Download War of 1812 - 4th Grade Page

© Erin Kathryn 2014
• In 1808, James Madison was
elected President.
• At this time, Britain and France
were at war.
• Thomas Jefferson, the previous
President, tried to keep the
United States neutral during this
war.
• President Madison also wanted
to stay neutral so that
Americans could keep trading
with Britain and France.
• Unfortunately, conflicts between
the United States and Britain
made them enemies.
© Erin Kathryn 2014
• Britain had a powerful navy.
• British sailors worked on
American ships because the
Americans paid more money.
• British soldiers often raided
American ships in search of
British sailors.
• Sometimes they captured
American sailors and forced
them into the British navy.
• This was called
impressment.
© Erin Kathryn 2014
• In 1810, a group in Congress wanted to
go to war with Britain.
• They called themselves War
Hawks.
• They were angry about impressment
and the fighting between American
Indians and settlers on the frontier.
• The War Hawks believed that people in
the British colony of Canada were
supplying weapons to American Indians.
• The U.S. government made treaties
that promised settlers would be kept
off of lands that American Indians
lived on.
• These promises were broken numerous
times.
© Erin Kathryn 2014
• Tecumseh, a Shawnee chief,
wanted to unite all the
American Indian nations west of
the Appalachian Mountains.
• Tecumseh believed that if the
Indians united, they could keep
settlers away.
• American Indians from many
nations had joined Tecumseh by
1811.
© Erin Kathryn 2014
• Tecumseh and almost 1,000 of
his followers lived near the
Tippecanoe River in Indian
Territory.
• William Henry Harrison, the
governor of this area, felt
Tecumseh and his followers
were a threat.
• Harrison’s army and Tecumseh’s
followers fought at the Battle
of Tippecanoe.
• After the battle, Tecumseh
joined British allies in Canada.
© Erin Kathryn 2014
• June 18, 1812- The United States
declared war on Britain.
• United States goals for the war:
• Stop impressment
• Keep British from helping
American Indians
• Drive the British out of
Canada
© Erin Kathryn 2014
• Most of the early battles took place
near Canada.
• The United States tried to invade
Canada many times in 1812, but were
unsuccessful.
• The British and American Indians
captured Detroit, a city near the
Canadian border.
• As the war continued, the United
States started to win more battles.
• Captain Oliver Hazard Perry was able
to force British ships to surrender on
Lake Erie.
• As a result, the Americans recaptured
Detroit and forced the British into
Canada.
© Erin Kathryn 2014
• September 11, 1814
• The Battle of Lake Champlain
was an important victory for
the United States.
• This battle forced British
commanders to retreat and
return back to Canada.
• The British had to abandon their
plans to invade New York.
© Erin Kathryn 2014
• In August 1814, the British
attacked Washington, D.C.
• While the British headed toward
the White House, First Lady
Dolley Madison did her best to
collect important documents.
• She saved papers and a famous
painting of George Washington
that hung in the White House.
© Erin Kathryn 2014
• British forces burned the
White House, the Capitol,
and other buildings in
Washington, D.C.
© Erin Kathryn 2014
• After burning Washington, the British
moved on to Baltimore.
• The British used their ships to fire at
Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor.
• The U.S. Army stood strong and did not
surrender.
Francis Scott Key
• Francis Scott Key watched this battle.
In the early morning, Key saw the
American flag flying over Fort
McHenry, which inspired him to write
a poem.
• This poem became “The Star-Spangled
Banner,” our national anthem.
© Erin Kathryn 2014
• After fighting for two years,
neither Britain or the United
States was winning.
• The agreed to end the war.
• The Treaty of Ghent was signed
in Ghent, Belgium.
• It did not give any side new land.
• The treaty returned things back
to the way they were before
the war.
• Canada still belonged to Britain.
© Erin Kathryn 2014
James Monroe
• After the War of 1812, the United States
wanted to keep European countries out of the
Western Hemisphere.
• President James Monroe warned European
countries to stay out of North and South
America. If they did, the United States
would not get involved in fights between
European countries.
• This foreign policy became known as the
Monroe Doctrine.
• A doctrine is an official statement of
policy.
• The doctrine warned that if foreign
countries did not follow this policy, the U.S.
would act to protect the Western
Hemisphere.
© Erin Kathryn 2014