The Peace

The Treaty of Ghent was actually little more than an agreement to stop the fighting and to return Anglo-American relations to their prewar status. The United States achieved none of the objectives for which it fought the war against Great Britain. The treaty did not deal with the impressment of sailors, indemnities for seizures, or other maritime disputes. What the treaty did provide for was (1) the release of prisoners, (2) the return of all conquered territories, and (3) the creation of four commissions to settle disputes over the United StatesCanadian boundary lines.

Despite the inconclusive nature of the peace treaty, Americans were convinced that they had won the war. The treaty was unanimously ratified by the United States Senate in 1815.

All of the results of the war, however, were not revealed by the treaty. In fighting the war, the United States had tested and successfully demonstrated its independence. The war also marked the emergence of the United States as a continental power and a hemispheric power. Internally, the war ended the political conflicts that had deeply divided the country, bringing on what was called the Era of Good Feeling. The Federalist party, many of whose leaders had bitterly opposed the war, soon disintegrated. A united country, imbued with the spirit of nationalism, then turned its attention to internal development and to westward expansion to the Pacific.