John Newton is an interesting figure from British history. You’re familiar with his work, I bet, even if you don’t realize that you are. He led an amazing life. Probably the most similar figure I’ve blogged about before would be Bartolome de las Casas. (Read about de las Casas with this link.) Both de las […]
Tag: War of 1812
The U.S. Invades Canada—and Fails
When I used to teach U.S. history to college students, our discussion of when the U.S. invades Canada always got a good laugh. I suppose because the idea of invading Canada seems so beyond possible to them today, they don’t know how else to respond. However, it happened once, during the War of 1812. The […]
Real Pirates of the Caribbean
The Battle of New Orleans, fought in January 1815, remains an important conflict in American history. Interestingly, however, the importance is not in its military consequences, considering that the battle itself occurred about three weeks after the War of 1812 was over. (The peace treaty was signed in Europe, and in 1815, news traveled only […]