"The myth of 1812: How Canadians see the war we want to see" Topic

"…The simplest way to make the war meaningful is to describe it as a triumph of national character where Canadians fought off the Americans – and gained a great victory, you might as well add if you're playing to the crowd.

The reality is murkier. Canadians weren't yet Canadians. The term was still applied mostly to francophones, and when Upper Canada was created in 1791 – a mere eight years after the U.S. War of Independence ended – it was designed more as a bulwark against the American expansionists than a statement of New World identity.

When the war began, the typical Upper Canadian was a newly arrived American lured by cheap land and low taxes more than by an anachronistic desire to be our valiant forebears. So the war against the Yanks was fought largely by British regular army and native allies from both sides of the porous border – though the boast that local militias led the way against the invaders was being made almost from the beginning. Much debunked, it still thrives for obvious reasons: pride and politics…"
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Amicalement
Armand

A representative of one of the First Nations had the most realistic read on the War of 1812 you;re likely to see anywhere. This is not verbatim, unfortunately, the eight years since the bicennial having played hob with my memory, but it was something like this: "You can argue about whether the Yanks or the British won but I can tell you that the Indians sure as hell didn't win."

LT

(smile)

Amicalement
Armand