War of 1812: film at 9!

Listen up, history buffs! PBS is airing a terrific new made-for-TV film on the War of 1812, tonight at 9 p.m. EDT.

Since the teaching of our own history is sadly neglected in American and Canadian schools these days, Walt will give you a quick recap. At the beginning of the second decade of the 19th century, the hated British (and others) were engaging Napoleon in Europe, and getting the worst of it. The Congress of the new(ish) United States of America reckoned that it would be a good time to finish what they started in 1776, and drive the British out of Canada. Doing so would only be "a matter of marching", it was said.

Well sir, American soldiers clashed with British, Canadian and Indian ["First Nations", surely! Ed.] forces to ultimately shape the geography and the identity of eastern North America as it is known today. In other words, the American invasion of Canada failed. Thus the War of 1812 became the first war the USA lost ["failed to win", surely! Ed.] until Vietnam.

Now PBS is attempting to do for the War of 1812 what Ken Burns' great series did for the Civil War. The lead station behind their new film, The War of 1812, which airs tonight is Buffalo's WNED-TV, which is only natural because the main part of the war was fought on the Niagara Frontier and Lakes Erie and Ontario.

Said Donald Boswell, WNED's president, "We have proudly recreated the War of 1812 for both nations. This timely examination of a shared history allows us to celebrate our past together, and renew the bond of our present and future as national neighbours." Rumours of Mr. Boswell's bid for the presidensity of the USA are unconfirmed as of this morning.

Historical figures depicted in the film include Tecumseh, William Henry Harrison and President James Madison, along with a Canadian icons such as General Sir Isaac Brock and, of course, Laura Secord.

The film also recounts dramatic human stories of ordinary citizens, the political alliances of the various Native American ["First Nations", surely! Ed.] nations and the African-American slaves who reached for their freedom by fighting for the British. [It's not Black History Month, but if there's a hotbed of political correctness in the USA, it's PBS! Ed.]

All kidding aside, it's an excellent piece of work. Back in July, Walt was privileged to see a segment of it, dealing with the assault on Fort Erie, and found it very well done, indeed.

The War of 1812 airs on PBS stations on Monday, October 10th -- that's tonight! -- at 9 p.m. EDT. Click here for more information and a video trailer.

Footnote: As far as anyone knows, Laura Secord never made a candy in her life. When an American company bought a small Canadian candy-making concern about a century later, they put Laura's name on the new outfit because it sounded good!

Another footnote: Click here to read "War of 1812 battles a nation's collective amnesia", good column by Konrad Yakabuski from today's Globe and Mail. Here's an excerpt:
Historians consider the war a “draw” because the Treaty of Ghent that ended it entrenched the status quo ante bellum. But the truth is, the Americans sought to engulf us; instead they bankrupted their own country (the United States defaulted on its debt) without gaining an inch of territory. That doesn’t sound like a draw.