I think I want to try posting some debates on historical issues so I figured I would start of with one I've done a couple of times before.

Who do you think was the winner of the War of 1812? Was it the Americans or the British.

I think that it was certainly the British and it shoots down the argument I've heard that America has an all win record at least up until Vietnam.

I don't really know much about this particular war...but, being that I was taught in AMERICAN schools that AMERICA has always won every war AMERICA has been in...I wouldn't doubt it if the truth was twisted.

I haven't even learned about this war. What was it over? I don't even recall the Americans fighting the British, ever in history.

I assume you're discounting the American Revolution?

The main motivation for America declaring war seemed to be British impressment and blockades of France. I guess the argument for America having won the war is that they didn't lose any territory and that the impressment ended or at least declined. But that was due to the war with Napolean ending, not through the treaty that ended the war.

Oh. That one, yeah, I remember now. American Revolution....that was against the British? Sorry, I'm not an american history buff.

Yeah the British controlled the part of the Americas that revolted and formed the United States.

Perhaps when I try posting another history debate I'll do something outside of US history.

Yeah, Britain established thirteen colonies in North America, kicked the natives out, and lived there for a few generations until we got the guys who thought that we should be independent and free. Then we revolted and won, so we became a country and eventually expanded to the west coast.

Later, there was some bullshit with the British not respecting America as a nation and attacking our ships headed to France to trade. We went to war for a while, and eventually signed a peace treaty that changed about nothing. I don't think there was a winner. We fought, and then we stopped. I think it did end the raiding of ships, though. Even if I wouldn't say America won, we certainly didn't lose.

The ship raiding ended because the war against Napoleon ended, that was the reason it had started in the first place. There was no agreement to end in the treaty. America was the won who declared war and since the end of the impressment was not a result of the war they didn't gain anything from it. All that America gained was a burned capital and a body count.

Since they didn't start the war all Britain should have to do is defend their American holdings from the Americans. And at the start of the War of 1812 certain supporters of the war wanted one of the goals to be the conquest of Canada, under the idea of ridding North America from British control.

There is also that the British were the ones in the position of power when the treaty was signed. The American had some small success in the Northwest and West, mostly against the Native American allies of the British, but they were doing badly against the British in the east and the capital was even destroyed by them. The most decisive American victory didn't even happen until after the treaty ending the war had been made.

Ok. Canadian history would be good. Do you know which nowadays states the british controled? It would be interesting to know.

What do you mean, "Nowadays states"?