War Of 1812: A Historical Analysis

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The War of 1812 has a varying amount of study within each of the parties involved: some historians look toward the event with pride, others with complete disinterest. This paper will focus on these social observations of the war and its impact on the public both past and present. Studying both primary and secondary accounts that provide a glimpse into society’s opinion of the conflict will provide the groundwork for this paper. In doing so, this text will work to understand the inherent biases and opinions of the War of 1812 within each party. Initially, this study will work to understand the early responses of the colonists in Canada through newspaper articles. The focus will then shift forwards in time with an examination of several articles …show more content…
This will then transfer to modern day Britain and how they see, and often disregard, the War of 1812. In addition, America’s views will be examined. The primary accounts will come from several soldiers involved in the conflict and their apparent enthusiasm for battle with the British. This will contrast greatly with the modern American’s idea of the conflict as most of the war is overlooked in favour of more eventful wars in their history. Finally, a summary of the perceptions involved will be provided with further examination into the observation of the War of 1812. All in all, each of these studies will work to understand the inner workings at large of each party involved in the War of 1812 in the past and present, and then further examine the biases and perceptions inherent to …show more content…
This sentiment is seen in both past and present accounts of the conflict. For the contemporary Canadians of the War of 1812 the war is seen as a great affront to the Canadian peoples, who see themselves as above the Americans. An article in the York Gazette from 1812 refers to the Americans as, “Sycophants who lick the dust from the feet of Bonaparte.” This article continues to paint the Americans as pawns of Napoleon, a source of contempt for the Canadians who are support of the British. This war, for the Canadians, is also a great opportunity for them to construct a more firm cultural identity. The Canadians were a people taken apart and wedged back together during the Expulsion of the Acadians in 1755, leaving them a patchwork of culture. In seeing the war as an opportunity to present a unified nation there are proposals to dissuade American judgments of them in further articles, “our enemies have indeed said that they can subdue this country by proclamation; but it is our part to prove to them that they are sadly mistaken; that the population is determinately hostile.” This is an attempt to declare a new Canadian identity, one that proves them an aggressive and unified force. The events of the War of 1812 prove to be a watershed moment for the Canadian people in coming together as one nation. These sentiments can easily be compared to the modern Canadian’s opinion of the War