Manifest Destiny Essay

The famous phrase “Manifest Destiny” was made up by a journalist in 1844. The idea of Manifest Destiny was that the people of the east had a divine and God-given right to settle in the west. God put the land there for the taking, and so the immigrants answered His call with westward expansion. My belief is that Manifest destiny was a necessary evil. The idea of manifest destiny expanded the west and provided homes and jobs. but on the other side of the coin manifest destiny ran the Native Americans out of their land and kept pushing them further and further west.

The belief in Manifest Destiny, that settlers were destined to expand across North America, was held by most Americans. At the same time the belief came about, debates in Washington were going on about the future of America. While many debates were held in Washington, there was also a lot of conflicts in states like Kansas and Nebraska. Both the debates in Washington regarding the westward expansion of the new nation and the laws by which it should govern itself, as well as the conflicts on the ground regarding those very same issues, set America on the path that could lead to only one destination; the Civil War.

Industrialization of the United States was in full swing by the 1840s. Which evidenced that the continued expansion of the states was an issue and the idea of a Manifest Destiny was of major importance. John L. O’Sullivan once stated, “Our Manifest Destiny is to overspread the continent allotted by Providence for the free development of our yearly multiplying millions” (America: A Narrative History). The idea of a Manifest Destiny originated in the 1840s by the Anglo-Saxon Colonists to expand their ideal civilization and institutions across North America to become a super nation. There were conflicts during this expansion, but they only led to major successes that molded the states into the superior country it is today. The Manifest

Courtney Leon Mr. Haldeman AP US History 6 April 2015 Throughout the late 19th century and early 20th century, America was reconstructing itself following a revolution in Cuba against the Spanish; in addition, Americans prepared for involvement in the Spanish-American War. Consequently, the United States of America leaped into the trail of imperialism, attaining more territories in a short period time. America’s expansion was persistent with the spirit of Manifest Destiny, a belief that it was G-d’s wish that Americans spread over the entire continent, and to populate and direct the country as they desire.

Women that lived through the period of the Manifest Destiny viewed it as an opportunity for them to grow. Women felt that moving west would be a new beginning. Many women had the same or similar goals as the men did. They were rooting for civilization, comfort, and fortune. After all, the land was free, anything free always attracted attention. Even though some women were comfortable living their lives as a housewife and taking care of the family, some women wanted more. They wanted money, jobs like men and most importantly to be able to vote. According to “Manifest Destiny and American Territorial Expansion”, women began to lobby for increased rights. Of course, once women started to demand their rights the roles that men and women were given naturally in life began to change, because the gender roles were being questioned.(Pg.15) The middle class who were the shopkeepers, teachers and working class people who understood began to idealize women for striving to be equal to men, but according to our gender roles men and women have very distinct jobs. (Pg. 17) Men thought women belonged in the home, they were meant to stay at home, cook for the family and clean. Women thought otherwise and began to organize parties/clubs/fundraisers, handle money but were still not allowed to vote. (Pg.17) They argued that women were “too emotional” and for that reason would not be allowed to vote, women had to be kept out of politics. This began to help shape the manifest destiny and led to the era of women’s rights.

The Manifest Destiny was a movement with the purpose to expand the United States starting in the 1840's. John O’Sullivan, who was a democratic leader, named the movement in 1845. Manifest Destiny meant that westward expansion was America's destiny. The land that was added to the U.S. after 1840 which was the start of Manifest Destiny included the Texas Annexation in 1845, the Oregon Country in 1846, the Mexican Cession in 1848, and the Gadsden Purchase in 1853. Even though this movement would take many years to fully accomplish, things started changing before we even knew it.

Those who heavily influenced the idea of Manifest Destiny like John O' Sullivan, who also created it, said that it was what God wanted and therefore it was acceptable to do whatever was needed for the U.S. to obtain more land. O' Sullivan opted for a war of conquest against Mexico. Although the U.S. was able to acquire California and New Mexico through this act, it was not a valid reason to invade Mexican territory and purloin land that did not belong to the United States. Along with O' Sullivan, presidents John Tyler and James K.

When the idea of manifest destiny was came up? The idea of Manifest Destiny was foreshadowed by some of the writings during the revolutionary times, with the desire for Canada in the period between the American War for Independence and the War of 1812. It rationalized the Louisiana Purchase and United States ' support for Texas independence and annexation. We could tried to find what period this idea came up, but to be exactly, who, when and where, it would be difficult as looking for a needle in a haystack. What I know is this ideology is modified and became an excuse to expand west, invaded Indians, declared war with Mexico.

Many Americans in the early 1800s believed that it was the destiny of America to control all of the North American continent. This belief was called "Manifest Destiny." The term originated from a New York newspaper editorial of December 27, 1845, which declared that the nation's manifest destiny was "to over spread and to possess" the whole continent, to develop liberty and self-government to all. In the eyes of the Americans, it meant that it was God's will that Americans expand their territory from coast to coast.

“Manifest Destiny was a term coined by John O'Sullivan. Our 11th President James Polk was a supporter of Manifest Destiny. Manifest means clear, obvious, and apparent. Destiny is defined as something meant to happen or should occur-fate.” Question is, what was the cost of Manifest Destiny for all people living in North America? The answer is a lot. Certain people in North America were hurt and pushed back by the creation of Manifest Destiny, while others were successful and made more progress in their lifestyle. Then, there were other groups of people who realized the power of manifest destiny and became concerned with the idea in itself and tried to hide away from it or ignore it to avoid further conflict with themselves. They were all affected and all handled Manifest Destiny in different ways. (notes)

Manifest Destiny was more than just a phrase, and the ideology behind it helped justify the pivotal actions by the citizens of the United States in the development of America. Manifest Destiny was the belief that it was the mission of the Americans to expand and civilize in new parts from the Atlantic all the way to the Pacific. Manifest Destiny was introduced in 1845 in a news article written by John O’Sullivan about the annexation of Texas. To the Americans, Manifest Destiny brought over a new chapter to the United States, and was used to justify many of the annexations and wars the country would later undergo. Places such as Texas, New Mexico, Oregon Country and California were all acquired partially due to the influence of the ideology. The justification for

In the early to mid-19th century, “Manifest Destiny” was one of the most core beliefs in the American way of life. “Manifest Destiny” was the belief that it was America’s duty to spread across and conquer the continent, Atlantic to Pacific. However, as America inched west, purchasing and fighting for land, one recurring problem was brought along with us, the issue of Slavery. From the Constitutional Convention in 1786, to the Antebellum Period of the mid 1800’s, Slavery was an issue that, in large, was repeatedly swept under the rug, being left to the next generation to decide. As America gained new territories, agreements had to be made to keep the balance of “Slave States” and “Free States”.

The nineteenth century brought on a doctrine of belief based on American Exceptionalism that Americans were destined by God to settle in the land to the west. The westward movement of the American people meant occupation of all land regardless of who was already present on it. This “destiny” of the American people manifested itself by causing horrible depredations to the native populations and stripped them of the land they had lived on for millennia. The idea of manifest destiny originated with Jane Cazneau but was stolen by a man named John O’sullivan who coined the term when he published an essay that put to words the existing American belief that it was their God given mission to travel west and spread democracy throughout the country.

Manifest Destiny was seen as a motivation towards Americans. Manifest destiny is a belief that the expansion of the United States were justified. The Manifest Destiny was able to develop a relationship with land and controlling something that can not really be possessed. There are three texts that support the concept of Manifest Destiny. The first text is, “American Progress” by John Gast, he showed motivation through a painting, the second text, “On Manifest Destiny, 1839” by John O’Sullivan showed motivation by persuading readers with history and possible events that could occur in the future, and the last text “Reporting to the President, September 23- December 31 1806” gave facts of what occurred in 1806.

John L. O’Sullivan first coined the phrase manifest destiny in 1845. In these two words, he voiced the idea that it was America’s God-given right to expand across the North American continent. This idea was evident in the Ostend Manifesto of 1854 (Document J) where the writer claims ”[B]y every law, human and divine, we shall be justified in wresting [Cuba] from Spain if we possess the power.” This idea was partially created because of the idea that the Americans were superior to the Native