AP US History in 1 Minute Daily: The Hartford Convention (Day 84/309)

Welcome to today’s explanation of the Hartford Convention in my series- APUSH in 1 Minute Daily!

Declaration of War Votes, AP US History DBQ Form B 2010

At the outset of the War of 1812, American attitudes were drawn sharply along partisan lines. Democratic Republicans and those living in the South and Western states were much more supportive. 

Mr. Madison’s War. A Dispassionate Inquiry into the Reasons Alleged by Mr. Madison for Declaring an Offensive and Ruinous War Against Great Britain, Written by John Lowell, a “New-England Farmer”, USS Constitution Museum

Federalists and New Englanders strongly opposed “Mr. Madison’s War.” Manufacturing areas had  experienced significant profit after the repeal of the Embargo Act and viewed impressments and frontier attacks as minor inconveniences. 

The Hartford Convention, Wikimedia Commons

They convened a secret assembly in Hartford, Connecticut from December 1814 to January 1815. While there, Federalists drafted formal protests against the federal government and proposed secession of New England as a last resort.

Secret Journal of the Hartford Convention, Wikimedia Commons

They issued their report in January after the Treaty of Ghent had already been signed. As a result, Federalists were harshly criticized for being unpatriotic. The party was severely weakened and disappeared within a few years.

The Hartford Convention was a secret assembly of Federalists to oppose the War of 1812 and actions of the federal government. It led to severe criticism and the eventual end of the party.

Join me tomorrow as I explain the Era of Good Feelings in the next APUSH in 1 Minute Daily!