06-16-2012, 11:26 PM
Two hundred years ago. Technically not for a couple days yet, but this is the Bicentennial of the war of 1812, a war that's more or less forgotten by both England and the USA and Canada but which played a pretty frigging huge role in how our North American Continent was shaped ever after. Had the British/Canadian side won:
there would be a giant "indian state" surrounding the great lakes and acting as a buffer between the two countries. Border crossings would likely be much more strained.
Western expansion would have been severely hampered by the Canadian and indian presence in the upper midwest. Future key cities of Detroit, Chicago, etc might not even exist today.
The entire indian wars of the 1870's to 1890's would have a different feel with a sovereign indian state located squarely in the middle of USA controlling lake travel.
Likewise the civil war might have gone quite differently if the union had to divide its forces against both the southern army and the northern threat.
New Orleans would be Canadian property, and likely large chunks of the Mississippi valley as well had the British achieved victory at the battle of New Orleans.
Sports figures and celebrity singers would not have to butcher that last high note on the national anthem if the battle at Baltimore had gone differently. No surviving fort McHenry=no poem for Francis Scott Key to write and publish.
So take a minute and remember a stupid little war that had pretty major repercussions for our countries.
there would be a giant "indian state" surrounding the great lakes and acting as a buffer between the two countries. Border crossings would likely be much more strained.
Western expansion would have been severely hampered by the Canadian and indian presence in the upper midwest. Future key cities of Detroit, Chicago, etc might not even exist today.
The entire indian wars of the 1870's to 1890's would have a different feel with a sovereign indian state located squarely in the middle of USA controlling lake travel.
Likewise the civil war might have gone quite differently if the union had to divide its forces against both the southern army and the northern threat.
New Orleans would be Canadian property, and likely large chunks of the Mississippi valley as well had the British achieved victory at the battle of New Orleans.
Sports figures and celebrity singers would not have to butcher that last high note on the national anthem if the battle at Baltimore had gone differently. No surviving fort McHenry=no poem for Francis Scott Key to write and publish.
So take a minute and remember a stupid little war that had pretty major repercussions for our countries.
