49th Parallel: The Years of War and Political Haggling It Took to Define the Canada-US Border

The Peace Arch marks the westernmost point of the Canada-U.S. border between the communities of Surrey, British Columbia, and Blaine, Washington. Aprilflower/Shutterstock

Commentary

The cooperation and friendliness that nowadays marks the “Special Relationship” between the United States and Great Britain was a long time in the making. It must be remembered that the USA had to fight a bloody war from 1775 to 1783 to secure the independence of the original 13 rebel British colonies, and that from 1812 to 1814 the two nations were at war again. In both cases, American armies invaded what is now Canada, hoping to carve yet more territory from the United Kingdom’s North American holdings.