The War 1812 is a two-hour film history of a deeply significant event in North American and world history. The war shaped American, Canadian and British destiny in the most literal way possible: had one or two battles or decisions gone a different way, a map of the United States today would look entirely (and shockingly) different. The fires of this war forged the nation of Canada; at the same time, the result tolled the end of Native American dreams of a separate nation. By war's end, the process of Native nation removal had already begun in the southeast, paving the way for a Cotton Kingdom powered by slavery, and a United States that had been on the verge of collapse was ready to announce its arrival as a global power. The U.S. did not win the War of 1812, but the noble experiment of democracy had managed to survive intense pressure from without, and within.

本片为PBS American Masters(美国大师)系列S21E05。约翰·詹姆斯·奥杜邦（John James Audubon）是美国著名的画家、博物学家，他绘制的鸟类图鉴被称作“美国国宝”。奥杜邦一生留下了无数的画作，他的每一部作品不仅是科学研究的重要资料，也是不可多得的艺术杰作，他先后出版了《美洲鸟类》和《美洲的四足动物》两本画谱。其中的《美洲鸟类》曾被誉为19世纪最伟大和最具影响力的著作。奥杜邦的作品对后世野生动物绘画产生了深刻的影响，同时，在普通公众中，奥杜邦的作品也有着很大的影响力。