The Republic of Texas 1836-1845 Unit 4

The Lone Star Republic In this slide show, you will learn about the Republic of Texas. The victory at San Jacinto began a 10-year period in which Texas was an independent nation. Those 10 years brought both challenges and achievements. Eventually, Texas voluntarily gave up its independent status and became part of the United States.

Section 1 Sam Houston’s Government

In September of 1836, Texans elected Sam Houston as the first president of Texas. Mirabeau Lamar was elected Vice-President. Texans also approved the Constitution of 1836 and approved the proposal that Texas join the United States.

Houston, The First Capital of Texas

Annexation Question: What does “annexation” mean? Answer: To incorporate a country or territory into another country or territory.

Everyone Wants To Annex! Sam Houston strongly desired to annex Texas to the United States. The people of Texas had voted to approve the annexation of Texas.

Except the United States! The United States was worried about annexing Texas for 2 reasons: The were worried about hurting their relationship with Mexico. (Mexico was still upset about losing Texas.) The anti-slavery groups in the United States were against annexation. (Texas would become a slave state if annexed.) In the United States Senate, there was an equal number of Senators from slave states and from free states. If Texas became a state, there would be more Senators from slave states in Congress. This would tip the balance of power towards slave states, and the free states strongly opposed this!

Two Reasons the United States Hesitated to Annex Texas

Houston Tries to Solve the Problem Houston sent two people, William H. Wharton and Memucan Hunt, to Washington D.C. Their job was to work for both recognition and annexation of Texas. In March of 1837, President Andrew Jackson officially recognized Texas as an independent nation.

Native American and Texan Conflicts As white settlers increased in Central Texas, Wichitas, Comanches, and Kiowas began to raid the settlements. Houston worked to improve relations with the Natives. Houston struck a deal with the Cherokees, who were living in East Texas. The Cherokees promised to remain peaceful if they were granted legal title to their land. Later, the Texan senate refused to accept the treaty, and more and more settlers moved onto Cherokee territory.

Another problem for Houston… Money Like many developing countries, the Republic of Texas constantly had money problems. Expenditures, or money paid out, were much greater than revenue, or money received. The Republic of Texas had a debt of $2 million. To help solve the problem, the Texas Congress placed a tariff on various goods imported into Texas.