The Final Treaty of Ghent, in the Form of the Outline and Detailed Analysis Sent to the Head of America's Diplomatic Corp in Europe (In the hand of negotiator Jonathan Russell, it includes a notice of its imminent signing)

Jonathan Russell

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?We shall receive the British ministers at a conference this day to fill up the blanks, particularly those with respect to the limitation of capture at sea, and to arrange some of the formalities of the treaty.? This done, and fair copies of the treaty drawn up, it will be signed. You have now before you the results of our labors. I will make no other comment than that I believe we have done the best, or nearly the best, which was practicable in existing conditions.?The 1783 Treaty of Paris ending the American Revolution awarded the western frontier to the United States, but the British did not give up the idea of setting up a Native American buffer state between its holdings and the U.S. on that frontier. This hoped-for state would be shaped like a dagger and descend from the Canadian border on a line from the center point of Ohio west to the Mississippi River and reach to the far south of the Illinois Territory. It would act as a block to American immigration west, hinder U.S. use of the new Louisiana Purchase lands and the Mississippi River, discourage American trade in the west to the benefit of British merchants, set up an ally on the western border of the U.S., and make Canada safer from potential U.S. incursions.By the late 1790s, from their forts in Ontario, the British were supplying and arming the Indians living in what is now the United States. By 1810 the Native Americans were ready to organize and were presenting a serious threat to American pioneers and interests. Two visionary Shawnee Indian leaders, Tecumseh and his brother The Prophet, realized that if US encroachment onto Indian land was ever to be stopped, this was the time. They rallied a broad Indian alliance to fight the white settlers. The alliance promised to sign over no more land to the whites, and the various tribes of the region promised to work together. The British were aiding and financing the Indian alliance from Canada. Though Tecumseh was defeated in Indiana by General William Henry Harrison in 1811, in 1812 threats of Indian uprisings remained a reality on the American frontier.American trade was in a state of crisis by 1812. The British were seizing American ships on the high seas, and forcing seamen to join the Royal Navy or merchant navy.? This impressment of seamen was deemed necessary because of the difficulty in obtaining enough recruits in Britain. Probably in the neighborhood of 6,000 Americans were impressed by the British leading up to the War of 1812. Americans considered this action as a violation of their sovereignty, a real slap in the face. In addition, Britain seized vessels bound for Europe that did not first call at a British port. France retaliated, confiscating vessels if they had first stopped in Britain. Together they seized nearly 1,500 American vessels between 1803 and 1812. This was a staggering number, and as many of the cargoes were sold as prizes, the loss to American merchants was enormous.Pushing for war in 1812 were the War Hawks, a group of prominent Congressmen mainly from the west and south, led by House Speaker Henry Clay, and also including John C. Calhoun. On June 1, 1812, President James Madison, sufficiently persuaded by the pro-war position, sent the U.S. Congress a war message, and war was declared June 17. But the U.S. was unprepared for the War of 1812, and the fortunes of war proved vacillating. There were successes, such as William Henry Harrison?s victory in the northwest in the Battle of the Thames, in which Tecumseh was killed, and Oliver H. Perry?s victory on Lake Erie. But there were also failures, such as Gen. James Wilkinson's expedition against Montreal; also, Fort Niagara was lost, Black Rock and Buffalo were burned, and great quantities of provisions and stores destroyed. The American hope of conquering Canada began to look like a dream, and the threat remained that the British and their Indian allies might yet gain a hold over territory in the American west in order to create an Indian b.

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• Titre: The Final Treaty of Ghent, in the Form of the Outline and Detailed Analysis Sent to the Head of America's Diplomatic Corp in Europe (In the hand of negotiator Jonathan Russell, it includes a notice of its imminent signing)
• Signé: Signé par l'auteur