The Mexican American War 1846 1848 Vocabulary Annexation

The Mexican American War (1846 -1848)

Vocabulary • Annexation: the act of adding to something larger (to join). • Cession: the formal giving up of rights, property, or territory, especially by a state (to give up). • Manifest Destiny: the belief that the United States was destined to stretch from coast to coast (Atlantic to the Pacific). • Migrate: to move from one place to another.

Annexation of Texas • Many Texans want to join the U. S. after it became independent. • Mexico warned the U. S. to not annex, or take control of, Texas • President Polk offered to buy California – Mexicans were convinced the U. S. intended to take the entire continent. – They refused to sell California. President Polk

The War Begins • April 25, 1846 Mexican and American forces clashed in disputed territory -Mexico claimed the Nueces River as Texas border -United States/Texas claimed the Rio Grande was it’s border *BORDER DISPUTES*

Disputed Land

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo • Officially ended the Mexican-American War in 1848 • Mexican Cession included present-day California, Nevada, and Utah, & parts of Arizona, New Mexico, & Wyoming • Mexico was paid $15 Million – Another $3 million in debt was forgiven • Increased Size of the U. S. by almost 25% http: //www. texasbeyondhistory. net/forts/images/treaty. html

Mexican Cession http: //cla. calpoly. edu/~lcall/204/mexican_cession. jpg

Gadsden Purchase of 1853 • U. S. paid Mexico $10 million for southern parts of present-day Arizona and New Mexico. • This land was needed for the expansion of the Railroads.

Population Boom (growth) • Americans begin to migrate to Texas for cheap land • Europeans begin to immigrate to Texas for cheap land • Mexicans migrated to Texas for cheap land brought ranching and cattle industries.

Compromise of 1850 • The Texas-New Mexico Boundary Act states that Texas would receive $10 million in return for giving up apart of their western and northern territory, paying off Texas’ debt, and determining the western boundary of the state. • This agreement was intended to deal with the issue of slavery.

Manifest Destiny is Fulfilled The belief that the United States, having the best government and culture in the world, had the right and duty to control all lands from the Atlantic to the Pacific. It was also based on racism, that Americans were superior to Indians and Mexicans, which meant they had the right to these lands. http: //www. colorado. edu/Am. Studies/lewis/westwardho. jpg