200th anniversary of the War of 1812

[icarus]

This is probably getting more press in Canada than here in the UK where no one really knows or cares about it: two hundred years ago today the War of 1812 between the USA and Britain (and her Canadian colonies and native allies) began. Laura Secord, Betsy Ross and all that. Who won?

CBC

BBC

WSJ

[Tyler]

The British?

[Locke]

The French. They get their way without ever having to lift a finger.....

/sarcasm

[Daradon]

If I remember my history, yes the majority of the battles were fought and won by the British, but the colonies, which included English, French, and Native, held off the Americans for an important 3 days before the British reinforcements arrived.

That's something to be proud of anyway. If I am remembering correctly.

[Senator Clay Davis]

We should go burn down the White House to celebrate.

[Daradon]

Originally Posted by Senator Clay Davis

We should go burn down the White House to celebrate.

They're doing that well enough on their own.

[Huntingwhale]

Thoughts and prayers

[GirlySports]

It was a tie. There were no shootouts back then.

[kirant]

Originally Posted by Senator Clay Davis

We should go burn down the White House to celebrate.

Let's let the British do it...just like in 1814.

[CaptainCrunch]

Don't forget that the American Navy was pretty much born in that war with the sinking of the HMS Guerire being sunk by the U.S.S. Constitution after a 3 day running battle.

One of the great American Military sayings that became part of thier military culture was born during the war of 1812 as a mortally wounded James Lawrence of the Cheaspeak exorted his men to "Don'tgie up the ship, hold on me" in the face of a British boarding party.

Also important, the defense of Fort McHenry lead to the writing of the "Star Spangled Banner"

Issac Brock manged to not only stiffen Canadian resistance but got the natives to fight with him against the American invasion force who under General threatened to fight a war of annihilation and execute any British subject caught fighting side by side with a Native.

[Byrns]

A pretty useless war. The Indians were the ones who got screwed the most at the end.

[Komskies]

There's a show on History Channel tonight called Explosion: 1812. I believe it's just a one-part special.

http://www.history.ca/ontv/titledeta...titleid=267631

In June 1812, thirty six years after the Declaration of Independence, the United States of America declared war on Britain and invaded its colony of Upper Canada. Across the Atlantic Britain was already locked in a life and death struggle with Napoleon in Europe. Upper Canada was left poorly defended and vulnerable to attack. Britain relied on the support of its native allies and the militia, a part-time army made of local inhabitants most of whom were in fact American. US politicians were convinced they would be welcomed with open arms, and former president Thomas Jefferson declared that victory would be a ‘mere matter of marching’.

As the fate of North America hung in the balance, the odds were stacked heavily in favour of a United States victory. But this isn’t what happened… One year into the war - after a series of bloody encounters on the battlefield - the United States attacked York, the capital of Upper Canada, (modern day Toronto in Ontario). The British defenders of Fort York detonated their Grand Magazine - an armory packed to the rafters with much of the province’s ammunition supply, including nearly 30,000 pounds of gun powder, together with 10,000 cannonballs and 30,000 cartridges...

[Barnes]

I like the the TV ad for this doc. The Americans marched into York to take the stores of gun powder. Rather than let them have it we "let them have it". Blamo

[dissentowner]

My ancestor I am named after
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Lucas_Yeo

[jeffman]

Never forgive, never forget

[nickerjones]

Originally Posted by kirant

Let's let the British do it...just like in 1814.

yeah I guess they better hope it doesnt turn out like it did in 1775..

I keed I keed.... but really we were just trying to take Toronto.. Most of you guys don't even want it now anyway..

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by nickerjones

yeah I guess they better hope it doesnt turn out like it did in 1775..

I keed I keed.... but really we were just trying to take Toronto.. Most of you guys don't even want it now anyway..

Trade you Toronto for Alasaka and one Hawaiian island to be named later?

[Magnum PEI]

We lost. America dominates the continent, we don't. We are confined to a land of tundra and rock, save for a few pockets of arable land scattered across 5000 km. America is a giant with over 60% of the land in the continental USA used for crops or ranching. (Canada is 7.3%)

Sure the invasion was repulsed, but this was when the British were at the height of their power. America stopped multiple British invasions. If even one of those had succeeded the border might be where Michigan's southern border is now.

Off topic, but I think we should start a Stalin-like 5-year plan and bring in some of the 30 million unemployed Europeans to dynamite huge areas of the Canadian Shield and turn it into farmland. With global warming the climate might become warm enough that it could work.

[icarus]

But as far as I know the War of 1812 was never intended to be a land grab for the British/Canadians; any forays made onto American turf were just to try to beat them into submission, not to conquer their lands. I could be wrong. But if true then the fact that America currently dominates the (arable land of the) continent isn't a good yardstick of measuring the outcome of that conflict.

[wookster]

I wouldn't say we lost, if we had lost we would be the 51st state right now and would be speaking American instead of the Queens proper English. I don't know about you guys but I just can't bring myself to say "Y'all".

As it stands I would call it a draw...