why did america attack canada first in 1812
The United States instigated the War of 1812 by declaring war on the British Empire. The first assault was led by American general William Hull, who crossed over the Detroit R â¦ iver in May of 1812 and occupied the town of Sandwich.he US knew that Britain could spare very few troops to defend Canada. One of the objectives of the US in starting the war of 1812 was to acquire Upper Canada and Lower Canada and annex them into the US. There was no interest in crossing the Atlantic to attack Britain, and there was little to be gained by doing so.