Best Time For The US To Invade Canada?

When would be the best time for the US to Invade Canada, before the 1900's?

I know the term "Canada" is a bit hard to define. Canada as we know it today didn't really come to be until Confederation in 1867.

So I think as a rule I will call "Canada" to be any place the British had control over that now makes up a part of Canada today.

So, your thoughts?
 

Raymann

Banned
Well, when we did actually. During the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. Basically whenever Britain is distracted elsewhere.

The only other time is in the 1850's during the Crimean War.

Now is the US was actually intent on taking on Britain and putting up a serious challenge on the seas, anytime after 1880 or so and that's only if they build a navy to challenge the Royal Navy and an army to take Canada quickly. That was not in America's character at the time though.
 

Jasen777

Donor
1865, after the Confederacy's defeat. The Union had a million men under arms (at least on paper). Even with the need to garrison the south, Canada wouldn't be able to hold out for long. Wouldn't be smart to get into a war with Britain, but it would be the best time to invade Canada. (Some in Britain were shocked and also pleased at how fast the U.S demobilized).
 
When would be the best time for the US to Invade Canada, before the 1900's?
It's something of a trope on the board that the US will invade Canada any chance it can get, and will never succeed in either conquering it or even holding any part of it for long.

This is a trope that the Canadians will defend until you pry the American limbs from their cold dead jaws.
 

Keenir

Banned
Well, when we did actually. During the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. Basically whenever Britain is distracted elsewhere.

The only other time is in the 1850's during the Crimean War.

don't forget about the Fenian invasion - we sent the Irish on raids into Canada after the Civil War ended.
 

MacCaulay

Banned
1865, after the Confederacy's defeat. The Union had a million men under arms (at least on paper).

And around 40-50,000 of them were Canadians. They may have been British subjects, but the Canadians were undoubtedly on the US side of the Civil War.

Sure, that's not enough to stop them, but it's enough to make it hard.

Myself, I'd say 1914. Either way it's impossible. As soon as one problem begins to disappear, another one comes up. In 1862 it was the lack of transportation in the Canadian Plains. That was more-or-less solved by 1914 with the Trans-Canadian Railroad, but by then you had a wider population base.

Either way, it's not as simple as most people think. You can't just snap your fingers and have an American army group appear at Detroit to start terrorassing up the Niagara Peninsula. They'll be bogged down having to go through every city and town. Even if they don't want to it won't take a genius to funnel the large force needed to subdue a population into those areas.
You have to occupy Winnipeg and make sure that the railline is cut between east and west, but that's a long hard slog which could probably only be really accomplished with the kind of military that has trucks and can move faster than walking speed, since Winnipeg could be reinforced by trains.
You have to capture Halifax, one of the 5 or 6 largest ports in North America and the largest in the British Empire. Heck, War Plan Red actually was amended in the mid-30s to okay the use of poison gas on Halifax because the US Army decided there was simply no way to take it before the British arrived to reinforce the Canadians in the event of a conflict.
 

Wolfpaw

Banned
1896 or 1897. Everybody thought that the USA and Britain were going to go to war over the Venezuela-British Guiana border dispute. If it were to happen, the United States would have assuredly invaded Canada (and been rather successful), though British domination of the sea would make negotiations curious.
 

MacCaulay

Banned
1896 or 1897. Everybody thought that the USA and Britain were going to go to war over the Venezuela-British Guiana border dispute. If it were to happen, the United States would have assuredly invaded Canada (and been rather successful), though British domination of the sea would make negotiations curious.

Yeah, but you're still dealing with a large population that can't be decisively hemmed in right at the start, especially with the size of military that the US had at the time.

I mean...let's give them 4 or 5 months ramp up time. So that's...1 Corps? And maybe another brigade in the plains to attempt a capture of Winnipeg? It needs to be captured so the railroad can be cut, otherwise the Canadians and British can do to the Americans what the Americans did to the Germans in 1901: pull troops in from the Pacific and move them east along the railroad.
 
Not terribly original but have the Trent Affair escalate in 1862-3. The Anglo-Canadian defence was atrocious, entire lines of border forts only existed on paper while the Canadian militia were, with exceptions, very poorly trained, few in number and many had no access to firearms (reports of militia being mustered and turning up with hatchets and scythes). The War Office knew this and did reinforce Canada but never anything more than 50,000 professional troops. Also they were very confidant that the Royal Navy could do what it did back in 1812 and totally control the coastline but the US Navy was far stronger at 50 years and the move to ironclads made such a blockade far more expensive and difficult to maintain.

Regardless, a Union invasion in summer 1863 or 64 would almost certainly roll the Canadians over, what happens after that is the debatable part.
 
I'm gonna say there is no good time pre-1900. Canada at any point was either part of the British Empire (bad idea to fight) or very close with the British Empire.
 
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