Manifest Destiny: The Era Of American Westward Expansion

Southern territorial tensions linked to slavery in the mid 1800's. (Doc D) Opposition to annexation of Texas occurred because of avoidance to the problem of Texas being a free or slave state. The Wilmot Proviso provoked huge controversy about the status of the land gained after the Mexican War, the bill would be called upon and debated on furiously for decades to come. Popular sovereignty began to appear in some alternate plans for deciding slavery in the Louisiana Territory. Polk's plan, which proposed to extend the slavery line in the Missouri Compromise to the pacific, aroused further debates for the North and the South. California and New Mexico raised even more questions about the implementation of

The United States became further united due to the continuous desire and procurement of new territories. In President James Polk’s 1845 Inaugural Address, he shared his opinion of the “danger to [the nation’s] safety and future peace” if Texas remained an independent

U.S. War with Mexico had many effects on both countries. Even though American’s gained a considerable amount of land, it leads to a great deal of sectional tension. The two governments agreed to the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which confirmed the annexation of Texas and ceded California and present day México, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah to the United States (Foner,474). With this huge land acquisition, the issue of slavery in the new territories was raised. The new land caused a great deal of conflict, and created great political sectionalism in America. Gaining this much land at a time seemed like a good idea until Americans had to deal with the political issues that went along with it. Residents from both the North and the South wanted

During the nineteenth century, the Manifest Destiny happened in the United States, which was the American settlers were bound to expand throughout the land. This helped with removing more Natives from the country, started war with Mexico, and spread economic means across the country in order to get more money.

al. 2006). Tensions rose because Mexico refused to accept the boundaries of Texas, and firmly believed that America had invaded their territory. In actuality, Texas had never controlled the disputed region (Davidson, et. al. 2006). Armed with the knowledge that the Mexican government needed money, Polk tried to persuade the Mexicans into selling New Mexico and California. The Mexican public vehemently turned down the offer because of pride and not wanting to give the Yankees anymore territory than what they already had. Eventually tempers flared and the American and Mexican forces fought over the coveted land. The American forces struck hard and repeatedly and eventually wore down the Mexican’s resistance leaving America triumphant. During the same time, Taylor had been slowly pushing his way into the South, where the war was ended on Northern territory (Davidson, et. al. 2006). Once Polk had gained the territory he so badly wanted, he decided he then only wanted peace. But the Mexican people were angry and refused to support any government that sued for peace (Davidson, et. al. 2006). The price of the war did not come only in dollar figures, it also came with a devastating amount of lost lives. Although the American’s had won the battle, the fight was far from over. The war had brought forth the social and political conflicts that already existed between the Northern and Southern States. The issue of slave once

On May 13, 1846, the U.S. Congress overwhelmingly voted in favor of President James K. Polk’s request to declare war on Mexico in a dispute over Texas.

The Louisiana Purchase caused a major moral dilemma for President Thomas Jefferson, a dilemma concerning whether he should refuse the biggest deal he had ever faced and follow his beliefs and values of the Constitution or purchase over 800,000 acres of land for $15 million doubling the size of America yet going against his strict principles. Jefferson saw the United States as an agricultural delight where hardworking, worthy landowners and laborers could secure themselves and their future. However when he was faced with the biggest decision and accomplishment of his life, known as the biggest real estate deal in history The Louisiana Purchase violated Jefferson’s strict views and beliefs on the Constitution. In 1801, France and Spain signed

In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson purchased the territory of Louisiana from the French government also known as the Louisiana Purchase. The Louisiana Purchase stretched from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from Canada to New Orleans, and it doubled the size of the United States. Jefferson thought westward expansion was the key to the nation’s health. In order to provide enough land to the yeoman (farmers), the United States had to continue to expand. Jefferson believed that western expansion would fill up the empty lands with immigrants and provide enough lands for the farmers, so he decided to support the western expansion.

The Louisiana Purchase was a major event in the growth of the United States of America. Purchased from France for 15 million by Thomas Jefferson in 1803, it gave America twice the available land, adding 827,000 square miles. Some may argue the Louisiana Purchase is unconstitutional, but Jefferson found a way around that. The Constitution says land may be acquired through treaties such as the Louisiana Purchase. After the accusation of the Louisiana Territory, Jefferson had an expedition lead by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. The goal of the expedition was to map the new territory and find a quicker path to the Pacific Ocean. The entire expedition lasted a little longer than two years to complete.

James Polk requested two million dollars to end the war with Mexico in 1846. During this time David Wilmot proposed a bill ending slavery in Texas. This bill did not pass and the debate went on for years. Southerners just wanted to move their property this included their slaves. The struggle for a compromise between the states and the new states for slavery rights was a hard issue to

Manifest Destiny in the 19th century was a belief that American settlers were destined to expand and move across the North American continent to the Pacific Ocean which occurred out of a want and need to conquer and explore new lands and establish new borders to spread their culture, traditions, ideologies and institutions. It is the belief that the United States had a God given right to civilize and occupy the whole continent.

Included in his plan for expansion was the reannexation of Texas which Polk believed was imperative to America’s growth. Polk considered the annexation and war as a way to obtain Mexican territories and fulfill manifest destiny. While president, Polk convinced Congress to authorize the mobilization of military action against Mexico after citing that Mexican forces had attacked and killed U.S. soldiers. Critics of Polk believed that the declaration of war against Mexico was due large in part of Mexico’s refusal to sell California to America and Polk’s effort to acquire “new land for the expansion of slavery” (Foner 465-468). According to Grant’s memoir, Americans who colonized in Texas disregarded Mexico’s laws, “introducing slavery into the state from the start” regardless of the act being abolished by the Mexican government. In addition to slave ownership, the colonist established an independent system of government in Texas and in 1845 seceded from Mexico. Grant’s description of the colonists in Texas not only illustrates the lack of respect that many Americans and the government had for its neighboring country but strongly suggests the annexation of Texas was a planned acquisition of new territory to expand slavery in the United States

In 1819, the British and American governments agreed that the boundary separating their territories between Lake of the Woods and be set at 49°N latitude. This terriroy called Oregon Territory. Because of the population of European in this territory was sparsely, they did not decide who will control this area. The Hudson’s Bay Company preferred to leave the region open for the rich fur trade and not interest in encouraging settlement. United States was facing a rapidly increasing population in that time. So United States purchased territory west of the Mississippi. Most Americans were convinced that they will control all of North America, an idea called Manifest Destiny. The United States government encouraged people from the eastern states

The victory over Mexico intensify the political conflict over slavery and that Republic of Texas then an independent state wanted to become part of the United States. Many Southern thought Texas should have been broken up to create more states which would have led to more power for the Southern states Presidents Andrew Jack and Martin Van Buren did not take on the issue because they say it as an attempt to add another slave state to the Union. The issue of Texas becoming part of the union was on the back burner until President John Tyler revived it in 1844. After a lot of discussing the issue of Texas becoming part of the Union the idea that Texas was part of the

The main example I can recall where I knew and recognized the “integration of learning” concerned westward expansion through Manifest Destiny in the United States. I had learned about this event previously in grade school, so this was not an unfamiliar concept. Yet every time I was taught it, it was viewed as a positive thing, how it settled the country and led to the building of countless railroad tracks and telegraph lines. However, in my Environmental Studies class this year, this event had a much grimmer picture. The desolation of tribes and the pure fact that we justified our horrible and extreme actions in the name of God defined this event. I had always had the inkling in the back of my head that something was wrong with the picture