Canada has built an official website… to celebrate the bicentennial of the War of 1812. The Canadian tourism board built the site to encourage visitors as the country celebrates from Ontario to Quebec. Festivals, parades, living history, and a variety of remembrances are planned for a summer of national pride. Canada is celebrating “200 years of peace”, but wasn’t this an American war?
Oh, Canada ?
Critical historians have long considered… the War of 1812 at worst, a national embarrassment- at best, a lucky draw. The lack of remembrance on the part of Americans reflects the adverse scholarship that has helped write our national story. Are we to teach our children that Americans rushed into war with Britain, tried to conquer the peace-loving Canadians, and only escaped because the Brits gave up? Are there no heroes or villains? Was the War of 1812 significant only to Canada? Practically Historical wants to set the record straight.
Remember me?
Thank you, it’s long overdue.