Westward Expansion and the Mexican-American War

Westward Expansion and the Mexican-American War

• Economic factors driving westward expansion included the search for land, resources, and economic opportunities like farming and mining.
• Romanticism, emphasizing nature and individualism, fueled westward migration.
• The Democratic Party favored expansion, while the Whigs were more cautious.
• Polk's 1844 election victory pushed for annexation of Texas and expansion in Oregon and California.
• Causes of the Mexican-American War included border disputes, U.S. expansionism, and Mexico's refusal to negotiate.
• Lincoln's "spot resolutions" challenged the war's justification, mirroring anti-war sentiment.
• Thoreau protested the war through civil disobedience, famously writing "Civil Disobedience."

The 1850s: Sectional Tensions Intensify

• The Wilmot Proviso proposed banning slavery in Mexican-acquired territories, escalating sectional conflict.
• The Compromise of 1850 included California’s admission as a free state, a stricter Fugitive Slave Act, and popular sovereignty in other territories.
• The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 forced Northerners to return runaway slaves which increased anti-slavery sentiment.
• Southern Californians opposed California's free-state status due to its impact on Southern political power.
• The Kansas-Nebraska Act allowed territorial residents to decide on slavery through popular sovereignty.
• Popular sovereignty was the idea that settlers in territories voted on slavery's legality.
• Bleeding Kansas involved violence over slavery, with John Brown's involvement in anti-slavery attacks.
• John Brown attacked a federal armory at Harper's Ferry to ignite a slave rebellion.
• The Dred Scott Supreme Court decision ruled African Americans weren't citizens and Congress couldn't prohibit slavery in territories.
• The Supreme Court's decision aimed to permanently define slavery's legality.
• Abolitionists sought to abolish slavery everywhere; anti-slavery/Free Soilers opposed its expansion.
• The Republican Party emerged as a political opposing slavery's expansion.
• The 1860 presidential candidates had varied stances on slavery and the Union: Lincoln opposed expansion; Douglas supported popular sovereignty; Breckenridge supported expansion; Bell wanted a unified Union without a stance on slavery.
• The pre-Civil War approach to slavery involved compromise and attempted resolutions to avoid conflict.
• The Caning of Charles Sumner escalated sectional tensions. This event influenced the 1856 presidential election, favoring the Republican Party.

The Civil War

• Lincoln's 1860 election prompted Southern secession due to fears about slavery's future. This was a departure from previous era elections as Lincoln was elected without support from the South.
• Confederate and Union soldiers fought for honor, duty, and protection of their homes. Union soldiers fought to preserve the Union, while Confederates fought for states' rights and slavery.
• Military service to Black men in the North provided the chance to fight for freedom and equality.
• The Emancipation Proclamation freed enslaved people in Confederate states, excluding border states for strategic union maintenance.
• Lincoln refused to recognize the Confederacy as a separate entity to preserve the Union.
• "Hard war", a tactic of total war used by commanders like Grant and Sherman, employed aggressive actions to destroy Confederate resources. This led to civilian suffering but aimed for a quicker war conclusion.
• The Union held more resources and manpower, while the Confederacy had better military leadership and battlefield knowledge.

Reconstruction

• Lincoln's Reconstruction aimed to gently reintegrate the South, contrasting with Radical Republicans' harsher approach and Johnson's similar yet more lenient proposal. Different viewpoints resulted from varying perspectives and backgrounds.
• The Freedmen's Bureau aided freedmen through education, healthcare, and legal assistance.
• Johnson, a Southern Democrat and former slave owner, differed significantly from Lincoln's nationalistic stance.
• Black Codes restricted African Americans' rights, maintaining a labor force through labor contracts but excluding freedoms like land ownership.
• The Tenure of Office Act restricted presidential power to remove officials without Senate approval; it was involved in Johnson's impeachment.
• The 1876 election outcome was determined by a disputed Electoral Commission due to widespread voter fraud and contested results.

Explore the significant events and factors that shaped westward expansion and the Mexican-American War. This quiz covers economic motivations, political tensions, and key individuals involved during this transformative period in U.S. history. Understand the implications of the 1850s and sectional tensions that arose over slavery in newly acquired territories.