![]() ![]() Lord Liverpool planned to use the war to expand Britain’s holdings in North America and, more importantly, permanently cripple its former colonies as a maritime rival. While the Treaty of Ghent restored American and Canadian territory to status quo ante bellum and ignored most of the issues that led to war, Daughan argues that the United States gained much from the conflict, largely thanks to the efforts of its navy. He contends that Great Britain held far more ambitious war aims than merely punishing the upstart nation or maintaining the Royal Navy’s right to impressment. Daughan sets the young American navy’s battles with British in the context of domestic and international politics of the era, showing how maritime victories reaped lasting political benefits, despite the fact that the war itself ended in a stalemate. Daughan, author of the Samuel Eliot Morrison Award-winning If By Sea: The Forging of the American Navy, from the Revolution to the War of 1812 (2008) sets a high standard for forthcoming volumes with his excellent work on the role of sea power in the country’s second conflict with Great Britain. While 1812: The Navy’s War focuses on the maritime fight, it does not do so exclusively. With the bicentennial of the War of 1812 upon us, we can expect a host of new books on this once “forgotten conflict” in the next three years. ![]() Reviewed by Thomas Sheppard (UNC Chapel Hill)
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