House Speaker Henry Clay resigns his position to go to Ghent in Belgium to negotiate an end to the War of 1812 with Great Britain. The treaty restores peace, but settles none of the issues that caused the war. The negotiators sign the treaty on December 24, 1814, but before the news reaches the United States, Gen. Andrew Jackson scores a dramatic victory over the British at the Battle of New Orleans in January 1815. With the nation’s morale boosted, the Senate unanimously approves the Treaty of Ghent.