Why Texans Went To War Dbq

Ever since the Manifest Destiny became the United States’ holy goal, Texas had always been in the sight of the United State, for the location and size of the territory were extremely attractive for the expansion. In addition, the state offered the Rio Grande River which promised great trade in the future. These factors made Texas a key component in fulfilling the sacred duty, so when news spread that Texas became independent, there was no time wasted from the United States in integrating them into the union. Even before Texas gained their independence, the United States had become intertwined with the culture of Texas by having hundreds of American citizens immigrating into the territory and spreading American values across the land. As many historians have said “Throughout the United States, especially in the South, support for Texas was warm and widespread. Men, money, and

Yet another reason why Texans might have revolted was that they were trying to preserve and maintain the political values and economic gain while under the Constitution of 1824. It gave Texas a steady population flow of American migrants moving onto Texas soil. It also gave them political liberty, freedom to own slaves and a steady economic progression. But Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, president of Mexico, wished to impose a stricter rule which could also explain why Texas felt the need to separate from Mexico.

The second basic cause of the war was the Texas War of Independence and the subsequent annexation of that area to the United States. Not all American westward migration was unwelcome. In the 1820's and 1830's, Mexico, newly independent from Spain, needed settlers in the underpopulated northern parts of the country. An invitation was issued for people who would take an oath of allegiance to Mexico and convert to Catholicism, the state religion. Thousands of Americans took up the offer and moved, often with slaves, to the Mexican province of Texas. Soon however, many of the new "Texicans" or "Texians" were unhappy with the way the government in Mexico City tried to run the province. In 1835, Texas revolted, and after several bloody battles, the Mexican President, Santa Anna, was forced to sign the Treaty of Velasco in 1836 . This treaty gave Texas its independence, but many Mexicans refused to accept the legality of this document, as Santa Anna was a prisoner of the Texans at the time. The Republic of Texas and Mexico continued to engage in border fights and many people in the United States openly sympathized with the U.S.-born Texans in this conflict. As a result of the savage frontier fighting, the American public developed a very negative stereotype against the Mexican people and government. Partly due to the continued hostilities with Mexico, Texas decided to join with the United States,

Way back when, the South had clashing opinions with the North. And like in most cases, the disagreement turned into a war. The US was divided into the North and South; one side strongly for slavery, and one strongly against. Everyone thought that they could live this way, divided, in harmony, but they were wrong. Southern states began to secede, and a month later war broke out. Why did Texans fight in the Civil War? The residents of Texas fought because they loved Texas, they wanted to have states’ rights, and they wanted to protect slavery.

Soldiers on both sides interpreted the meaning of the War for Independence in differing ways. The Confederates thought they were fighting for their own independence from a tyrannical government, while northerners believed they were fighting to preserve the Union. The initial impulse of why men enlisted for war came from what the French called rage military, which according to McPherson is a sense of duty, honor, and patriotism for your country (McPherson, 16). For the North the initial anger and fighting spirit came right at the beginning of the declaration of war. For the original Confederate states, it was not the attack on Fort Sumter that sparked their enthusiasm, but the when they seceded from the union. The upper Southern states of Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee joined the Confederacy when Lincoln called for troops. The Confederates fought for liberty while the

Texans fought in the Civil war because they wanted to protect the slaves. Many families owned slaves, they did not want people to take them away or them to be free. The slave population was high, there were 182,566 slaves which are 30% percent of the population, this information is from Document A. Free blacks could live in Texas, but only with the permission of the legislature.

The southern desire to expand slavery was a major cause of the Mexican-American War, but there were other causes as well. The war started on April 25, 1846, and ended on February 2, 1848, with the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. In that treaty, Mexico ceded Texas with the Rio Grande boundary, New Mexico, and California to the United States. The desire to expand slavery in the south was perhaps the largest cause of the Mexican-American War, because southerners were in favor of Manifest Destiny and believed that the expansion of slavery was necessary to keep the slave trade alive in the U.S. Internal political conflicts were another cause of the Mexican-American War. Also, the fear that Texas could be claimed by Britain or France or that it would be uncontrollable if independent was another cause of the war. The

The entire USA was called upon to volunteer to the war and Texas was not left behind. Before the commencement of the war, Texas was predominantly a quiet place with frontier traditions and rural life dominating the state. The life of the Texans was predominantly within their ranches and farms and never ventured far off their local ranches with farming being the predominate activity.

The recent study of these Northern counties, John R. Lundberg’s article, disputes the prominent narrative for why the North Texas counties voted against secession during the secession referendum. Most historians, for example, Buenger, cite the reasons for voting for or against secession stems from the growing Indian raids on the exposed frontier. Also, Houston’s failure to protect the settlers from those

The U.S. state of Texas declared its secession from the United States of America on February 1, 1861, and joined the Confederate states on March 2, 1861, after it replaced its governor, Sam Houston, when he refused to take an oath of allegiance to the Confederacy. As with those of other States, the Declaration was not recognized by the United States government at Washington. Some Texan military units fought in the Civil War east of the Mississippi River but Texas was most useful for supplying soldiers and horses for Confederate forces. Texas' supply role lasted until mid-1863, after which time Union gunboats controlled the Mississippi River, making large transfers of men, horses or cattle impossible. Some cotton was sold in Mexico, but most

One of the first battles fought in the Texas Revolution was the Battle of Concepcion, a Texian victory but one that demonstrated the relative small numbers involved. The entire Texian force was about 100 volunteers, while the Mexican force number just 300. But even as the Texians were involved in fierce battles against Mexican forces, the representatives of the various regions of Texas were divided over whether to demand full independence, or simply a return to the Constitution of 1824 which had been overthrown. The Texian delegates eventually compromised on a resolution which stated that they had the right to declare independence because the government of Santa Anna had destroyed the social contract which held Texas as a part of Mexico. This

America was justified in going into war with Mexico because they wanted to respect their soldiers,Texas was now an American state,and Mexico lost control of the land.It took four people to cause the Revolutionary War,and it only took 16 men to start the Mexican-American War.In order to respect the American soldiers that were killed,America needed to go to war.Document B it states, “Texas had determined to annex herself to our union,and under these circumstances,it was it was plainly our duty to extend our protection over her citizens soil.”(Doc B)When Texas declared its independence,it was known to soon become an American state.Texas was seen as a sister to America and they wanted to protect the land that was invaded.On Document A it states,

The U.S was not justified to go to war because of the spread of slavery. Mexico finds out about the treaty that Texas and the U.S is making allowing Texas to be annexed from mexico. As soon as Mexico hears this it causes many problems between them. Mexico says it was said to not be valid for both legal and security reasons, stated in (Doc C). As soon as Texas was able to be annexed many people emigrated to Texas bringing along slaves and slaveholders.

Passed the day after the secession ordinance, the Texan “declaration of causes” explained their reasons for secession. The most prominent of which was the “ ‘debasing doctrine of all men created equal, irrespective of color’ ” allegedly promoted by the Republican party and it’s leader Abraham Lincoln (Dew 24). The declaration of causes stated that with the election of Lincoln, the

“You may all go to Hell, and I will go to Texas” (www.brainyquote.com). Words spoken by the famous American folk hero Davy Crockett. Oddly enough Texas would bring about many “Hellish” debates, and conflicts throughout most of the middle nineteenth century. For Texas the debate about statehood was at hand, and the country was a split about its status as a slave or free state. While at the same time the country wanted to avoid an all-out war with Mexico. Events like the Missouri Compromise and the Mexican Independence from Spain would impact future events leading up to the independence of Texas in 1836. Leaders like Colonels Gregorio Gomez and William Travis who viewed Texas as their peoples land, would act on their ambitions to claim Texas for their respective countries. While back in the states people such as abolitionist Benjamin Lundy and the Charleston Mercury newspaper would voice their opinions of slavery in Texas. Through these events and sources the reader can find evidence about the unique challenges the country faced regarding Texas statehood.