On June 18, 2012, the United States and Great Britain went to war over maritime rights breaches. The War of 1812 was the name given to this war (Warrick, 2017). The impressment question, trade wars, and a dispute over the fate of Native Americans all played a role in the start of the war.
The issue of impressment was a major factor in the outbreak of the War of 1812. The practice of impressing sailors to serve in the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom enraged the United States Congress (Warrick, 2017). The Royal Navy could seize American sailors and force them to serve in the Royal Navy. President James Madison responded by delivering an address to Congress on June 1, 1812, in which he stated that Britain’s activities were undermining US sovereignty. In anticipation of a conflict with Britain, Congress agreed to enlist an additional 30,000 militia in the Regular Army (Gentle et al., 2020). Thereafter, the war was declared.
The US Congress declared war on the United Kingdom because of the British blockade and confiscation of American trade ships. Early in the seventeenth century, American ships could re-export goods from the Caribbean islands of France and the United Kingdom (Warrick, 2017). By blockading French ports and any American ships heading towards France, Britain, which controlled the waterways, hoped to starve the French into inactivity (Warrick, 2017). This also enraged Congress, which resulted in a declaration of war.
The British incitement of Native Americans was viewed by Congress as a threat to US sovereignty and responded by declaring war. The British wanted to slow the US westward advance and protect British interests by creating a Native American buffer state between the US and British Canada. Many Americans felt the British encouraged Native Americans to attack whites (Vine, 2021). Because the Conflict Department believed local militia could not be moved to Canada, recruiting new regular army recruits was prioritized. Indeed, once Britain started withdrawing its forces from Canada, Native Americans’ ability to resist US expansion was lessened (Gentle et al., 2020). Clearly, the United States had no choice but to fight Britain to keep its sovereignty and maritime rights.
References
Gentle, G., Karns, J., Shurkin, M., & Givens, A. (2020). The evolution of U.S. military policy from the constitution to the present. RAND.
Vine, D. (2021). The United States of War: A global history of America’s endless conflicts, from Columbus to the Islamic State. University of California Press.
Warrick, K. (2017). The War of 1812. Enslow Publishing.