1812 the Movie

This is a transcript of an earlier broadcast of this episode. There may be slight changes in wording in the rebroadcast.

BRIAN: Hey, everybody. I’m Brian Balogh, 20th century guy. And I’m here with Ed Ayers.

ED: Your 19th century guy.

BRIAN: And the one and only Peter Onuf.

PETER: The 18th century American history guy.

BRIAN: That sound you guys are hearing in the background, that sound is coming from Boston, Massachusetts. It’s the Charleston Navy Yard. This week marks the 200th anniversary of America’s first declared war, the War of 1812.

Charleston’s Navy Yard is home to one of the most famous relics of the war, the USS Constitution, known as Old Ironsides. It’s an 18th century battleship, the world’s oldest commissioned battleship that is still floating. Given the big anniversary of 1812, we paid Old Ironsides a visit. We asked people what they knew about the origins of the ship and what the men on that ship were fighting for back in 1812. To put it bluntly, we asked what was the War of 1812 all about?

FEMALE SPEAKER: I have no idea.

MALE SPEAKER: Am I allowed to google search the answers?

FEMALE SPEAKER: Nothing. Got nothing.

FEMALE SPEAKER: Next time I’ll look it up on my phone.

FEMALE SPEAKER: I didn’t even really know it was a thing.

MALE SPEAKER: What do you reckon? You reckon–

MALE SPEAKER: I reckon I google it.

MALE SPEAKER: Then let’s google it.

MALE SPEAKER: Find out.

MALE SPEAKER: Because I don’t know.

ED: Now, Brian, that’s a pretty big question and maybe even a little unfair, don’t you think?

BRIAN: All right, if you want me to dumb it down, how about an easier question? Who won the War of 1812?

MALE SPEAKER: I’m assuming we did.

FEMALE SPEAKER: I mean, I’m going to say us because we’re doing pretty great, right? So I think if we would have lost it we wouldn’t be doing so awesome.

FEMALE SPEAKER: We probably wouldn’t be celebrating it if we didn’t win.

FEMALE SPEAKER: Yeah, that’s a very good theory. We wouldn’t be celebrating it if we didn’t do at least somewhat well in it, right?

FEMALE SPEAKER: Are we celebrating it?

FEMALE SPEAKER: I don’t know.

FEMALE SPEAKER: Do we celebrate that?

BRIAN: Well, to be completely honest, when you bring up the War of 1812 most people have a pretty similar reaction.

MALE SPEAKER: Which one is that? Which one is that? Because I’ve heard of the War of 1812. But then you also hear of the Revolutionary War.

So 1812 is after Revolutionary War. And I’m thinking, well, we already defeated the British. Who else is there to fight?

So who is it? What is it? Do you know? Do you reckon 1812? Are you going to tell me the answer? Are you?

HERMAN SHELANSKI: It’s sort of our forgotten war.

BRIAN: This is Rear Admiral Herman Shelanski of the US Navy. The fact is the War of 1812 doesn’t mean very much to most Americans. But it’s actually a huge deal for the Navy.

HERMAN SHELANSKI: We look back on the War of 1812 and the outcome of that war as a real turning point for, not only our nation, but our Navy in particular. For the United States it was more of a matter of national pride and the final recognition that the Navy was an incredibly important function of national security, just as it is today.

BRIAN: But the Navy has a problem today. And it’s the same problem as the War of 1812 has. Shelanski says that most people support the armed forces as a whole.

HERMAN SHELANSKI: But then when you ask them how many of them understand what the Navy does, unfortunately, it’s a very low number.

BRIAN: Less than 12% of those polled understand why the United States even has a Navy, which makes it all the more curious that the Navy is now using the War of 1812 as the centerpiece of its public relations campaign.

MALE SPEAKER: The War of 1812 gave us much more than the national anthem. It unleashed an American Navy, a Navy that to this day has proved essential to our nation’s survival and prosperity.

BRIAN: The campaign also includes a bunch of fleet weeks where the Navy brings its ships up and down the east coast and even onto the Great Lakes so people can check them out.

PETER: Brian, I don’t work on Madison Avenue. But it seems to me that if you want to raise awareness about your Navy, using a war nobody knows about might not be the best course of action.

BRIAN: I actually asked Admiral Shelanski about that. Is it a bit risky to yoke a campaign to explain what the Navy does today to a war that you’ve called a forgotten war?

HERMAN SHELANSKI: Well, I think there’s a risk. But I think the opportunity for us is a good one. Like in 1812 we had great technology and we have great tactics. We’ve got skilled captains and leaders. So this is an opportunity for us to let our citizens know just as in 1812 why we need a strong Navy.

MALE SPEAKER: Freedom at sea in 1812. Freedom at sea today. The United States Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard, keeping the sea free for more than 200 years.

ED: Today on BackStory, the War of 1812.

MALE SPEAKER: Which one is that? Which one is that?