Treaty of Ghent
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The Treaty of Ghent, signed on December 24, 1814, in Ghent, Flanders, United Kingdom of the Netherlands, ended the War of 1812 between the United States and United Kingdom.
Signatories for the UK included James Lord Gambier, Henry Goulburn, and William Adams. The Peace Commission representing the United States included John Quincy Adams, James A. Bayard, Sr., Henry Clay, Jonathan Russell, and Albert Gallatin.
In signing the treaty, the Americans ended up abandoning both of their primary goals in starting the war: to expand their territory by seizing control of the British colonies to the north in what would later become Canada (although their territory was expanded in some places), and to stop the forcible boarding of sovereign U.S. ships on the high seas by the warships of the Royal Navy searching for deserters and enforcing the British blockade against Napoléon and the resulting impressment of US citizens into the Royal Navy. However, as the Napoleonic Wars ended, the second issue began to fade on its own as the Royal Navy had less need for sailors.
Fighting continued for several weeks after signing the treaty, including the Battle of New Orleans, because news of the treaty took time to reach North America. However, by terms of the treaty, the war was not officially over until ratifications were exchanged and the treaty proclaimed. The U.S. Senate unanimously advised ratification on February 16, 1815. President James Madison ratified the treaty on February 17 at which time the ratifications were exchanged. The treaty was proclaimed on February 18.
See also
External links
- [Text of treaty from the Avalon Project]
- [Treaty of Ghent and related resources at the Library of Congress]
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