The War of 1812

A war that is not discussed very often that the new country of the United States was involved in is called the War of 1812. The new Americans had many irritations to deal with which preceded the beginning of this war and some of them started in Europe between France and Britain. France and Britain were making it difficult for each other to trade their goods in Europe. France, which had supremacy over the continent of Europe prevented British goods from being sold there. In their turn, Britain, which was dominant over the seas, sought to blockade Europe.

To get around the French, the British declared that neutral ships should go through Britain before going to Europe to sell their goods. The French, who were unhappy with this act, denounced all neutral ships which went along with the British embargo. The United States felt aggrieved by the actions of both France and Britain, but it was more upset with Britain. On top of dominating the seas, Britain was also removing British sailors from American ships and also would kidnap American sailors. The United States was not happy with any of these actions.

To combat the actions of the British, the Embargo Act was enacted and American ships were forbidden to engage in foreign trade. This did not force France and Britain to open up trade to them, but severely weakened New England’s shipping industry. The next answer, to some people, was to declare war and invade Canada. The war was so unpopular in New England that in 1814 they considered seceding from the union.

The war was fought along the Canadian border, Washington D.C. and New Orleans, with some gains won by Britain and some won by the U.S., but the war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Ghent. The differences between Britain and the United States were not resolved with this treaty, but it did end the fighting.

WHAT IS MEMORIAL DAY ABOUT?

Memorial Day is always the last Monday of the month of May; this year it will be May 31. You may have an opportunity to go to a picnic or some other type of celebration and have a nice day off, but it is also an occasion to remember what this holiday is about. The holiday of Memorial Day was to honor all the veterans past and present of the wars of the United States; there have been several.

This country needs a holiday like Memorial Day because there have been so many wars throughout its history. This country began with a war, the Revolutionary War. This war was fought to become independent from the British Empire. When the war was won a new country was born. Not long after that it was necessary to fight the war of 1812 also against the British; once this war was ended it was definite at that point that the United States would remain independent from the United Kingdom.

After the War of 1812, the British were no longer a problem for the Americans. They could turn their attention to other areas of the land. The Southwest was where the Mexican-American War was fought which brought a large part of the Southwest into the United States. Then in the 1860s the Civil War was fought between the northern states and the southern states; the result of this war was that the union was not broken up and slavery was abolished.

The Spanish-American War was fought at the end of the 19th century and this is when the United States gained control of several islands in the Caribbean and the Pacific. World War I, the first war of the 20th century, was fought in Europe. Most of the veterans of these wars are obviously no longer living. The only verified American veteran of World War I, Frank Woodruff Buckles, is 109.

The veterans of these wars are the people that we are to honor on Memorial Day. When you are enjoying your holiday, be sure to take the time out to think of the people who fought in these wars because they sacrificed so much for the country. There will be Memorial Day sales and it is okay to partake in them as long as you take time out to remember the veterans.