Horton High School's Canadian
History 12 Web Page and Student
Resource
Chapter 11 - The American Impact
on British North America:
The American Revolution and
the War of 1812
The American Revolution of 1776 to
1783 had an impact on British North America.
Nova Scotia, Halifax in particular,
was an important British holding, although throughout the Revolution, Nova
Scotia remained neutral, as the Governor was unable to convince the people
to enlist in the militia. Still, Halifax remained an important port for
British shipping.
the Loyalists, a groups of typically
wealthy pro-British citizens, fled from America for British North America
when the Revolutionaries defeated the British. These people primarily settled
in Nova Scotia and present-day New Brunswick. In total, over 77,000 Loyalists
made their way to British North America, with 15,000 alone landing in Saint
John, NB. Because Nova Scotia seemed well established, many Loyalists chose
to start up in New Brunswick. Plus, they saw Nova Scotia as a land without
much potential, hence the nickname "Nova Scarcity".
The War of 1812 saw much more involvement
from British North America than the Revolution did. Many citizens of B.N.A.
chose to fight the Americans in a war to "keep the enemy off of their
home soil", while the Americans saw it as a war to keep the British from
taking back what the Americans had fought so hard for during the Revolution.
a number of issues led to the beginning
of the War of 1812. There were territorial conflicts over fur territories
deemed by America to be theirs. As well, the Natives felt their homelands
were being taken by American expansionist policy, and the British allied
with the natives on this. From 1786 to 1791, American settlers fell victim
to numerous raids by the natives. This came to a head in 1794, when a large
native force was defeated at Fallen Timbers. What ensued was Jay’s Treaty,
which the British signed to avert a war with America. The British, already
at war with revolutionary France, did not wish to commit forces to British
North America, thus they gave the Americans numerous important trading
forts in native territories. Throughout this the natives were given very
little say.
in 1807, the British, who had taken
to boarding American vessels headed for Europe as part of their blockade
on France, shot upon and boarded the American ship "The Chesapeake". It
was found to be holding supplies for France, however it was fired upon
in American waters. The Americans were irate.
the then president, Thomas Jefferson,
averted a possible war, however his successor, Madison, wanted to pound
the British, and he supported the "War Hawks" from the Western states.
These War Hawks feared constant native raids, and wanted to expand their
territories. The natives, led by Tecumseh, halted these expansions with
well-planned raids.
in 1811, this came to a head at Tippecanoe,
where Tecumseh’s coalition was destroyed by the Americans. The War Hawks
argued that the British supplied the natives with guns, which they did.
1812 - war broke out. At this time,
America had 8 million people, B.N.A. had ½ million. The Americans
arrogantly assumed they'd annex B.N.A. quickly, and sent General Hull to
take the British colony. The British were led by Major-General Brock, who
defeated Hull near Detroit and then, with Tecumseh’s help, captured Detroit
in August of 1812, with a much smaller force. Hull was stunned and was
replaced soon after.
In October, the Americans countered
in the Niagara region, attacking the British at Queenston Heights. Although
they had a lager force, the Americans were repulsed again, however Brock
was killed in battle, which was a huge blow to the British.
in 1813, the Americans launched a
naval assault on the city of York [Toronto] in Upper Canada, burning it
to the ground. A stalemate ensued throughout 1813. Late in 1813,
the Americans attacked into Lower Canada, and fought a combined Anglo-French
force at Chrysler’s Farm. The Americans were again forced to withdraw.
by 1814, the war was focused on the
Niagara frontier. At Lundy’s Lane, the Americans were forced to withdraw
after both sides saw considerable casualties. With the war now over in
Europe, the British began sending seasoned troops over to B.N.A.. The British
fleet, in retaliation to the burning of York, sacked Washington.
in December of 1814, the Treaty of
Ghent was signed, which led to an armistice between the two warring sides.
The colonialists felt betrayed by the British, who seemed quite happy to
end the conflict at the cost of colonial interests and land gains.
the final end to the war was in 1817
with the signing of the Rush-Bagot Agreement. A new boundary between the
warring sides was established, this being the 49th Parallel, which took
territories away from B.N.A. Both sides felt victorious, as B.N.A. had
fought off numerous American invasions, while the Americans saw the war
as a victory in keeping America independent. They looked to Jackson’s heroic
stand at New Orleans as the main victory of the war, which in reality was
not. This stand, however, would lead Jackson to becoming president. The
real losers were the natives, whose land was continually cut up by the
Americans, while the British chose to look the other way. Many natives
fought and died for the British, yet were given nothing in return.
