IV. Federalist Grievances and the Hartford Convention As the capture of New Orleans seemed imminent, Massachusetts,Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Rhode Island secretly met inHartford from December 15, 1814 to January 5, 1815, to discuss theirgrievances and to seek redress for their wrongs. While a few talked about secession, most wanted financialassistance form Washington to compensate for lost trade, and anamendment requiring a 2/3 majority for all declarations of embargos,except during invasion. Three special envoys from Mass. went to D.C., where they weregreeted with the news from New Orleans; their mission failed, and theysank away in disgrace and into obscurity. The Hartford Convention proved to be the death of the FederalistParty, as their last presidential nomination was trounced by JamesMonroe in 1816. V. The Second War for American Independence The War of 1812 was a small war involving some 6,000 Americanskilled or wounded, and when Napoleon invaded Russia in 1812 with500,000 men, Madison tried to invade Canada with about 5,000 men. Yet, the Americans proved that they could stand up for what theyfelt was right, and naval officers like Perry and MacDonough gained newrespect; American diplomats were treated with more respect than before. The Federalist Party died out forever, and new war heroes, like Andrew Jackson and William Henry Harrison, emerged. Manufacturing also prospered during the British blockade, since there was nothing else to do. Incidents like the burning of Washington added fuel to the bitterconflict with Britain, and led to hatred of the nation years after thewar, though few would have guessed that the War of 1812 would be thelast war America fought against Britain. Many Canadians felt betrayed by the Treaty of Ghent, since not evenan Indian buffer state had been achieved, and the Indians, left by theBritish, were forced to make treaties where they could. In 1817, though, after a heated naval arms race in the Great Lakes,the Rush-Bagot Treaty between the U.S. and Britain provided theworld?s longest unfortified boundary (5,527 mi.). After Napoleon?s final defeat at Waterloo, Europe sank intoan exhaustion of peace, and America looked west to further expand. VI. Nascent Nationalism After the war, American nationalism really took off, and authorslike Washington Irving (Rumpelstiltskin, The Knickerbocker Tales suchas The Legend of Sleepy Hollow) and James Fenimore Cooper (TheLeatherstocking Tales which included The Last of the Mohicans) gainedinternational recognition. The North American Review debuted in 1815, and American painterspainted landscapes of America on their canvases, while history bookswere now being written by Americans for Americans. Washington D.C. rose from the ashes to be better than ever, and the navy and army strengthened themselves. Stephen Decatur, naval hero of the War of 1812 and the BarbaryCoast expeditions, was famous for his American toast after his returnfrom the Mediterranean: ?Our country! In her intercourse withforeign nations may she always be in the right; but our country, rightor wrong!? VII. ?The American System? After the war, British competitors dumped their goods onto Americaat cheap prices, so America responded with the Tariff of 1816, thefirst in U.S. history designed for protection, which put a 20-25%tariff on dutiable imports. It was not high enough, but it was a great start, and in 1824, Henry Clay established a program called the American System. The system began with a strong banking system. It advocated a protective tariff behind which eastern manufacturing would flourish. It also included a network of roads and canals, especially in theburgeoning Ohio Valley, to be funded for by the tariffs, and through
