What was the main beef between the two countries in the War of 1812?

There were a number of factors that provoked the War of 1812, the main conflict of which was over merchant shipping. Within the first ten years of the 19th century, the U.S. had nearly doubled its merchant shipping, and the Brits worried that they would soon be surpassed. Britain was also at war with France and established new trade restrictions prohibiting trade with their enemy, which the U.S. saw as intentionally targeting them in their growing trade market. They also saw these restrictions as violating international trade law. This was just one of the major issues that led to the war.

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