Old Glory: IV Trivia Quiz

Answer: hawk

The war hawks were a group of Congressmen pushing for war with Britain. They wanted to punish Britain for its practice of impressment and possibly supplying native tribes hostile to the United States. Many war hawks were Democratic-Republicans hailing from southern or western states. Two prominent war hawks were John C. Calhoun of South Carolina and Henry Clay of Kentucky.

Answer: Isaac Brock

Isaac Brock, along with Tecumseh, laid siege to both the fort and town of Detroit. It was a massive setback for the U.S. military in which nearly 2,500 American soldiers were captured with minimal casualties on the British side. Isaac Brock took steps to give the illusion of a much bigger army with many more British regulars than in actuality. Brock's victories greatly stymied the American attempt to invade Canada and he has become known as "the Hero of Upper Canada".

He was killed at the Battle of Queenston Heights, which was, despite the loss, another victory for the British.

Answer: HMS Guerriere

The USS Constitution, commanded by Isaac Hull, engaged the HMS Guerriere in the Atlantic Ocean in single ship to ship combat. It's said that one cannonball bounced off the hull of the USS Constitution, leading one sailor to say, "Huzzah! Her sides are made of iron!" The victory helped strengthen American morale as the HMS Guerriere had intercepted many American merchant ships during the war.

The USS Constitution would later go on to sink four more British warships: HMS Java, HMS Pictou, HMS Cyane, and HMS Levant.

Answer: Red Sticks

The Red Sticks were a faction within the Creek (also known as the Muscogee). They were against assimilating with American culture as so-called "Five Civilized Tribes" (Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek, Chickasaw, and Seminole) had largely done. This divide between the Red Sticks and the other Creeks led to the Creek War, a civil war within the tribe.

The United State's other native allies in the area, the Cherokee and the Choctaw, joined the war as well. One of the earliest battles of the war took place at Fort Mims, which ended in a Red Stick victory.

However, a massacre ensued after the Red Stick managed to break the fort's defenders.

Answer: Oliver Hazard Perry

Early on in the war, the British took control over Lake Erie. In response, a fleet was built by the Americans to attempt to defeat the British naval presence. The fleet was under the command of Oliver Hazard Perry, a veteran of the Quasi-War and the Barbary Wars. The battle ended in a decisive victory for Perry and his fleet, capturing the entire British force stationed there.

Answer: Battle of the Thames

Prior to the battle, the British forces, led by Henry Procter, withdrew from their positions at Detroit along with their native allies, despite the disapproval of Tecumseh. The reason for the retreat was due to the Battle of Lake Erie ending with American control over the lake, cutting suppl-lines.

However, the American army, led by William Henry Harrison, caught up with the retreating forces and crushed them. It was during this battle that Tecumseh died, and with Tecumseh dead, his confederacy practically died with him.

Answer: Andrew Jackson

The Battle of Horseshoe Bend was a decisive victory for the United States, effectively defeating the Red Sticks faction of the Creek tribe. After the victory, the Creek tribe was made to cede millions of acres of land to the United States and its Cherokee allies in the Treaty of Fort Jackson.

Answer: Washington, D.C.

It should be noted that the War of 1812 was fought concurrently with the Napoleonic Wars. When Napoleon was defeated and exiled to Elba, suddenly the British forces found itself able to more actively respond to the war in North America. A British force was landed in Maryland and defeated the American force at Bladensburg, leaving Washington, D.C. open to attack.

The city, including government buildings such as the White House, was burned by the British army, possibly in retaliation for the burning of York (modern day Toronto) by the Americans previously.

Answer: New York

The Battle of Plattsburg, also known as the Battle of Lake Champlain, took place in New York, somewhat close to the border with Canada. The American forces had been repelled from Canada and now the British were on the offensive. The battle involved both land and naval forces, and ended in a decisive victory for the United States.

The Americans were led by Master Commandant Thomas Macdonough and Brigadier General Alexander Macomb. As a result of their victory, Britain lost any leverage they had in enforcing any territorial claims on U.S. territory.

Answer: Francis Scott Key

Francis Scott Key was a lawyer who wrote the Star-Spangled Banner after witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry, part of the Battle of Baltimore. On the next day, Key saw that the American flag still hung over Fort McHenry, signifying that the Americans won the battle. Of note is the indirect contribution of British composer John Stafford Smith; Smith wrote a song called "To Anacreon In Heaven", which provided the tune for the Star-Spangled Banner.

It did not become the official anthem of the United States until Congress passed a resolution to officially make it the national anthem in 1931.

Answer: Federalists

Madison was already unpopular in New England, where many Federalists hailed from, due to the embargo Britain and France in the past. During the war, New England businesses were being crushed due to the British blockade and the hunting of American merchant ships. Mostly the convention discussed grievances against the war, though some more radical Federalists proposed seceding from the Union and signing a separate peace with Britain.

This convention would later come to haunt the Federalists after the war ended, effectively destroying their reputation, with no chance of recovery.

Answer: it occurred after the U.S. and Britain had agreed to a peace treaty

Due to the fact that news traveled slolwy overseas, the Americans and British forces overseas were unaware that their respective countries had just signed a peace treaty. The British forces were sent to take over New Orleans, yet Andrew Jackson led a ragtag army of militia, marines, sailors, Native Americans, pirates, and freedmen to defend the city. Jackson achieved victory over a force over twice the size of his army, making him very popular.

The victory is also partially responsible for the extreme public backlash against the Federalists, as the War of 1812 had become a war of patriotism.

Answer: Ghent

The Treaty of Ghent ended the War of 1812, resulting in no changes in territory. Both nations were to return any occupied territory. Prisoners were to be released and the slaves Britain had freed during the war were to be returned (however, the British instead opted to pay compensation). Of note is the part of the treaty that stated that both America and Britain would work to end the international slave trade. One of the main reasons for the war, impressment, wasn't addressed since that practice became unnecessary after the end of the Napoleonic Wars.

Historians are divided on whether or not the War of 1812 was a loss, a victory, or a stalemate for the United States.

Answer: James Monroe

The Federalists were defeated in a landslide in the Election of 1816. James Monroe was the Democratic-Republican candidate, who would follow up his victory with a run with practically no real opposition in the next election. It was a time of patriotism and prosperity in America.

The Napoleonic Wars had devastated the states of Europe, leading to growing agricultural exports from America to Europe. Monroe had wanted political parties to become obsolete in the American political system and embarked on a nationwide good-will tour.

The Democratic-Republicans dominated American politics for several years until differing factions eventually tore the party apart.

Answer: 1816

The tariff was meant to protect growing industries in the North since Britain was able to sell manufactured goods more cheaply than early Northern industrialists. The tariff was widely supported throughout the country, yet the events that occurred as a result of the tariff would make the South deeply opposed to tariffs in the future.

Answer: a plan for economic growth

The American System was an economic plan that was inspired by the ideas of Alexander Hamilton. The main parts of the plan were: high protectionist tariffs, maintaining a national bank, keeping a high price of public land to generate revenue from sales, and improving infrastructure by building roads and canals. Opponents of the plan considered it to be unconstitutional.

Answer: 1819

The Panic of 1819 was a major financial crisis caused by a multitude of events and actions. One of the factors was the unsustainable growth of Southern agriculture, which was booming due to the damage to farmland in Europe caused by the Napoleonic Wars. Demand for American agricultural goods eventually dropped as Europe recovered, but it was too late for any loans and investments that were made before this realization. Also, the excessive printing of paper money caused inflation.

When people were losing confidence in paper money, the banks had a severe lack of precious metal currency to back up the currency. Suddenly, people couldn't afford to pay their loans, banks were failing, and unemployment spiked.

This crisis would lead to greater divides within the Democratic-Republicans.

Answer: Maryland

McCulloch v. Maryland was a Supreme Court case over the state of Maryland's tax on banknotes not originating from Maryland. The tax was mainly targeted against the Second Bank of the United States, which was the replacement of the first national bank proposed by Hamilton.

The Supreme Court ruled in the favor of James McCulloch, representing the national bank's Maryland branch, due to the Necessary and Proper Clause of the Constitution. This case set a precedent in which state governments would be unable to interfere with constitutional actions of the federal government.

Answer: Missouri

In 1820, there was a balance between the number of states that did and did not have legalized slavery. However, Missouri's request for statehood as a slave state would upset the balance. Prior to the Missouri Compromise, there was the Tallmadge Amendment.

The Tallmadge Amendment would admit Missouri as a slave state under the condition that the children of slaves would become free at the age of 25, eventually leading to the end of slavery in Missouri. Instead, the Missouri Compromise was used to solve the issue, making slavery prohibited north of parallel 36) with the exception of Missouri. Also, to keep the balance at the time, the state of Maine was created. Maine was originally part of the state of Massachusetts.

Answer: Treaty of 1818

While the Treaty of Ghent ended the War of 1812, there were still territorial disputes between America and Great Britain out in the west. Both nations agreed to a border across the 49th parallel in the Treaty of 1818. The treaty also allowed for joint settlement of the region, Oregon Country, which was comprised of the land making up much of modern day Oregon and British Columbia.

Answer: Florida

The Adams-Onís Treaty was negotiated between Secretary of State John Quincy Adams and Luis de Onís, representing Spain. The United States had offered to buy Florida in the past, yet it was not until the political situation in the Spanish colonies had become unstable that Spain decided to agree to sell Florida.

The treaty set the official border between the United States and Spanish colonies as the Louisiana Purchase had led to overlapping borders. Also, the U.S. government would pay the claims its citizens had against the Spanish government, amounting to $5,000,000.

Answer: the Americas

The Monroe Doctrine states that any future efforts of European nations to either colonize or interfere in the affairs of any nation in the Americas would lead to U.S. intervention. However, the United States would not interfere in existing European colonies in America, nor would it meddle in the affairs of Europe. Also, it should be noted that the Monroe Doctrine did not necessarily mean the United States would interfere with the affairs of the newly founded nations in the Americas, either. While this was a bold statement on paper, it was unlikely that the United States would have been sufficiently powerful to enforce the Monroe Doctrine at that time.

However, the Monroe Doctrine had the backing of Britain since the British wanted to prevent the reestablishment of the Spanish Empire.

However, the Monroe Doctrine would be an important part of the United State's foreign policy towards the nations of the Americas in the future.

Answer: Erie Canal

The Erie Canal was originally was a canal from Albany to Buffalo. New York Governor DeWitt Clinton was a proponent of building the canal despite the high costs and level of engineering required for such an ambitious project. His opponents thought this effort would be a failure and called it "DeWitt's Ditch".

However, his gamble paid off as the canal ended up paying for itself and more. This canal connected the East Coast with the Midwest through the Great Lakes. As a result of the canal, New York City became even more important to the national economy since goods to be delivered to the West would for a long time arrive in New York City and then sent up towards the canal.

As a result of high levels of trade, the canal also helped the growth of cities around the Great Lakes.

Answer: the steamboat

Robert Fulton, after learning of James Watt's steam engine, would go on to produce the 1st commercial steamboat. Steamboats would prove to be important for both trade and military functions. Steamboats were useful in that unlike ships with sails, they did not have to be at the mercy of the winds. Though, that didn't necessarily mean steamboats were always faster than ships with sails. One of the big contributions the steamboat made early on was towards trade.

The steamboats would be able to travel up rivers, against the current, albeit fairly slowly.

Answer: Eli Whitney

The cotton gin is a device that mechanically takes out the seeds of freshly harvested cotton. Naturally, this would be heavily utilized in the South, making cotton plantations much more profitable. As a result, the device had the consequence of strengthening the institution of slavery.

In fact, the cotton gin probably had the unintended consequence of contributing to the future Civil War as "King Cotton" became the rationale that the southern states could survive and prosper without the rest of the Union, giving credence to the secessionist movement.