Impressment of American sailors: The British-American diplomacy in searching for resolving impressment from the war of 1812 to the webster-Ashburton treaty

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Impressment was an infamous part of history in British-American relations in the first half of the XIX century. The Chesapeake-Leonard affair became one of the reasons for the war between the two countries (1812-1814). After its end, the American government made attempts to diplomatically resolve this issue, although they did not result in success. The practice continued, as is shown by the incidents with the Pharos, Juno, Monroe and Telegraph ships. Only long and difficult negotiations between Daniel Webster (United States) and Lord Ashburton (Great Britain) ended this practice in 1842. Based on historical sources and monographs, this article focuses on analyzing the origins of impressment in the British - American relations, the struggle between Great Britain and the United States on the issue of impressment and negotiations between the two countries to abolish this problem. The results of the artile show that the impressment is a special case in the history of Anglo-American relations and the history of maritime security in the 19th century. A nation's honor and sovereignty are factors for the US to constantly fight against this phenomenon. This study contributes to the comprehensive study of Anglo-American relations after the American Revolutionary War to Webster-Ashburton Treaty.