Discussion for article #226771
The war of 1812 is seen much differently in Canadian history. It is very much seen as a war of aggression prosecuted by revolutionary zealots. Canadians repelled the invaders from a series of fortified positions and prevented the spread of the destabilising ideology represented by the U.S…
The Quebecois and Acadians and the Iriquois Nation were particularly prominent in resisting this invasion from the south.
Why was Washington burned? Why Atlanta, or Dresden or Carthage. It’s war. Countervalue strikes have strategic value.
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“A late summer storm helped douse some of the flames which probably aided
the later rebuilding of the White House and Capitol as well as the
Gallatin mansion.”
The “late summer storm” mentioned in the article actually was a hurricane that struck in the afternoon and howled all night. It even spawned a powerful tornado that went right through the middle of Washington and terrified the English troops in that city. The rain succeeded in dousing the flames in the burned public buildings the British had set fire to. The White House and Capitol were, it should not be forgotten, looted by the invading troops prior to being burned.
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Historians have to be very careful about British revisionism. The British are very good at sanitizing their historical actions and imposing it on the record. For this reason, I am sure the Canadians have a different view of the War of 1812. They still owe allegiance to the Queen of England.
I have lived quite a few years in the Niagara region of Ontario, an area full of places of conflict during the War of 1812. People there lived through that war. They don’t need to refer or defer to the Queen of England to form their own opinions. I would hope that people in the US can also use their own brains to learn about things that have happened in the past. It seems like this article offers us all an opportunity to use our brains a little and to learn.
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oohh I lurve it when Muricans talk about why Canadians think what they think and to whom they owe allegiance.
1812…Imbued with that old “Manifest Destiny”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manifest_destiny,
assumption…American troops push their way across the 49th parallel in attempt to follow said “destiny” into Upper and Lower Canada.
Since two years later…the border hadn’t changed one jot…I"d say as a Canadian my “different view” is …Amerca didn’t fulfill it’s “destiny”…AKA they lost.
The only sanitizing happening is from those who think point that fact out is “sanitizing”
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And those damned, dirty limeys ate Dolley Madison’s dessert.
@imarsman
I mean no disrespect to the sacrifices of your neighbors and your people in Niagara, Ontario and elsewhere in Canada during the skirmishes with the Americans.
All I am saying is that the historical record of apparent facts left behind by the British around the world is seriously flawed because it was systematically fabricated and doctored. It was fabricated to make the British look good.
Our collective view of history is simply not a matter of using ones brains as individuals. It also involves cultural, educational and social influences.
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Ah yes, and we could say the same to you!
We were not taught that anyone won the war. However, we were taught, among other stuff, that the Americans were deathly afraid of the “Indians” and especially their leader Tecumseh; that the American invaders were successfully repelled through a series of very badly executed skirmishes; and that the Americans burned my little town of Newark (renamed Niagara-on-the-Lake) to the ground. And all of it true.
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The first casualty of war is the truth. The last is its history.
“The Royal Navy would impress American sailors…”
I’m doubtful about about a historian who would let that euphemistic term go unexplained.
Impressment was flat-out kidnapping and enslavement.
The River Raisin National Battlefield in Monroe Michigan is dedicated to the War of 1812. The Americans lost, but we were given the war call of “Remember the Raisin” to motivate us on to win the war. http://www.nps.gov/rira/index.htm Check it out!
like a miracle sort of?
I must say I enjoyed reading this. I wanted to forward it to somebody but couldn’t think of anyone who would care. I grew up a few miles from Havre De Grace. I’m not sure I knew the British burned it.
Did anyone proofread this before publishing?
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I’m curious what is your issue?
I heard on Fox News this was all Obama’s fault.
So take that you billionaire liberal elitists.
Ok, the headline for this piece is just ridiculous. The piece recounts the story of the burning of Washington, goes to some length to show that maybe the motive for the burning of Washington wasn’t in retaliation for the burning of York, but just for military purposes. That’s the difference between what we were taught and the reality. That is a far cry from “everything you know about this is wrong”.
Look, I understand that the goal of the headline is to get people to click on the article. But let’s not wildly exaggerate what the actual article is claiming, please.
not sure if ‘there was to be no wonton burning’ referred to Chinese restaurants?
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