9/25/2023 0 Comments Us navy in war of 1812The mainmast - the aft mast - also has a gaff sail. The following is a brief description of some of the types of fighting ships that took part in the War of 1812.Ī brig is a sailing ship with two square-rigged masts. Control of the two great lakes was hotly contested and the results on Lakes Ontario and Erie were quite different. Farther west, control of LAKE ERIE was essential to the movement of troops and supplies to the western forts. There being no reliable road communications, transportation to Upper Canada had to proceed via the vulnerable ST LAWRENCE RIVER to LAKE ONTARIO. As a result, most provisions (and regular troops) essential to the war effort had to be shipped from Great Britain to Upper Canada, via Québec and Montréal. The largely agricultural colony lacked any manufacturing capacity to provide the troops or militia with weapons, ammunition and most forms of equipment. More problematic for the British were the supply lines to Upper Canada. Nevertheless, Britain's maritime supply line to Québec was never threatened. The British Navy had ruled the high seas since Lord Nelson's great victory at Trafalgar in 1805, but the Americans were beginning to challenge that supremacy and had some stunning victories in the Atlantic. Great Britain was obviously at a disadvantage geographically when trying to defend its colony Canada in a conflict with the United States. The war on the water was an essential, if not the most important, aspect of the WAR OF 1812.
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