Mexican War Dbq Essay

American - Mexican War DBQ Essay

The year was 1835, Texas had just declared its independence from Mexico as its own country. Tensions recently have built up between the people in Texas and Mexico due to the regulations enforced by the Mexicans, and the huge American Population compared to the Mexican Population has also had an influence on it. Texas ends up winning the war and is able to govern itself. A few years later, after Texas’s independence, they decided to join the Union. This causes tensions to build up between Mexico and the US due to disputed territories, as both countries had different borders for Texas. As the tensions built up, they would soon later lead to the Mexican - American war. Justifying a War between two countries

John L O’Sullivan who was a minister for the United States of America during that time period, this was his message for going to war with Mexico. In it, he states that, “Limiting our greatness and checking the fulfillment of our manifest destiny to overspread the continent allotted by Providence (God) for the free development of our yearly multiplying millions”(Doc A). America believed they were given permission by God to conquer the continent, but that doesn't sound like a justification the US can support with solid evidence; rather, it sounds more like a blatant lie. Claiming you should be able to conquer land because God wants you to be not a proper or fundamental justification for a massive war between two major countries. Overall, the justification of a war should rely on a proper and reasonable justification, not one like the US justified their war with Mexico as stating that the reason they wanted to invade is that god destined them to is not a good enough

Slavery was a big part of the US as they were built on the back of slaves, but while that may be true, some people started to recognize the inhumane methods and how the slaves were being treated which caused a great divide in the country between the Northern States and Southern States. The Southerners wanted to spread slavery and so Texas was seen as an opportunity as they had been forbidden to go above the 36’30 degrees Latitude mark, the only possible way was to go west and down. Particular evidence can be seen from Charles Summer, who was a State legislator in Massachusetts who served 24 years and was quite popular. He stated that, “Our newspaper excited the lust of territorial robbery in the public mind… Certainly (Mexico) … might justly charge our citizens with disgraceful robbery, while, in seeking extension of slavery, (our own citizens denied) the great truths of American freedom”(Doc D) Together, this evidence implies that people were brainwashed into believing that taking Mexicans' land was a righteous decision and that it was justified. It also says a lot that people were aware they were expanding for slavery but chose not say something on it. This simply illustrates that people were desperate for land and expansion for slavery even though Mexico had just abolished slavery. In the sense that it was done for the US to better itself