 Spanish controlled since late 1500s  TJ tried to buy in 1804 = no deal!  Runaway slaves (Seminoles welcomed them)  Seminoles also raided Georgia from time to time

 1818: Sent by Monroe to push Seminoles out of Georgia (told him not to invade Florida though)  Jackson and 1700 troops INVADE anyway  Captures Spanish military posts  Arrests, tries, and executes 2 British subjects for encouraging natives to attack  Replaces Spanish governor with an American

 Use military force to take Florida from Spain since Jackson’s invasion proved Spain’s army is weak  Apologize to Spain for Jackson’s invasion and send troops to patrol the U.S./Florida border to prevent raids by Indians and runaway slaves  Offer to buy Florida in order to avoid war with Spain

 All but one cabinet member advises apology to Spain and Jackson’s removal  John Quincy Adams says send a message to Spain to govern or GET OUT  Monroe take’s John Quincy Adam’s advice  Spain gives Florida the U.S. in 1819  U.S. pays $5 million of Spanish debt to settlers  U.S. honors Texas as Spanish territory  Spain gives up claims to Oregon territory

 Claimed by Spain  Southerners in U.S. wanted this land for growing cotton  Moses Austin wanted to start a U.S. colony  Spain gave him some land in 1821, and when he died, son Stephen F. Austin took over his Father’s plan  Problem? Mexico declared independence from Spain

 Austin can still have the land, but…  Only moral, hardworking settlers allowed  Settlers must promise to become Mexican citizens  Settlers must join Catholic Church  Is this really a U.S. colony??????  Austin agrees and 297 families (aka the “Old Three Hundred” are in Texas by 1827)

 American Texans  Disliked taking orders from Mexican officials  Disliked that all official documents had to be in Spanish  Mexico outlawed slavery in 1829  Numbered 25, 000 vs. 4,000 Tejanos by 1830  Mexican Texans felt many Americans  came without permission  Had no intentions of becoming Mexican citizens  Lack respect for Mexican culture

 Mexico = no more U.S. immigration (troops will enforce)  Some wanted revolution (William Travis)  Some wanted compromise (Stephen F. Austin)  Re-open Texas immigration  Make Texas a separate Mexican state to run itself  In 1833, Mexican dictator Santa Anna put Austin in jail for inciting rebellion  1835 = Austin is released…Texas does rebel  Santa Anna answers with 6,000 troops

 1836, Santa Anna’s men reached San Antonio  About 180 Texans, led by Davy Crockett, had taken control of an old mission, the Alamo  After 12 days of cannonballs, Mexicans stormed the fort = No Texans survived  TEXANS ENRAGED

 Sam Houston  Lured Santa Anna deep into Texas to cut him off from reinforcements  Met Santa Anna’s forces at the San Jacinto River  Mexicans expected Houston to attack at dawn  They didn’t, Mexicans relaxed and THEN Texans attacked  “Remember the Alamo”  Santa Anna captured and agrees to order troops out  TEXAS IS INDEPENDENT!!!!

 Let Texas remain an independent country, try to establish good relations with Texas and avoid angering Mexico.  Annex Texas to the U.S. and risk war with Mexico.  Make a treaty with Mexico agreeing to split Texas between the 2 countries.

 South = annex = more slave states and land for cotton  North = no more slave states  War with Mexico a concern  Under James K. Polk, the U.S. annexed Texas in 1845  War breaks out from  Border dispute leads to Mexican-American War  U.S. says Rio Grande is the border, Mexico says Nueces River is (150 miles northeast)  Mexico kills or wounds 16 Americans patrolling Rio Grande = WAR  Stay tuned for more about this war…

 Claimed by Russia, Spain, Great Britain, and the U.S. in 1819  Spain gives up claim with Florida Treaty  Russia gives up claims south of the 54 40’ parallel of latitude (southern border of Alaska today)  U.S. & Great Britain occupy it jointly for a time until 1846

 U.S. Claims  Lewis & Clark expedition ( )  Jedidiah Smith finds flatter “South Pass” through the Rocky Mountains  Missionaries and settlers flock to Oregon’s forests and fertile land

 Annex all of Oregon to the U.S. and risk war with Great Britain.  Offer to sell Oregon to Britain to increase the money in the U.S. treasury.  Make a treaty to divide Oregon between the two countries.

 James K. Polk wanted ALL of Oregon and campaigned for President on a willingness to fight for it  To avoid war with Great Britain, a treaty divided the territory roughly in half at the 49 th parallel (today’s western U.S. border with Canada)

 The belief that it was America’s right and duty to spread the nation across the North American continent  Showed the dark side of the U.S. = we are not too good to bully or invade weaker neighbors 

 Polk wanted California and New Mexico  Under Mexico’s control since winning independence from Spain  Sparsely settled, neglected by Mexican government = Polk offers to BUY the land  Mexicans will not even MEET to discuss this

 Officially began after Texas border dispute  General Kerry’s army took control of New Mexico without firing a shot and then marched on to California  Joined U.S rebels there and took control of California  U.S. invades Mexico  Zachary Taylor’s 6,000 men and Santa Anna’s 20,000 men are “cut to pieces” after 2 days of fighting at Monterrey…Santa Anna retreats south

 General Scott’s men fought to Mexico City and captured it in 1847  Ninos Heroes still honored in Mexico for giving their lives in resistance (6/100 boy cadets)

 Apologize for invading Mexico, offer to buy California and New Mexico, and accept the Nueces River as the border between Texas and Mexico.  Demand Mexico recognize the Rio Grande as the border of Texas and cede California and New Mexico to the U.S.  Annex all of Mexico to the U.S. because it is weak after losing the Mexican War.

 U.S. gets Texas and the Mexican Cession (modern day California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, part of Colorado and part of Wyoming)  U.S. pays Mexico $15 million and promises to protect the roughly 100,000 Mexicans living in Texas

 Railroad builders wanted flat land just south of the Mexican Cession line  1853, James Gadsden made the deal for $10 million  This is the present day border between the southwestern U.S. and Mexico