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VOICE ONE:

THE MAKING OF A NATION -- a program in Special English.

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The United States and Britain were moving closer to war in thespring of Eighteen-Twelve. Congress had approved a ninety-dayembargo on American ships. None of these ships was to leave home.And American ships in foreign ports and at sea were ordered toreturn to the United States. President Madison requested the embargoto prevent the capture of these ships when war started.

The president was sure there wouldbe war. He had seen the instructions from London to British ministerAugustus Foster. The British foreign minister warned Foster to saynothing about any compromise. He wanted the United States to see howfirmly Britain would continue its orders against neutral trade withthe enemies of Britain.

VOICE TWO:

President Madison had hoped for some sign of compromise. Butthere was none. Congress continued to prepare the nation for war.Lawmakers voted to increase the size of the army and to borrow moneyto pay for things the larger army would need.

But not all members of Congress wanted war with Britain. ManyFederalists, especially, opposed it. Some of them tried to end theembargo only a month after it began.

Congressman Hermanus Bleecker showed the House a list of hundredsof names from his area of New York. He said all these people opposedthe embargo and the idea of war with Britain. "It is impossible," hesaid, "that we can go to war when the embargo ends, sixty days fromnow. Where are our armies? Our navy? Have we the money to fight awar? Why, it would be treason to go to war this soon...so poorlyprepared."

VOICE ONE:

Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin was having a difficult timefinding money to borrow. He could get almost no money at all fromFederalist New England banks. Congress had approved borrowingeleven-million dollars. But Gallatin found the banks would lend onlysix-million to the United States government.

The Federalists charged that Gallatin's difficulties showed thepeople did not want war, especially the people of New England. Ifthe people of the West and the South wanted to fight, then let thempay for the war.

Republican John Randolph also spoke against the war. "How couldthe administration speak of war when it did not even have thecourage to order taxes to raise money? Are we to go to war withoutmoney, without men, without a navy? The people will not believe it."

John C. Calhoun answered Randolph. "So far from being unprepared,Sir, I believe that four weeks from the time war is declared, wewill have captured much of British Canada."

VOICE TWO:

Sure that Britain would not change its hostile policies,President Madison sent a secret message to Congress on June First,proposing that war be declared. Madison listed the reasons for war:

British warships had violated the American flag at sea. TheBritish navy had seized and carried off persons protected by thisflag. British warships also violated United States waters,interfering with American ships as they entered and left port.Another reason, he said, was Britain's orders against trade withFrance or allies of France. International law, he said, gave Britainno right to make such orders.

Madison also spoke of the hostile Indians of the northwestterritory, and seemed to charge British Canada with helping theIndians.

VOICE ONE:

The president's message was sent to the Foreign Affairs Committeeof the House for discussion. The committee's report was made twodays later by chairman John C. Calhoun. He proposed that the Housedeclare war.

The House, meeting in secret, heard the report. Federalist JosiahQuincy proposed that the debate should be made public. This proposalwas defeated. The final vote on declaring war was seventy-nine "for"and forty-nine "against". In the Senate, the vote was even closer:nineteen "for" and thirteen "against".

President Madison signed the bill on June Eighteenth. The War of1812 had begun.

VOICE TWO:

The leaders in Washington did not know it, but Britain -- twodays earlier -- had ended its orders against neutral American trade.The orders might have been withdrawn earlier, except for a number ofevents.

British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval, under great politicalpressure, had decided to end the British orders on neutral trade.Businessmen and traders were loudly protesting that the orders weredestroying England's economy. On May Eleventh, before Perceval couldact, he was shot to death. Not until June Eighth was agreementreached on a new prime minister, Lord Liverpool.

Eight days later, his government announced that the orders wereended immediately. This was only two days before war was to bedeclared in Washington. And, with ships the only method ofcommunication, the British action was not learned of in time.

VOICE ONE:

If the United States had had aminister in London during the spring of Eighteen-Twelve, he wouldhave been able to report progress toward ending the orders. But theAmerican minister, William Pinkney, had returned home a yearearlier.

On the day that war was declared, the United States was far fromready to fight. There were only about eight-thousand Americansoldiers. And most of them were serving in the West. The UnitedStates had only a few warships and gunboats with which to face theBritish navy -- the most powerful naval force in the world.

Worst of all was the division among the people of the UnitedStates about the war. It was strongly opposed in the Northeast.Church bells were rung and flags lowered in New England when thedeclaration of war was announced. Massachusetts, Rhode Island, andConnecticut refused to let their state soldiers follow the orders ofthe national government.

VOICE TWO:

The United States could not have lasted long against the militarypower of Britain had it not been for the war in Europe. Most ofBritain's forces were battling the soldiers of Napoleon Bonaparte.Britain could send only small forces to fight the Americans.

The United States tried to increase the size of its army. But theUnited States had not fought a war, or needed an army, for a longtime.

The officers who led troops in the Revolutionary War were oldmen, and tired. The young men had never fought and knew little aboutthe ways of war. Two top generals were named by President Madison:sixty-two-year-old Henry Dearborn, and Thomas Pinckney, sixty-three.Most of the other generals were almost as old.

There also was the problem of getting enough men to serve assoldiers. Congress had approved an increase of twenty-five-thousandmen. Only five-thousand agreed to serve. Members of Congress fromthe western states had spoken proudly of how their people would rushto fight the British. This did not happen. The first request toKentucky for soldiers produced only four-hundred men.

VOICE ONE:

The United States decided the first attacks should be madeagainst Canada. There were only about twenty-five-hundred Britishsoldiers guarding the border between the United States and Canada.Four campaigns were planned. The first of these was led by an oldRevolutionary War soldier, General William Hull.

General Hull and his two-thousand men were ordered to march fromsouthern Ohio to the city of Detroit, in the Michigan territory.They had completed the three-hundred-kilometer march before war wasdeclared. Hull was given immediate orders to invade Canada.

The old general crossed the border and attacked the British atMalden. But the British general there was prepared, and the attackfailed. Hull retreated back to Detroit. He was chased by a smallerforce of British soldiers and Indians.

Although Hull had the stronger force and plenty of supplies, hesurrendered Detroit to the British. After the war, Hull was tried bya military court on charges of cowardice. The court found him guiltyand ordered him shot. The president, because of Hull's serviceduring the Revolutionary War, permitted the old soldier to live.

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VOICE TWO:

You have been listening to the Special English program, THEMAKING OF A NATION. Your narrators were Maurice Joyce and StuartSpencer. Our program was written by Frank Beardsley. THE MAKING OF ANATION can be heard Thursdays.