We're The Ones That Did It? Canada and the Burning of Washington

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We're The Ones That Did It? Canada and the Burning of Washington

For Canadians, a popular retort about the War of 1812 is our supposed role in the burning of the White House. In 1814, British soldiers landed in Washington and looted the American capital. Canadians, in their minor role in the conflict as auxiliary forces, sometimes say that Canadians themselves burned down the White House. Despite any claims you might hear, it was British soldiers behind one of the most notable moments of the war. Where and how did the myth of Canadian involvement appear?

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Racist Attitudes and the Global South

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Racist Attitudes and the Global South

When Jenny Horne, a white Republican representative from a town near Charleston, stepped up to the podium this week to address the House of Representatives in South Carolina, her words contributed a passionate moment in the debate that eventually led lawmakers to vote to remove the Confederate battle flag from the State House grounds. “I cannot believe that we do not have the heart in this body,” she said while attempting hold back tears, “to do something meaningful, such as take a symbol of hate off these grounds on Friday.” Referring to the tragic June 17 shootings that killed nine African-American members of a Bible study at a Charleston church, Horne aimed her words directly at house representatives concerned with preserving the historical semblance of the Confederate flag.  “Enough about heritage,” she proclaimed towards flag supporters. When the emotional debate ended early Thursday, the House voted 94-20 to pass the bill to remove the flag.

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What is Accurate History? Historians vs. Reenactors

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What is Accurate History? Historians vs. Reenactors

If you’ve ever visited a historic site or museum around the time of a major anniversary, you’ve probably encountered a historical reenactor. Maybe you were at Fort George in Niagara-on-the-Lake, or Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, or at a D-Day commemoration on 6 June, or any number of hundreds of different re-enactments big and small that take place every year. These historical reenactors share a love of history with historians, though they have vastly different views of it.

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The Curious Tale of Cinco de Mayo

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The Curious Tale of Cinco de Mayo

May 5th was Cinco de Mayo, a holiday that sounds like a Mexican celebration but is largely an American one. Latinos Americans first began celebrating the Mexican victory over French forces in 1862. Since then it has spread out from the southeast United States and today Canadians also hold Cinco de Mayo events – or at least, have heard of it.  The curious spread of Cinco de Mayo outside of Mexico reveals the strange nature of public holidays and our celebration of them.

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Technology and Commemoration: Remembering the Unknown Soldier

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Technology and Commemoration: Remembering the Unknown Soldier

In the aftermath of the First World War, many of the belligerent nations instituted memorials to the Unknown Soldier. First in France, Britain and Italy – then others – governments laid to rest the remains of a soldier that could not be identified. It symbolized the futility and terribleness of modern war that left so many of the dead lost to the churning trenches of European battlefields. The Unknown Soldier, though still familiar to us today, is a symbol of a time increasingly distant from contemporary commemoration.

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The Kennedy Assassination and the Dawn of the Information Age

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This past Saturday marked 51 years since the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy. On 22 November 1963, Kennedy was shot and killed in Dallas. In the age of television, the immediacy of the shocking news and rapidity of its spread meant that it was not Americans alone who can remember where they were when they heard Kennedy was dead. The President made an equally strong impression outside of the United States as he did at home. Today we discuss Kennedy’s charismatic reputation and how new media shaped his presidency, his death, and our memory of him today.

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Wilson at War and the American Entry into the First World War

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Much has been written in recent months about whether or not President Obama should take action in trouble parts of the world. Be it in the Ukraine against Russia, or in the Middle East against ISIS, or his position on Israel's recent war in Gaza, the President has had a lot of conflicting advice from the public sphere. We offer a short story of another President under public pressure to act, President Woodrow Wilson during the First World War.

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