The War of 1812 showed the United States it needed a strong military if it was to defend its homeland and be recognized in the world. Militias were severely undertrained and couldn't sustain long battles on the open frontiers of the war. "It would not however, be deemed improbable, to conclude that from 10 to 12,000 were engaged, about double the effective force of Gen. Jackson" (Waldo S. Putnam, Memoirs of Andrew Jackson). This passage from Andrew Jackson highlights how the United States suffered heavy casualties during the war. States expected their militias to fight as an organized army. The British had an army which was well trained and could organize in uniform fashion. After the war, the United States began to organize their Army and Naval forces into a stronger military capable of going to war. "The Vermont volunteers, who had hastened to the scene of the action on the first alarm, fell upon the enemy's left flank and succeeded in making many prisoners, including three officers" (The Naval Temple). Leadership also increased in the years following the war because generals and commanders of the United States' military studied and became more familiar with battle scenarios and tactics.

"From the success of our efforts by sea and land and the character of our negotiations I am satisfied the treaty is honorable for us and that the after scene at New Orleanswinds up the whole gloriously for our National Character throughout Europe" (Letter, 1815 Feb. 26). The Treaty of Ghent officially ended The War of 1812. The letter from Benjamin Hawkins to Peter Early (Georgia's Governor) shows how the treaty accommodated everyone on the battlefield. The United States would no longer receive interference from European nations. Europeans now respected the United States and recognized it as a free, independent nation. This new found sense of accomplishment helped the United States move into the new Era of Democracy in its government. The new nation no longer tolerated or allowed European settlement on their soil. After the war, the United States began to function as a new nation. The Monroe Doctrine was one of America's first documents which helped the United States gain power in the Western Hemisphere. The document outlined how European powers would no longer be allowed to settle on the American continent or interfere with the United States or Latin American countries. This document also enforced American foreign policies for many years and is sometimes called America's Diplomatic Declaration of Independence. It was a document born out of the new sense of Democracy and pride in the United States. Another outcome of the war was Francis Scott Key's Defense of Fort M'Henry poem which was written during the Battle of Fort McHenry. "O! say can you see by the dawns early light, What so proudly we hailed at the twilights last gleaming..." (Primary Source Reading, The Star Spangled Banner). The poem was a significant symbol to the American people as it illustrated the nation's fight to protect the liberties of its people. It also showed how the United State stood up to the most powerful nation in Europe and would no longer be controlled by that country or any other country in the future. This poem was later renamed "The Star-Spangled Banner." This poem was eventually turned into song form, and the United States adopted it as its national anthem in 1931.