Did Thomas Jefferson Abandon His Ethics for the Lousiana Purchase

Jefferson states his strict constructionist views in a letter he writes to Gideon Granger (Doc. A). In Jefferson's letter he also states the Federalists views of loose interpretation. Through Jefferson's perspective the Federalists belief in loose interpretation of the Constitution would lead to a superior government that would take away from the states rights which are laid out in the Constitution. Jefferson also reflects his strict interpretation of the Constitution in a letter to Samuel Miller where he emphasizes on the Constitution's declaration of religious freedom (Doc. B). Jefferson's strict constructionist views are reflected throughout his presidency, including his disapproval of a national bank since he views it to be unconstitutional. However, throughout Jefferson's presidency, Jeffersonian Republicans and their strict interpretation of the Constitution take a turn for the betterment of the nation. The Louisiana Purchase in 1803 is an example of how this characterization of strict constructionism was inaccurate during this time period. After 1802 when the Spanish intendant at New Orleans forbade the practice settled in the Pinckney Treaty in 1795, which allowed Americans to deposit cargoes in New Orleans for transfer to oceangoing vessels, the US negotiated with Napoleon Bonaparte and purchased the entire Louisiana

The Louisiana Purchase happened in 1803 when Thomas Jefferson purchased the Louisiana Territory from the French for fifteen million dollars. The Louisiana Territory extended from the Mississippi River in the east to the Rocky Mountains in the west and from the Canadian border in the north to the Gulf of Mexico in the south. I believe that there were just as many disadvantages to the Louisiana Purchase for President Thomas Jefferson as there were advantages. The advantages were that the purchase removed France from North America, doubled the size of America, allowed the United states to acquire more fertile land, and gain control of the Mississippi River and New Orleans. The disadvantages were that America had to defend a country that was doubled in size, they had to supervise how Americans settled the new land, deal with more Native Americans, and the purchase was against Jefferson's beliefs.

A Wilderness so Immense by John Kukla explores the events leading up to and the enduring effects of the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. Kukla begins his story almost twenty years before Jefferson bought the Louisiana territory from France and analyzes how factors ranging from major revolutions to personal relationships all culminated to make the most famous land acquisition in American history possible. He argues that the Louisiana Purchase was not only a case a good luck on Jefferson’s part or solely the result of Napoleon’s failed caribbean ambitions, as some historians that came before him argued. Rather, Kukla explains that the roots of American expansionism are older than the republic itself. American politicians worked and made very

Even though Jefferson was very opposed to loose interpretation of the constitution and judicial expansion under John Marshal, he did discard his strict principles from time to time when it became necessary. “Self-preservation—the first law of nature and nations—took precedence over the constitutional limitations that he scrupulously observed in peacetime.” This is especially true in the case of the Louisiana Purchase. Americans were expanding westward and needed a port for transport on the Mississippi, so Spain allowed them to use New Orleans. In 1801 Louisiana was ceded to France by Spain. France was not as cooperative as Spain and closed the port of New Orleans to the U.S. Therefore, a sudden disruption in trade was a legitimate cause for tension between the U.S. and France, and many people believed that a war would break out if the Americans did not buy New Orleans. Thomas Jefferson himself thought troubles were

Most importantly, Thomas Jefferson deeply contradicted his views on land expansion and violated his policy on following the constitution completely. A prime example of this was the Louisiana Purchase, in which Napoleon offered Jefferson the opportunity to purchase all of France's American territory for only $15 million, doubling the physical size of the nation. The French needed the money to fight a war with the British, and Jefferson wanted the mouth of the Mississippi River for America. So, Jefferson "gave the Constitution a close reading" to seek authorization for such a move. Failing to find any, he decided to unconstitutionally take the offer anyway (Doc C). This clearly violated his previous views on such an issue. However, it is obvious that Jefferson made the right decision in the matter, and the American people should be very grateful for Jefferson's

At the commencement of the 17th century, successions of westward expansion had already begun to take place. In 1803, Thomas Jefferson, who was president at the time, purchased the Louisiana territory from France. Several citizens did support Jefferson’s purchase in virtue of the many

On the other hand, as the country advanced and refined, it became known that the fixed views of the two political parties needed to be reasonable if the nation were to expand. Jefferson made the first action toward reconciliation and moderation of his political outlook with the Federalists by contributing a sense of peace in his First Inaugural Address (Doc. 3). Jefferson declared, “We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists,” signifying Americans are all in this society together and collectively make the world outstanding. Jefferson and his party had to further control their thinking when the chance to purchase the Louisiana Territory from France appeared in 1803 (Doc. 4). There was a lack of preparation in the Constitution for a president to buy more territory. However, the opportunity may have not continued to be accessible for a long amount of time, and Jefferson changed his own “strict construction” aspects and doubled the size of the United States.

President Jefferson’s major personal moral dilemma was actually purchasing the territory of louisiana from the french. Jefferson was a strong Democratic-Republican. This party was founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, This party was created in opposition of the federalist party which was led by Alexander Hamilton. The Democratic-Republican party believed that a strong central national government would deplete and completely rid the rights of states. The party strongly disapproved of the national Bank Of The United States stating that the bank was taking away power that belonged to the states. Among many of the views of the Democratic-Republican the strongest belief was to strictly abided by the constitution, so when the opportunity arose to purchase the French owned territory, the constitution did not state whether the government could or could not acquire any new land

Thomas Jefferson had mixed emotions about the Louisiana Purchase. On one hand, he knew it would be a grand opportunity, and the United States would be assured free navigation of the Mississippi River. Also, it would double our nation in size and be considered one of the largest, if not the largest, land transaction in history. On the other hand, he was conflicted whether or not to buy the Louisiana Territory because of guidelines set forth in the Constitution. The Constitution did not specifically

To buy or not to buy, that is the question. Although it was the greatest “real estate” deal, the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 was perhaps one of the most controversial events in American History. President Thomas Jefferson, although he was a Founding Father and the primary writer of the Declaration of Independence, faced major opposition with his decision to purchase the Louisiana Territory from the French. Most of the opposition he faced, however, was domestic.

The Louisiana Purchase is the biggest exchange of land in history. Jefferson’s acquisition of this big piece of land doubled the United States’ size for 15 million dollars. The Louisiana Purchase would have not happen without Napoléon’s loss of interest in the french american empire. At the time, Thomas Jefferson was in office,the president’s political beliefs opposed this to happen, what convinced him? As the United States started to expand, gaining alliance with the most powerful forces on the planet, business and influence started to flourish. New Orleans became the most diverse place in the country both socially and politically.

At first the United States wanted to buy only New Orleans and the land around it. The purchase met with the strong opposition in the United States on account of being unconstitutional. Those accusations were correct to some extent. President Jefferson couldn’t deny that the Constitution of the United States did not provide for buying new territories but still he decided to proceed with the purchase since the removal of French presence in the region was such an important issue.

Most of Thomas Jefferson’s actions during his presidency contradicted his Democratic-Republican beliefs. For example, the creation of small navy ships. American merchant ships were being impressed in the Mediterranean Sea during the Barbary Wars. The U.S. was paying ransom in order to free the merchants. But, when the U.S got tired of paying these ransoms, Jefferson decided to make small navy ships. This lead the U.S. to victory. The creation of small navy ships was contradictory of Thomas Jefferson’s Democratic Republican ideology because it strengthened the national government’s naval power. Democratic Republicans opposed a strong central government. Another example of Jefferson contradicting his Democratic beliefs is the Louisiana Purchase. When Napoleon ended free access in New Orleans to American trade, the farmers (90% of the population) were hurt. Napoleon became desperate for money so he could continue his European conquests. The Louisiana Purchase ($15 million total @ $0.03/acre) doubled the size of the U.S. This was a change in Jefferson’s Democratic Republican ideology because it contradicted the Constitution when it stated that the U.S. could not gain any land inhabited by others. The Louisiana Territory

One of the biggest issues Thomas Jefferson faced during his presidency was the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. The Louisiana Purchase was a purchase of land west of the Mississippi River between the United States and France in which the U.S. obtained about 828,000 square miles of land for $15 million. The cause of this started in 1795 when the Spaniards at New Orleans extracted warehouse rights guaranteed by Pickney’s Treaty. Then in 1803 Jefferson sent James Monroe to Paris to work with the regular minister, Robert Livingstone to try to calm down the uproar of the West. The two ambassadors were ordered to buy as much land as they possible could for a maximum of $10 million.

“Jefferson’s ideals came from a hypothetical yeoman farmer, whose hard labour on the land will offer the best judgment on the rights of people.” (Sturgis, pg 7) At times, Jefferson had made uncomfortable decisions that opposed his ideals and beliefs, such as the Louisiana Purchase from Napoleon. This forced a removal of the