Standard 8.62 Lesson
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C HAPTER
Chapter 1. Standard 8.62 Lesson
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Standard 8.62 Lesson
8.62 Describe the causes, course, and consequences of the Mexican War, including the controversy over the
Rio Grande boundary, the roles played by Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott, the Mexican Cession and the
Wilmot Proviso. (C,E,G,H,P)
The Mexican-American War
( Pictured Above: General Winfield Scott’s entrance into Mexico City, September 14, 1847, is depicted in this print
by Carl Nebel.)
FIGURE 1.1
Mexican-American War Documentary
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78ESGUxlBKQ
When war broke out against Mexico in May 1846, the United States Army numbered a mere 8,000, but soon 60,000
volunteers joined their ranks. The American Navy dominated the sea. The American government provided stable,
capable leadership. The economy of the expanding United States far surpassed that of the fledgling Mexican state.
Morale was on the American side. The war was a rout.
Polk directed the war from Washington, D.C. He sent a 4-prong attack into the Mexican heartland. John Fremont
and Stephen Kearny were sent to control the coveted lands of California and New Mexico. Fremont led a group of
zealous Californians to declare independence even before word of hostilities reached the West. The " BEAR FLAG
REPUBLIC" was not taken seriously, but Fremont and his followers did march to Monterey to capture the Mexican
Presidio, or fort. By 1847, California was secure.
( Pictured Above: The original Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was printed in two columns, the English translation
on the left and the Spanish on the right.)
Meanwhile, Kearny led his troops into Santa Fe in August of 1846 causing the governor of New Mexico to flee. The
city was captured without a single casualty. Soon he marched his army westward across the desert to join Fremont
in California.
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Mexico never had recognized the Texas as an independent area. Americans resented Mexico and were upset that
Mexico did not accept James K. Polk’s 30 million dollar offer to buy New Mexico and California. There also was
an issue about the southern border of Texas and a border dispute finally led to war. Mexico and the US both claimed
control of the land between Nueces River and Rio Grande River. If the border was set at the Rio Grande then Texas
would get more land. Polk sent Taylor to the disputed land and this act started the war.
The attack on Mexico proper was left to two other commanders. Zachary Taylor crossed the Rio Grande with his
troops upon Polk’s order. He fought Santa Anna’s troops successfully on his advance toward the heart of Mexico.
WINFIELD SCOTT delivered the knockout punch. After invading Mexico at Vera Cruz, Scott’s troops marched to
the capital, Mexico City. All that remained was negotiating the terms of peace.
At home, the Whigs of the north complained bitterly about the war. Many questioned Polk’s methods as misleading
and unconstitutional. Abolitionists rightly feared that southerners would try to use newly acquired lands to expand
slavery. Anti-war sentiment emerged in New England much as it had in the War of 1812. Writer Henry David
Thoreau was sentenced to prison for refusing to pay the taxes he knew were used to fund the war effort. His essay,
Civil Disobedience , became a standard of peaceful resistance for future activists.
FIGURE 1.2
The MEXICAN-AMERICAN WAR was formally concluded by the TREATY OF GUADALUPE-HIDALGO . The
United States received the disputed Texan territory, as well as New Mexico territory and California . The Mexican
government was paid $15 million — the same sum issued to France for the Louisiana Territory. The United States
Army won a grand victory. Although suffering 13,000 killed, the military won every engagement of the war. Mexico
was stripped of half of its territory and was not consoled by the monetary settlement.
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Chapter 1. Standard 8.62 Lesson
Wilmot Proviso
FIGURE 1.3
( Pictured Above: David Wilmot proposal divided both parties along sectional lines. By the standards of his day,
DAVID WILMOT could be considered a racist.)
Yet the Pennsylvania representative was so adamantly against the extension of slavery to lands ceded by Mexico,
he made a proposition that would divide the Congress. On August 8, 1846, Wilmot introduced legislation in the
House that boldly declared, "neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall ever exist" in lands won in the MexicanAmerican War. If he was not opposed to slavery, why would Wilmot propose such an action? Why would the north,
which only contained a small, but growing minority, of abolitionists, agree?
“Provided, That, as an express and fundamental condition to the acquisition of any territory from the Republic of
Mexico by the United States, by virtue of any treaty which may be negotiated between them, and to the use by the
Executive of the moneys herein appropriated, neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall ever exist in any part of
said territory, except for crime, whereof the party shall first be duly convicted.”
– The Wilmot Proviso, 1846
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( Pictured Above: The status of the territories regarding slavery had not been decided by the beginning of the
Mexican War. Even before the war ended the issue of slavery in the region of the Mexican Cession was a hot-button
political issue.)
Wilmot and other northerners were angered by President Polk. They felt that the entire Cabinet and national agenda
were dominated by southern minds and southern principles. Polk was willing to fight for southern territory, but
proved willing to compromise when it came to the north. Polk had lowered the tariff and denied funds for internal
improvements, both to the dismay of northerners. Now they felt a war was being fought to extend the southern way
of life. The term " SLAVE POWER " jumped off the lips of northern lawmakers when they angrily referred to their
southern colleagues. It was time for northerners to be heard.
( Pictured Above: Salmon P. Chase, commemorated on the $10,000 bill, founded the Free Soil Party in 1848. This
party advocated an end to the spread of American slavery and elected 14 representatives and two senators to the
federal government.)
Though Wilmot’s heart did not bleed for the slave, he envisioned California as a place where free white Pennsylvanians could work without the competition of slave labor. Since the north was more populous and had more
Representatives in the House, the Wilmot Proviso passed. Laws require the approval of both houses of Congress,
however. The Senate, equally divided between free states and slave states could not muster the majority necessary
for approval. Angrily the House passed WILMOT’S PROVISO several times, all to no avail. It would never become
law.
For years, the arguments for and against slavery were debated in the churches and in the newspapers. The House
of Representatives had passed a gag rule forbidding the discussion of slavery for much of the previous decade. The
issue could no longer be avoided. Lawmakers in the House and Senate, north and south, would have to stand up and
be counted.
Online Resources for the Mexican American War - http://www.dmwv.org/mexwar/resources.htm
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Chapter 1. Standard 8.62 Lesson
FIGURE 1.4
This map shows the land gained by the United States from the Mexican American War.
Finally, Manifest Destiny was reached. In the following years, California, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado,
and Utah would become states - from the land gained by the United States in the Mexican War.
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FIGURE 1.5
General Winfield Scott
FIGURE 1.6
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Chapter 1. Standard 8.62 Lesson
Zachary Taylor
http://mrnussbaum.com/zachary-taylor-biography-for-kids/
Mexican-American War from Mr. Nussbaum
http://mrnussbaum.com/history-2-2/mexicanwar/
Information from www.socialstudiesforkids.com
http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/ushistory/mexicanamericanwar3.htm
and. . .
http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/ushistory/mexicanamericanwar4.htm
http://www.ducksters.com/history/westward_expansion/mexican-american_war.php
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