1803—Louisiana Purchase: Napoleon Bonaparte sold the Louisiana territory to the United States. This displaced many Native American tribes and added about 827,000 square miles to the United States. Napoleon needed the money to fund his attempted European conquests.
1806—The U.S. passed the Non-Importation Act, which forbade the import of some British goods. This was in response to Britain’s impressment of American sailors.
The War of 1812 was our second invasion. It lasted less than three years. It was a war to keep the independence we had won from the British four decades earlier. At the time, our economy involved farming, shipbuilding, and trade.
The British had been tied up in the Napoleonic Wars against France since 1799. Napoleon and the British were in a European death match. During that time, Britain and France tried to dominate each other by controlling the seaways. This impacted shipping for many other countries, including the United States. The British passed the 1807 Orders in Council, creating a blockade of Europe to interfere with French trade. American vessels were effectively stopped from trading with Europe. France responded by enforcing their shipping restrictions.
The commercial restrictions imposed on the U.S. by Britain’s war with France exacerbated the U.S.’s relations with both powers. First, France and then England interfered with America’s trade shipments. The British navy impressed American sailors into their navy ships.
The Battle of Tippecanoe was fought almost a year before the formal declaration of the War of 1812. Tippecanoe became a rallying cry for many Americans as they denounced British support for the western Indian tribes. General William Henry Harrison was a land grabber of note. Tecumseh banded many tribes together, and the battles raged on.
This battle helped drive Americans to war in 1812.
Sept. 1813, The Battle of Lake Erie. This battle was a naval engagement between the British and American forces. The U.S. won the battle to control Lake Erie. They bombarded the British fleet with heavy cannon fire, and the British surrendered. Gaining control of Lake Erie resulted in cutting off British supply lines and the eventual abandonment of Fort Detroit.
The Battle of Plattsburgh, also called the Battle of Lake Champlain (September 1814), resulted in an essential American victory that saved New York from a British invasion via the Hudson Valley.
President James Madison, a Republican, declared war against Britain on June 1, 1812. The entire Federalist Party voted against the declaration, but it passed anyway. Fort Machinaw fell to the British without a bullet being fired. In October 1812, the Americans invaded Upper Canada from Ohio, Detroit, and Montreal. but the British and Canadian soldiers successfully fought back. Our Canadian invasion collapsed.
The British burned our Capital in Washington, DC, to the ground. Dolly Madison was the last to leave DC. Dolly cut out the big George Washington oil painting and kept it safe so the Brits couldn’t destroy it.
January 8, 1815: The Battle of New Orleans was a battle to gain control of the port of New Orleans, the Mississippi River, and the interior of the United States. British forces sailed into the Gulf of Mexico and moved troops through the swamps near New Orleans. U.S. forces led by Major-General Andrew Jackson attacked and drove the British troops back. The Battle of New Orleans was considered the most incredible land victory of the entire war. (Source, Britannica.)
The War of 1812 officially ended on December 24, 1814, with the signing of the Treaty of Ghent in Belgium. The United States won the war after the tremendous land victory at New Orleans. This victory resulted in control of a significant port and control of the Mississippi River.
