Since questions came through regarding the Treaty of Ghent, I've been reminded that someone asked some time ago about a recommended history of the War of 1812, so I recommend the following one which I purchased a few years ago at the site of the Battle of New Orleans, but you may find it at a library or through Amazon: "The War of 1812 -- A Forgotten Conflict", Hickey, Donald R., 1989, University of Illinois Press I found Mr. Hickey's writing concise but thorough so that even I, certainly not claiming to be an expert, found it highly informative and entertaining. He tells not only of the battles but of the political situation in our country both leading up to and in the aftermath as well. His notes for sources are generous and he even includes a list of "Location and Publisher Abbreviations", nowadays usually called "acronyms", which I found extremely helpful in these days of there being so much use of them in articles on the assumption that everyone knows what they mean, and you might wish to mark that page 323 before you begin reading at the beginning. Good reading!