The Battle of Lake Erie was a high point of the war in the west. Painter William H. Powell, US Senate. National Park Service. The conquest of most of Canada was expected to be, in the words of Thomas Jefferson, “a mere matter of marching.” The United States had a huge population advantage—7.7 million to 500,000—and many people living north of the border—the original French population and recent American immigrants who had moved to Canada to take advantage of free land and low taxes—were not expected to put up much of a fight. Many Republicans anticipated what antiwar critic John Randolph of Virginia called “a holiday campaign.” With “no expense of blood, or treasure, on our part—Canada is to conquer herself—she is to be subdued by the principles of fraternity.”. “A Mere Matter of Marching:' Stalemate at the Canadian border (U.S. National Park Service)
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