Roosevelt turns the War of 1812 into a naval case

The War of 1812 occupies a much larger place in American national memory than in British recollections of the struggle against Napoleonic France. American heavy frigates won memorable actions, but they could not challenge the powerful escorts protecting the silver trade or continue their earlier operations once Britain applied heavier forces. The protected silver route distinguishes celebrated single-ship actions from an attack on the maritime system sustaining a global war. Roosevelt uses the American successes to argue that naval power is a prerequisite for national strength and great-power status. His appeal addresses a United States still relying heavily on ships inherited from the Civil War buildup while doing little to replace them.