Since Jay's Treaty the relationship between Great Britain and the United States could be considered frosty at best. The British navy had been attacking and imprisoning American merchant ships and sailors on and off for the past decade. Many Americans were tired of British aggression on the high seas. Out in the Western frontier, the British had been supplying Native American tribes with weapons to use against American settlers. The British promised the Indian tribes that they would never encroach on their land and that the Americans were intruders who should not be trusted.
After the Battle of Tippecanoe it became clear to many Americans that the British were attempting to weaken the United States. The Shawnee and other Indian tribes were discovered to be using British made weapons. Across the West and South, Americans were demanding that their leaders do something to protect them from the British.
One leader, Henry Clay from Kentucky, demanded that the U.S. declare war against the British. Clay believed that the war would allow the young nation to expand further west. This would ensure that new acres of land be opened up for farming of cotton as well as tobacco. Clay's home state of Kentucky was one of the most western states of the union. He felt that the people of Kentucky and the West needed to be protected and not denied the right to expand.
Like Clay, John C. Calhoun from South Carolina was another supporter of the War of 1812. Calhoun felt that the British were not respecting the rights of the U.S. as a sovereign (independent) nation. Calhoun also felt that the U.S. would benefit economically from expanding into other parts of the continent.
Against the War Hawks were members of the Federalist Party. Still strong in New England these Senators spoke out against fighting a war with the British. They believed that the New England states would suffer economically from the fighting. Shipping and trade would decrease and many businesses could close. "Mr. Madison's War" would only help the South at the expense of the North.
For Homework, and I am sorry that there is alot of it you need to do the following.
1.) complete that handout where you write a (brief) speech explaining why the war should be fought, or why it should not be fought. You can choose from several different perspectives on this.
2.) Read and markup or highlight the handout on the War of 1812. This reading will give you some valuable information that will help you complete part III of the homework. There are several major facts and people that are important to understand the War of 1812.
3.) Finally. You will fill out the graph on the important people from the War. The reading will help you understand how you should complete it.
Best of Luck to you.
Enjoy your day off
1 comment:
A question about part III- do we also do the ad along with the chart?
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