Introduction
The concept of aggressive expansion sometimes also, somewhat ironically, called American Imperialism is being recognized as a phenomena of the 19th century by most historians. However some credit its start with the first colonization of the Northern American continent. For example the historian Paul Kennedy wrote; "From the time the first settlers arrived in Virginia from England and started moving westward, this was an imperial nation, a conquering nation." (P. Kennedy, 2002) Meaning that even the Western expansion should be considered an act of aggressive expansion which makes sense considering the land was already inhabited by Native Americans. While true that the Early US foreign policy is described as isolationist in its behaviour to other recognized nations, the reason for it is the view of western expansion as a discovery, not conquest. This is due to the difference in culture, specifically the concept of ownership of land, between the Indians and the white colonists. This “exploration” is the main reason for the later changes and cultural acceptance of aggressive expansion; there of course were other contributing factors, such as Manifest Destiny, Louisiana Purchase and the developing Nationalism, which will be analysed in the next part of this essay. The presented terms are frequently used as an argument to explain the US cultural mind-set in the 19th century and its continued tradition. While the concept of conquest can still be found even in today’s US, it was a partial failure in the 19th century. This paper will analyse the individual cultural concepts that developed in this time period and will answer what was the cause for its failure, and what the consequences were.
Development of the concept of Aggr...
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... expansion was brought about by the need for new territories which stems from one of the fundamentals principles of the country, the need for improvement and the simple economic necessity to expand. The contributing factors were the presented cultural phenomena that developed with the western expansion. It can be argued that the reason for its partial failure was the internal struggle between the pro- and free- slave states and that this situation reached its conclusion in the Civil War. Further Consequences are the influence over todays US foreign policy and the shaping of the image of US to, both the world and to its citizens. “Success is somebody else's failure. Success is the American Dream we can keep dreaming because most people in most places, including thirty million of ourselves, live wide awake in the terrible reality of poverty.” (Ursula K. LeGuin, 1983)
Throughout most of the nineteenth century, the United States expanded its territory westward through purchase and annexation. At the end of the century, however, expansion became imperialism, as America acquired several territories overseas. This policy shift from expansionism to imperialism came about as a result of American's experience in the Spanish American War and the Congressional debates that followed the American victory.
This period of expansionism clearly demonstrates just how power hungry the United States was at this point in its history. One could say that this thirst for international power, and perceived need to exercise such power, directly led to World War One in the
Throughout the course of history, nations have invested time and manpower into the colonizing and modernizing of more rural governments. Imperialism has spread across the globe, from the British East India Company to France’s occupation of Northern Africa. After their founding in 1776, the United States of America largely stayed out of this trend until The Spanish-American War of 1898. Following the war, the annexation and colonization of Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines ultimately set a precedent for a foreign policy of U.S. imperialism.
During the early to mid eighteen hundreds, there was great unrest across the country over territorial expansion. Half of the nation believed that it would be beneficial to the country if we expanded, while the other half were firmly opposed to expansion. Within the century, the United States managed to claim Texas, California, and the majority of Indian-owned lands. Opinions on this expansion were mixed around the country. Polls taken during the time period show that the majority of the south and west supported expansion, while northerns were opposed to it. (Document B) This was because the northerners had different values and beliefs than the southerners of westerners. Both the opponents and supporters of territorial expansion during the time period between 1800 and 1855, had a tremendous influence on shaping federal government policy. However, it can be argued that the supporters of territorial expansion had the largest impact. They were able to sway the federal government to create policies and new laws that were in favor of supporter’s beliefs.
In Chapter 8 of Major Problems in American Immigration History, the topic of focus shifts from the United States proper to the expansion and creation of the so called American Empire of the late Nineteenth Century. Unlike other contemporary colonial powers, such as Britain and France, expansion beyond the coast to foreign lands was met with mixed responses. While some argued it to be a mere continuation of Manifest Destiny, others saw it as hypocritical of the democratic spirit which had come to the United States. Whatever their reasons, as United States foreign policy shifted in the direction of direct control and acquisition, it brought forth the issue of the native inhabitants of the lands which they owned and their place in American society. Despite its long history of creating states from acquired territory, the United States had no such plans for its colonies, effectively barring its native subjects from citizenship. Chapter 8’s discussion of Colonialism and Migration reveals that this new class of American, the native, was never to be the equal of its ruler, nor would they, in neither physical nor ideological terms, join in the union of states.
The Civil War, a devastating conflict amongst the American North and South in the mid to late 1800s, was caused by growing tension between the opposing sides for many reasons but also because of territorial expansion of America. In determining the impact of territorial expansion in the mid 1800’s on the sectionalism that led to the civil war, one would first have to look at the tactics for territorial expansion in America. Americans began to entertain the idea of heading west in the early 1800’s, which then brought forth the acts and events of the United States spreading its boundaries from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Historical events involving the expansion of America such as Manifest Destiny, the War with Mexico, and popular sovereignty in the west, all contributed to the growing tension between the North and the South, ultimately starting the Civil War. In the early nineteenth century, most Northerners and Southerners agreed entirely that Americans should settle Western territories, and that it was God’s plan, or their “manifest destiny.”
Westward movement is the populating of lands, by the Europeans, in what is now known as the United States. The chief resolution of the westward expansion is economic betterment. The United States story begins with westward expansion and even before the Revolutionary war, early settlers were migrating westward into what is now known as the states of Kentucky,Tennessee, parts of the Ohio Valley and the South. Westward Expansion was slowed down by the French and the Native Americans, however the Louisiana Purchase significantly improved the expansion efforts. Westward expansion was enabled because of wars, the displacement of Native American Indians, buying land, and treaties. This paper will discuss the effects of westward expansion on domestic politics and on American relations with other nations.
From western expansion to foreign imperialism the United States has always been an expansionist country. Early America’s focus was to conquer the natives and obtain western land within North America, but in the latter of America’s history, specifically in the nineteenth and twentieth century, foreign imperialism became the new focus. America’s activity in foreign imperialism was a continuation and departure of the United States’ early expansionism. It was a continuation in terms of manifest destiny, the spread of Christianity, and by the concept of “the city on a hill” and a departure in terms of foreign involvement.
United States expansionism in the late nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century is both a continuation and a departure of past United States expansionism. Expansionism in the United States has occurred for many reasons. Power (from land), religion, economics, and the ideas of imperialism and manifest destiny are just a few reasons why the U.S. decided to expand time and again throughout the course of its 231 year history. Expansionism has evolved throughout the years as the inhabitants of the country have progressed both socially (the Second Great Awakening, the women's suffrage movement, the populist party and the early 19th and 20th century social reformers) and economically (factories, better farms, more jobs, etc.) Expansion changed from non-interference policies to the democratic control of the government as the United States grew in both size and population. Through the use of the documents and events during two major-expansion time periods (1776-1880) and 1880-1914), I will display both the continuation and departure trends of United States expansionism.
...ard expansion, a person finds information about the essence of American culture. Though the English colonists came to America expecting to renew their lives through the Puritan faith, they instead found their faith and, indeed, their very society in danger from the heathen Indian presence in the surrounding wilderness. But while the Indians threatened the core of the colonials’ lives, the presence of the colonists and their westerly expansion threatened the lives and land that the Indians had held for many years. American history thus began in violence that has no single source, but rather is derived from the Puritans and Indians both fighting for and protecting their mutual interests and desires.
The United States of America has never been content with stagnation. The landmass of the Thirteen Colonies was enough to rival that of the Mother country from which they separated. The forefathers believed that it was the manifest destiny of this nation to eventually claim the expansion from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. By 1890, nearly a hundred years following the original claim of Manifest Destiny, the land that was once open, was now under American control. But no sooner was the Great American Frontier closed, than was the door to East Asian expansion opened with the great gold key of American diplomacy. In a world where imperialism was contagious, and cartographers had to work around the clock to keep up with an ever-changing geopolitical landscape, the United States seized the opportunity to establish herself as a significant world power. With great expansionist minds at her helm, such as Theodore Roosevelt and Howard Taft the United States began to grow beyond her border to claim stake in this wide-open world. This new expansionism of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century was a different institution than its early to mid nineteenth century counterpart. Still, the drive to exercise the sovereignty of the United State and to propel itself over the world’s stage was the same then as it was in the time of Thomas Jefferson. In order to understand this assertion, attention must be given to three levels of analysis. First, the similarities that exist between the drive and purpose of old and new expansion must be taken into account. Second, the differences in the global political scene must be considered. Finally, there exits differences in the means by which expansion occurred.
Throughout history, the United States had come off as a stubborn nation that would take what they wanted at any cost. This was prevalent in both cases of expansion as the Americans risked war and national safety for the sake of gaining land, or even merely for proving a point. During the early years of expansion, the Americans had pushed aside the Native Americans and whoever else inhabited the land they wanted. They believed that the land was rightfully theirs and that everyone else was merely squatting on their territory. This idea continued into the early twentieth century as the Americans looked to the oceans for new territories to their kingdom.
A reason America wanted to expand was because they wanted their economy to thrive. After the Spanish American war, Hawaii became extremely important to the US for business uses. Eventually, Hawaii and the US signed a trade treaty which allowed Hawaiian sugar to be sold in America. Soon after, President Mckinley decided to annex Hawaii because there were a lot of factors about Hawaii that could benefit America. The annexation of Hawaii allowed America to create more naval stations in order to protect it’s world trade. The growth of America’s economy was partly because of Hawaii's goods. The economy of the US would not be as successful as it is today if we did not expand our borders. The US had the most advanced economy, but that didn’t stop them from trying to achieve more success which leads to my second evidence. America needed new markets to sell US-made goods as well as raw materials like sugar and oil. So America’s plan was to trade with China and expand their trade routes. America didn’t want to risk the chances of losing trade opportunities with Japan, Africa, China and other nations so they had the intention of expanding abroad. Furthermore, the US was able to have a successful and wealthy economy by expanding
According to them, the idea of free trade was the foundation for the expansion of influence into foreign areas like Asia and Africa. In essence, informal empires acted as the basis for nineteenth century European Imperialism. Not only did it remind powerful colonizers of the power of economic manipulation, but it instilled a greed within the minds of colonizers that motivated them to seek out more land and resources. The colonizer mindset that was so prevalent in the era of Cortes and Columbus maintained its influence in the 1800s, as well, leading to the formal empirical rule that shaped the modern era. Robinson and Gallagher’s theory holds much significance as it directly affects how territories are divided amongst countries and how government systems are built around the
As shown, America’s rapid change as the 19th century came to a close was supported by a variety of imperialistic beliefs, motives, and incidents that almost jumpstarted the U.S. onto the world stage. Many of these incidents, such as the public’s thirst for expansion, the annexation of several faraway lands, and the build-up of U.S. military forces, would not have been possible without the Spanish American War. Moreover, the Spanish American war would not have been possible without the American people. Imperialism was a consequence of the American Democratic experiment, giving the people what they want. . Works Cited http://www.course-notes.org/us_history/notes/the_american_pageant_14th_edition_textbook_notes/chapter_27_empire_and_expansion_18