Mexican-American War

Mexican-American War

Numerous conspiracy theories pump on the controversial state of war fought betwixt the U.S. together with United Mexican States betwixt 1846 together with 1848. One theory states that the state of war was a production of a conspiracy past times southern U.S. congressmen to arrive at to a greater extent than southern territory, and, therefore, arrive at to a greater extent than political power.

Another catch suggests that it was U.S. President James K. Polk who initiated a complex conspiracy to start a “just” state of war against Mexico. Yet a 3rd theory puts the blame for starting the state of war on a conspiracy amid an aggressive Mexican press.

As early every bit the Missouri Compromise (1820), the U.S. Congress had made attempts at balancing political ability betwixt the gratis together with slave states. This balancing human activity continued throughout what historians telephone telephone the “era of sectional conflict,” together with ended entirely alongside the outbreak of the U.S. Civil War.


Abraham Lincoln was 1 of many politicians who saw a state of war alongside United Mexican States every bit detrimental. He together with many others believed that the acquisition of southern territory would offset the residual of political power.

Both earlier together with afterwards the war, contemporary abolitionists, including prominent spokesmen inwards both the northern Democrat together with Whig Parties, defendant the so-called Slave Power, a suspected cabal of southern oligarchs bent on expanding slavery together with the southern agency of life throughout the Western Hemisphere, of arranging the state of war to achieve their ends.

Though many at that fourth dimension believed that President Polk was exercise of the Slave Power conspiracy, others so together with since possess got pointed to Polk himself every bit the cardinal conspirator inwards instigating the war. Polk was a prominent advocate of Manifest Destiny, the belief that it was the God-given destiny of the U.S. to spread from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific.

Mexico’s to a greater extent than northerly provinces— together with inwards the minds of some, all of Mexico—were thus a legitimate target for U.S. expansion. Polk lent song back upward to this seat during his sweat for the presidency, announcing his potent back upward for the annexation of Texas, which was currently beingness considered past times Texas President John Tyler.

According to Anson Jones (the concluding president of the Republic of Texas), Polk sent agents to Texas to attempt to persuade him to provoke hostilities alongside United Mexican States piece the annexation procedure was taking place, bringing the U.S. into a territorial state of war inwards defense forcefulness of 1 of its states together with fixing the responsibleness for the state of war on Mexico. This suspected conspiracy, which anticipated the Mexican-American War past times 11 months, did non succeed entirely because Jones would possess got no exercise inwards it.

Having failed inwards this conspiracy, Polk attempted the buy of New Mexico, California, together with the disputed reason inwards Texas betwixt the Nueces River together with the Rio Grande. However, it presently became painfully clear to Polk that, afterwards losing Texas to U.S. annexation, United Mexican States had no intention of parting alongside whatever to a greater extent than of its land.

At this point, theory holds, Polk initiated merely about other together with fifty-fifty to a greater extent than complex conspiracy past times ordering General Zachary Taylor alongside a large Earth forces to station himself merely within the disputed territory southwest of the Nueces River. When hostilities failed to materialize, Polk ordered Taylor to the rima oris of the Rio Grande, which was the southernmost fringe of the edge claimed past times Texas.

Once there, Taylor built a fort together with blockaded the river. At the same time, a U.S. military machine exploring political party nether John C. Fremont moved into California’s Salinas Valley together with Polk secretly instructed the navy to invade California should whatever hostilities interruption out betwixt the U.S. together with Mexico.

These actions proved sufficient to provoke Mexico. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 detachment of the Mexican Earth forces defending the port metropolis of Matamoros fought an appointment alongside merely about of Taylor’s troops, killing 11 together with wounding merely about other five. Now able to claim that United Mexican States had “shed American blood upon American soil,” Polk went earlier Congress together with asked for a annunciation of war.

Thus, according to this theory, a complicated conspiracy initiated past times the U.S. president succeeded inwards starting a war. However, whether this was to achieve his ain aims or those of the Slave Power remains at issue.

Relating to this presidential conspiracy is merely about other that points inwards a completely dissimilar direction. Claiming that the treaty that fixed the southern boundary of Texas at the Rio Grande had been signed nether duress, United Mexican States repudiated both that boundary together with fifty-fifty Texas’s correct to be every bit an independent republic.

Thus annexation of Texas past times the U.S. was regarded every bit an invasion of Mexican sovereignty together with United Mexican States forthwith broke off all diplomatic relations. Although regime together with military machine leaders inwards United Mexican States did non desire state of war alongside the United States, merely about possess got pointed to a conspiracy amid the nationalistic Mexican press, which enflamed populace thought sufficiently to forcefulness a to a greater extent than aggressive policy.

Polk’s efforts, whether the production of a conspiracy or not, fed into the aims of this grouping of journalists, providing ammunition for a barrage of scathing editorials disputation that United Mexican States must instruct to war, both inwards retaliation for the annexation of Texas together with to dissuade the U.S. from seeking to instruct to a greater extent than territory inwards the southwest. The bottom draw of piece of occupation was that Mexico’s national pride was at stake. According to this view, this culminated inwards the skirmish along the Rio Grande, which sparked the starting fourth dimension of the war.

The Mexican-American War ended alongside the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848), which ceded nearly one-third of Mexico’s territory to the United States. In return, the U.S. paid United Mexican States $15 1 K m together with agreed to allow Mexicans living on the reason to rest if they chose to produce so.