Mexican War Summary and Key Events

MEXICAN WAR SUMMARY CHART – KEY CAUSES

• 1. Annexation of Texas

  • Mexico never recognized Texas as being independent from Mexico.

  • Mexico viewed the U.S. annexation of Texas as illegal.

• 2. Boundary Dispute

  • United States believed the boundary was the Rio Grande.

  • Mexico believed the boundary was the Nueces River.

• 3. California & New Mexico

  • The U.S. offered to purchase California and New Mexico from Mexico.

  • Mexico refused this offer.

• 4. Compensation for Damages

  • The U.S. sought reimbursement from the Mexican government for property damages sustained by American citizens during the Texas Revolution.

  • Mexico refused this request.

• Escalation Cause

  • The Mexican government's refusal to meet with U.S. envoy John Slidell infuriated President Polk.

  • General Zachary Taylor moved his troops across the Nueces River towards the Rio Grande, which the Mexican government interpreted as an invasion of Mexican territory.

  • The Mexican army attacked Taylor’s soldiers, marking a significant escalation in tensions.

KEY BATTLES AND OUTCOMES

• May 8-9, 1846: Battle of Palo Alto

  • The U.S. wins this battle, with General Taylor leading his army further south into Mexico.

• February 1847: Battle of Buena Vista

  • Santa Anna attacks Taylor’s forces in northern Mexico.

  • After a fierce battle, the U.S. emerges victorious.

• September 12-13, 1847: Battle of Chapultepec Castle in Mexico City

  • U.S. forces attack and eventually overrun the fort.

  • General Santa Anna and his troops abandon Mexico City.

LEADERS INVOLVED

• United States

  • General Zachary Taylor

  • General Winfield Scott

  • President James K Polk

  • James Pinckney Henderson (Governor of Texas)

• Mexico

  • General Santa Anna

TREATY

• Date: February 2, 1848

• Terms of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

  • Mexico relinquished all claims to Texas.

  • The Rio Grande was established as the boundary between the U.S. and Mexico.

  • Mexico ceded land between Texas and the Pacific Ocean to the U.S. (referred to as the Mexican Cession).

  • The U.S. paid Mexico $15 million for the Mexican Cession, encompassing all of California, Nevada, and Utah, as well as parts of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, & Wyoming.

  • The U.S. would also settle up to $3.25 million towards claims of American citizens against Mexico.

RESULTS

• The United States achieved the concept of manifest destiny—expansion across the American continent.

• The Mexican government relinquished all claims to Texas.

DISCUSSION POINTS

• 1. Was President Polk justified in sending General Taylor across the Nueces River?

  • Opinion requested - student to elaborate their viewpoint.

• 2. Describe the Compromise of 1850

  • California was admitted as a non-slave state.

  • Voters in territories acquired from the Mexican Cession decided on the slavery issue as they were annexed into the United States.

• 3. Financial Terms for Texas

  • Texas received $10 million for ceding claims to New Mexico in the Compromise of 1850.

  • This money was utilized to pay off Texas's existing debt.

• 4. Explain the Gadsden Purchase

  • In 1852, President Franklin Pierce aimed to acquire land in southern New Mexico and Arizona for railroad expansion.

  • James Gadsden, U.S. minister to Mexico, facilitated this transaction.

  • The U.S. paid $10 million to Mexico for this land, solidifying the U.S. border as it exists today.

• 5. Opinion on Manifest Destiny

  • Students are prompted to assess the statement: "Because the U.S. has benefitted so greatly from achieving manifest destiny, the ends (gaining land) justified the means (going to war)."

  • Personal opinion required.

STATES RESULTING FROM THE MEXICAN CESSION

• The following seven states emerged from the territories gained through the Mexican Cession:

  • California

  • Nevada

  • Utah

  • Arizona

  • Colorado

  • New Mexico

  • Wyoming