Historian Donald R. Hickey wrote, "The obscurity of [the War of 1812] should not blind us to its significance, for it was an important turning point, a great watershed, in the history of the young republic." Contemporary Americans called it the "Second American Revolution." How was the War of 1812 a turning point for the United States? Does it deserve to be known as the "Second American Revolution?"

Historian Donald R. Hickey wrote, "The obscurity of [the War of 1812] should not blind us to its significance, for it was an important turning point, a great watershed, in the history of the young republic." Contemporary Americans called it the "Second American Revolution." How was the War of 1812 a turning point for the United States? Does it deserve to be known as the "Second American Revolution?"