Conflict with Mexico PAGES

Objectives  Explain how Texas became independent from Mexico  Discuss the issues involved in annexing Texas and Oregon  Summarize the main events in the Mexican-American War  Explain how the United States achieved Manifest Destiny

Focus Question  What were the causes and effects of the Texas War for Independence and the Mexican-American War?

Stephen Austin  1820: The Spanish governor of Texas gave Moses Austin a land grant to establish a small colony  After Moses died, his son, Stephen Austin, led a group of 300+ Americans into Texas  Not long after, Mexico won independence from Spain  The Mexican government honored Austin’s claim to the land  In return, Austin and his colonist agreed to become Mexican citizens  They agreed to worship in the Roman Catholic Church

Growing Conflict  Thousands of Americans came to Texas  Came into conflict with the Mexican government  New settlers were Protestant, not Catholic  Many settlers were slaveholders from the American South who wanted to grow cotton in Texas  Mexico, however, had abolished slavery 2012 STATS

Growing Conflict cont’d  For awhile, Mexico tolerated the violations of its law  1830: Mexico banned further American settlement in Texas  Still, Americans kept arriving in Texas  Tensions increased  Mexico tried to enforce its laws banning slavery and requiring settlers to worship the Catholic Church  Mexico began to put heavy taxes on American imports

General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna  Americans wanted more representation in the Mexican legislature  Tejanos (Texans of Mexican decent) also wanted the central government to have less power  General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna  Santa Anna wanted a strong central government, with himself as the head  Soon started a dictatorship

Revolt Against the Mexican Government  1836: Austin urged Texan revolt against the Mexican government  Texans declared independence from Mexico and created the Republic of Texas

Texans at War  Santa Anna responded with force  His troops laid siege to the Alamo, a mission in San Antonio  What is a siege ?  An attack in which one force surrounds a city or force

The Alamo  Defenders of the Alamo held out for 12 days under heavy cannon fire  Finally, Mexican forces overran the Alamo  All defenders were either killed in battle or executed afterward  Inspired by the bravery of the Alamo defenders, many joined the Texan army

“Remember the Alamo!”  Commander of Texan forces: Sam Houston  Led a small army in a surprise attack against Santa Anna’s army in San Jacinto  Texans shouted, “Remember the Alamo!” and within minutes, the Texans captured Santa Anna  Santa Anna was forced to sign a treaty recognizing Texan independence

Checkpoint  What were the conflicts between Mexicans and new settlers in Texas?  Mexico forbade slavery  Mexico was a Catholic country  Mexico taxed American imports heavily

Republic of Texas  Sam Houston became president of the Republic of Texas  Public opinion in the United States was divided:  Southerners supported the annexation of Texas as a slave state  Northerners opposed this  Presidents Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren refused to support annexation  both feared adding a slave state might spark a huge political fight that could split the Union

Election of 1844  President John Tyler favored annexation of Texas, but he was not nominated for a 2 nd term  Whigs chose Henry Clay instead  Clay hoped to avoid annexation  The Democrats chose James K. Polk  Polk wanted the annexation of both Texas and Oregon  Polk was the candidate for expansion, and he won the election

Annexation  1845: Congress voted for admission of Texas as a state  Polk negotiated a treaty with Britain to divide Oregon  Eventually, this territory became the states of Washington, Oregon, and part of Idaho

Checkpoint  How was the annexation of Texas linked to Oregon?  The balance of slave and free states was maintained

Tensions with Mexico  The annexation increased tensions with Mexico  Mexico had never formally recognized Texan independence

The Mexican-American War  Polk first offered cash to the Mexican government for Texas, California, and New Mexico  Mexico was outraged and refused the offer  Polk changed tactics:  Hoped to provoke a Mexican attack on the U.S., so he sent General Zachary Taylor to the disputed land south of the Nueces River

The Mexican-American War  Mexicans saw Taylor’s occupation as an act of war  Mexican troops ambushed an American patrol on the disputed land  Polk as Congress for a declaration of war  claimed Mexico had forced this war by shedding “American blood upon American soil”

Opposition to War  War with Mexico was generally very popular among Americans  Support was strongest among the southerners and westerners  Northerners argued that Polk had provoked the war  Referred to it as “Mr. Polk’s war” and claimed that he was trying to extend slavery  A member of the House of Representatives, Abraham Lincoln, pointed out the land under dispute wasn’t “American soil”

Your Opinion  Do you agree or disagree with Lincoln’s opinion that Taylor invaded Mexico, rather than Mexico invaded the United States? Explain your view.

Rebellion in California  Polk ordered troops under Stephen Kearny to invade and capture Santa Fe, New Mexico  Kearny then led his troops to California  Even before Kearny’s troops reached California, settlers near San Francisco had begun their own revolt

Rebellion in California  Settlers raised a grizzly bear flag and declared California an independent republic  John C. Fremont took command of the Bear Flag Rebellion  With the help of Kearny’s troops, all of southern California was under American control by 1847

Invasion of Mexico  General Taylor captured Mexican city of Monterrey  General Kearny’s troops captured Santa Fe and San Diego  General Winfield Scott captured Veracruz, and important Mexican port  Scott then marched to Mexico City (capital), but Santa Anna still did not surrender Winfield Scott

Chapultepec  Chapultepec = a stone palace above Mexico City  Mexicans fought bravely to defend the palace  Most Mexicans were killed; in Mexico, these young men are still honored for their patriotism  Santa Anna left Mexico city  The Mexican capital was in American hands and the U.S. had won the war

Achieving Manifest Destiny  Polk sent Nicholas Trist to help General Scott to negotiate a treaty with Mexico  Trist negotiated the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848)  Under the treaty:  Mexico recognized the annexation of Texas, California, Nevada, Utah, as well as parts of Wyoming, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico  In return, the U.S. paid Mexico $18 million  Manifest Destiny had been achieved Nicholas Trist

Checkpoint  How did the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo help the United States to achieve Manifest Destiny?  The United States now stretched to both coasts

Focus Question Re-visited  What were the causes and effects of the Texas War for independence and the Mexican-American War?  American settlement; the United States expanding