War of 1812 Causes

War of 1812 Causes

Ever since the American Revolution, there was a bitter friction between the United States and Great Britain. This detestation of each other was finally acted out when President Madison declared war on Great Britain on June 14, 1812, thus beginning the War of 1812. The Unites States was tired of getting harassed on the seas, had a strong will to expand, and felt too much pride to let Great Britain get away with everything they had done. Three causes of the War of 1812 were maritime problems, Manifest Destiny, and national pride.

One of the three main causes of the War of 1812 was maritime problems between the United States and Great Britain. The seeds of these maritime problems were planted nine years before the War of 1812 even began. In 1803 the Napoleonic Wars broke out between Great Britain and France and the United States got caught in-between it. Since France and England were matched up well on the battlefield, they both decided that the most prudent way to win the war would be to destroy the other country’s trade. This did not bode well with the United States because it was the main trading country with both Great Britain and France. They both set up blockades; the British one was called the Orders of Council and the French one was called the Berlin-Milan Decree. The British even began seizing American ships on the open sea. In a congressional report by the Committee on Foreign Relation recalled these actions, “Great Britain, in defiance of this incontestable right, captures every American vessel bound to, or returning from, a port where her commerce is not favored; enslaves our seamen, and in spite of our [complaints and protests] perseveres in these aggressions.” (Doc. 1) One specific example of impressment was the Chesapeake-Leopard Affair. The British vessel, the Leopard, seized the Chesapeake (American) within three miles of the Unites States coastline. This violated International Water Policy which is recognized by all nations and infuriated the Americans. President Madison realized how much of a problem the impressment of American sailors was and this helped coerce him into declaring war in 1812. In his Declaration of War, President Madison stated, “We behold our seafaring citizens still the daily victims of lawless violence. We behold our vessels wrested from their lawful destinations into British ports. We behold, in fine, on the side of Great Britain a state of war against the United States.” (Doc. 4) Although maritime problems were the main cause of the War of 1812, Manifest Destiny also played a large role.

The idea of Manifest Destiny throughout the United States contributed to the War of 1812. During the Jefferson Administration, the United States purchased the Louisiana Territory from the French for fifteen million dollars. Napoleon originally bought it from Spain in an effort to make his country more self-sufficient and less reliant on trade. However, because of a slave rebellion in Santo Domingo, Napoleon was losing men and money. He decided to cut his loses and sell the territory. Now that America had more land, we felt like we had to colonize it all. This was called Manifest Destiny. It was our God-given right to expand to our natural borders and we were going to do it! Congressman John Randolph believed that maritime problems were not the cause of the war, but Manifest Destiny was the sole cause and showed it by saying, “Gentlemen from the North have been taken up some high mountain and shown all the kingdoms of the earth; and Canada seems tempting