The Civil War of 1812: American Citizens, British Subjects, Irish Rebels & Indian Allies by Alan Taylor (review)

166 The Michigan Historical Review book deserves a place in every reader’s collection of works devoted to Michigan history. Bruce A. Rubenstein University of Michigan-Flint Alan Taylor. The Civil War of 1812: American Citizens, British Subjects, Irish Rebels & Indian Allies. New York: Vintage Books, 2010. Pp. 620. Bibliography. Illustrations. Index. Maps. Notes. Paper, $18.00. Very soon, publishers will be forced to stop referring to the War of 1812 as neglected or forgotten, and with The Civil War of 1812, Alan Taylor has hastened that day. His ambitious retelling of an unnecessary war ended by an equivocal treaty delves further into the war’s meaning with impressive new scholarship. Drawing on letters and journals from those caught up in the war on both sides of the northern border, Taylor surmounts the objection that Canadian historians often raise about their U.S. counterparts—that our jingoistic approach ignores the bravery and skill of the Canadian and British troops and, even worse, that we Yankees fail to admit that Canada won the war. One can salute Taylor’s effort to do justice to the Canadians and yet wonder whether he has perhaps overstated his thesis to provide a provocative title. He explains: “Like the revolution, the War of 1812 was a civil war between competing visions of America: one still loyal to the empire and one defined by its republican revolution against that empire” (p. 12). True, combatants on both sides often came from British stock, sharing their language and, in some cases, their surnames, but the United States had declared its independence 36 years before this war began. Most young Americans fighting for their country had never been British citizens. Regardless of whether the conflict was a civil war, readers, especially in Michigan, will find this a rich and engrossing study of early nineteenth century military history. For example, Taylor gives full measure to Gen. William Hull, already well past his glory years in the American Revolution when President Madison sent him out to defend the fort at Detroit and, by the way, conquer Upper Canada. To Madison’s predecessor, this should have been simple. Jefferson had never been impressed by Canada’s defenses, and he predicted that taking the entire country would be “a mere matter of marching” (p. 140). Book Reviews 167 By the time Hull realized that he was undermanned for the assignment and that fearsome Shawnee tribesmen would be attacking the fort, he was reduced to heavy drinking, “with his lips quivering, the juice running from the sides of his mouth upon the frills of his shirt” (p. 164). Hull surrendered without a fight. Throughout the book, roguery and incompetence bring out Taylor’s most vivid writing. He aptly sums up the villainous Gen. James Wilkinson: “Apart from a gift for conning others, Wilkinson had no talents” (p. 279). Unfortunately, the reader gets only a cursory introduction to more admirable figures: Oliver Hazard Perry and his remarkable victory over British warships on Lake Erie; Tecumseh, the great Shawnee leader; and Dolley Madison, whose behavior under siege outshone her myth. In this account, Zebulon Pike dies in the battle at York, but there is no explanation for why modern visitors to the Rocky Mountains still hear his name, although Taylor does label one section about the general’s campaign against smuggling as “Pike’s Pique” (p. 277). The last section of the book compensates for these omissions with the seldom-reported attempts by the British to assuage Indian disappointment after the stalemate that ended the war and with the haggling over final terms left unresolved by the Treaty of Ghent. By the end of more than 600 pages, readers may doubt that the hostilities from 1812 to 1815 constituted a civil war, but they will appreciate Taylor’s valuable contribution. A. J. Langguth University of Southern California Anthony J. Yanik. The Fall and Recapture of Detroit in the War of 1812: In Defense of William Hull. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 2011. Pp. 232. Appendices. Illustrations. Index. Notes. Cloth, $24.95. In August 1812, America was shocked to learn that a small force of British soldiers, along with Native allies under Tecumseh, had captured Detroit and...