User:Aashna18/sandbox

Ideas for Wikipedia articles
1) British commemoration/memory of the War

Whilst the US and Canada have their own unique memory of the war, the same cannot be said for Britain. There is very little - if any - commemoration for the War of 1812 in UK public history, let alone British historiography or school curricula. This also applies to the Wikipedia pages reserved for the Memory and Historiography of the War of 1812 - there are sections for the USA, Canada and general historiography, but none for the British who were one of the main combatants. It would be interesting to navigate this gap in memory given the ambiguous outcome of the war. Whether this was due to British preoccupation with the Napoleonic Wars, or whether that was a more emphasized period in 19th century British history, I think it would be worth creating a Wikipedia page dedicated to Britain's commemoration and memory of the War in the modern era.

Taken from Memory and Historiography section of War of 1812 page.

2) Native American and British Alliance

Although there exist short sections of pages mentioning the alliance between the Native Americans and British during the war, I personally believe they lack depth in detailing the bonds formed between the two people. It could be interesting to investigate how strong the claims of British support for Native American states in the North-West were, or whether this was more of a tactic used to create more opposition towards the Americans and establish a foothold inside the country. The unique ally that Britain found in Native Americans was vital during the war, and their betrayal in abandoning this 'ally' at its end is worthy of further research to investigate whether this was an intended outcome from the beginning.

Taken from British support for Native American raids section of War of 1812 page.

3) US (political) opposition to the war

General opposition to the war would be an intriguing topic for research. I am particularly taken by the political dimensions of the war, with reference to the adamance of Warhawks in pushing for the conflict. The general political battles between Federalists and these Democratic-Republicans are compelling, given that the country was still new to the politics they had devised and self-government in its entirety. However, researching wider opposition originating from enslaved peoples and other voices of dissent would be similarly thought-provoking, as I imagine US politicians have already been thoroughly written about in the context of the war.

Taken from Opposition to the War of 1812 in the United States page.

British Memory/Commemoration of the War of 1812
I plan to create a page or sub-section on the War of 1812 Wikipedia page under Memory and Historiography for the British perspective. It would be interesting to compare British memory with Canadian and American counterparts and examine why the war does not feature much in British public history or memory.

My bibliography:
Amanda Foreman, 'The British View the War of 1812 Quite Differently Than Americans Do', Smithsonian, (2014). https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/british-view-war-1812-quite-differently-americans-do-180951852/ Slate article James M. Lundberg, 'Happy 200th Birthday, War of 1812!', Slate, (2012). http://www.slate.com/articles/life/history/2012/05/war_of_1812_bicentennial_why_does_no_one_remember_the_war_that_made_andrew_jackson_famous_.html USA Today article http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-06-14/war-of-1812-bicentennial/55603666/1 Rick Hampson, 'War of 1812 bicentennial: The USA shrugs as Canada goes all out', The Washington Post, (2012). https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/want-to-learn-more-about-the-war-of-1812-go-to-canada/2013/09/23/394b9922-2457-11e3-b3e9-d97fb087acd6_story.html?utm_term=.2ce5d3e9961c Richard Simon, 'Who really won the War of 1812?', LA Times, (2012). http://articles.latimes.com/2012/feb/26/nation/la-na-war-of-1812-20120226 Whose war of 1812? Competing Memories of the Anglo-American Conflict http://www.history.ac.uk/reviews/review/1387 The challenge: Britain against America in the naval war of 1812 Martin Salmon, 'The challenge: Britain against America in the naval war of 1812', Journal for Maritime Research, (2015). https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/21533369.2015.1024532 Matthew Dennis, 'Reflections on a Bicentennial: The War of 1812 in American Public Memory', Early American Studies, 12, (2014). http://www.jstor.org/stable/24474882?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchText=Whose&searchText=War&searchText=of&searchText=1812&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3DWhose%2BWar%2Bof%2B1812&refreqid=search%3Aa6d5a60c7447d8489c17cb66281c6588&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents Lawrence Hatter, 'Party Like it's 1812: The War at 200' Tennessee Historical Quarterly, 71, (2012). http://www.jstor.org/stable/42628248?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchText=Whose&searchText=War&searchText=of&searchText=1812&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3DWhose%2BWar%2Bof%2B1812&refreqid=search%3Aa6d5a60c7447d8489c17cb66281c6588&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents 1812: A British Perspective https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_4b7mjSJFU Jeremy Black, 'A British View of the Naval War of 1812', Naval History Magazine, 22, (2008). https://www.usni.org/magazines/navalhistory/2008-08/british-view-naval-war-1812 Donald R. Hickey, The War of 1812: A Forgotten Conflict, (USA, 2012). https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=Ik6Vi82gLagC&oi=fnd&pg=PP2&dq=the+war+of+1812+british+perspective&ots=j3nrzz4UWy&sig=0MhFJctrE66Uc4g9_9GzQ41ewFk#v=onepage&q=the%20war%20of%201812%20british%20perspective&f=false Wilbur Devereux Jones, 'A British View of the War of 1812 and the Peace Negotiations', The Mississippi Valley Historical Review, 45, (1958). http://www.jstor.org/stable/1889322?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents

British Memory of the War of 1812
The War of 1812 does not feature prominently in contemporary British memory. The attitude held by Britons during 1812 – that the war existed on the periphery of their ongoing battles against Napoleon – has translated to modern memory of the conflict. Whereas the war facilitated the growth and consolidation of identity for Americans, British identity was more heavily formed during these Napoleonic wars instead. During his 2012 visit to the White House, then-British Prime Minister David Cameron joked that:

""We so much more prefer talking about defeating the French."."

In the 19th century, William Kingsford posited that:

""The events of the War of 1812 have not been forgotten in England, for they have never been known there.""

After the American War of Independence and the War of 1812 – and possibly before – Britain began to refocus her efforts upon Europe, believing that it would play a more significant role in shaping its future than North America. This may account for the absence of the war within British memory.

Although the War of 1812 plays a significant role in American and Canadian public history, there is only one British monument commemorating the conflict. The Ross Monument in County Down, Northern Ireland memorialises British Major-General Robert Ross who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and perished at the Battle of Baltimore in 1812. However, there are currently no British memorials or monuments that directly commemorate the War of 1812 that exist within the United Kingdom.

Edited Entry: British Memory of the War of 1812
The War of 1812 does not feature prominently in contemporary British memory. The attitude held by Britons during 1812 – that the war existed on the periphery of their ongoing battles against Napoleon – has translated to modern memory of the conflict. Whereas the war facilitated the growth and consolidation of a national identity for Americans, British identity was more heavily forged during war against Napoleonic France. During his 2012 visit to the White House, then-British Prime Minister David Cameron joked that:

""We so much more prefer talking about defeating the French."."

In the 19th century, William Kingsford posited that:

""The events of the War of 1812 have not been forgotten in England, for they have never been known there.""

Following the War of 1812, Britain focused more upon Europe, believing that it would play a more significant role in shaping its future than North America This contributed to the absence of the war within British memory.

Although the War of 1812 plays a significant role in American and Canadian public history, there is only one British monument commemorating the conflict. The Ross Monument in County Down, Northern Ireland memorialises British Major-General Robert Ross who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and perished at the Battle of Baltimore in September 1812.