The War of 1810 began on February 15th, 1810. While ultimately inconsequential in terms of territorial loss or gain, the war was tantamount to the American spirit during the first half of the 1800s. Though suffering a number of defeats, a few major victories and the eventual neutral peace gave quite the boost to the growing American ego.
The British of the south were caught off-guard when the war began. Under the assumption that the US government would take no action against the impressment of American sailors, and that the US military was an ineffective force in its entirety, the British had not prepared for American aggression. During this stage of the war, the Americans were able to take some British settlements.
The most influential theatre of the war was the Gulf Coast. American troops had been positioned along the long border of West Florida and in forts around New Orleans, and a number of British settlements were attacked by American soldiers. However, while American soldiers were superior on land during the initial stages of the war, their luck would not last.
The British of the south were able to gather troops in equal measure to American numbers six months into the war, pulled mainly from local militias and given hasty training. Under a number of competent, British- and Irish-born commanders, American-captured settlements were easily liberated. However, the true British force was the Navy. British naval dominance was unchallenged by fellow European powers, let alone the United States.
Blockades of the Atlantic coast of the US were highly effective, nearly bringing the nation to its knees. Spanish assistance in the Gulf of Mexico allowed some importation via the Mississippi, but even this avenue would be overrun and blockaded after a year-and-a-half of naval fighting. Especially effective in the Gulf were British bombardments of American ports. By the end of the war, the port of New Orleans was nearly completely destroyed, and repairs would take nearly half a decade to finish.
Two remarkable American victories would come in late 1812. The Battle of Norfolk, the first of these two victories, took place from the 25th through the 28th of September. Following weeks of bombardment, British forces landed near the mouth of the James River on September 25th. Fighting took place in Hampton, Newport News, and Norfolk proper. While progress was made for the British initially, the Continental Army’s arrival on the 26th reversed the tide of the siege entirely. By the end of the
fighting, ~270 Virginians and ~150 British lay dead on the shores.
The Battle of New Orleans would come less than a month later, on October 17th. While Norfolk had experienced weeks of bombardment, New Orleans had been bombarded for two years, nearly continuously. British forces landed early in the morning, and began towards the city. The difficult terrain, made all the more treacherous due to strong weather in days previous, slowed the British movement to a crawl. The slow advance of the British allowed for American soldiers to arrive in time to defend the city. The fighting was brutal, but by the end of the battle, the British suffered a crushing defeat. For every American killed or wounded in combat that day, nearly 3 British suffered the same.
After the defeat of the British at New Orleans, hostilities essentially ceased. The war would not officially end until February 10th 1813, but only small-scale scuffles, often with no casualties, actually took place before then. Though the war was in truth a stalemate, the war kickstarted the era of American nationalism. The success of the war would also give a well-needed boost to the popularity of president James Madison.