Mexican War Research Paper

Mexican War The Mexican-American War took place in the time period of 1846 to 1848. This was the first U.S. armed war that was mostly fought on foreign land. It was fought between two neighboring countries. One was a politically divided and militarily unprepared Mexico and the other was the expansionist-minded United States. The United States was, at the time, led by the administration of U.S. President James K. Polk, who believed the United States had the God given right to spread across the continent to the Pacific Ocean, this term was called “Manifest Destiny.” Many say that the United States basically invaded Mexico and illegally took their land. The two countries have two different views on the war that still believed in today. This war

President James K. Polk believed that the United States had the God given right to spread across the continent to the Pacific Ocean. This was the belief of “Manifest Destiny,” which was coined by John O’Sullivan. He states “and so far as regards the entire development of the natural rights of man, in moral, political, and national life, we may confidently assume that our country is destined to be the great nation of futurity.” This explains the United States viewpoint and motive as they slowly claim parts of Mexico as theirs. James K. Polk attempted to secure the Mexican agreement to set the border on the Rio Grande and tried to buy northern California from Mexico, but failed because the Mexican government would never agree no matter what the United States offered them. On April 25, 1846, President James K. Polk sent troops led by Zachary Taylor to protect the borders, but actually wanted to just edge on a war with Mexico. He got what he wanted, a war with

This all couldn’t have been finalized without the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo officially ended the Mexican-American War in 1848. After the treaty was signed, the United States received more than 500,000 square miles of Mexican territory and emerged as a world power. The land that was included in Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo were present-day California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Wyoming. The United States paid 15 million dollars to Mexico for all the acquired land. From the acquired land, the United States increased its size by most 25% compared to itself before the war. This was not all that the Mexican War caused, it also brought the United States conflicts involving the determining of which states would be slave state and non-slave states. This would give the United States headaches throughout the 1800’s and all the way to the Civil War, which would soon change how America would be run,