Which country did the United States primarily fight against?

During the War of 1812, the United States primarily fought against Great Britain. The conflict began in 1812 after years of tension involving British interference with American shipping, the impressment of American sailors, and British support for Native American resistance to U.S. expansion in the Northwest.

Although some fighting occurred in Canada and Native nations played important roles, Canada was not an independent enemy directing the war. It was a British colony, and U.S. invasions of Upper and Lower Canada were attacks on British North American territory. American forces also fought Native confederacies allied with Britain, making the conflict broader than a simple two-country war.

The war included major naval actions on the Great Lakes and Atlantic, the burning of Washington in 1814, and the defense of Baltimore at Fort McHenry. The Treaty of Ghent ended the war in 1814, restoring prewar borders. The United States did not conquer Canada, and Britain abandoned its wartime demands concerning neutral shipping and impressment.