Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
politics of the mexican american war
impact of westward expansion and manifest destiny of united states
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
America is one of the most influential countries in the world. Due to the wide horizon of its territory, America gains numerous resources and powerful military control over time. These abilities allow America to take advantage of other countries such as Mexico. America started “bullying” Mexico as of the nineteenth century. After independence in 1776, America expanded its territory in North America while other countries such as Europe were fighting over land in Africa and Asia. Democrats use the term “Manifest Destiny” to encourage and advertise its people to expand and merge the land in the west coast toward the Pacific Ocean. Yet, the land belongs to Mexico. Indubitably, it never stop America to get what he wants. After failure of attempting to purchase the land from Mexico, the devious action of independence of Republic of Texas set up a strong base for the Americans continuous bullying Mexico. Due to the conflict between the US and Mexico regarding to the boarder line of Lone Star Texas, in May 1846, the Mexican American war starts. This unfair war continues until 1847, these two countries start to negotiate, 1848, Mexico signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. In result, over half of the land Mexico is taken away by America. By the Mexican American war, America become one of the biggest country in North America and established the dominate position in the world. All these benefits are the result of bullying a weaker country. Even for the president of US, Ulysses S. Grant, had stated that “For myself, I was bitterly opposed to the measure, and to this day regard the war, which resulted, as one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation.” America has bullied Mexico over a hundred year in order to gain h...
... middle of paper ...
... enough to pass the test.
America has been bullying Mexico since nineteen century. By using the independence of Texas as an excuse, bullying accelerate by Mexican American War, and Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo as the result of bullying. These unfairness and unjust make America become stronger than ever, but it also shows American will do anything for its own benefit. It might be a good thing for a country because expansion can bring prosperity to economy and military, but in humanistic view, America is being a tyrant and enslaving Mexicans. Although nowadays, the relationship between Mexico and America is friendly, there are still tension between Chicanos and Americans due to the side-effect of the war. Regardless, America should stop bullying any other counties because the suffering that Mexicans had to go through should not happen ever again.
Rodolfo Acuña and Norman A. Graebner take opposing standpoints on this topic. Acuña takes the standpoint that the Americans took advantage of the Mexican government, which was young and unstable at the time. He argued that the United States waged an unjust war solely for the acquisition of new lands. His excerpt from Occupied America: A History of Chicanos, 3rd Edition provided the basis for his argument. On the other hand, Graebner took the standpoint that President James Polk pushed a policy, enforced by a stronger nation, to force Mexico to sell New Mexico and California and recognize the annexation of Texas to the United States without starting a war. His argument was taken from his article “The Mexican War: A Study in Causation”. Both sides of the American Imperialism argument contain their own strengths. However, after the examination of the articles, Graebner proposes a more convincing
Later they wanted to annex it but Mexico said that any attempts to annex Texas would be an act of war. The Mexican War started in 1846, when Mexicans attacked a group of United States soldiers, under the command of Zachary Taylor, in a disputed zone on the border of United States and Mexico, killing about a dozen American soldiers. President Polk told the U.S. Congress that the “cup of forbearance has been exhausted” which means the Mexicans hit the last straw and it is time for war. President Polk sent General Zachary Taylor to Nueces River vs. Rio Grande to poke the Mexicans to shoot and they did. The Mexicans have shed “American blood upon American soil.” The United States wanted war with Mexico now they have a reason to declare war ( History.com
Mexican Lives is a rare piece of literature that accounts for the human struggle of an underdeveloped nation, which is kept impoverished in order to create wealth for that of another nation, the United States. The reader is shown that the act of globalization and inclusion in the world’s economies, more directly the United States, is not always beneficial to all parties involved. The data and interviews, which Hellman has put forth for her readers, contain some aspect of negativity that has impacted their lives by their nation’s choice to intertwine their economy with that of the United States. Therefore it can only be concluded that the entering into world markets, that of Mexico into the United States, does not always bring on positive outcomes. Thus, one sees that Mexico has become this wasteland of economic excrement; as a result it has become inherently reliant on the United States.
got their land from Mexico through war. The war with Mexico killed many people for the United States personal benefit of getting more land. At the beginning of the essay we had one question, was the United States justified in going to war with Mexico. The answer to this debatable question was that the United States did not have a good reason to go to war with Mexico, This was proven by the Manifest Destiny showed that “God’s” words told the U.S. to go out and take other people's land, which is totally wrong. Next border disputes occurred leading the U.S. to use it as an excuse to start the war with Mexico. And lastly the American viewpoint showed that the U.S. did not follow the laws of having Texas as a slave free place. These topics all show that the United States had to use something to make an excuse to start the war since they had no good reason to do
As more Americans moved west and into Texas it became evident. that there was going to be a continued clash between Mexico and the white frontiersmen who quickly flooded. certain areas of the world. The American government wanted to purchase this valuable land but eventually it was taken by Americans. frontiersmen where it was declared its own realm.
Between the years of 1820 and 1840 there was a vast amount of conflict between America and Mexico. Mexico had just declared its independence from Spain in 1821, in result opening up trading with America. Although the trading flourished over the next two decades between U.S and Mexico, the relations along the Texas borderland worsened. Mexico and the U.S eventually went to war because America was eager to colonize westward and dispute over where the borderline lies in Texas. After years of fighting America claimed victory. America won because all the disadvantages Mexico faced during the war such as a weak central government, a lack in technology, and were at war with the Indians.
In 1845 the U.S attempted to Annex Texas. Basically America wanted Texas to become one of the states rather then and independent nation by itself. At this time Texas was an independent nation that was not a part of America or Mexico. Mexico wanted to keep Texas neutral if not a part of its own country. When the U.S attempted to annex Texas Mexico became outraged, " In November 1843 Mexico had warned that if the United States should commit the 'unheard-of aggression' of seizing an integral part of 'Mexican territory' Mexico would declare war " (Bound for the Rio Grande, 62). Despite the warning the U.S attempted to annex Texas. In doing so Mexico retaliated by breaking off all diplomatic relations with the U.S. Mexico felt that the U.S was insulting them by not taking them seriously when they threatened with war. So at this point America showed a very large interest in possessing Texas. America was very close to actually acquiring Texas when they made their first mistake in the war.
The scene is set; America is the great power in the western hemisphere. Post Spanish-American War, America is faced with a dilemma of annexing the Philippines. In the winter of 1899 following the annexation of the Philippines, America had a problem. Filipinos had been fighting for independence from Spain and did not want to be seceded (83). Despite the Filipino objection, the United States displayed their assertion on the land. In conflict, both the Filipinos and American had many meetings with death. There were consequences and repercussions from invoking the American power on this foreign land. The American victory in the Spanish-American War helped propel the nation. Thesis: Although met with conflict from the natives, the
Throughout history, the United States had come off as a stubborn nation that would take what they wanted at any cost. This was prevalent in both cases of expansion as the Americans risked war and national safety for the sake of gaining land, or even merely for proving a point. During the early years of expansion, the Americans had pushed aside the Native Americans and whoever else inhabited the land they wanted. They believed that the land was rightfully theirs and that everyone else was merely squatting on their territory. This idea continued into the early twentieth century as the Americans looked to the oceans for new territories to their kingdom.
In February 2, 1848, the final armistice treaty Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed, through which the United States government got the access to entire area of California, Nevada, Utah plus some territory in Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico and Wyoming. As a compensation, the United States government paid 18.25 million dollars to Mexico.( Pecquet, Gary M., and C. F. Thies. 2010) However, apart from the death of people, Mexico lost half of its territory in this war, which initiate Mexican’s hostile towards American. In addition, after the Mexican-American war, there was an absence of national sense in Mexican, which had a negative effect on the unity and development of the country.
When viewing a map of the country of Mexico prior to the American westward expansion, it was actually larger than the United States had been at that time. Some lands that Mexico lost in the Mexican - American war under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, are Texas (the second largest state in the present US), California (the third largest state in the present US) and New Mexico (the fifth largest state in the present US). Due to this defeat Mexico lost half of its national territory. Half of Mexico’s lands were gone and half of Mexico’s people displaced making them Americans and no longer Mexicanos. This occurred without their approval or consent. In the book “My History Not Yours” written by Genaro M. Padilla are accounts of men and women living in the lands of Texas, California and New Mexico during the this unruly time of loss and the unknown. The pages of this book contain the actual written accounts of Mexicanos and their feeling of outrage sadness and anger against the insurgence of their mother lands. The feelings of accommodation and resistance are a present among the writers within Padilla’s book but some lean towards one side and some the other. All humans are different and the people of Mexico handled and felt differently about the loss of their lands. Some possessed the mindset that the overtaking of their lands by the Americans was unacceptable and they resisted and resented the presence of the Anglo-Saxons that now occupied their territory. While others possessed more of an accommodating view. That being, they saw the Americans as a potential asset to develop the lands and that the US was more powerful than they so it would be best to tr...
The idea of Manifest Destiny led the Americans to war with Mexico. In 1846, America gained control of what is now the Southwest. With this acquisition, America inherited years of Navajo-Mexican warfare. The Mexicans became American citizens; the Natives, being Indians, did not. Therefore, Indians were punished for attacks on Mexicans but not vice-versa (Brown 14). General Stephen Watts Kearney put it this way, addressing the Mexicans: 'The Apaches and the Navajos come down and carry off your sheep and your women whenever they please. My government will correct all this. They will keep off the Indians, protect you in persons and property " (L.
For 113 days during the summer of 1898, the United States was at war with Spain. Neither the president of the United States, nor his cabinet, nor the the queen of Spain, nor her ministers wanted the war wanted the war. It happened eventhough they made their best efforts to prevent it. It happened because of ambition, miscalculation, and stupidity; and it happened because of kindness, wit, and resourcefulness. It also happened because some were indifferent to the suffering of the world’s wretched and others were not (O’Toole 17). By winning the war the United States proved the the rest of the world and to itself that it could and would fight against foreign nations. For many years, world power had been concentrated in the countries in Europe. Nations such as Great Britain, France, Germany, and Spain had the most influence in global affairs. But a shift in power was gradually taking place as the United States matured. The young nation gained wealth and strength. Its population grew immensely, and many people believed it would become a major world power (Bachrach, 11) Spain was one of the many European countries that had territory in the United States. Spain controlled mostly some islands off the coast of Central America. The most important of these were Cuba and Puerto Rico. The United States was led to believe that the Spanish mosgoverned and abused the people of these islands. In fact, Spain did overtax and mistreat the Cubans, who rebelled in 1868 and again in 1895. Thus, the American people felt sympathetic toward the Cuban independence movement. In addition, Spain had frequently interfered with trade between its colonies and the United States. Even though the United States had been a trading partner with Cuba since the seventeenth century, Spain sometimes tried to completely stop their trade with Cuba. In Spain doing so, this sometimes caused damage to U.S. commercial interests. The United States highly disagreed with Spain’s right to interfere with this trade relationship. (Bachrach, 12) The United States was also concerned that other trading and commercial interests were threatened by the number of ships and soldiers Spain kept in the area. If the United States had to fight a war with Canada or Mexico, these Spanish forces could quickly mobilize against the United States.
The Mexican-American war determined the destiny of the United States of America, it determined whether or not it would become a world power and it established the size of the United States of America. Perhaps the war was inevitable due to the idea of Manifest Destiny - Americans thought they had the divine right to extend their territory. The Mexican-American War started mainly because of the annexation of the Republic of Texas (established in 1836 after breaking away from Mexico). The United States and Mexico still had conflicts on what the borders of Texas was, the United States claimed that the Texas border with Mexico was the Rio Grande, but the Mexicans said that it was the Nueces River, so the land in between were disputed and claimed by both the United States and Mexico. Hostilities started on April 24th, 1846, 2000 Mexican cavalry crossed the Rio Grande and attacked an American troop of 63 men.
As shown, America’s rapid change as the 19th century came to a close was supported by a various amount of imperialistic beliefs, motives, and incidents that almost jumpstarted the U.S. onto the world stage. Many of these incidents such as the public’s thirst for expansion, the annexation of several faraway lands, and the build-up of U.S. military forces would not have been possible without the Spanish American War. Moreover, the Spanish American war would not have been possible without the American people. Imperialism was a consequence of the American Democratic experiment, giving the people what they want.