19th century

Question 1

1803

Answer 1

Louisiana Purchase from France for $15,000,000.

Question 2

1807-12

Answer 2

Impressment of 6,000 sailors from American ships with U.S. citizenship into the Royal Navy - Britain in need of sailors due to French-Anglo wars of the Napoleonic era; Great Britain ignores vehement American protests.

Question 3

1812

Answer 3

War of 1812: America declares war on Great Britain because of impressment of American sailors, border disputes, and U.S. intentions of acquiring Canada. In December 1814 the Treaty of Ghent ended by providing status quo ante bellum; Great Britain no longer needs impressment and stops the practice.

Question 4

1819

Answer 4

Adams-Onís Treaty: Spain ceded Florida to America for $5,000,000; America agrees to assume claims against Spain; America gives up claims to Texas

Question 5

1823

Answer 5

Monroe Doctrine: British propose America join in stating that European powers will not be permitted further colonization in the Americas following the Latin American wars of independence. President James Monroe states it on December 2 as independent American policy.

Question 6

1844

Answer 6

Oregon Question: America and Great Britain at sword’s point in the Manifest Destiny era; “54-40 or fight” is American slogan; compromise reached in 1846 (Oregon Treaty) splitting the region, with British Columbia to Great Britain, and Washington, Idaho, and Oregon to America.

Question 7

1845

Answer 7

Annexation of Republic of Texas (independent from Mexico since 1836); Mexico breaks relations with U.S. in retaliation.

Question 8

1846

Answer 8

Mexican-American War begins (1846-1848); Oregon Treaty with Britain

Question 9

1848

Answer 9

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo: settled Mexican-American War, Rio Grande as border of Texas, territory of New Mexico rest of west ceded to America, California ceded; America paid Mexico $15,000,000 and assumed $3,250,000 liability against Mexico.

Question 10

1853

Answer 10

Gadsden Purchase: purchase of 78,700km2 in southern Arizona for $10,000,000 for purpose of railroad connections. Manifest Destiny fulfilled (a doctrine of expansionism typical of 1830s and 40s; holds that it is clear and inevitable lot of U.S. to absorb all of North America).

Question 11

1861-65

Answer 11

Civil War: President Lincoln threatens war against any country that recognizes the Confederacy; no country does so

Question 12

1864-66

Answer 12

Maximilian Affair: diplomatic incident between France and U.S. arising from attempts to establish French empire in Mexico; in defiance of the Monroe Doctrine, French Emperor Napoleon III places Archduke Maximilian of Austria on Mexican throne in 1864; America warns France against intervention, with 50,000 combat troops being sent to the Mexican border by President Andrew Johnson; in 1866 Napoleon III withdrew French troops; Maximilian was overthrown by Mexican revolutionary forces and was executed in 1867.

Question 13

1867

Answer 13

Alaska purchase: America purchases Alaska from Russia for $7,200,000.

Question 14

1895

Answer 14

Olney Memorandum; invocation of the Monroe Doctrine as a reaction to the British-Venezuelan boundary dispute.

Question 15

1898

Answer 15

April - blowing up of the U.S.S. Maine in Havana harbor, Cuba; public clamors for war; Spanish-American War, “the splendid little war” or the loss of innocence; combat lasted less than 6 months.
 July - Annexation of Hawaii: The Newlands Resolution in Congress annexes the Hawaiian Republic, with full U.S. citizenship for inhabitants regardless of race.
December - Treaty of Paris: ends Spanish-American War; U.S. becomes a major actor in international relations; Spain loses its last colonies while U.S. gains Cuba (granted independence), Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines (the last three turn into U.S. dependent territories).

Question 16

1899

Answer 16

Open Door Policy proposed by the U.S. for equal trading rights inside China; accepted by Great Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Russia and Japan.