Was the War of 1812 defensive or aggressive on America's part? I feel like it was aggressive because we attacked first, but maybe it was defensive because we were defending ourselves against impressment. Someone please clarify this for me, thanks.

Question

You're right! :-)

Both points of view can be reasonably defended. We were defending ourselves against impressment, but was it necessary to go to war to stop this practice? Were there other reasons that showed that the U.S. was acting either defensively or aggressively?

Please check these sites for summaries of the causes of the War of 1812. I think they'll help you make up your mind.

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http://www.warof1812.ca/intro.html

http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761571913/War_of_1812.html