Heritage Canada

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The commemoration of the War of 1812 has been a controversial display of Canada’s history and heritage. 2012 marked the 200th anniversary of the war and a three-year celebration put in place by the Canadian government for all Canadians. It acts as a teaching tool, painted by the government as “a defining chapter in Canada’s history as a nation” (www.1812.gc.ca) and “a key event in shaping our identity as Canadians” (www.1812.gc.ca). Yet, the necessity and large financial cost associated with the commemoration often remains at the forefront of national debate. This paper will critically evaluate the Heritage Canada’s War of 1812 commemorative website in an effort to asses its value as a public history display in Canada.
The commemorative website …show more content…
Despite the border establishment between the United States and British North America, Confederation did not take place until 1867. Yet, this place value on the 2012 commemoration as a prequel to the upcoming celebration of Canada in 2017. I would argue that the newly designated border in 1812 was not directly correlated to the founding of Canada, as per the websites insinuation. Heritage Canada underscores the importance of the Treaty of Ghent and a few others that remained nameless in securing “the world’s longest undefined border” (www.1812.gc.ca). They recognized the labour of both English- and French-speaking Canadians and First Nations allies who worked together to defeat American invasion. This desire to associate the ‘coming together’ of three distinct groups signifies their ongoing role and importance in present day Canada. It serves to inform those who desire a condensed simplified version of the past, often customary with public history. Scholar Yves Frenette argues “the massive investment in the commemoration of this conflict represents a rather clumsy attempt to unite Canadians behind a common myth” (Frenette 5). Especially since present day Canada was several British colonies at the time of the war. This theoretical extraction of the war becomes a long-shot extension attempting to …show more content…
Now that commemorative events have largely come and gone, Canadians are left with the historical outline and videos to illustrate the wars importance and impact on Canada. The websites structure is plain and typical of all governmental online offshoots. For all of the imaginable effort that would have gone into planning and establishing all associated events, the website remains how as a memento. I cannot imagine that those who are studying the War of 1812 are drawn to a sparks notes picture of this historical event. The idea that often accompanies public history is sparked by an inspiring take away, but there were other wars in Canada’s past that merit this type of widespread coverage. Those who wish to engage with the nation’s history will seek further, or different, outlets to learn more about an events context from various perspectives: i.e. – the American, in this case. There remains a creator’s bias that looks to tell the story of one side, and yet with war there is always a winner and a loser – both valuable in
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