The War of 1812 did not go well for the U.S. initially as they were unprepared and lost early battles against the British. By 1814, the British had burned Washington D.C. and launched a bombardment of Baltimore. Although the U.S. flag still flew over Fort McHenry after the attack, inspiring the national anthem, neither side achieved their war aims. The Treaty of Ghent in 1815 returned borders to their pre-war status quo without any territorial changes.
2. Not much
•Unfortunately for the U.S.
in June, 1812, they were
not at all ready to fight a
war against the mighty
British.
3. Not much
•Their military was small
and there was no promise
of help coming from other
nations as happened about
30 years earlier.
4. Not much
• The early land battles did not go
well for the U.S., as they failed
in their efforts to capture
Canada, believing that the
Canadians were just as eager to
eliminate British rule there as the
Americans had been earlier.
5. Not much
• Naval battles were a little bit
better, but even victories by
ships like the U.S.S. Constitution
(“Old Ironsides”), Wasp, and
United States were not nearly
enough to turn the tide of the war
in the favor of the U.S.
6. - Or +
•By the summer of 1814,
the British blockade was
eliminating any trade and
had slowed attacks from
the U.S. navy down to
almost zero.
7. - Or +
•At this point, the British
sailed up the Chesapeake
Bay and marched to
Washington, D.C.
8. - Or +
• As they approached,
President Madison and his
wife, Dolley, fled the capital
city for the countryside, as
the British set fire to the city,
burning the White House and
the Capitol building.
9. - Or +
• From there the British
decided to march about 50
miles north to the city of
Baltimore and Fort
McHenry, on which the
unleashed an all-night
bombardment.
10. - Or +
• When the smoke cleared on
the morning of September 14,
1814, the U.S. flag was still
flying over the fort,
announcing that the U.S.
would not surrender to the
British.
11. - Or +
• A young lawyer, Francis
Scott Key, who was under
guard on board a British ship
that night, was inspired by
the defense of Baltimore and
wrote words to convey that
joy.
12. - Or +
•What became known as
“The Star-Spangled
Banner” was later put to
music and became our
national anthem in 1931.
13. Status quo, ante
bellum
•After losing at Baltimore,
coupled with the defeat of
Napoleon in Europe, the
British were tired of
fighting.
14. Status quo, ante
bellum
•Clearly this was a war that
neither side really wanted
and so delegates met in
Belgium to discuss peace.
15. Status quo, ante
bellum
• What they ultimately decided
in the Treaty of Ghent was
that nothing would change
from how it was before the
war, “status quo, ante
bellum” (the way things were
before the war).
16. Status quo, ante
bellum
• Many people were happy
with this announcement as
they felt that the U.S. had no
defeated the British twice
and proven that they
deserved to be an
independent nation.
17. Status quo, ante
bellum
• For good or bad, delegates
from New England had
started to meet in Hartford,
CT to discuss seceding from
the U.S., as “Mr. Madison’s
War” had cost them a great
deal.
18. Status quo, ante
bellum
• The plans started at the
Hartford Convention went
nowhere, as the Treaty of
Ghent was announced shortly
after they started to meet.
19. Status quo, ante
bellum
• Also, after the war was officially
over, but before it could be
announced, Andrew Jackson
won the greatest victory of the
war for the Americans at the
Battle of New Orleans in
January, 1815.
20. Status quo, ante
bellum
•The victory made Jackson
a household name and
would serve him well in
later years.
