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Louisiana Purchase Dbq

1044 Words5 Pages

Katelyn Cooper
History 1301
Tue Thur 12:30
10/27/14
Reflective Essay

The Louisiana Purchase was the real-estate deal of the 19th century. In 1801 Thomas Jefferson became president of the United States. At the same time Napoleon also became the emperor of France, which brought the French Revolution, the Republic, and the beginning of an attempt to expand the French Empire to conquer the world all to an end. In 1802, still under Napoleon’s rule, France made a secret treaty with Spain, in which Spain agreed to return old French land west of the Mississippi River and New Orleans to France and in return the French would not sell this land to any other nation. The French then closed off the New Orleans port to any American trade. In 1803, Napoleon …show more content…

Napoleon decided to end his tries at starting this world conquest. Jefferson had a decision to make: war with France or to loose support of the western farmers who needed to have the port of New Orleans open to trade their crops, neither being a favorable turn out. In attempts to avoid both, Thomas Jefferson sent James Monroe to France to try and buy the port from France. Claiming the port of New Orleans was now at the top of his to-do list, in the ideal spot at the mouth of the Mississippi River emptying out into the Gulf of Mexico.Gaining this piece of land would make it possible for farmers to transfer goods to market. Jefferson, similar to most Americans was a country man, with the strong belief that the nation’s future was with the Democratic Republican farmers, not the Federalist bankers and merchants. “Those who labor in the earth,” he wrote, “are the chosen people of God, if ever He had a chosen people,” (http://mrkash.com/activities/hamiltonjefferson.html) Jefferson’s offer could not have come at a better time for Napoleon, who needed the money for a war effort against Great Britain. Yet he shot down Jefferson’s …show more content…

Then in 1803, Jefferson tried once more. This time Napoleon agreed to give 828,000 square miles, stretching from the Mississippi River to Rocky Mountains, and down to the Gulf of Mexico, doubling the size of the United States. However, this decision made my Jefferson didn't come with ease. He was a strong anti-Federalist, in favor of strong state governments, versus a strong federal government. He believed in the strict interpretation of the Constitution; meaning he thought the Constitution meant exactly what it said, no more, and no less. Any additions to what was stated there in the Constitution, he believed was considered unconstitutional. “I hope to God they may, for possession of it we must have—I mean of New Orleans, and of such other positions on the Mississippi as may be necessary to secure to us forever the complete and uninterrupted navigation of that river. This I have ever been in favor of; I think it essential to the peace of the United States and to the prosperity of our Western country.” (Senate Debates on the Louisiana Purchase 2–3 November 1803 Wednesday, 2 November 1803 Samuel White) There was no constitutional power granted to Congress or the President to buy territory for the United States, yet Monroe

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The Federalists opposed the Louisiana Purchase for many practical reasons and not for practical reasons. The document, A said that Federalists thought that American Indians in the area could cause problems and kill some colonists moving into the area. Document A said that the Federalists suspected new states formed in the Louisiana Territory would be Republican. Document A said that the Federalists thought that probably no one would settle there so the land purchased would be useless. Document A said that they(the Federalists) feared that the new national government would be too powerful and thus put at risk individual liberties.

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Jefferson decided to try and buy New Orleans. Why did he want to buy it? He wanted to be sure that American farmers would always be able to ship their goods through the port. Jefferson sent Robert Livingston and James Monroe to buy New Orleans and to buy West Florida from Napoleon. The president said they could offer as much as $10 million.

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President Thomas Jefferson in 1804 elected as president. One day, he discovers that the French were selling the Louisiana Territory to Spain, he takes advantage of this and buys it instead, thus making the Louisiana Purchase to extend the U.S. two times its original size and to gain control of New Orleans Mississippi River. After the purchase, the Lewis & Clark Expedition was formed to discover more about the Louisiana Territory in which the Native Americans had dwelled. Lewis & Clark were respectful to the Native Americans they encountered during their expedition because they had to prevent future quarrels. Lewis and Clark were mostly friendly to the Native Americans due to a request from Thomas Jefferson himself to be kind to them.

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The Louisiana Purchase Dear Editor: I think that Thomas Jefferson and the United States Government should buy the port of New Orleans because they need the get the port so that we can trade and expand the United States. One of the vast reasons that we bought the hefty territory was that we wanted total control of the New Orleans port so we could further our trade. We wanted to be in total control of the port because they stopped our trade and we needed to import and export goods. Another reason was the we wanted the port so we could trade whenever and no one could stop out trade.

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Jefferson’s election in 1800 marked the first peaceful transfer of power between political parties in U.S. history. This showed that the country could transition power without getting into violence or conflict. Jefferson believed in limited government and states rights, which means that he thought the federal government should have less power and the states should have more. Jefferson's purchase of the Louisiana land in 1803 doubled the size of the United States and expanded executive power by allowing the President to make large land purchases without approval from Congress.

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It was known as the Louisiana Territory. Napoleon didn't have any need for this land after his attempt to control Haiti and revolved to sell it for financial aid to get back money lost in the attack. This was good for America because "farmers needed access to the Mississippi to transport their crops to markets. Their goods traveled down the Mississippi to New Orleans, where workers loaded them onto other ships bound for markets on the East Coast. " The two nations compromised on a price of $15 million, and this exchange was regarded as the Louisiana Purchase.

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The Louisiana Purchase was the purchase of the Louisiana territory by the United States from France in 1803. The U.S. paid fifty million dollars and a cancellation of debts worth eighteen million dollars which averages to less than three cents per acre. The Louisiana territory included land from fifteen present U.S. states and two Canadian provinces. The territory contained land that forms Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska, portions of Minnesota, large portions of North Dakota; large portions of South Dakota, parts of New Mexico, the northern portion of Texas, the area of Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado. The Louisiana Purchase was smart move by the United States.

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Would I Have Supported the Purchase of the Louisiana Territory? e "Let the Land rejoice, for you have bought Louisiana for a Song,” General Horatio Gates told President Jefferson on July 18th, 1803. Money is everything to many, it’s what makes the world go round, as some say. Everyone wants money, and currency can come in many different forms such as: substances, coins, or deals. When one makes a deal, the main purpose is to profit off of that bargain, and you can profit an abundance of wealth from just one deal if you show the right cards.

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I agree that Jefferson feared all southern states would be at Napoleon’s mercy if he settled in New Orleans. However, Napoleon’s intentions of the New World backfired as yellow fever, other diseases, and rebels revolting assisted in Napoleons decision to cut his losses. Furthermore, I also want to add that another reason the Louisiana Purchase came about was because Jefferson envisioned a country large enough for all descendants and felt the land of America allowed this, but Jefferson realized the nation’s current condition was too small. Therefore, he knew if he could somehow acquire rights to the land west of the Mississippi, it would provide people with enough land to prosper forever.

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Yet, that didn’t stop his presidency and even was able to attain a second term which was strongly opposed of the Federalist. Also, during his presidency run, Jefferson created the Embargo Act of 1807 to protect the ship merchants from the war that was going on between Britain and France. While he attempted to put a stop to the nation’s trade ships entering this battle. The act itself failed to succeed as the nation was not only built but it’s economy was based on through trade and without it the nation suffered. Of course, Jefferson wasn’t the only president to have to deal with the Britain and France war, James Madison who was Jefferson’s successor prohibited merchant ships from trading with either side.

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Jefferson’s dilemma in the Louisiana Purchase In April of 1803 Thomas Jefferson was faced with many moral dilemmas in the process of buying the Louisiana territory. Though the price for the territory was beyond generous, Jefferson felt that by purchasing the territory he would be going against his beliefs that the constitution should be followed word for word. The constitution said nothing of the president having the power to purchase land from another government, or to use money of the states for the same purpose (“the moral dilemma”). Another problem was once the land was purchased, there was a fear that it could have been a waste since they had no way to know the layout of the land, and what it would be useful for.

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The Louisiana Purchase was land that was bought by America from France. By purchasing this land it opened new opportunities for faster trade and more land that they could use to colonize. The two famous explorers that were able to discover and chart new routes that could be used. For example on one of their journeys they were able to find an overland route that would get them through the mountain range. Drafted and put into act by the U.S president Thomas Jefferson and Secretary of State James Madison the Embargo Act of 1807 would control the trade in and out of the U.S. “during the continuance of the, act laying an embargo on all ships and vessels in the ports and harbors of the United States (Embargo Act 1807).”

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The Louisiana Purchase is one of the largest buys in American History. Many changes affected the size of the U.S in the early 1800’s. The Louisiana purchase took place in 1803 for the cost of 15 million dollars. The amount of money that was given for the purchase was very cheap at that time for the U.S. As a result Americans bought more land to colonize.

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Thomas Jefferson’s first term as President of the United States have been considered free of excitement, except for the addition of the Louisiana Territory. The Louisiana Territory was a large area of unexplored land through the Mississippi River. At the end of the Mississippi River lies the port of New Orleans. Whoever controls New Orleans, rules the Mississippi, and holds North America. Owning this part of the land would be crucial for the United States because it would give American farmers the ability to use the New Orleans port tax-free.

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The Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana purchase was one of the biggest land purchases in history. In 1803, the United States paid around $15 million dollars for around 800,000 square miles of land. This was arguably the greatest achievement of thomas jefferson’s presidency. The louisiana territory was a wild card in the european game of imperialism.

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