Causes of Early American Expansionism

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Recommended: the development of slavery in Colonial America

The Western United States, Texas, and the northern territories of the Mexican Empire served as an area of expansionist controversy between 1820 and 1860. Expansionism of antebellum America was rooted in a number of current disputes casing it to evolve into a major political issue. Although slavery was a cause of expansion, it was just as important as other; spread of American institutions, Manifest Destiny, and the protection and prosperity of the nation were equally important. Slavery in itself as a cause was rooted in greater causes.
The spread of American institutions was a major cause of western expansion in the United States. According to editor of the New York Sun (Document H), American expansion will lead to the spread of the American ideals of democracy, liberty, and republicanism to the West and the “Mexican race”. The spread of democracy and American ideals was commonly used as a Casus Belli, that is a cause of or “excuse” for war, for past and future wars. This is clearly reminiscent of the War Hawks call to invade Canada. This also served as the first case of it being used for American imperialism which the Mexican-American War is the first act of. This was later to be succeeded by the imperialism of the American seizure of Hawaii and the Spanish-American War. According to President James Polk in his inaugural address (Document F), the American nation and government should expand west to reunite with American settlers through communication, trade, and manufacturing. Charles Summer (Document G) and Reverend William Ellery Channing (Document B) both believed that expansion into Texas merely an excuse by southerners to spread the institution of slavery. This works in conjunction with southern Senator George McDuffie’s (D...

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...success and the sectionalism of the nation’s economy.
Slavery repeatedly came up as a cause of expansion and war but it was in fact multiple causes including the spread of American institutions, Manifest Destiny, and the protection and prosperity of the nation. Slavery was rooted deeply in other causes including the Reform Movements of what institutions should be spread and which should not, southern settlers wanting to fulfill Manifest Destiny which included slaves coming with them, and slavery being rooted in the current sectionalism of the nation and economic prosperity. Expansionism ended up succeeding but slavery did not with the course of the American Civil War. Expansionism in the west eventually arose to the New Imperialism. As slavery was over by the rest of the New Imperialism it can be clearly seen that slavery was not a root cause of western expansion.

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