Manifest Destiny Flashcards
Define Manifest Destiny.
Manifest Destiny was the belief that the United States was intended by God to rule the entirety of North America.
After it won independence from Spain in 1823, Mexico invited Americans to settle Texas’ northern frontier. Why?
The Mexican government had neither the troops nor funds to protect the state from raids by the Comanche Indian Tribe. Mexico hoped that a strong group of settlers along the northern frontier would protect the state. The American settlers were known as “Texians.”
What was the response to Mexico’s invitation to Americans to settle in Texas?
The response was overwhelming. By 1830, Americans in Texas outnumbered Mexicans by 3 to 1. Many Americans arrived from the South, and brought their slaves with them.
Who is considered the Father of Texas?
Stephen F. Austin
Austin, for whom Texas’ state capital is named, led the first group of 300 settlers to Texas in 1822, where they set up homesteads along the Brazos River. Following independence from Spain, the new Mexican government ratified the land grants to the new settlers.
In addition to banning further American immigration to Texas in the 1840s, Mexico enacted two laws which enraged American settlers. What were they?
First, Mexico required anyone already living within Mexican territory to convert to Roman Catholicism. Second, Mexico passed legislation barring slavery.
Americans simply ignored both laws. Most slave-owners simply converted their slaves into lifetime indentured servants, a distinction without a difference which only served to irritate Mexican authorities.
How did the Mexican government respond to American settlers’ refusal to free their slaves and embrace Roman Catholicism?
The Mexican government banned immigration by Americans, an act Americans simply ignored as they continued to pour over the border.
Who seized power of the Mexican government in 1834?
Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón, often known as Santa Anna or López de Santa Anna, declared himself dictator in 1834.
Texas declared itself free of the central Mexican government. One of Santa Anna’s first acts was to march north to teach the recalcitrant Texians a lesson.
Mexican soldiers slaughtered 300 prisoners of war in the —–.
Goliad Massacre
The Goliad Massacre took place along the Texas coast and was one of the two rallying cries of Texians who sought to achieve independence from Mexico. After the massacre, pro-war Americans justified conflict by contending the Mexicans were savages.
In 1836, during the opening campaign of the Mexican-American War, Santa Anna’s forces lay siege to the Alamo, a church in modern-day San Antonio. How many Texian soldiers survived the siege?
None
Although some civilians survived the Alamo siege, no Texian soldiers did. The dead included famous Americans such as Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie.
Rallying to the cry of “Remember Goliad” and “Remember the Alamo,” Texian soldiers swarmed into the Army, and a few months later Santa Anna’s troops were defeated at the Battle of San Jacinto.
Following the Battle of San Jacinto, General Santa Anna recognized Texas as an independent nation. How did the Mexican government respond?
The Mexicans deposed Santa Anna, and continued to consider Texas an official part of Mexico. This unsettled state would prevent the American annexation for years, and contribute to the Mexican-American War.
Both Andrew Jackson and Martin van Buren denied requests for annexation from Texas. Why?
Both Presidents were concerned that annexation of the Republic of Texas would lead to war with Mexico. Further, Texas was such a large territory that it was anticipated that the territory would be separated, meaning five separate slave states would come into the Union, engendering fierce political opposition.
A Southerner, President John Tyler had an annexation bill introduced to the Congress, which was rejected despite concerns about growing British influence in the region.
What was the Aroostook War?
In Maine, Canadian and American lumbermen fought over the proper border between Maine and British Canada, an event known as the Aroostook War.
In 1842, Daniel Webster and Lord Ashburton signed a treaty in Washington, fixing the border in its current location (and resolving Minnesota’s border as well) by negotiating and signing the Webster-Ashburton Treaty.
What was the slogan of those who sought to annex all of the Oregon Territory, up to the border with Russian America (Alaska)?
54-40 or fight
The term 54-40 referred to the parallel 54°40′ North, Russian America’s southern border, and significantly farther north than today’s border with Canada. Seizing this territory would have resulted in a war with the British.
When their convention deadlocked between Martin van Buren and John C. Calhoun, which candidate was the Democratic Party’s nominee in 1844?
James K. Polk
A Jacksonian Democrat, Polk came out strongly in favor of Oregon’s boundary being at 54°40′, and supported Texan annexation, appealing to those who supported Manifest Destiny. His Whig opponent, Henry Clay, was against Texas annexation before he was for it, and lost yet another bid for the Presidency.
Before Polk could assume office, what action did outgoing President John Tyler take on the Texas annexation issue?
In an act of procedural gamesmanship, Tyler had the entire Congress pass a joint resolution for annexation, which required fewer votes than a Senate measure. Texas was duly annexed, and Polk was left with the challenge of resolving the dispute over Oregon’s northern boundary.