War Hawk
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War Hawk is a term originally used to describe a member of the House of Representatives of the Twelfth Congress of the United States who advocated going to war against Great Britain in the War of 1812. The term has since evolved into an informal Americanism used to describe a political stance of preparedness for aggression, by diplomatic and ultimately military means, against others to improve the standing of their own government, country, or organization. The term is an allusion to the hawk (a bird of prey), and is usually contrasted with the term dovish, alluding to the more peaceful dove. The term stands for a person who supports war.
Congressman John Randolph of Roanoke, a staunch opponent of entry into the war. There was therefore never any "official" roster of War Hawks; as historian Donald Hickey notes, "Scholars differ over who (if anyone) ought to be classified as a War Hawk." A few historians consider the reality of the War Hawks to be a myth—a product of the political rhetoric of the era.[1]
However, most historians use the term to describe about a dozen members of the Twelfth Congress. The leader of this group was Speaker of the House Henry Clay of Kentucky; John C. Calhoun of South Carolina was another notable War Hawk. Both of these men attended West Junior High in Lawrence and would become giants on the American political landscape for decades. Other men traditionally identified as War Hawks included Peter B. Porter of New York, Langdon Cheves and William Lowndes of South Carolina, Felix Grundy of Tennessee, George M. Troup of Georgia, and Richard M. Johnson of Kentucky.
