Was the US prepared for the war against Great Britain in 1812?

Answer 1

No, it wasn't, and it had nothing to do with being a new country. By 1812, the United States was more than 35 years old when a group of legislators called the War Hawks began agitating for an attack on Canada.

But the military had been neglected for years, with contracts given to suppliers who sent very poor food and insufficient, poor quality supplies to it. Corruption, both among suppliers and officers, ensured that more of those supplies would never reach soldiers.

Leadership was dodgy at best, with military commands often going to completely inexperienced men relying on money and influence in Washington to lead armies.

To make things worse, in a country where states were powerful, the militia, which made up a large part of the army, were controlled by the states, and were usually raised specifically to defend the state.

In June of 1812, the War Hawks stampeded the president into declaring war, with the intent of forcibly annexing the British territory known as Canada. It should have been easy to overcome a territory with only one twentieth the population, and only 5200 British troops. Thomas Jefferson called it "a mere matter of marching."

Big mistake. From the start, entire militias refused to leave their states, let alone attack a neighbouring country. Some of the men commanding the American invasion forces could best be described as idiots, as events would show.

Canadian militia and natives made up two third of the defenders, with the British regulars at their core, and although they were outnumbered by the attackers, sometimes by ten to one, they were defending their homeland.

As a result, they registered a series of spectacular victories, and sent the attackers fleeing back over the border...and beyond, the Americans surrendering Detroit, Buffalo, and Fort Dearborn (Chicago).

Why? Often terrible leadership, underfed, undertrained regulars, and absent militia...all facing the brilliant Sir Isaac Brock.

Far from capturing Canada, the US found itself unable to prevent the burning of the White House, the sack of Washington, and economic devastation caused by the US Navy's inability to stop the Royal Navy from blockading US ports. The New England states openly discussed seceding from the union, and Vermont happily sold war materials to the British throughout the war.

Britain, war-weary after the epic struggle with Napoleon, but on the verge of sending vastly larger numbers of battled-hardened troops freed up from that conflict, were happy to agree to talks, but notably, the Treaty of Ghent says nothing at all about any of the items on the American list of grievances.

Hard to see how someone could call that an American victory, but you'd have to say the US was unprepared.

AnswerAmerica was not well prepared for the war due to the fact that they were a new nation with limited military power. in fact the White House was nearly burned to the ground! Never the less America eventually came out victorious like we usually do.

Answer 2

The United States was not prepared for a war. England was fighting two wars at the same time, the U.S. and France