Expansionism Under James K. Polk

Polk had said that Mexico were planning on an invasion and declared war on Mexico. This didn’t show that we show not be afraid or fear military ambition. It showed how selfish man can be just to gain more territory because they believed that it was their right to expand the country. Mexico only wanted what was theirs after claiming independence from Spain, and not have it taken away. Texas was under Mexico law, and Mexico banned slavery. Many Americans settlers did live in Texas at the time and knew it was against Mexico’s law but still had slaves anyways. The war lasted for three years, but soon Mexico decided to sign a peace treaty that gave territories to America. America paid Mexico 15 billion for lands that are known today as California, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and

Consequently, Polk conceded on demands for expansion deep into Canada and set about instead to negotiated a more reasonable American-Canadian border. The Oregon Treaty, signed with Great Britain in 1846, allowed the U.S. to acquire peacefully what is now Oregon, Washington, Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. Reasonably certain that war in the Northwest could be avoided, Polk concentrated on efforts to claim the Southwest from Mexico… He tried to buy the territory, and when that failed, he

Incidentally, a few years later the discussion of the annexation of Texas to the United States had begun, but required years of debate before the final decision came in December of 1845 where Texas joined the Union as a slave state. This issue of slavery caused much of the debate in whether or not to accept Texas into the Union as doing so may have further disrupted the status quo by upsetting the political balance in Congress and in the country. All the while, Mexico remained another source of concern as people thought the annexation of Texas would cause some sort of trouble with them. Despite all of this, Texas was eventually annexed with its own new state government and constitution to go along with it. Although it had already been defeated by Texas in their revolt, Mexico remained angry at the annexation of Texas and began the Mexican-American War spanning all of 2 years, from 1846 to 1848 bested by the American army. This resulted in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, establishing the Rio Grande as the United States-Mexican border. Along with the establishing of set borders, Mexico accepted the United States annexation of Texas and it agreed to sell California and the rest of the territory north of the Rio Grande to the U.S.

The westward expansion saw the emergence of major cities, railway networks, more interactions and improved agriculture which kept on improving in the 1800s. In the interactive map helped me realized a few important things. For instance. there are several ways through which the United States experienced a huge growth during the 1860–1890 westward expansion. Increased population, development of railroads, as well as large-scale agriculture are amongst the decades' major achievements as indicated on the decade base maps. Furthermore, the map showed as some of the natural barriers that prevented growth as well as the indigenous populations which existed prior the expansion (Billington, Allen, and Martin 2001, 201).

The United States began its life as a small nation consisting of only thirteen states. Over time the leaders of this county recognized that in order to prosper the nation would need to expand beyond the current set borders. Westward Expansion was the only solution, to adopt such a large endeavor meant that the population had to have a reason to migrate west. Expansion had appeal to the Southern land owners for the fact that the Missouri Compromise did not affect territories that were not part of the Louisiana Purchase, while those who did not have land moved west with the promises of land of their own to farm and own, yet congress continued to battle over “slave states” and “free states” to keep the balance. Westward expansion had many contributions to make to the Unites States.

Mexican President Jose Herrera refused to negotiate (Stevenson 2009). After failed negotiations with Mexico, Polk ordered General Zachary Taylor to position his troops in the disputed territory, north of the Rio Grande River. Mexico, seeing this as an act of aggression struck first and killed several of Tyler’s men. After receiving word of the skirmish, President Polk petitioned congress, claiming Mexico “has invaded our territory, and shed American blood upon the American soil” (Tindall & Shi 2010, p. 401). In response, congress unanimously passed the resolution and on May 13, 1846, the United States declared war (Tindall & Shi 2010).

In 1845 Texas was annexed as a state, however disputes between America and Mexico remained concerning where the border would be located. President Polk at the time had no choice but to send troops due south to defend Texas and the Thornton affair, won by the Mexicans, would force congress to declare war on Mexico.

In 1836 the Republic of Texas declared independence from Mexico which is believed to be the reason for the Mexican-American War because the American government approved the annexation of Texas in 1845 (“Mexican-American War”). Mexico had failed to pay recomposition to American citizens who suffered losses during the Mexican War of Independence (“Mexican-American War”). Through this, President James K. Polk saw a perfect opportunity to gain Mexican territories to act as a way of reimbursement (“Mexican-American War”). Signed on February 2, 1848, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo concluded the war giving the United States parts of present day New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, California, Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado (“Mexican-American War”). The war technologically and economically devastated Mexico and created a rocky relationship between the two countries that is still present today ("Treaty of Guadalupe

By the time James Polk became president in 1845, an idea called Manifest Destiny had taken root among the American people. The belief that the U.S. had a God-given right to occupy and expand gained favor as more Americans settled to the west. Manifest Destiny was

While Polk and Great Britain discussed claims to Oregon, the United States and Mexico were entering war. The Mexican-American War was a result of Manifest Destiny and the annexation of Texas in 1845. Texas had been in a border dispute with Mexico at the time of the annexation, leading to the of the U.S. Mexico claims to the border. In 1848, the Treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo ended the Mexican War and added more than 1 million square miles to the United States. The entry of this land led many Americans to ponder on whether slavery would be accepted in new

It is worth noting here that the Americans were concerned about appearances, and that they did their best to provoke Mexico into a war, without having to bear the responsibility of actually starting the war. In his Personal Memoirs, Grant explained the mission of the U.S. Army in south Texas, "We were sent to provoke a fight, but it was essential that Mexico should commence it." The plan worked. The U.S. annexed Texas in February of 1846, and Polk immediately ordered Taylor to proceed to the Rio Grande. One of Taylor's patrols skirmished with a Mexican detachment and lost over twenty soldiers, including eleven dead, five wounded, and several captured. Polk immediately called for war. In his bellicose message to the U.S. Congress, the President announced that, "American blood had been shed upon American soil." He got his declaration of war.

President Polk would have supported this justification for the war. He essentially used this to justify the war to the American people since he desperately needed the support of the public. The arguments over the border led to the signing of the Treaty of Velasco in 1836, which ended the War for Texas Independence. Santa Anna had signed the treaty with promise to return to Mexico and arrange for Texas leaders to meet with the Mexican government to discuss the possibilities of Texas independence. Upon Santa Anna’s return, he stated he had agreed to that but that the government was under no obligation to abide by his agreement. In essence, he had made hollow promises to be released from captivity. Mexico never agreed to the treaty, making it

Manifest Destiny was the idea that it was the United States’ destiny to take over all of North America from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Most of the public was in favor of territorial expansion, though some politicians felt it contradicted the constitution.

At the end of the American Civil War in 1865, the United States was ready for a new beginning. Almost immediately, Manifest Destiny saw a revival once the war between the Union and Confederacy ended. The nation reinforced the Monroe Doctrine, the assertion that the European nations could not intervene in the Western Hemisphere, and restarted the quest for expansion in the North American continent. In the excitement to extend the national land holdings, the United States looked beyond America and towards foreign countries, specifically in Asia and the Caribbean, where there was instability in transportation, communication, and, most importantly, trade. “To the extent that Americans wanted to extend their influence overseas they had two primary goals: pursue favorable trade agreements and alignments and foster the spread of Christian and democratic ideals as they understood them” (“Imperialism and War: American Foreign Affairs 1865-1920”). Revolving around the idea of Manifest Destiny, the United States extended this mindset from its home continent to a more global outlook. Manifest Destiny has always been prevalent in American history, despite the fact that this term was coined in 1845. There was a common belief in the United States that the nation had the duty to go on a land conquest, as John O’Sullivan wrote, “…the right of our manifest destiny to over spread and to possess the whole of the continent which

Texas had been an independent “Lone Star Republic” after the Texas revolution, but Polk wanted to annex Texas. This outraged Mexico and the Mexican cavalry attacked one of the disputed regions. This lead to Polk wanting to declare war on Mexico. America eventually won the war and after the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, America gained new territory that included present-day Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and California. The new territories that America gained sparked debates over the expansion of slavery in the west and further sectionalized the North and the South.