![]() Samuel McKee of Kentucky, for example, strongly favored a ground invasion Canada, but voted against the construction of new frigates as too costly. Tight purse-strings betrayed a certain tentative quality to the War Hawks’ march to war. While the War Hawks could be vocal proponents of war, they were also committed to waging it on the cheap. Calhoun, on the Foreign Relations Committee, and War Hawks chaired the Naval, Ways and Means, and Military Affairs Committees. There were five War Hawks, including John C. At the same time, the conquest of Canada would remove a longstanding threat to America’s security on the North American continent and restore national honor.Īn astute politician, Clay made sure that the War Hawks were well represented in key congressional committees. Clay reasoned that because Canada was so vulnerable, an attack on the British colony would force Britain to make concessions on both issues. Britain’s tightening rules on neutral trade frustrated American merchants, and the British policy of impressment was particularly galling to Americans. Led by new Speaker of the House Henry Clay, this small group of Jeffersonian Republicans pressed for a military confrontation to redress American grievances.Ĭlay argued that, though France and Britain had both done harm to the United States, Britain was the greater offender. Known as the “War Hawks,” they were mostly young politicians from hailing from the West and South. ![]() Library of Congress, Rare Book and Special Collections Division.įrustrated by the failure of President Jefferson’s policies of economic coercion, some members of the Twelfth Congress began calling for more decisive and aggressive measures. By the President of the United States of America, a proclamation.
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