John Gast: The American-Mexican War

The long,bloody wars that America has encountered are faced with many conflicts. One of the wars that America has gone to is the Mexican American War. It’s 1846, and many schisms has been between Mexico and America with the problem of arguing over Texas. Mexico had originally owned Texas but Texas wanted to annex itself over to the U.S. But there are other reasons why America went to war and these reasons are they killed one-half of the U.S. troops, threatened us for crossing their border, annexation, and invasion.

The manifest destiny, Texan's previous conflicts with the Mexico government, and Polk's vision and continued efforts for peace showed that the American

Americans were outraged over the border dispute at the Nueces and the Rio Grande rivers, and Mexicans were irate with America’s annexation of Texas. President James K. Polk availed in the atmosphere of animosity, hurrying to place troops on conflicted land. On May 9, 1846, he found his cause for war. Mexican and American troops had engaged in combat on April 24, which led American blood spilt on contended soil. However, through all their fighting spirit, the Americans faithfully ignored their own mistreatment of the Mexicans.

After Texas won its independence from Mexico, the people who inhabited that area believed they were entitled to the entire land of, what was then, Texas. Manifest Destiny, or the belief of a God-given entitlement, was instilled in the hearts of many Americans; they believed God wanted them to expand outward. Yet the Mexicans weren’t prepared to give up all that land, and only allowed the Texans the area of land in which they inhabited. After the annexation of Texas in 1845, both the US and Mexico placed troops in the previously uninhabited land that the white Texans had believed they won. Thus began the Mexican-American war, and America, with its skilled military and greater population, easily defeated the Mexicans.

The Mexican American War started in 1846 because of Mexican resentment caused by the 1836 loss of Texas and the American’s desire for Mexico’s more northern territory. “On September 9, 1847 after two years of fighting, the Mexican American war essentially ended when the American Army captured Mexico City after the Battle of Chapultepec”( 6). The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the war. United States leaders then acted morally superior in their negotiations of the treaty 1. During negotiations, United States officials viewed the “forcible incorporations” (1) of almost one half of Mexico’s land as an “event foreordained by providence and Manifest Destiny” (1).

The Mexican-American War is a war that mainly broke out because of Texas. It is a complicated question whether the United States was justified in starting a war over Texas, but it is extremely likely that the U.S. instigated an unwanted conflict with Mexico that turned into a war. The idea of Manifest Destiny was one of the primary reasons why the United States was not justified in starting a war with Mexico. This was a problem that was widespread in the U.S. It asserted that they had the right to enlarge its territory from coast to coast.

The Mexican-American war brought a sense of accomplishment as negotiations began after America's victory. Between 1846 and 1848, America and Mexico frequently clashed. The Mexican-American war, also known as the U.S. invasion in Mexico, demonstrated the power and the want for more land from the other side. Though the land belonged to Mexico, this land dispute needed to be sorted out to address the much-wanted expansion of the U.S. The eventual end to the war soon gave the U.S. the land of the west coast.

Manifest Destiny, the concept that the United States was destined to expand from the Atlantic to the Pacific, was a major motivating factor in the conflict. In 1846, the United States invaded Mexico by crossing the Rio Grande. Four years later, in 1848, the war ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Due to this pact, California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas all received significant land transfers. As a watershed moment in American history, the conflict had far-reaching effects that are still being felt today.

American history is full of events that have changed the curse of its history, some more recent than others, an often overviewed war or conflict is the Mexican war, probably because it was only 13 years before of one of the most bloodshed periods and important periods of this country 's history, the Civil War; the Mexican War might have nit had as big as an impact as that of the Civil War, but nonetheless it was a period that is certainly important, we can also think that no war is ever unimportant (Shaara,10). Since the Louisiana purchase, there was a fervor for expansion among the American people, in 1845 the then independent nation of Texas was annexed by the United states (Shaara, 12). But there were several doubts about what was the real

INTRODUCTION Throughout the 1840s and 1850s a major war happened called the Mexican American War which drastically changed the U.S. and Mexico and lead to the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo to be signed and which established the Rio Grande and not the Nueces River as the U.S Border. This also lead to the U.S. annexation of Texas and lead to the Mexico agreeing to sell California and the rest of the territory for 15 million. So you 're probably wondering why the war was fought but you 'll find that out later.

This war happened mainly because the U.S. wanted to expand to the Pacific Ocean to fulfill their Manifest Destiny, trying to take away Mexico’s land. Mexico refused to to give land to the U.S. The big question is whether the U.S. was justified in fighting Mexico in the Mexican-American War. The United States was justified in going to war with Mexico because Manifest Destiny, too much Mexican interference, and Texas was invaded. One reason the Mexican War was justified was Manifest Destiny. In Document A, John O’Sullivan writes: “Texas is now ours...Let their reception into the “family be frank, kindly, and cheerful….”

Manifest destiny also affected the relationship with Mexico. Several factors led to the Mexican- American War in 1846. The factors were that the U.S citizens were moving into California and Mexico. Since there were many revolutions happening in Mexico throughout this time period the Mexican government was not able to protect the U.S citizens in this region. Another factor was that Mexico was upset that Texas declared independence from them and then the U. S annexed Texas in 1845.

In 1836 Texas declared its independence.(O’Sullivan 323) The war with Mexico happened in Mexico and the US. It started in 1846.(Roden 315) To start the war, Mexicans fired on Americans. People who believed Manifest Destiny believed that it is God’s plan to expand America to the Pacific Ocean.

The Mexican-American War changed the Unites States of America in a monumental way. This war changed The U.S.A.’s relationship with foreign powers and the economic standpoint of the nation. The Mexican- American war, and its strong ties to manifest destiny, shaped the nation in a country bordered by two seas with a chance for common folk and foreigners to have a sustainable life due to the gold rush. The war can also be accounted for the downfall leading to the Civil War over the conflict of slavery due to the land purchased in the wars treaty. Conflict between Mexico and the United States began when Texas, previously part of Mexico, became part of the United States.

The United States war with Mexico continues to be a divisive topic among many people because of its background. The Mexican-American war was a fight between Mexico and America for land. America’s belief at the time was Manifest Destiny, which meant that they believed that America should extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific ocean. In the end, America benefited from the war and got the land. The United States expanded its size, achieving their dream of Manifest Destiny.