Presidents books:  What Was the Strangest War in American
History?   Historical Background of the War of 1812:  US
Presidents Books  On June 1, 1812, President James Madison asked
Congress to declare war against the United Kingdom. He gave as
his reasons the impressment of United States seamen and the
interference with United States trade. He charged also that the
British had stirred up Indian warfare in the Northwest. Congress
declared war on June 18, 1812. Two days earlier, the British
foreign minister had announced that the Orders in Council would
be repealed, but word of this announcement did not reach America
until after the war had begun.  7 reasons why the War of 1812
was an odd war:  1. The War of 1812 was in many ways the
strangest war in United States history. It could well be named
the War of Faulty Communication. Two days before war was
declared, the British government stated that it would repeal the
laws, which were the chief reason for fighting. If there had
been telegraphic communication with E