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The War of 1812 has often been described as the second war of independence. It was a major conflict between the United States and Great Britain, and many believe it was both unnecessary and the result of ineffective foreign policy.
When Thomas Jefferson was elected president in 1800, he took actions to protect the United States' reputation on the global stage and to acquire more land for the young country. Things started off well when French Emperor Napoleon agreed to sell territory in North America to fund his conquest of Europe, but it angered Great Britain, which would declare war on France later that year.
Britain had a valuable tool: the biggest Navy in the world. It controlled trade in the Atlantic Ocean and often seized U.S. ships at sea for trading with France and its allies. The British also forced U.S. Sailors to join the ranks of their Royal Navy. France imposed similar restrictions on Americans trading with Britain, squeezing the U.S. into a no-win situation.
When a British warship attacked a U.S. frigate off the coast of Virginia for failing to submit to a surge, President Jefferson responded by passing the Embargo Act, heavily restricting trade with Britain. But he didn't bargain for the outrage among U.S. merchants. Just a few days before the end of his presidency, Congress repealed the Act, but Jefferson's successor, James Madison, continued to view the British with suspicion.
To add to the heavy tensions that resulted from a lack of trade with Europe on the frontier, Native Americans, led by the Shawnee Chief Tecumseh, resisted U.S. expansion. Many indigenous people saw Britain as their ally in this trouble. The United States believed that if it could oust Britain from Canada, it would cut off British support for the indigenous people. Feeling trapped on all sides, Madison saw only one solution: War.
In July, the U.S. invaded Canada. The War of 1812 was on. What could Jefferson and Madison have done differently to avoid another war with Great Britain?
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