US History
Fort Burrows
10.4 -- TheRoad to War
Conflicts with Native Americans in the West and with the British at sea led to the War of 1812.
Treaty of Greenville - Treaty signed by some Indians giving up land that would later become part of
Ohio in exchange for $20,000 and a promise of more money if they kept the peace
confederation - league of independent states or nations
Battle of Tippecanoe - 1811battle over white settlement in the Indian Territory
War Hawks - member of Congressfrom the South and the West who called for
war with Britain prior to the War of 1812
nationalism - devotion to one’s country
August 1810: William Henry Harrison, Governor of the Indian Territory, was ready to welcome an Indian delegation. Under a canopy,government officials sat and waited.
At last, the leader of the Indian delegation approached. His name was Tecumseh [ tih KUHM suh ]. Behind him stood 30 members of the Shawnee nation.
“Your father requests you to sit by his side,” Harrison’s assistant told Tecumseh. He meant Harrison was chief, a ‘white father’.
Scornfully, Tecumseh pointed to the sky.“My father! The Great Spirit is my father! The earth is my mother… Houses are made for white men to hold councils in. Indians hold theirs in the open air.”
He and his men sat down where they were. Tecumseh was determined to push back the white settlers from Indian lands. Soon, the United States was fighting on two fronts – against Tecumseh’s Indian allies and against Great Britain. /
Conflict with Native Americans
»« 900,000 settlers moved west of the Appalachians between 1790 and 1810
»« Indians resented these newcomers who built farms on Indian lands and hunted the animals Indians needed for food
»« The settlers ignored treaties that the US had signed with the Indian nations
»« Fighting broke out and isolated acts of violence led to larger acts of revenge
»« As both sides killed innocent people, warfare spread
»« In 1794, GW sent General Wayne into Ohio and his well-trained army defeated the Indians at Fallen Timbers
»« In 1795, the Miamis and other Indian nations signed the Treaty of Greenville
»« The Indians gave up land would later become Ohio in return for $20,000 and the promise of more money if they kept the peace
The Greenville Treaty was made between the United States government and the various tribes of the Ohio country during the summer of 1795. The land to the south of the line was open to settlement and essentially ended the Indian occupation of the region and opened the door to Veterans of the Revolutionary War and land speculators.¿ ¿ How did the federal government try to end fighting between Western settlers and Native American in 1795 ?
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Tecumseh’s Confederation
»« Ohio joined the Union in 1803 and white settlers were pushing beyond Ohio and into Indian Territory (again!)
»« Angry Native Americans vowed to keep settlers from taking any more Indian land
»« They included Tecumseh and his brother, Tenskwatawa, also called the Prophet
¥ Unity and Old Ways
»« The Prophet and Tecumseh taught that white customs corrupted the Indian way of life
»« They needed to return to the old ways to gain power to resist white invaders
»« In 1808, the Prophet built a village along the Tippecanoe Creek in Indiana
»« Indians from far away lands traveled to Prophetstown to hear his message
»« Tecumseh organized the Indians into a confederation and called for unity
“The whites have driven us from the great salt water, forced us over the mountains… The way, the only way, to check and stop this evil is for all red men to unite in claiming a common equal right in the land.” Tecumseh, quoted in Tecumseh: Vision of Glory (Tucker)
»« Governor Harrison was impressed with Tecumseh and said
“he is one of those uncommon geniuses which spring up occasionally
to produce revolutions and overturn the established order of things”
¥ Showdown at Tippecanoe
»« Rivalries among Indian nations kept Tecumseh from uniting all Indians east of the Mississippi River
»« In 1811, Harrison marched 1,000 troops against Prophetstown
»« The Prophet was in charge because Tecumseh was away organizing the Indians
»« The Prophet led a surprise night attack on Harrison’s troops
»« Both sides suffered heavy losses at the Battle of Tippecanoe
»« Harrison’s troops defeated Prophet’s forces and destroyed Prophetstown
»« Whites celebrated but Tecumseh continued to resist white settlement
A Push Toward War
¥ Fighting with Native Americans hurt relations between the US and Britain
¥ British were supplying guns and ammunition to the Indians and encouraging attacks on US settlements
¥ The ban on trade with Britain and France was due to expire
¥ Congress authorized Madison to make a tantalizing offer
¥ If either the British or the French would stop seizing US ships, the US would halt trade with the other nation
¥ Napoleon quickly announced that France would respect American neutrality
¥ As promised, the US continued trade with France but stopped all shipments to Britain
¥ The War Hawks
»« While Madison did not want war, other Americans were not as cautious
»« Anti-British feelings ran strong except in New England where they wanted trade restored with Britain
»« Members of Congress from the South and the West called for war and were known as War Hawks
»« War Hawks were stirred by a strong sense of nationalism
»« War Hawks felt like Britain was treating the US like a British colony
»« They were willing to fight to defend American rights
»« Felix Grundy of Tennessee was another outspoken War Hawk in Congress and gave this emotional speech:
/ »« The most outspoken War Hawk was Henry Clay of Kentucky who wanted to punish the British for seizing American ships»« Clay also wanted to conquer Canada
»« If US went to war with Britain, the US could also seize Florida from Spain, Britain’s ally
»« War Hawks felt winning a war against Britain would bring lasting safety to settlers on the frontier
“This war, if carried out successfully, will have its advantages. We shall drive the British from our continent – they will no longer have an opportunity of intriguing with our Indian neighbors….That nation will lose her Canadian trade, and by having no resting place in this country, her means of annoyingus will be diminished….I therefore feel anxious not only to add the Florida’sto the South, but the Canada to the North of this empire”
Felix Grundy, Annals of the Congress of the US, 12th Congress, First Session
¥ Congress Declares War
»« The US and Britain drifted closer to war
»« British continued to board American ships and impress American seaman
»« British warships blockaded American ports to cut off trade with France
»« In May 1811 in NY Harbor, a brief battle broke out between an American frigate and a British warship
»« The Americans crippled the British ship and left 32 sailors dead or wounded
»« War Hawks urged Congress to prepare for war, others disagreed
»« In June 1812, Madison gave in to war fever and asked Congress to declare war on Britain
»« Americans soon learned that declaring war was easier than winning war
¿ ¿ List the arguments FOR declaring War on Great Britain in 1812.
FOR______
¿ ¿ List the arguments AGAINST declaring War on Great Britain in 1812.
AGAINST______
1. Why did conflicts between whitesettlers and Native Americans increase during
the early 1800s ?
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2. What was the goal of Tecumseh’s Native Americans confederation ?
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3. Why did War Hawks push for war against Britain ?
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1 PRINTER COPY of 10.4 APR 2018