The Project Gutenberg EBook of The War With the United States
A Chronicle of 1812
Volume 14 (of 32) in the series Chronicles of Canada, by William Wood

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Title: The War With the United States
A Chronicle of 1812
Volume 14 (of 32) in the series Chronicles of Canada

Author: William Wood

Editor: George M. Wrong and H. H. Langton

Release Date: January 3, 2005 [EBook #14582]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WAR WITH THE UNITED STATES ***

This etext was produced by Gardner Buchanan.

CHRONICLES OF CANADA
Edited by George M. Wrong and H. H. Langton
In thirty-two volumes

Volume 14

THE WAR WITH THE UNITED STATES
A Chronicle of 1812

By WILLIAM WOOD
TORONTO, 1915

CONTENTS

I. OPPOSING CLAIMS
II. OPPOSING FORCES
III. 1812: OFF TO THE FRONT
IV. 1812: BROCK AT DETROIT AND QUEENSTON HEIGHTS
V. 1813: THE BEAVER DAMS, LAKE ERIE, AND CHATEAUGUAY
VI. 1814: LUNDY'S LANE, PLATTSBURG, AND THE GREAT BLOCKADE
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

CHAPTER I

OPPOSING CLAIMS

International disputes that end in war are not generally
questions of absolute right and wrong. They may quite as
well be questions of opposing rights. But, when there
are rights on both sides; it is usually found that the
side which takes the initiative is moved by its national
desires as well as by its claims of right.

This could hardly be better exemplified than by the vexed
questions which brought about the War of 1812. The British
were fighting for life and liberty against Napoleon.
Napoleon was fighting to master the whole of Europe. The
United States wished to make as much as possible out of
unrestricted trade with both belligerents. But Napoleon's
Berlin Decree forbade all intercourse whatever with the
British, while the British Orders-in-Council forbade all
intercourse whatever with Napoleon and his allies, except
on condition that the trade should first pass through
British ports. Between two such desperate antagonists
there was no safe place for an unarmed, independent,
'free-trading' neutral. Every one was forced to take
sides. The British being overwhelmingly strong at sea,
while