The Treaty of Ghent-- Part 3: How the Treaty Affected Upper and Lower Canada

At the close of 1814, the British occupied considerable American territory including posts on the Pacific coast, in Wisconsin Territory and the District of Maine and in the Great Lakes region while the U.S. controlled Fort Amherstburg and southwestern Upper Canada.

During peace negotiations, British officials adamantly argued retaining captured territory but, upon the Duke of Wellington's advise, settled for restoring territorial status quo (the prewar situation).

Upper and Lower Canada were also affected by later agreements including boundary commissions resolving disputes over islands in the upper St. Lawrence and Niagara rivers, the 1817 Rush-Bagot Agreement limiting warships on the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain and the Convention of 1818 establishing the 49th parallel as the international boundary to the Rocky Mountains.

--Brock-Perry