APUSH Period 5 Flashcards

Flashcards for APUSH Final

What is Manifest Destiny?

The belief that Americans had the God given right to expand westward

What were the outcomes of Manifest Destiny?

America gains land in the West (Oregon, Texas, California), caused the Mexican War for Texas, caused “Fifty Four Forty or Fight” for Oregon

What was the cause of the Mexican War?

The Mexican War was caused by Texas’ yearning to be part of the U.S.

Who was the dictator involved in the Mexican War and Texas Revolution?

Santa Anna

What was the Border Dispute?

The border dispute was an argument between America wanting the Rio Grande as their border from Mexico and Mexico wanting the Nueces as their border.

How did President Polk egg on the Mexican Government in getting them to initiate war?

President Polk sent American troops beyond the Nueces River, causing Mexican troops to kill 11(?) American troops, sparking the Mexican war.

Why was the U.S. initially hesitant to annex Texas?

The U.S. was afraid to annex Texas due to concerns about Mexico’s reaction and issues involving slavery

What were two major causes of the Mexican American war?

• Texan annexation *

  *Mexico never recognized Texan independence and considered the annexation an act of aggression. 

• Border Disputes

What were the major drives for westward expansion?

• Economic Opportunities (land for farming, mining, natural resources, etc.)

• Desire for a new life on new land

How did westward expansion effect Native American tribes?

Displacement from tribes caused Native aggression and resistance

What was the Sectional Crisis***? (important term)

The split between the N&S over the question of slavery

What was the Dredd Scott decision and how did it impact the Sectional Crisis?

The Dred Scott decision ruled that slaves were not citizens and therefore could not use in federal court. This further strengthened Southern arguments and angered Northerners.

What was Bleeding Kansas?

Caused by the Kansas-Nebraska Act (allowing Kansas to vote on the issue of slavery through popular sovereignty), many pro-slavery Southerners flooded towards Kansas and rigged the vote to legalize slavery. This led to violent attacks by abolitionists like John Brown and therefore gave the bloody outbreak the name ‘Bleeding Kansas’

How did Bleeding Kansas impact the Sectional Crisis?

Bleeding Kansas escalated tensions between the N&S, leading towards the Civil War and contributing to the rise of the Republican Party.

What were the provisions in the Compromise of 1850?

• Admitted California as a free state

• Popular Sovereignty in New Mexico and Utah territories

• Strengthened the Fugitive Slave Law

• Slave trade abolished in D.C.

How did the Compromise of 1850 contribute to the Sectional Crisis?

Deepened tensions between the N&S while weakening the Union and contributing to the Civil War.

Who won the election of 1860?

Abraham Lincoln; (VP - Andrew Johnson)

How did the Election of 1860 contribute to the Sectional Crisis?

When Lincoln was elected, Southern states feared for the safety of slavery within the Union and led them to secession

What were the Confederate States of America?

The states that formed a society of their own after seceding from the U.S. (South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina, and Tennessee.)

The Emancipation Proclamation was:

A proclamation issued by Abraham Lincoln on January 1st, 1863 that declared that all persons held as slaves in Confederate states were to be freed. (ONLY applied to states who were rebelling, not border states)

How did the Emancipation Proclamation effect the Civil War?

The Emancipation Proclamation changed the purpose of the war to include the abolition of slavery as well —> African Americans in the army/navy

What did the 13th Amendment state?

The 13th Amendment officially banned slavery in the U.S. → Lincoln knew that he had to do something about the question of slavery in order to hold together the Union.

What did the 14th Amendment state?

The 14th Amendment (1868) declared African Americans as citizens of the U.S. and established birthright citizenship

What did the 15th Amendment state?

The 15th Amendment gave African American males the right to vote in the U.S.

What was the Confederate Conspiracy that John Wilkes Booth followed?

That if he killed the top government authority, the North would break down and eventually be forced to go back to war with the Confederacy.

What were the provisions of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo?

• To end the Mexican American War

• Cede sought over land to U.S. (U.S. pays $15 million)

• Establish Rio Grande as border

• GIve citizenship to any Mexicans on American land

What was the Wilmot Proviso?

A law banning slavery in all territories acquired by Mexico in the Mexican War

What territories were bought in the Gadsden Purchase ($10 Million)? What was the purpose?

Southern regions of modern Arizona and New Mexico for transcontinental railroad