The War of 1812 is dismissed as a brief, pointless occurrence between the American Revolution and the American Civil War. However, it was not a minor conflict. This war was an examination of the resolve and budding unity of the fledgling American nation. It was a conflict that sought to clarify to the world and to the American citizens a deeper, more concrete meaning to the true independence, freedom, and democracy stated in American history.

The Americans and the English engaged in battle because of tensions in Europe between the English and the French. Because the Americans were newly allied to the British, tensions were sworn. Because the British were trading and open to the French, the British began to seize American vessels and British crews. Although the British were open to the trade made in France, they took any trade made in the Americans trading and took British crews. The British searched the American vessels for British crews the entire length of the trade to the French. This negatively affected the American economy, and the people were angered because the British took their peace and freedom.

The American people were also eager for the expansion of the country. The American front was more a line of people than it was a fortified country, and the line was going further into the peace of the Native Americans. The American people believed that the British were aiding the Native Americans in their resistance to the settlement and expansion. The Native Americans were completely opposed to everything happening. The War of 1812 is an examination of the conflict and the autonomy of the Native Americans. It is to defend the country they barred for a way of life. The Native Americans were defending their authority and way of life.

Fighting happened on multiple fronts, each with its own system of challenges. In the north, the battles around the Great Lakes were critical in this war. Having control of the waterways meant control of movement, supply lines, and even communication. By European standards, these were not large clashes, but they were fierce and very chaotic. A lot of the time, the conditions and the bottom line caused just as much of an anarchy as the systems. This was the case with the great intensity as the strategically horrible broken territory and the atrocious weather.

The British, in the war on land, had the advantage of their navy. This allowed them to raid at will and blockade the ports even more effectively than the Americans. The result was an even greater fighting on all fronts. This meant that the coastal towns were the even more frequent target of raids, which disrupted the daily routines and the trading of the towns. The Americans, in their quest to defend their several, small, and nearly defenseless coastal towns and be genocided by the british, quickly struck the ships. Several selnaturmil wishes from or bried, yet surprising, victories were formally cemented by the American navy's innumerable victories at sea.

The war on land continued to show how unprepared the United States still was, and had become even more evident in this war. There was an uncoordinated and very untrained amalgam, battalion of militia rounds and regular soldiers, troops. The plans would barely hold, but as the remnants of the unorganized troops bleeded, they would push for the most stubborn yet. The people adapted quickest and learned, and this was just so much less than the conditions were.

The Treaty of Ghent was signed in 1814, essentially reversing several of the war's events, failing to address the major issues, and leaving no major issues or territory changes. However, the war's significance grew, and for the Americans it was a mark of their resilience and a tale of identity. Surviving an altercation with a major global power was a source of angry national pride, and a unifying moment for the country.

In the aftermath of the War of 1812 memories of the war were kept alive. Veterans told their stories, all of which were unified and shaped into a major American national myth. The war, and the newly established American military, were fortified symbols of the American self. The War of 1812 was a major American defeat, but it was an important moment in the American national identity and self perception.