Manifest Destiny: The Notion Of American Exceptionalism

The notion of American exceptionalism swept through the nation, and the concept of moving West was very important in the 1840’s and 50’s. Americans believed that Indians lacked civilization and they wanted to obtain their land in order to expand the United States. They believed that it was their destiny to seize land from native people and admit it into the U.S. as their own. Manifest Destiny was a mentality that American people had in which they believed it was their destiny to proceed West and obtain land through the notion of American exceptionalism, stripping the land from the native people and forcing the creation of Indian reservations. With Texas consisting of fertile soil that was ideal for the growing of cotton, Americans viewed this as a very profitable portion

Mexico offered land grants to Americans due to their economical issues. The Mexican government did not allow the use of slave labor, but the newly established Texans introduced slavery into the land anyway. The Mexicans were furious when they discovered this, and they threatened to resend their land grants, which provoked the Texans, or Americans, to declare autonomy. Santa Anna marched his army into Texas and charged at the Texans; many of them were executed. Sam Houston, a Texan with a military mind, captured Santa Anna and forced him to sign a treaty, granting Texas as independent. Eventually, after about 10 years, Texas was annexed into America as a slave state. Americans’ view of Manifest Destiny allowed for them to take the territory they wanted, no matter the consequence, demonstrating their yearning for expansion. Americans viewed the Willamette Valley as legendary because of its fertility, and wanted to officially make it a part of the United States. They believed that in order to be civilized, a community must have a democracy, have capitalism, and had to be christian. They didn’t view