Manifest Destiny and the Mexican War Assignment

Manifest Destiny and the Mexican War Assignment

Two important historical events that I have chosen are the Lewis and Clark Expedition and the California Gold Rush, which I have considered the most important events that shaped the Westward Expansion from 1800 to 1848. Lewis and Clark Expedition began in 1804 (Rodriguez, 2023). President Thomas Jefferson commissioned Meriwether Lewis to explore the territories that lay to the west of Mississippi. He decided to select a partner named William Clark to accompany him on the mission; this expedition took more than two years (Porter, 2024). Some of the challenges associated with the mission include lack of food, interaction with friendly and aggressive natives, and diseases. Nevertheless, it was considered a great success and produced new geographical, environmental, and cultural information about unknown territories of North America. This movement was also a result of the Manifest Destiny liberalism by which Americans deemed it their God-given right to expand across the country. It justified imperialism and made individuals move to the West, unfazed by the indigenous people and kicking them out (Porter, 2024). Manifest Destiny and the Mexican War Assignment

ORDER HERE A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER 

The other event that marked the westward expansion was the California gold rush in 1848 (Rodriguez, 2023). It was kindled by the sighting of gold nuggets in the Sacramento Valley in early 1848, leading to a large influx of people to the western part. Some of the settlers that migrated westward in search of gold plunge included thousands of ‘forty-niners,’ which, in the process, fostered the development of transportation networks, cities, and commerce. This rapid growth contributed to the incorporation of California with the rest of the United States economy, culminating in its statehood in 1850 (Rodriguez, 2023). This ideology drove the expansion westward movement through manifest destiny; Americans were convinced they had the divine providence to control the entire continent. This disposition was based on Manifest Destiny, which acted as a precedent for acquiring new territories, including lands belonging to Native Americans, hence fostering westward expansion (Rodriguez, 2023). Manifest Destiny and the Mexican War Assignment

References

Porter, R. P. (2024). The West, from the Census of 1880. A History of the Industrial, Commercial, Social, and Political Development of the States and Territories of the West from 1800 to 1880. BoD–Books on Demand.

Rodriguez, P. (2023). Negotiating Liberty: Fine Ceramics for the US American Market Before 1860. https://academicworks.cuny.edu/hc_sas_etds/1064

In preparation for the initial post, consider two (2) of the historical selections below:

The Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Missouri Compromise
Independence of Texas
Mexican War of 1846–1848
The California Gold Rush
Then, in one (1) to two (2) paragraphs, address one (1) of the following:

Which of your two selections do you consider most impactful on Westward Expansion during 1800–1848? Explain why.
Analyze the effects of the ideology of Manifest Destiny on the two historical events that you chose from the list above. Manifest Destiny and the Mexican War Assignment