President Polk’s Little War
September 1, 2007
If you can’t identify this war, it is time to get up to speed because the heritage of this war is ever among us. It has not been that many generations since it brought the West into the United States of America.
If your family has no memory of it, rest assured that those of Mexican descent do. Mexico lost this war and with it, California, Texas, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona, including parts of Wyoming and Colorado. Mexico hasn’t forgotten. In American history, this is known as the Mexican War (1846 – 1848). We sing about it in the Marines’ Hymn: “from the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli…”
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the whole of the territory that became Mexico had been explored and settled by Spain, which it called Nueva España, or New Spain. Mexico became its own country in 1821 when it threw off Spanish control. The northern part of Mexico was sparsely settled, and there was less control over it, since it was so far from Mexico City. Indian tribes gave the settlers difficulty, so Mexico had allowed settlement in Texas by Americans. This backfired because by 1835, Americans greatly outnumbered the Mexican citizens. They revolted against Mexico and routed the Mexican army. Still, the latter refused to recognize Texas’ independence, which lasted from1836-45, when Texas was admitted to the United States of America. This caused Mexico to break off relations with the U.S. Essentially, this is what sparked the war, which was declared on May 13, 1846, because the U.S. was not satisfied with only Texas.
The rationale for the war had to do with the concept of manifest destiny, or the idea that the territory of the USA was destined to stretch from sea to shining sea. The U.S. had bought Louisiana from France in 1802, without a war, and so President James K. Polk decided to offer Mexico $25 million for New Mexico and California (north of the Rio Grande River). It refused the offer, but because it was politically divided, internecine conflicts weakened the efforts Mexico might have had against its northern neighbor.
Polk decided to go ahead and force the issue. He ordered Major General Zachary Taylor to advance to the Rio Grande. Traditionally the border of Texas had been the Nueces River, further north. The disputed territory was thus claimed by both countries. Mexico sent troops, which surprised and defeated a contingent of American cavalry in the area. Polk used this to say that Mexico had invaded our country and “shed American blood on American soil.” It was disputed soil. Some say it was justified, but other historians “believe the war was an unnecessary attack on a weaker nation.” All aggression can be justified one way or another, and in this case especially because Mexico was so divided within itself. It had only recently (1821) declared independence from Spain and in the decade before the war the political leadership had changed about every five months. The treasury was in no shape to fund a war, especially one that would last for 17 months.
Taylor’s army successfully routed the Mexicans in two battles and then crossed the Rio Grande, invading Mexico. He pushed on to Monterray, which was the main northern stronghold. His victories brought American support for the war and an onslaught of new recruits and volunteers.
Because of the long east-west front, three armies were sent out: The Army of the West under Gen Stephen W. Kearny took New Mexico and California, assisted by the Navy and Col. John C. Fremont in California. Another contingent took Chihuahua. Zachary Taylor’s Army of the Center moved on to Monterrey and occupied it. None of these efforts caused Mexico to negotiate, so General Winfield Scott and a force of 10,000 men attacked Veracruz on the eastern coast of Mexico. Within six months he had moved inland and taken Mexico City, capturing the fortress of Chapultapec on September 12, 1847 (160 years ago). By this time, the President, Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, who was also in command of the Mexican army, decided he must resign. Even though the military had essentially taken Mexico, the U.S. kept to its original request of the northern territories, actually more than half of Mexico, with the boundaries of the Rio Grande and Gila Rivers. The treaty was signed in the town of Guadalupe Hidalgo, just outside Mexico City, on February 2, 1848, and was ratified on May 30. A revision of the boundary line was made in 1854, with an additional purchase of land from Mexico (Gadsden Purchase).
This is only a short, extremely incomplete introduction to the Mexican War, but it is presented in the interest of promoting interest in the relationship that Mexico and the U.S. has had over the years. The old saying goes: “Alas poor Mexico! So far from God, so close to the United States!” Eisenhower says, “The Mexican War cast a pall over the relations between the United States and Mexico, a pall that lasts to this day because the Mexicans have never become reconciled to it.” With the great influx of Mexicans into the U.S. in recent years, it is important to be informed of Mexican history and to have an understanding of historic relations between the two countries. This was an exceedingly important war in the history of the U.S. With it, the U.S. gained over 525,000 square miles of Mexican territory. In the years that followed, Zachary Taylor became President and many of the soldiers and officers, now trained in warfare, took up their guns again in the Civil War. Shortly after ratification, the Forty-Niners moved into California and a flood of settlers followed. Because of the consequences of his policies, President James K. Polk was one of the most important presidents we have ever had.
Suggested reading: “So far from God: the U.S. War with Mexico, 1846-1848” by John S.D. Eisenhower, “The Course of Mexican History” by Michael Meyer, “The Mexican War” by David Nevin (Time-Life Books) and “Hispanic Arizona” by James Officer.
Copyright 2007 Mary Kasulaitis
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