality was so bad that the Federalist Circular claimed that the Embargo Act would “wrest the inestimable germ of…Independence from you” (Doc. E). The Embargo Act held a stricter grip on states than previously done by Jefferson. His change in policies also affected many of his people.

“The blockade devastated the American economy. Between 1811 and 1814, the value of exports and imports fell from $114 million to $20 million, while custom rates used to finance the war were more than halved from $13 million to $6 million. Many American merchant vessels did not risk leaving port.”

In 1807 Jefferson passed the Embargo Act because he thought it would stop England and France from attacking the U.S ships, but it made the their profits go from $109 million dollars to $25 million dollars. Many Americans and British people were upset with the Embargo Act because they depended on the foreign trade to keep their business going. U.S citizens were relying on smuggling to get the goods they

Often considered the Second War of Independence, The War of 1812 was a conflict between America and the British Empire. With ongoing battles between England and France in the 19th century (Napoleonic Wars), the infant United States who recently won their independence (1773-1783) found themselves in the middle of a ground-breaking war.

The War of 1812 demonstrates American Independence once again. Some of the causes for the war: Trade restriction and impressment. • Attempted to restrict United States trade.