1. Ch. 10.3 “Problems with Foreign Powers”
Essential Question:
What foreign policy challenges did
President Jefferson face, and what were
the political and economic causes of the
War of 1812?

2. Vocabulary
Impressment – The kidnapping of American sailors who are were forced to work on British ships.
Embargo Act of 1807 – An act which stated American ships could not sail to foreign ports and it closed American ports to British ships.
Tecumseh – A Shawnee chief who vowed to stop the loss of Native American land and who tried to unite Native American’s into one fighting force.
War Hawk – Westerners who called for war and supported the War of 1812.

3. Focus questions
1. Why did President Jefferson’s plans to keep the U.S. separate from other nations and their problems fail?
2. Why did Great Britain set up a blockade against American trade ships?
3. In response, France enacted its own laws, why did this place the U.S. in a difficult position?
4. What happened to American sailors under impressment? Why was President Jefferson criticized?
5. Explain the Embargo Act of 1807?

4. Focus questions
6. How did the Embargo Act hurt the United States, and how did the new president, Madison resolve the problem?
7. Explain Jefferson’s Native American Policy?
8. What was Tecumseh’s plan and why did it fail?
9. Why did the War Haws demand war with Great Britain?

5. Jefferson’s foreign policy
Thomas Jefferson wanted to focus on domestic – at home- concerns.
He advised the United States to seek friendship of foreign nations, but not to enter into “entangling” alliances with any.
His desire to keep the U.S. separate from other countries and their problems was doomed to failure!
Why?

6. Jefferson’s foreign policy
1. American trade merchants were busy trading all over the world.
2. The Louisiana Purchase opened the country to westward expansion bringing Americans into close contact with people from other countries already established in settlements there.
3. The United states had little control over the actions of foreign nations. The ongoing conflicts between France and Great Britain would make things difficult for the U.S.

7. Problems With France and England
For a long time, the U.S. managed to stay out of the European wars that followed the French Revolution.
By 1805, the British began to clamp down on U.S. shipping. They didn’t want Americans to provide food and supplies to their enemies.
They set up a partial “blockade” – they blocked or prevented some American ships from bringing trade goods into Europe.

8. Problems With France and England
The blockade made France angry so they enacted their own laws to control foreign shipping. These changes put American merchants in a difficult spot.
If they obeyed British rules, their ships could be seized by the French. If they obeyed the French rules, their ships could be seized by the British!
To make matters worse, Britain was kidnapping American sailors forcing them to work on British ships -this is known as impressment
Between ,000 American sailors were impressed!

9. Impressing

10. Problems With France and England
In 1807, the British ship the Leopard attacked the American naval ship the Chesapeake off the coast of Virginia.
Three Americans died in the battle.
Many Americans called for war against Britain.
President Jefferson, decided against war and was criticized.
One American called Jefferson “a dish of skim milk curdling (spoiling) at the head of our nation”

11. The Chesapeake

12. The Leopard

13. Trade as a weapon
Jefferson asked Congress to pass laws against foreign trade as a way to punish Great Britain.
Congress passed the Embargo Act of American ships were no longer allowed to sail to foreign ports. This act also closed American ports to British ships.
Unfortunately, Jefferson’s Embargo Act hurt the United States more than Great Britain. American farmers and merchants lost their markets for grains, cotton, and tobacco. Shippers also lost income and violated the Embargo Act by lying about where they were really going.

14. Trade as a weapon
James Madison became president in 1808, and inherited the problems with the Embargo Act.
He asked Congress to pass a law that allowed merchants to trade with any country except France and Britain.
The law would remain in effect until Britain and France would agree to respect U.S. ships.

15. Tecumseh and native American Unity
Many American settlers in the Northwest were angry with the British and accused them of stirring up Native American resistance to frontier settlements.
President Jefferson’s Native American policy promoted what he called “civilization”. He pushed for Native Americans to:
farm the land
convert to Christianity
live just like the white settlers did

16. Tecumseh and native American Unity
Tecumseh, a Shawnee chief, vowed to stop the loss of Native American Land.
He called for unity among the tribes and formed a Native American Alliance.
The American government learned of Tecumseh’s plan to wage war.
While Tecumseh was away recruiting tribes for the alliance, the Shawnee were attacked and defeated by American forces in the Battle of Tippecanoe.

17. War Hawks
Tecumseh and his warriors became allies with the British in Canada!
American settlers in the west demanded war against Britain.
The Western settlers who called for war became known as the War Hawks.
They wanted British aid to Native Americans stopped and they wanted the British out of Canada.
Urged by the War Hawks, Congress declared war on Britain in June of 1812.

18. Causes of the War of 1812
Impressment of U.S. Citizens Interference with American shipping
British support of the
Native American
resistance