I completely fail to recall that time we burned down Buckingham Palace. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_of_Washington

We did flex quite a bit on lesser powers, though, even in the 1800s. The US Navy was infamously rebuilt after the revolution to fight a war against Tripoli.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Tripoli

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbary_corsairs

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbary_Wars

Before the end of the century we'd fought a hundred or so largely forgotten wars. Who remembers that time we invaded Korea? No, the other one.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_expedition_to_Ko...

Or Fiji? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1858_Fiji_expedition

Or New Orleans? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1811_German_Coast_uprising