![]() No ships could enter or leave the United States. In the closing days of 1807, President Thomas Jefferson signed a bill banning all trade with Europe. There, a British court had the power to seize the goods and force the ship's owners to pay a large fine. Any ship found to be carrying goods for France was taken north to Halifax, Nova Scotia. No American ship could leave without being searched. British warships blocked the port of New York all through 1805. Another problem was trade.īritain wanted to stop the United States from trading with France and its colonies. Impressment was just one of the major problems the United States was having with Britain in the early 1800s. Relations between the two countries were reaching the breaking point. Ships violating the rule would be seized. It said any American ship sailing to Europe must stop first in Britain to get permission. In response, the British government announced a new rule. He said any person - American or British - who disobeyed his orders would be arrested. President Jefferson ordered all British navy ships in American waters to leave at once. News of the British attack spread quickly. The American ship could do little to defend itself. Then it fired all its guns directly at the Chesapeake. First the British ship fired two warning shots. When the Chesapeake sailed out of American waters, the British ship Leopard tried to stop and search it. The United States refused to return them. The United States said the men were American citizens who had been forced to serve in the British navy. ![]() Britain believed that four of its sailors had deserted and fled to an American ship called the Chesapeake. In 1807, an incident made relations between Britain and America even more tense. Several thousand sailors were taken off American ships during the early 1800s. It was often difficult for them to be able to distinguish between their own subjects and Americans.” They were still insisting that some American citizens had been born British. “There was also still something of an imperial attitude in Britain toward America. Historian Andrew O’Shaughnessy says sometimes American citizens were also taken. The American ships were stopped and searched in British waters. The custom was called impressment.Ĭonditions in the Royal Navy were not good at that time, and many sailors deserted. Britain claimed the right to seize any British citizen, anywhere. The United States was having trouble with Britain.įor many years, Britain had been taking men by force to serve in its navy. And he was able to reduce taxes.īut staying neutral was not easy. His economic policies had helped to pay much of America’s national debt. Jefferson also believed getting involved in a European war would destroy all the progress he had made at home. “He was sufficiently pro-French that he didn’t want to ally with the British, but not so pro-French that he wanted a war with the British.” Historian Andrew O’Shaughnessy says President Jefferson did not want to become involved in a war. In the early 1800s, Britain and France were at war with each other. Still, they were surprised by the strength of his victory. The Federalists were sure Jefferson would win the election of 1804. His political opponents were the Federalists. ![]() And he gained possession of the huge Louisiana Territory from France without going to war. Thomas Jefferson had a very good record during his first term as president. Jefferson was head of the Democratic-Republican Party, known today as the Democratic Party. Thomas Jefferson, the nation's third president, was easily re-elected. Last time, we talked about the presidential election of 1804. From VOA Learning English, welcome to The Making of a Nation, our weekly program of American history for people learning English.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |