The War of 1812

1. The War of 1812 Section 4 Chapter 10

2. Focus Questions • How did the war progress at sea and in the Great Lakes region? • How did actions by American Indians aid the British during the war? • What strategy did the British pursue in the East? • How did the war come to an end?

3. The War at Sea • When the War of 1812 began the British navy had hundreds of ships around the world and U.S. had fewer then 20 • The U.S. allowed merchants ships to attack British vessels • The U.S. navy did have well trained sailors and new war ships like USS Constitution • The British navy began traveling in packs and blocked the coastline of America

4. The Canadian Border • The Americans assumed that taking Canada would be very easy and sent three separate armies to do it • The British were able to ally with American Indians and defeat American forces there and take control of the strategic great lakes • In 1813 Captain Oliver Hazard Perry was able to out last the British in the Battle of Lake Erie • This brought new hope to the American forces

5. The Frontier War • In the Battle of the Thames General Harris’s forces were able to break the British-Indian Alliance and secure the Canadian border • The Creek Indians in modern day Alabama decided to go to war with the U.S. • Red Eagle was their chief and Andrew Jackson a general in the Tennessee militia led a victory over the Creek in the Battle of Horseshoe Band (the victory gave millions of acres of Creek land to the U.S.)

6. The British on the Offensive • While the U.S. had success in the north and the south, the British had success in the east • They were able to take the capital in Washington, D.C. and burned the White House and many other government buildings • The British then moved on to Baltimore and shelled the city for 25 hours but could not take the city

7. The Battle of New Orleans • After the attack on Washington, D.C., the British moved to attack New Orleans • On January 8, 1815 the Battle of New Orleans began and Jackson was the general in charge • The British were caught in an open field and 2,000 British were killed or wounded compared to only 70 causalities on the American side

8. Ending the War • In New England a group met in a meeting known as the Hartford Convention and they wanted the U.S. to get out of the war • Before the group could get to Washington news reached them that the war was over • The Treaty of Ghent ended the war on December 24, 1814 and was signed in Belgium • The treaty was signed two weeks before the Battle of New Orleans • Many Americans were proud that the U.S. had stood up to the mighty British

9. Focus Questions • How did the war progress at sea and in the Great Lakes region? • How did actions by American Indians aid the British during the war? • What strategy did the British pursue in the East? • How did the war come to an end?