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The battle, on January 8, 1815, was the last battle of the War of 1812 between the US and Britain. It occurred because the British, having successfully attacked some cities on the East Coast, tried to exert pressure on the US by seizing New Orleans, the valuable port through which all frontier commerce had to pass along the Mississippi River. The peace treaty had already been signed at Ghent (December 24, 1814), but had yet to reach Congress. It was not ratified until February 18, 1815. A British victory might have resulted in a continued British presence in the lower Mississippi Valley.

There were actually several reasons why the war of 1812 started. The official reason as made clear in the declaration of war by the United States of America to Great Britain was the Impression Issue that was made by the British Government under their Orders-in-Council. This Impression Issue is an act whereby men are forced by the government for induction into military service. The British stopped US ships and took crewmen from them claiming they were British-born and therefore British subjects. Moreover, American ships were seized because they had such crewmen, or because they had cargoes on which British duties were claimed due.

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11y ago

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