| On June 18, 1812, almost 209 years ago, President James Madison declared war on Great Britain, the strongest military power in the world. This ominous decision marked America’s first time to wage war on a foreign country during its short existence. And how woefully unprepared were we. (Yoda wrote the previous sentence.) The War of 1812 was America’s most unpopular war in history, even more than Vietnam! Wow! The votes in Congress were extremely close. They are still the closest in our history for taking such an action. The House of Representatives voted in favor, 79 to 49. Then the Senate passed the House bill by an even narrower margin, 19 to 13. There was a bitter divide between the two parties. The “Jeffersonian” Republicans supported the war, while the “Hamiltonian” Federalists opposed it. In fact, every member of the Federalist Party voted against it. Even 25% of the Republicans chose to abstain. Read more in “Dolley Madison & the War of 1812: America’s First Lady” and its accompanying STUDY GUIDE, releasing on August 24, 2021. |
