Topic 5.2: Manifest Destiny
What was Manifest Destiny?
Manifest Destiny represented the American belief that it was a god-given right to settle/control the continent (sea to shining sea)
Explain the Mexican-American War (1846–1848).
Causes and Effects.
The Mexican-American War was driven by U.S. territorial expansion and border disputes, resulting in significant land acquisition for the United States and lasting political and social consequences for both nations.
Causes of the War:
Annexation of Texas: The immediate cause was the U.S. annexation of the Republic of Texas in 1845, which Mexico considered a violation of its sovereignty. Texas gained independence from Mexico in 1836, but Mexico never recognized its independence, leading to disputes over its southern border. The U.S. claimed the Rio Grande as the boundary, while Mexico insisted it was the Nueces River, about 100 miles north.
Define Popular Sovereignty?
Popular Sovereignty was the common position of letting States/their people decide on the issue of slavery
What are Cultural Enclaves?
Prior to the Civil War, Irish and German immigrants came in waves, settling in Cultural Enclaves (ex. Irish in NYC’s 5 Points Neighborhood) with slum-like conditions, disease, and unemployment
What was the Kansas-Nebraska Act? What previous Compromise did this act repeal?
The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 was a pivotal piece of legislation that created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, allowing settlers to decide on the legality of slavery through popular sovereignty, which led to significant national conflict over slavery.
This act actively repealed the Missouri Compromise of 1820, which stated no slavery above the 36º30 line
What was the California Gold Rush (1848–1855)?
The California Gold Rush was a mass migration to California triggered by the discovery of gold at Sutter’s Mill, transforming the region’s population, economy, and society.
What was the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo? (February 2, 1848)
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo officially ended the Mexican-American War and resulted in Mexico ceding over half of its territory to the United States.
What was the Fugitive Slave Law?
The Fugitive Slave Law allowed fugitive slaves to be hunted and brought back to their owners, even in the North, would be passed and enforced. [The Compromise of 1850 led to stricter Fugitive Slave Laws]
The Anti-Catholic Nativist (protecting the interests of citizens/native born people vs immigrants) movement grew to oppose immigration, especially Catholic Irish
What was the Know-Nothing Party in relation to Nativism?
The Know-Nothing Party (American) was a major political party that embraced this Nativist sentiment.
What was Bleeding Kansas?
Bleeding Kansas was the mass migration of people to Kansas and Nebraska, and in Kansas, violence between pro/anti slave people to gain control of the territory
How did the Argument of Manifest Destiny play a role in the argument for the annexation of Texas?
(Bonus: what was 54'40' or Fight)
The Argument of Manifest Destiny was a central justification for the annexation of Texas in the 1840s. It was the belief that the United States had a divinely ordained right and duty to expand across the North American continent, spreading republican government and the “American way of life”.
54’ 40” or Fight: Polk’s slogan to annex California, Texas, and Oregon all the way to the Alaskan Border
Explain the Gadsden Purchase.
The Gadsden Purchase was a 1854 agreement in which the United States acquired 29,670 square miles of land from Mexico for $10 million to facilitate a southern transcontinental railroad and settle border disputes.
Explain the Compromise of 1850 by Henry Clay.
The Compromise of 1850 by Henry Clay helped combat this threat to secede by the Southern States. The Mexican Cession territory would be made into Utah and Nevada and the issue of slavery would be decided via Popular Sovereignty
What was the significance of Uncle Tom’s Cabin for the abolitionist movement?
Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin galvanized Northern public opinion against slavery and significantly strengthened the Abolitionist movement in the 1850s.
What was the Lecompton Constitution?
The Lecompton Constitution, a pro-slavery constitution for Kansas, was accepted by part of the state while anti-slavery people made their own government. It was approved by Congress
What was the Treaty of Oregon?
The Oregon Treaty of 1846 resolved the U.S.-British dispute over the Oregon Country by establishing the 49th parallel as the boundary west of the Rocky Mountains, giving the U.S. territory south of that line and British territory to the north.
What was the Wilmot Proviso?
The Wilmot Proviso was an amendment to the appropriations bill in Congress that would ban slavery in the territory gained from the Mexican-American War. It was voted down, but it shows the contentious issue of slavery
What was the Ostend Manifesto?
The Ostend Manifesto was a manifesto saying that the US should try to buy Cuba (and go to war with Spain if they don’t allow it) to expand slavery there
What was the Underground Railroad?
The Underground Railroad: system of safehouses, pathways, guides, etc that helped guide slaves to the North for freedom (Harriet Tubman)
Explain the Dred Scott case.
Dred Scott was a slave from the South taken to live in a Northern territory by his master. He took a case to the SCOTUS, saying that he deserved freedom after living in a free state for more than 2 years
What was the Webster-Ashburton Treaty?
The Webster–Ashburton Treaty of 1842 resolved U.S.-British border disputes, established key boundaries, and addressed extradition and the suppression of the slave trade.
Explain the Free Soil/Free Soiler Party.
The Free Soil/Free Soiler Party was a group that believed that Slavery should be kept off of new aquired land to prevent competition for farmers moving out West (economic concern rather than moral)
What was the Gag rule, in place until 1844?
The Gag Rule was in place until 1844, preventing discussing anything related to Slavery in Congress
Explain John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry.
John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry in October 1859 was an armed attempt to initiate a slave revolt, which heightened tensions leading to the American Civil War. John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry would be an example of direct violence, as he armed slaves with the Ferry’s arsenal (although, after they captured the armory, they were defeated)
What was the Freeport Doctrine?
The Freeport Doctrine said that states could decide to allow OR BAN slavery based on popular sovereignty. This led to Southern states wanting a Federal Slave Code to codify the Dred-Scott case