It was the destiny of America, to spread across the continent from one ocean to another and this belief is know as Manifest Destiny.
A. Impacts of the Mexican-American War
The Mexican American war was a result of disagreement between land ownership in the west. The United States wanted to purchase the lands from Texas to California and Mexico would not give it up so America declared war. In 1848, the United States and Mexico signed the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, which ended the Mexican-American War, and gave the U.S. new territory but was torn in deciding which states could have slaves or not which led to the conflict resulting in the compromise of 1850.
Compromise of 1850
The compromise of 1850 was to solve the problem of slavery without congress having to decide. The compromise would make northerners and southerners happy. The points of the compromise were that California became a free state; Texas’s boundaries were set to its present limits and the United States paid $10 million in compensation for the loss of New Mexico and Utah were organized on a basis of popular sovereignty; the fugitive slave act was strengthened; and the slave trade abolished in the District of Columbia.
One of the flaws was the ambiguity of popular sovereignty. Southerners insisted there would be no prohibition of slavery and northerners declared that settlers could ban slavery whenever they wished. The second flaw lay in the Fugitive Slave Act, which gave new and controversial protection to slavery.
The Essay on The Mexican War By Otis A Singletary
The Mexican War by Otis A. Singletary Otis A. Singletary wrote The Mexican War. The book is full with various events that took place in American history during the time of war. Singletarys book is a complete description of historic events. According to Singletary, Mexican War was actually the most successful offensive war in the American military history. The Mexican War closely examines the ...
The Fugitive Slave Act
The fugitive slave act of 1850 strengthened legislation allowing the capture of runaway slaves in the northern states. But the Act resulted in an abundance of violent acts and protests.
B. Kansas-Nebraska Bill
The Kansas-Nebraska bill exposed the conflicting interpretations of popular sovereignty. Northerners and southerners, however, still disagreed violently over what territorial settlers could constitutionally do. The bill overruled the Missouri compromise in Kansas and Nebraska and settlers felt free to establish slavery there.
Bleeding Kansas
In the territory of Kansas a succession of events led to conflict. The Kansas-Nebraska Bill spawned hatred and violence as people debated whether Kansa should join the Union as a free or slave state. Because of all the bloodshed Bleeding Kansas was the talk of the nation and the elections. After the results of the elections of 1860, in 1861 Kansas was admitted as a free state.
C. Impact of the Abolitionist Movement
The abolitionist movement tried to put and end to slavery but only drove the nation towards violence and a civil war. Most southerners were unhappy with the efforts of the abolitionist resulting in many riots. A newspaper ran to promote the movement and women’s treatment and inequality was also brought to attention.
D. Political Parties
After the elections of 1834 there was the presence of more than 1 political party. Later on many parties began to merge to become the Republican Party.
E. Elections of 1860
The presidential elections between Abraham Lincoln and John C. Breckinridge resulted in Lincoln’s elections and addition of Kansas to the Union as a free state. Lincoln’s efforts to abolish slavery presented conflict in the Union, which led up to the succession of 7 states before Lincoln’s inauguration and created the Confederacy.
F. Southern Succession
By June of 1861 13 states had succeeded from the Union and created turmoil. The battle between slavery and freedom had become a war within the United States that would be the bloodiest ever. Lincoln held his beliefs firm and was not going to lose the south to slavery.
The Essay on Emancipation Proclamation Slavery Lincoln War
I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races. This statement was just one of many that President Lincoln addressed to the people as his stand to the aim of the war. From the beginning of the war, President Lincoln had insisted that his primary aim was the restoration of the Union, not the abolition of slavery. ...
