ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Timeline of the War of 1812

Okay kiddo, so remember how America used to be a part of England a long time ago? Well, after a while, America wanted to do things their own way and be their own country. And they did, but England wasn't too happy about it.

Fast forward to 1812 and America and England were not getting along. There were a lot of reasons why they were mad at each other, like trade issues and England taking American sailors to work on their boats without permission.

So, America decided to declare war on England. The war lasted for a few years, and there were a lot of battles. Some were on land, like the Battle of New Orleans, and some were on the water, like the Battle of Lake Erie.

During this time, America also tried to invade Canada a few times, but it didn't work out too well. And England was still fighting with Napoleon in Europe, so they didn't have all their resources to focus on fighting America.

In the end, a peace treaty was signed in 1814 and the war officially ended. Both sides agreed to stop fighting and go back to how things were before the war.

So, that's the timeline of the War of 1812, kiddo. It was a time when America and England were not getting along and decided to fight each other, but eventually agreed to stop and be friends again.