Since the conclusion of the Revolutionary War on 3 September, 1783, the newly created United States of America decided to keep the Continental Army as a defense against outside threats. However, the Continental Congress chose to disband the Navy for a brief period as it was not of the highest importance and the costs were too high to maintain it. The United States also attempted to practice isolationism for as long as possible during the post-Revolutionary War era because of the example that George Washington set as the first president of being an isolationist. However, the United States failed to adhere to these standards and waged war during a few occasions. The United States Army and Navy collaborated on several major wars during the period …show more content…
Although the British see it as another Napoleon proxy war, the Americans, Native Americans, and Canadians however, see it as a major war. The Navy had major success early on with the leadership of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry. Perry defeated Napoleon’s armies early in the Northwest territory. However, the Ghent treaty restored the old boundaries of British-Canada and the United States directly after the war. An assessment of the War of 1812 would say that the US had many successes from the joint-cooperation of the Army and Navy. However, the Army failed multiple times in supporting the Navy. The British were able to march all the way to Washington D.C. and burn the white house down. This was a notable failure by the United States Army. In addition, the treaty of Ghent saved the American Navy from any more considerable defeats by Napoleon’s Army as the British were winning late battles in the northeast. In summary, the War of 1812 was just the start of the militaristic era for the United States but the outcome did not come as …show more content…
The War of 1812 and the Mexican American War were testing grounds for the years to come. During the period ruled by the Article of Confederation, the army was only comprised of reservist and the Navy had been disbanded. After the Naval Act of 1794, which established a permanent and standing naval force, the military then became slightly of more importance to the United States Government. However, after the conclusion of the Mexican-American War, the United States realized the importance of having a strong military and what one can do, hence the acquiring of the Mexican Cession. Although only three major wars were chosen between the period of 1776 to 1865, these wars represent the chronological way that the Army and Navy grew during the early and mid-nineteenth century. In addition, these were the only three major involvements that the Army and Navy cooperated in together. Overall, the early nineteenth century was needed for the successful growth of the United States military. Without it, the United States Army and Navy may not have been ready for the Spanish-American War or even World War
When the war began, it was being fought by the Americans to address their grievances toward the British. This seemed like a justifiable cause for a war, however not all of the citizens shared the same sense of unity about the political issues the war was being fought over. The US was quite upset about the continuing impressment of American sailors into the British Navy and the seizures of American merchant trading vessels by the British. Another reason the United States wished to go to war with Britain was because of their dealings with the Indians in the West. The British were not only trading with the Indians, but they were also giving them weapons and encouraging them to attack American settlements. Along with these reasons, the Americans, now becoming hungry for land, dreamed of capturing British Canada and possibly Florida for the union. Also, the Americans still contained a certain degree of resentment from the Revolutionary War, which they were eager to take out on the British. Even though these were the causes the nation was supposedly fighting for, the entire nation lacked a major driving force to gain restitution for them. The nation was not really united for the cause, as backcountry farmers didn't care about what was happening to coastal shipping businesses, as coastal shipping businesses didn't care about what was happening to the backcountry farmers. Everyone was only concerned with their own problems, and not concerned with the problems facing the nation regarding the situations its citizens were enduring.
The victory of the War of 1812 was a huge leap toward America becoming its own nation because of the national unity the win provided its citizens. The morale of the citizens lifted greatly because they managed to defeat the greatest military powers of the world and managed to survive. It also proved to the world that the american nation could defend itself from foreign threats. The victory improved America’s self confidence and faith in the military to defend the natiosn freedom and honor.
The American belief at the beginning of the war was that it would be short conflict reminiscent of the fight between Germany and France in 1870(Zieger, 9). At the time both the Allies and the Central Powers, along with Americans, miscalculated the impact the involvement of American forces could have for either side. The U.S. Navy was expanded and upgraded during the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt but the Army was still a minimal force.
President Adams requested Congress to create a navy because the protecting American commerce was the top priority (Magill 46). Adams was in an unofficial war with France: the Quasi War. Yet in the meantime, peace negotiations were also being held in France. In the Convention of 1800 or Treaty of Mortefontaine, peace was restored between America and France ("Milestones: 1784–1800 - Office of the Historian”). Adams’ goal was to avoid full scale war with France, however his own party, the Federalists, supported war against France.
During the war, George Washington commanded the American troops against the British. Because of his position as a commander, he noticed that the country is not united and that the Article of Confederation provides only little support to the army. According to manythings.org, “Washington wrote many angry letters about the military situation”. According to manythings.org, one of Washington’s famous quotes was, "Our sick soldiers are naked. Our healthy soldiers are naked. Our soldiers who have been captured by the British are naked!". The reaction after these letters were very negative, since the thirteen colonies refused to help, or even think of this as a war of all the states. All of the thirteen colonies were selfish, and they only worried about their own benefits. After the war, George Washington saw that it is almost impossible for the states to be united under the Articles Of Confederations. Washington believed that there should be a central government to rule all the thirteen colonies. Another important aspect was that there was no national currency that connects all the states with each other in terms of economy and trading. According to manythings.org, “There was an American dollar. But it did not have the same value everywhere”. Also, other states used other currencies than the American dollar, for example, the British pound. Many Americans and Europeans see that the colonies are going to
After the U.S gained their independence form Britain, they faced the greatest obstacle that would threaten their independence. This was a second war fought against Great Britain called the War of 1812. The war was fought on land and on sea and lasted almost three years. There were many forces that led Americans to declare war on Britain in 1812.
Roosevelt had been influencing the United States Navy to be stronger ever since he wrote The Naval War of 1812, while he was at Harvard. Theodore Roosevelt’s book puts the war in a whole new perspective. Roosevelt with the help of Captain Alfred T. Mahan and Rear Admiral Stephen B. Luce identified that their common ground was that America had great power in her deep ocean waters and needed to use it. Those oceans needed a capable water fleet to operate them (The Naval Strategist). In 1890 Congress approved the building of the first modern steam-powered, steel-hulled ships. Out came the most excellent warships anywhere; they were named the Indiana, the Massachusetts, and the Oregon. Roosevelt was impressed with these ships, but he wanted more. Roosevelt wanted a two-ocean navy capable of attacking the Pacific and the Atlantic simultaneously (Grondahl 2015 246). Congress agreed and Roosevelt got what he wanted. Mahan and Roosevelt campaigned to strengthen the navy through their speeches and writings. The Navy was slow, bulky, short-haul monitors guarding the home shores and swift, light cruisers that shot out of protected ports to attack enemy ships. Theodore and Mahan’s writings and speeches changed that part of the Navy for the better (Grondahl 2015 246-247). Theodore changed the Navy several ways and not all by
One problem was the US became very vulnerable to attacks when the National government could not raise an army. Since every state had their own currency, they placed taxes on each other’s goods. With no army, this left all of the states’ goods vulnerable to attack. Ships and vessels were most vulnerable to attack from pirates when transferring goods to other countries. Even though the Revolutionary War had ended, the Treaty of Paris was not enforced because the US had to army to enforce the laws within it. Also, the Northwest Territory that was given to the United States, was bein...
During the Revolutionary War, the Americans fought over half the war without a federal government. That was recognized, and some of the problems were fixed by 1777 with the Articles of Confederation. Because there was no federal government, the Continental Congress had to take on an enormous amount of responsibilities. They had to create the Continental Army, print money, manage trade and most of all they had to analyze and deal with the national debt. The Continental Congress were completing these tasks and did not have approval from the
As a country, the United States felt that the War of 1812 was under control and that they were well prepared for any battle any army could throw at them. After the United States won an important battle on Lake Erie in 1813, the American commander, Oliver Hazard Perry, sent the message "We have met the enemy and they are ours." As a new country, America, having just defeated the greatest military strength on the earth, was perhaps overconfident. However, once Great Britain turned all of its attention to defeating the United States, America realized that the fate of her country relied on Baltimore, and Baltimore relied on the protection of Fort McHenry. If Fort McHenry was taken over by the British, the Nation would have been split into two. The fate of the United States rested, to a large extent, on the success or failure of the central prong attack which was being protected by Fort McHenry. If Baltimore had not had Fort McHenry for protection, the city would have been an easy target and our nation would have perished because Baltimore would have lacked the proper protection it needed to prevail.
“No nation ought to be without debt”, states Thomas Paine” (35). However, “a national debt is a national bond…America is without a debt, and without a navy (35).” In the chapter “Of The Present Ability of America, With Some Miscellaneous” Paine paints a picture of the present day 1776 position of the military. He claims that the America’s position of defending herself is minimal due to a nonexistent navy which has been blocked by England. Great Britain’s debt level is high; rather, the compensation for her debt is the investment of a strong navy to defend herself and the American people. Conversely, “our land force is already sufficient, and as to naval affairs, we cannot be insensible, that Britain would never suffer an American man of war to be built, while the continent remained in her hands” (34). Paine understands the important role of a navy, and he warns the American public that America is vulnerable to attack and destruction because the British will never sacrifice their manpower for America’s liberty and freedom from other countries. Paine points out that America has an opportunity to “leave posterity with a settled form of government, an independent constitution of its own, the purchase at any price will be cheap” and prosper with a constitution and a military of her own to defend herself and her people in times of turmoil and crisis because “a navy when finished is worth more than it cost” (34, 36). “Commerce and protection are united,” and America’s “natural produce” of timber, iron tar, leave the American ports to gain marginal profits for the colonial states across the Atlantic in Europe
The War of 1812, sometimes referred to as “The Second War of Independence,” was one of the bloodiest, yet most pointless wars in American history. After 32 months of Americans fighting for a change in the relationship between Britain and the U.S., the war ended with a treaty that left many of the original conflicts unresolved. Although the war had no obvious victor, it boosted American nationalism and patriotism, something much needed after only 39 years of independence. However, British interferences with American trade, and the cost of war materials had a negative impact on the United State's economy. America’s geographic location, in relation to Canada and New York, played a key role in defense against British attacks. Whoever gained control of the Niagara peninsula that connected these two territories would have an advantage over the other nation.
The War of 1812 was a war between Britain and the United States fought primarily in Upper Canada. It had many causes, few which involved British North America. The results of the war include the fact that there was no clear winner or loser among them. The only real losers in the situation were the Natives in the region. They were driven out of their lands and customs. None of the borders was changed by the war, though many attempts were made. The Treaty of Ghent, which ended the war, did nothing to advance the state of the countries. It went so far as to end the war and put things back the way that they were, but the main causes of the conflict were not addressed or dealt with. In order to evaluate the significance of this war, Canadian victories and losses, as well as overall results, must be analyzed.
Being the first war that the United States fought as an independent country, the First Barbary war was a good lesson on the strengths and weaknesses of the US military system. The extreme necessity of the Navy and Marines led to their permanent installment in the US Armed Forces.
Further, Daughan covers the British blockade on American ports and the Napoleonic Wars. First, the British blockade on 1813 made difficult for American flagships to leave ports because the British Navy blocked almost all American ports with the exception of New England which provided goods to the British Navy during the war. Secondly, Daughan adds that the Napoleonic wars had a major impact on the American local war; exclusively, Napoleon’s defeat in Russia gave more confidence to Britain for supporting the War of 1812 longer. In contrast, A.J. Langguth did not include in his book, Union 1812: The Americans Who Fought the Second War of Independence, any international aspect that might influence the War of 1812.