Essay On Mexican American War

Words: 687
Pages: 3
Open Document
In the Mexican American war, almost 14,000 Americans, and 25,000 were killed. About 525,000 square miles were seized by the United States. After seeing these astounding numbers, a person would think of a war that they learned in school right? Surprisingly, most Americans don’t know much, or even anything about the Mexican American war. In fact, some even call it the “Forgotten War.” This war started when Americans were headed down the border between Mexico and the undisputed territory north of this border, more formally known as the Rio Grande River. Was the United states justified in going to war with Mexico? The word justified is described by a question: Was it the right thing to do? The United States was not justified in going to war with Mexico for two reasons. The first is that President Polk provoked the war by sending troops with slaves down the border, even though Mexico was very firm about …show more content…
James K. Polk, the President of the United States at this time said, “I had ordered an efficient military force to take position between the Nueces and the Del Norte..” (Doc B). He says the opposite of Charles Sumner, in that we were just in going to war with Mexico. In this speech, he states that he put troops on the border, but why? The thing is, there was no true reason to go to war. Sure, it’s good to have the land we wouldn’t have had otherwise, but that shouldn’t be the reason why we go to war. Also, Polk mobilized the U.S troops, which was basically an attack on Mexico. Jesus Velasco Marquez stated, “In the eyes of the (Mexican) government, the mobilization of the U.S army was an outright attack on Mexico.” (Doc C). This war was not meant to happen, but President Polk forced it. We thought that we could do anything we want, due to the land we won previously, and we thought we were invincible. We simply overestimated our power in foreign
Show More

Related Documents: Essay On Mexican American War

Mexican American War Essay

Jessie Moore May 31, 2014 Group F Was The United States Justified in Going to War with Mexico? Was the United States justified in going to war with Mexico? Or in other words were the reasons we decided to go into war with Mexico based on pure fact and out of good for both countries? No, the United States was wrong to go to war with Mexico. We provoked and disrespected them, and we were nothing but greedy ourselves. There are many articles to back up these statements that I will be going into…

Words 656 - Pages 3

Essay On Mexican American War

countries. However, was America justified in going to war? America was not justified because we just elected a new president, brought slaves into Mexico, even though they were abolished, and got mad at Mexico, and were angry at Mexico for feeling threatened and protecting themselves. The Mexican American War started on May 9, 1846 when American troops were shot at north of the Rio Grande. Sixteen Americans were killed in the process. The war took place in Mexico City, the Rio Grande, and in disputed…

Words 709 - Pages 3

Mexican American War Essay

My Community Essay My name is David Nieblas I’m 19 years old and I live in Heber, CA. If I was to describe myself I would consider myself to be an ambitious person. That being said I live with my father, sister, nephew, and cousin. My mother sadly passed away from cancer and I was only 10 years old when it occurred. Here in Heber, CA we now have a place where we are to reside for a while and aren’t planning to move any time soon we are settle in. To me the idea of a community is basically…

Words 882 - Pages 4

DBQ Essay: The Mexican War

The Mexican War You are heading North of the Rio Grande walking near the Texan and Mexican border with your comrade soldiers. All of the sudden you hear the screaming of Mexicans. “It’s an ambush”, your leader Zachary Taylor yells. What will happen next? Was the United states Justified in going to war with Mexico? The United States was not justified in going to war with Mexico because when the 16 soldiers were attacked it was because they were defending their land, when the U.S moved into Texas…

Words 929 - Pages 4

The Conctiveness Of Latin American Cultures

tradition whose main topic was the distinctiveness of Latin American culture and, within that culture, the individual cultures of the various countries. Many of the poets and fiction writers mentioned before also wrote essays in this vein: Carpentier, Paz, Borges, Lezama Lima, and Sarduy, for example. But there were writers whose chief production was the essay: the Uruguayan José Enrique Rodó, the Peruvian José Carlos Mariátegui, the Mexicans José Vasconcelos and Alfonso Reyes, the Dominican Pedro Henríquez…

Words 445 - Pages 2

The Roots Of Thoreau's Essay On Civil Disobedience

Thoreau's essay On Civil Disobedience In 1823, in order to encourage immigration, the government of Mexico gave Stephen Austin a large grant of land, and Austin brought 300 families to settle north of the Rio Grande River. By 1835 the Austin colony had 20,000 settlers; an additional 15,000 Americans had also settled in other parts of Texas. Most of the settlers were from the South, and although slavery was contrary to Mexican law, the Americans brought their bondsmen with them. When the Mexican government…

Words 528 - Pages 3

Mexican American War Research Paper

The Mexican American War was a conflict between the United States and Mexico over disputed territory, lasting from 1846 to 1848. This essay will analyze the effects of the war by covering what started the war, the war itself, and how this it changed the relationship between Mexico and the United States. The chain of events that started this war happened a decade before the first shots fired. On April 21, 1836, Texas gained its independence from Mexico. On March 2, 1836 at Washington-on-the-Brazos…

Words 1000 - Pages 4

Essay about Hist: Mexican Immigrants

Writing Assignment #1 After the civil war and the Westward Expansion the U.S. fell into an economic depression. After these events people started realizing how bad in shape the U.S was. There was not enough education, not enough jobs, racism was still going on in some places, child labor was in effect, women were not having equal rights with the men, etc… Realizing how bad in shape the U.S. was, people began to form Progressive movements known as reforms. Reforms were groups of people who worked…

Words 743 - Pages 3

Summary Of How To Tame A Wild Tongue

Gloria Anzaldua’s “How to Tame a Wild Tongue” demonstrates her struggles within her community and with the “anglos” or White Americans. It also explains how she resolves those struggles by accepting herself. But, in coincidence her essay connects with Amy Tan’s “ Mother Tongue”. Anzaldua uses her essay to show her life as an American though her eyes. First and foremost, in “How to tame a wild tongue” Anzaldua insinuates her struggles with Anglos growing up. When she was younger she was “caught…

Words 570 - Pages 3

Mexican American Imperialism

The ideas for the War with Mexico were born from the ideals of Manifest destiny and in a time when America sought to show her military power. The ideas of both patriotism and nationalism following the war of 1812 spawned a desire within Americans not only to expand westward, but to show of the strength of the Nation’s military. In 1820 James Monroe issued his Monroe Doctrine which stated that United States would no longer be open for colonization or conquest, of course this didn't mean that America…

Words 889 - Pages 4