In 1846 president Polk declares war on Mexico, everything started with the Texas independence movement. American citizen that moves to Mexico decided to create an independent state, which it was in Texas. Slavery was an issue in admitting California to the Union, dividing the United States even more, this raise even more the issue of whether to add territories of the Union or not, it intensified the debate. Why is slavery, such a big issue? The reason is that northerners realized its cruelty it also violates the slave’s freedom and the southerner’s economy depended on slavery. It seems really mean that slavery is a big important part in the economy and yet are treated them like if they were animals. Farmers needed slaves to work on their farm …show more content…
President Polk ordered John Slidell to take its soldiers and go to Mexico to seek boundary adjustments and to purchase California and New Mexico. In reality Following the annexation of Texas, the Mexican government had severed diplomatic relations with the U.S. Polk subsequently sent an envoy, former Louisiana congressman John Slidell, to Mexico to try to resolve disputes over the Texas boundary and other damages that the Mexican government owed to U.S. citizens but could not pay. Polk instructed Slidell to make an offer that the U.S. would pay off Mexico's debt in order to acquire "Upper California and New Mexico" and would spend as much as $40 million to purchase the land. The negotiation failed at that time, the U.S army proceeded to the Rio Grande in which Mexico considered the advance of the army an act of hostility. Mexico immediately organizes a little group of troops to the Rio Grande and Polk declare the Mexican advance to be an intrusion of the U.S territory. On May 11, 1846, congress declares war on Mexico. It needed two years of war until on February 2, 1848 Guadalupe Hidalgo signed the treaty and ended the Mexican-American War. As promised Several districts were given up to the United States, including California and New Mexico in return the Unites States paid Mexico the sum they accord and agreed to make up all claims of U.S citizens against Mexico. That’s how California became part of the United States of America and yet it came with a surprise that made the U.S economy boom.
Their regret might have been much sharper if Mexico had known that gold had been discovered at Sutter’s Mill in Coloma, California, nine days before they signed the peace