James Knox Polk was the 11th President of the Unites States. He was born November 2, 1795, in Pineville, North Carolina. He served as President from March 4, 1845 through March 4, 1849. He was a member of the Democratic Party. He made the Election of 1844 one of the most memorable in history. He had defeated Henry Clay, in Clay’s third and final attempt at being President. Polk was a slaveholder; he had many slaves on his Tennessee and Mississippi Plantations. He knew that Abolitionism would destroy the North, and he tried to warm them of such. He accomplished every goal he had set for his presidency. Polk’s main priority was geographic expansion. First of all, Polk wanted the annexation of Texas, California, and New Mexico. He wanted all three preferably by purchase. Secondly, even though he is known for his expansions, he was known for his domestic issues as well; he greatly reduced tariff costs. Thirdly, he wanted to bring the United States …show more content…
He wanted to move west and get as much land as possible. He was not looking to go to war for what he wanted, but it also didn’t stop him. As mentioned, Polk was a slave holder he was very for slavery. When he took office bills were being passed for Texas to be a slave state. The votes were barely passed in the Senate, but a landslide in the House. The Whig leader, Aghast, was astonished that America would allow more land to be used for slaves. Polk dropped other inquiries to settle the dispute over the Oregon Territory with Britain. Here, Polk said, “he would go to the brink of war… and it would not be their fault” (Tindall). Britain realized their trade was much too important to risk over that territory. This was ratified with the Buchanan-Pakenham Treaty on June 18, 1846. By this time they were almost at war with Mexico. This allowed them to gain Texas as a state also the future states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, parts of Montana and
It was basically a treaty "friendship" and settlement between the United States and Mexican republics. Rio Grande became a border between Texas and Mexico, James Polk wanted more territory and eventually he accomplished it. For some "big bucks" Polk gained New Mexico, California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Colorado at the
Leonidas Polk was born in April of 1806 and grew up in North Carolina. He came from a wealthy family (Leonidas Polk) who had a bloodline of generals in the Revolutionary War. Along with being tied to the University of North Carolina, his family also had connections at West Point Military Academy. Polk would later start his military career by joining West point, but would eventually become a pastor (HistoryNet).
Polk ability to negotiate with other countries like england and new mexico and get Oregon and California this demonstrates why he is viewed as a successful president. But to gain Texas the United States had to fight mexico in a 2 year war from 1846-48 which the united states did end up winning but despite winning Texas this would prove to be a problem with the north and south fighting over the southern land. Polk made an Oregon treaty which made Polk able to gain land that he did not even have to go to war for and diplomatically settled a border dispute gaining land which is now known as today Washington Idaho Montana and Wyoming. “Foreign powers do not seem to appreciate the true character of our government” - James Polk this speaks out about the character of the U.S government and how they are driven to gain more land as a country .Situations like these are one of the many reasons James Polk is viewed as the most successful presidents of all
Hello, Brandon~~ Your choice topic is interesting to me, because I didn’t know about him before. Also, I think he compared to his accomplishments as a president of the United States, its reputation is lesser to other presidents. Some people considering James K. Polk was the last of the Jacksonians in the White House as well as the first "dark horse" President, and the last tough President until the Civil War (James K. Polk, 2014).
Polk and corresponding political course of his administration. But the author does not assert that it was solely Polk’s desires. Rather Polk is portrayed as an initiative follower of Thomas Jefferson’s and Andrew Jackson’s ideas about American expansion. The belief in potency of a new undeveloped land became the characteristic of that time. “By 1840s, territorial expansion was viewed by many to be a measure of that [America’s] greatness”.
He wanted to expand the country and he would do it any way that he could, though wanting to avoid war as much as he could as seen when he split the territory known as Oregon between Britain and America. Claiming the land disputed between Mexico and America was different however. Polk offered to pay for the land which is quite puzzling since from his point of view, America already owned the land which causes us to question why he did so. In America’s perspective, that wasn’t necessary since apparently the land was already rightfully a part of the nation so he didn’t have the need to buy it from Mexico. Did he feel that Mexico really did own the land since he was paying them for it?
Fourthly, James K. Polk worked under a lot of pressure of being a president. olk set four clearly defined goals for his administration: reestablish the Independent Treasury System, reduce tariffs, acquire some or all of Oregon Country, acquire California and New Mexico from Mexico. According to his policy, we can mention to his domestic aims( slavery, rivers and harbor velo, fiscal policy and the department of the interior) represented continuity with past Democratic policies, successful completion of Polk 's foreign policy goals would represent the first major American territorial gains since the Adams–Onís Treaty of 1819( strongly supported expansion, and relations with Mexico and Great Britain, the country 's southern and northern neighbors respectively, dominated Polk 's
At first, the United States declined to consolidate it into the union, to a great extent since northern political interests were against the expansion of another slave state. The Mexican government was additionally reassuring outskirt attacks and cautioning that any endeavor at extension would prompt war. Addition systems were immediately started after the 1844 decision of Polk, who crusaded that Texas ought to be "Re-added" and that the Oregon Territory ought to be "Re-involved." Polk likewise had his eyes on California, New Mexico and whatever remains of what is today the U.S. Southwest.
The War with Mexico The War was fought between The United states and Mexico from April 1846 to February 1848. According to (www.History.com) Texas Got its Independence from Mexico in 1836, the United States had declined to incorporate it into the Union, Mainly because the Northern Political interests were against the new addition of the new Slave state. The Mexican Government had also said that any attempt towards annexation would lead to war.
Greenberg emphasizes Polk’s territorial goals, to expand shore to shore, as a major cause of the war. Before Polk was elected as president, the Whig party predicted Polk’s election would lead to war. Polk pursued the Whig’s prediction and deliberately moved American troops into the disputed territory to acquire California and New Mexico. If the root of the war was in fact over disputed territory, Greenberg suggests the war should have ended after the capture of Monterrey in September of 1846, which secured Texas. This was not the case though.
James Knox Polk, the 11th president of the United States, was the most effective president that had achieved all of his inaugural goals. He had made several domestic policies that helped the US economy to strive. Polk was also the president who had acquired the US’s ideal dream of Manifest Destiny by making treaties and compromising to gain land from the Pacific to the Atlantic. James Polk has made different efforts to make the US the best and most powerful country in the western hemisphere and he has been very successful in his efforts.
The Manifest Destiny ideology, that it was a divinely ordained right and destiny for America to expand westward, towards the Pacific Ocean, was protracted throughout the nineteenth century. Oregon, which was in part occupied by England and in part by the U.S., and the lands owned by Mexico, were an obstacle to such expansion and, consequently, to the economic development. The presidential candidate James K. Polk, guided by the ideology of Manifest Destiny, promised that, if elected, he would push the United States territory westward. His campaign slogan for the occupation of Oregon was “Fifty-four forty or fight”, which was the north latitude that he intended to occupy. In 1846, Great Britain agreed to set the border at the 49th parallel.
INTRODUCTION Throughout the 1840s and 1850s a major war happened called the Mexican American War which drastically changed the U.S. and Mexico and lead to the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo to be signed and which established the Rio Grande and not the Nueces River as the U.S Border. This also lead to the U.S. annexation of Texas and lead to the Mexico agreeing to sell California and the rest of the territory for 15 million. So you 're probably wondering why the war was fought but you 'll find that out later.
When asked if the United States should declare war against Mexico, he said yes; in 1848, the war ended and the United States gained land from Mexico. As a senator, he was also concerned in keeping the country together. As a result, he supported the Compromise of 1850 which led to the inclusion of California as a free state, to the prohibition of slave trade in Washington DC, and to the returning of runaway slaves to their owners. This made him popular in the North and West but hated in the South (76-79) In conclusion, Samuel Houston is an important historical figure because of his accomplishments and contributions to the United States of America.