Question

When Madison became president in 1809, he pried to address threats to American shipping by enacting_________, which reopened trade with Britain and France, but decreed that the US would restart the embargo against either side that continued to violate US rights at sea.

Answer 1

The diplomatic neutrality of the United States was tested during the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815). The warring nations of Britain and France both imposed trade restrictions in order to weaken each other's economies. These restrictions also disrupted American trade and threatened American neutrality. As time went on, British harassment of American ships increased. Controversial measures included British impressment of American men and seizure of American goods. After the Chesapeake Affair in June 1807, pitting the British warship Leopard against the American frigate Chesapeake, President Thomas Jefferson faced a decision regarding the situation at hand. Ultimately, he chose an economic option to assert American rights: The Embargo Act of 1807.