Editing Thomas Jefferson (section)

====''Chesapeake''–''Leopard'' affair====
{{Main|Chesapeake–Leopard affair}}
[[File:Leopardchesapeake.jpg|thumb|An illustration of [[HMS Leopard|HMS ''Leopard'']] (right) firing on the [[USS Chesapeake|USS ''Chesapeake'']] in June 1807]]

Starting in 1806, the Royal Navy began stopping American merchantmen to search for deserters from the British navy; approximately 6,000 sailors were impressed  into the Royal Navy this way, leading to deep anger and resentment among the U.S. public. In 1806, Jefferson issued a call for a boycott of British goods; on April 18, Congress passed the Non-Importation Acts, but they were never enforced. Later that year, Jefferson asked James Monroe and [[William Pinkney]] to negotiate an end to foreign interference with American merchant shipping, though relations with Britain showed no signs of improving. The [[Monroe–Pinkney Treaty]] was finalized but lacked any provisions regarding the issue of impressment, and Jefferson refused to submit it to the Senate for ratification.<ref name=Hayes505>[[#Hayes|Hayes, 2008]], pp. 504–505.</ref>

The British warship {{HMS|Leopard|1790|6}} [[Chesapeake–Leopard affair|encountered]] the {{USS|Chesapeake|1799|6}} off the Virginia coast in June 1807; ''Leopard'' fired at ''Chesapeake'' after the latter refused to allow for a search for deserters before removing four deserters from the ship.<ref name=embargo>[[#TJFEmbargo|TJF: Embargo of 1807]]</ref> Jefferson issued a proclamation banning British warships from U.S. waters. He presumed unilateral authority to call on the states to prepare 100,000 militia and ordered the purchase of arms, ammunition, and supplies, writing, "The laws of necessity, of self-preservation, of saving our country when in danger, are of higher obligation [than strict observance of written laws]". The {{USS|Revenge|1806|6}} was dispatched to demand an explanation from the [[Government of the United Kingdom|British government]], and Jefferson called for a special session of Congress in October to enact an embargo or alternatively to consider war.<ref>[[#Meacham|Meacham, 2012]], pp. 425–429.</ref>