HIST 289 Day 7: US Expansion, Monroe Doctrine, and 1819–1848
Monroe Doctrine and Borderlands
The lecture highlights the era’s expanding ambitions: geographically, militarily, geopolitically, and in technology (notably aviation) and how aviation creates connections between the United States and other parts of the world.
The major concept from the War of 1812 to keep in view: borderlands around the Great Lakes as a fluid, politically dynamic space with many connections (family, business, etc.).
The War of 1812 and the Adams–Onís Treaty (Florida) are pivotal: the U.S. gains Florida from Spain; in return, Spain receives $5{,}000{,}000 from the United States to cover damages owed from earlier conflicts. This resolves European footholds on the eastern North American seaboard and solidifies U.S. boundaries.
The Monroe Doctrine emerges in the early 1820s as a more assertive U.S. foreign policy posture and a claim to hemispheric sphere of influence.
Monroe Doctrine: two core causes
Non-colonization: the Western Hemisphere is no longer open for European colonization.
Non-intervention: the United States pledges to push away European intervention in hemisphere affairs.
Reactions and debates in the Americas:
A Colombian newspaper (1824) describes the United States as taking a "powerful and majestic role" befitting the oldest and most powerful nation of our hemisphere.
In Panama, invitations to participate in hemispheric affairs came to everyone except the United States, Haiti, and Brazil, signaling regional resistance to U.S. dominance.
Juan Bautista Averdi (Argentinian author/diplomat) offers a sharp critique of the doctrine, arguing that between European colonialism and U.S. influence, independence is preferable for South America; neither Monroeism nor wholesale European alliance ensures true independence. The excerpt emphasizes that imperial arrangements can delegitimate independence.
The lecture notes that the Monroe Doctrine is often taught positively as a landmark U.S. foreign policy achievement, but there were contested views in Latin America about U.S. power.
Primary source excerpt from Averdi (1840s) and the Colombian newspaper illustrate a range of viewpoints about U.S. influence in the region.
Florida and the Adams–Onís Treaty
The War of 1812 context leads to the acquisition of Florida from Spain (Adams–Onís Treaty, 1819).
Financial terms: the United States pays $5{,}000{,}000 to Spain to settle outstanding claims and damage compensation related to earlier conflicts.
Outcome: Spain’s loss of formal footholds in the eastern North American region; U.S. consolidation of borders and expansion into Florida.
Continental Expansion and Andrew Jackson
The narrative shifts to early 1820s–1840s expansion, emphasizing not just Westward expansion but expansion to the North, South, and across the Pacific (the latter including Asia).
Andrew Jackson’s foreign policy legacy:
Jackson prioritized naval power and sought to project U.S. influence globally, arguing that a strong navy supports the domestic well-being of the United States.
During his presidency, he had no major foreign crises to manage, allowing him to focus on expanding trade and influence.
He secured up to commercial treaties with nations and empires across the world, including Russia, the Ottoman Empire, Siam (modern Thailand), Oman, and other regions in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.
He even entertained the idea of sending a South Pole expedition to display American power globally: he believed it important to "show The United States flag … to every portion of the globe" to give a civilized and powerful impression.
Main tool: upgrading the U.S. navy and using it in assertive, some would say belligerent, ways (gunboat diplomacy).
Jackson’s gunboat diplomacy and its consequences:
A period of aggressive, maritime enforcement of U.S. commercial interests.
An example cited: seizure of three American ships leading to the USS Lexington being ordered to sail to the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) to protect U.S. interests.
A separate incident: the USS Potomac was sent to Sumatra after clashes at Kuala Batu (Sumatra) in 1831 where Sumatrans attacked an American pepper-trading ship, killing several crew and plundering the ship.
The Potomac’s captain (Downs) chose force: the crew looted a local fort, burned a town, and killed as many as 200 Sumatrans (men, women, and children).
The episode underscores how early modern commercial expeditions often rested on violence and militarism despite appearances of peaceful global trade.
Pepper trade and the Salem connection:
Salem, Massachusetts ships had undertaken pepper trade missions to Sumatra, remembered in modern Salem as pepperplant imagery (umbrella symbol) linking to a historic era of global commerce, even as the period’s political-military actions contradicted the ideal of peaceful commerce.
The Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) incident reveals tensions between U.S. expansionism and imperial competition (notably with Argentina and Britain) and how these events foreshadow later U.S. imperial strategies.
A brief note: the map and references to the Falkland/Malvinas episode illustrate how early U.S. power projected well beyond North American shores, laying groundwork for later debates about U.S. global reach.
Removal of Native Americans and Indian Policy
The War of 1812’s outcome limited Eastern Native resistance to U.S. expansion; the United States pursued removal as a policy solution to the so-called Indian problem.
Andrew Jackson’s rationale for removal: to "save Indian civilization from annihilation" by relocating tribes away from white settlement lands, a rationale that many view as self-serving and insufficient to protect Native American rights.
Consequences of removal:
About Native Americans were forced to move west of the Mississippi.
The Cherokees resisted longest, but were ultimately displaced in what is now known as the Trail of Tears.
This removal policy is connected to broader expansionist aims and is a key, troubling feature of Jacksonian policy.
Historiography and critique:
The lecture emphasizes resisting the idea that Jackson was merely a man of his time by highlighting contemporary opposition.
Jeremiah Evertz (a Protestant missionary) objected on religious and humanitarian grounds, arguing that forced removal violated Christian principles and stressing the responsibility to protect the vulnerable.
The discussion underscores the importance of examining multiple actors, including women and other often overlooked groups, during this period.
Historiography and the Language of Nationalism
The lecture frames the historiography around how we remember Jackson and expansionism, urging attention to voices of resistance within the United States.
Benedict Anderson’s nationalism theory is referenced to explain how communities construct national consciousness through media (telegraph, penny press) and shared symbols.
The period witnesses the emergence of two political parties and competing visions for expansion:
Democrats: lineage from Jeffersonian republicanism, seeking expansion to secure land for independent farmers and a robust agrarian republic; government should actively facilitate land distribution.
Whigs: wary of unchecked expansion, favoring a more limited, pro-growth approach with less direct government intervention in foreign affairs.
Both parties embrace the idea of manifest destiny, a term coined in 1845 by John L. O'Sullivan, signaling a divine justification for expansion and continental (and beyond) growth.
Manifest destiny connects to earlier ideological roots (e.g., John Winthrop’s 'city upon a hill') and to technological advances (telegraph, trains, stagecoaches, etc.) that enable rapid expansion and communication.
Oregon Territory, Boundary Negotiations, and Pacific Expansion
Oregon is a focal point of early expansionist sentiment and a site of tense competition with Britain.
Early arrangement: in 1827, the United States and Great Britain agreed to jointly occupy Oregon Territory.
By the 1840s, Oregon fever drives American settlement:
Around Americans settled in Oregon by 1845, threatening the 1827 joint-occupation framework.
Expansionists heatedly argued for claiming territory up to the line (the slogan "54-40 or Fight").
President James K. Polk’s approach:
Offered a generous settlement to Britain but then pressed to assert American claims to all Oregon Territory up to the line of the historic slogan (often summarized as asserting U.S. claims to the entire Oregon country).
He rejected British arbitration offers and urged Congress to nullify the 1827 treaty.
The resulting compromise: a boundary along the Rocky Mountains extending to the Pacific, with Vancouver Island remaining British and the Juan de Fuca Strait open to both nations.
Significance: the Oregon treaty (1846) allowed the United States to focus on other regions (notably Mexico) and secured access to the Pacific for trade and strategic purposes, providing a base for U.S. expansion and the subsequent incorporation of western territories (e.g., Washington) after the Mexican War.
The boundary decision also intersects with broader concerns about slavery and political balance between free and slave states as the country expanded.
Haiti, Central America, and Nonstate Actors
The Caribbean and nearby waters form a theater for U.S. foreign policy concerns, including how to navigate relations with slave-holding states and free states.
Haiti and U.S. recognition:
In the 1820s, some advocates (e.g., anti-slavery figures like John Quincy Adams) pressed for recognition of Haiti and diplomatic ties, while Southern leaders (e.g., John C. Calhoun) warned against welcoming a black-led republic close to slaveholding regions.
Central America and the nonstate actors theme:
The lecture notes the role of private individuals outside formal government channels (e.g., filibusters) in expansionist projects.
The lecture later expands on filibuster activities in the 1840s–1850s as a form of private military adventurism that influenced U.S. regional operations and perceptions abroad.
Filibusters and William Walker in Central America
Definition and context: filibusters were private, often illegal expeditions aimed at influencing foreign territory for strategic or ideological ends (often tied to pro-slavery expansion, adventure, or religious motives).
William Walker as the most famous filibuster:
Targeted Nicaragua (and other Central American locations) in the 1840s–1850s.
Conducted a sham election to seize the presidency, reinstated slavery, and declared English the official second language of Nicaragua.
Faced opposition from Central American states who formed the National War to drive him out.
Walker escaped to New Orleans, attempted further expeditions (1859, 1860). The final expedition was supported by some U.S. naval interests but ultimately he was captured and executed in Honduras.
The legacy of filibustering:
In the long term, most local populations did not embrace filibusters as liberators.
The United States generally maintained neutrality laws and intervened to stop or roll back such private schemes when they threatened broader regional stability.
Filibusters left a legacy as a symbol of perceived American aggression in Latin America, shaping later policy and regional memory.
Panama Canal and Early Central American Influence
Before the canal, U.S. interests in Central America included a protective and commercial role via infrastructure projects.
A significant early development: a 48-mile railroad completed in 1855 to facilitate commerce across the Central American isthmus.
The United States pursued separate treaties with Colombia and Nicaragua to win the rights to build a canal (and to maintain influence over the region).
The U.S. exercised protective influence over Panama, creating a base for eventual canal construction and broader economic leverage.
These early moves illustrate how the United States prepared the way for the later, monumental canal project and how non-state actors and private ventures intersected with formal diplomacy.
Looking Ahead: The Mexican-American War and Capacity for Conflict
The lecturer signals that the Mexican-American War will be discussed in upcoming classes (with related readings and discussions).
The gap between expansionist ideology (Manifest Destiny) and the realities of war and diplomacy is a central thread in understanding U.S. expansion in the mid-19th century.
The connected themes—Monroe Doctrine, border politics, expansionist nationalism, Native removal, and private ventures—frame the broader arc of U.S. imperial ambitions and their moral, ethical, and legal implications.
Key Figures, Concepts, and Terms to Remember
Monroe Doctrine: non-colonization and non-intervention in the Western Hemisphere.
Adams–Onís Treaty (1819): acquisition of Florida; $5{,}000{,}000 payment to Spain.
Andrew Jackson: naval expansion, gunboat diplomacy, and the push for worldwide presence; expansionist foreign policy.
Gunboat diplomacy: using naval power to coerce foreign states and protect commercial interests.
Indian removal and the Trail of Tears: forced relocation of Southeastern tribes; 46{,}000 people moved; Cherokee resistance; broader moral critique (Jeremiah Evertz).
Manifest Destiny: US expansion across North America and beyond; coined by John L. O'Sullivan in 1845.
Oregon Territory and boundary dispute: 1827 joint occupation; 1846 treaty boundary along the Rockies to the Pacific; 54-40 or Fight as an expression of fanatical expansionism; importance of the 49th parallel in practice.
Filibusters: private military expeditions aiming to shape foreign lands (William Walker in Nicaragua, 1840s–1860s).
Panama Canal precursors: railroad across Central America (1855); separate treaties with Colombia and Nicaragua; protectorate arrangements.
Haiti and Central America: regional responses to U.S. expansion and the fear of slave revolts; recognition debates in the 1820s–1830s.
Connections to Earlier Material and Real-World Relevance
Borderlands and fluid regional politics foreshadow ongoing issues in North American frontier policy and Great Lakes dynamics.
The Monroe Doctrine establishes a long-standing framework for U.S. hemispheric policy, with enduring implications for U.S.–Latin American relations and regional sovereignty.
The Florida acquisition demonstrates the practical power of diplomatic settlements in shaping national borders and European influence in the Americas.
Jacksonian expansionism connects naval power, commercial treaties, and a global idea of U.S. presence, resonating with later imperial policies.
The ethical and humanitarian critique of removal policies highlights ongoing tensions between state-building, indigenous rights, and humanitarian norms.
The rise of manifest destiny and the two-party dynamics (Democrats vs Whigs) helps explain domestic political support for expansive foreign policy and the moral justifications offered for expansion.
Oregon’s boundary settlement shows how diplomatic compromise can avert war and direct attention to other conflicts (e.g., Mexico) while still expanding territorial reach.
Filibustering reveals the gray area between private initiative and official policy, as well as the dangers of private militarism and its reception in regional politics.
Early Central American canal/power dynamics show how economic motives and infrastructural projects can prefigure large-scale strategic projects like the later Panama Canal.
Numerical, Statistical, and LaTeX-Formatted References
Florida acquisition terms: (dollars paid to Spain).
Trade and treaties: Jackson secured up to commercial treaties with various regions.
Native removal: approximately Native Americans displaced to the west of the Mississippi.
Oregon settlement dynamics: by there were about American settlers in Oregon; the border dispute culminated in the 1846 treaty resolving the boundary.
The slogan of expansion: "$54{:}40$ or Fight" as a political rallying cry during the Oregon dispute (historical reference mentioned in passing).
Population landmark note (from the lecture context): the period references a population figure around (roughly 2.3×10^7) in the era context; the exact figure is used to illustrate growth and scale.
The Panama railroad length cited as miles in 1855.
Quick Reference Terms
Borderlands, Great Lakes, fluid sovereignty
Monroe Doctrine: non-colonization, non-intervention
Adams–Onís Treaty, Florida (1819)
Gunboat diplomacy
Trail of Tears, Indian removal, Jeremiah Evertz
Manifest Destiny, John L. O'Sullivan, city on a hill (Winthrop)
Oregon boundary, 1827 joint occupancy, 1846 treaty, 54-40/Fight (conceptual shorthand), 49th parallel (practical boundary)
Filibusters, William Walker, Nicaragua, Honduras, Ecuador
Central America railroad (1855), canal interests, Colombia and Nicaragua treaties
Guadalupe Hidalgo (Mexico–U.S. War end-state to be discussed later)