Mexican American War Analysis

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During the early nineteenth century, Americans were constantly looking to expand their territory and dominance in the world. What initially started as thirteen colonies had manifested into nation yearning to stretch from ocean to ocean, believing it was their God given right. This lead to the Texas territory being annexed into the United States in the year 1845. After Texas had become part of the growing nation, the eleventh president of the United States, James K. Polk, looked to establish the border of this territory. He initially looked to negotiate with Mexico, until he ultimately sent troops to the Rio Grande to protect the border. Mexico believed that the Nueces River was the true border, and attacked the U.S. troops like they were under …show more content…
The border dispute war between Mexico and America provided the land hungry citizens of the U.S. a plethora of territory that had no legislation regarding slavery. This forced some major decisions to be made, that didn’t sit well with a large number of the country. With Manifest Destiny as the driving force of this territorial and slavery expansion, Americans felt entitled to the area they were claiming and wanted it to be legislated like they desired. The disagreements between pro-slavery activists and abolitionists reached a new level at this point, as the fate of the nation were on the line. The turning point in the United States at this time is a lot like the Seven Years War that took place during the mid 18th century in Europe. This imperial conflict took place due to European nations looking to acquire new nations for their own gain. All the great powers of Europe at this time were involved in this battle that split the continent into two, Great Britain leading one side and France leading the other. In the end, Britain rose as the world’s superpower and shattered the European balance of power. The north and south looked to spread their lifestyles throughout the new territories acquired after the Mexican-American War, but could never fully assimilate. Without the Mexican cession and all the new land it provided, this turning point in the debate over slavery would have never occurred. By bringing the current issues of the nation to the forefront, it split the newborn United States into two separate sections pitted against one
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