This painting (circa 1872) by John Gast called American Progress, is an allegorical representation of Manifest Destiny. Here Columbia, intended as a personification of the United States, leads civilization westward with American settlers, stringing telegraph wire as she travels; she holds a school book. Columbia (kəˈlʌmbiə is the first popular and poetic name for the United States of America; it is also the origin of the name for the District The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The different economic activities of the pioneers are highlighted and, especially, the changing forms of transportation. The Indians and wild animals flee.

Manifest Destiny was the belief that the United States was destined to expand from the Atlantic seaboard to the Pacific Ocean; it has also been used to advocate for or justify other territorial acquisitions. The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions Advocates of Manifest Destiny believed that expansion was not only good, but that it was obvious ("manifest") and certain ("destiny"). Destiny refers to a predetermined course of events It may be conceived as a predetermined future whether in general or of an individual Originally a political catch phrase of the 19th century, "Manifest Destiny" eventually became a standard historical term, often used as a synonym for the expansion of the United States across the North American continent.

The term was first used primarily by Jacksonian Democrats in the 1840s to promote the annexation of much of what is now the Western United States (the Oregon Territory, the Texas Annexation, and the Mexican Cession). Jacksonian Democracy refers to the political philosophy of United States President Andrew Jackson and his supporters The Western United States &mdashcommonly referred to as the American West or simply the West &mdashtraditionally refers to the region comprising the westernmost The Oregon Territory is the name applied both to the unorganized Oregon Country claimed by both the United States and Britain (but normally referred to The Texas Annexation of 1845 was the voluntary Annexation of the Republic of Texas by the United States of America as Texas, the The Mexican Cession is a historical name for the region of the present day southwestern United States that was ceded to the U It was revived in the 1890s, this time with Republican supporters, as a theoretical justification for U. The History of the United States Republican Party is an account of the second oldest currently existing Political party in the United States S. expansion outside of North America. United States overseas expansion follows the expansion of US frontiers on the North American continent (see Mexican-American War, War of 1812, and Territorial The term fell out of usage by U. S. policy makers early in the 20th century, but some commentators believe that aspects of Manifest Destiny, particularly the belief in an American "mission" to promote and defend democracy throughout the world, continues to have an influence on American political ideology. ^[1]

This article is not a history of the territorial expansion of the United States, nor is it the story of the westward migration of settlers to the American frontier. This is a simplified list of United States territorial acquisitions, beginning with American independence. This is a simplified list of United States territorial acquisitions, beginning with American independence. A frontier is a Political and Geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary, or of a different nature Manifest Destiny was an explanation or justification for that expansion and westward movement, or, in some interpretations, an ideology or doctrine which helped to promote the process. This article is a history of Manifest Destiny as an idea, and the influence of that idea upon American expansion.

Context and interpretations

Manifest Destiny was always a general notion rather than a specific policy. The term combined a belief in expansionism with other popular ideas of the era, including American exceptionalism, Romantic nationalism, and a belief in the natural superiority of what was then called the "Anglo-Saxon race". American exceptionalism (cf " Exceptionalism " refers to the belief that the United States differs qualitatively from other Developed nations Romantic nationalism (also National Romanticism, organic nationalism, identity nationalism) is the form of Nationalism in which the state derives The English people (from the adjective in Englisc) are a Nation and Ethnic group native to England who predominantly speak English While many writers focus primarily upon American expansionism when discussing Manifest Destiny, others see in the term a broader expression of a belief in America's "mission" in the world, which has meant different things to different people over the years. This variety of possible meanings was summed up by Ernest Lee Tuveson, who wrote:

A vast complex of ideas, policies, and actions is comprehended under the phrase 'Manifest Destiny'. They are not, as we should expect, all compatible, nor do they come from any one source. ^[2]

The concept of Manifest Destiny has acquired a variety of meanings over the years, and its inherent ambiguity has been part of its power. In the generic political sense, however, it was usually used to refer to the idea that the American government was "destined" to establish uninterrupted political authority across the entire North American continent, from one ocean to the other. An ocean (from Greek, ''Okeanos'' (Oceanus) is a major body of saline water, and a principal component of the Hydrosphere.

Origin

Although the phrase "manifest destiny" did not originate until 1845, the concept antedated the Revolution. Benjamin Franklin wrote of the expansion of America in 1767:

America, an immense territory, favored by nature with all advantages of climate, soil, great navigable rivers and lakes, must become a great country, populous and mighty; and will, in a less time than is generally conceived, be able to shake off shackles that may be imposed on her and perhaps place them on the imposers. Benjamin Franklin ( April 17 1790 was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States of America. ^[3]

John L. O'Sullivan, sketched in 1874, was an influential columnist as a young man, but is now generally remembered only for his use of the phrase "Manifest Destiny" to advocate the annexation of Texas and Oregon. John Louis O'Sullivan ( November 15, 1813 – March 24, 1895) was an American columnist and editor who used the term " Manifest

Journalist John L. O'Sullivan, an influential advocate for the Democratic Party wrote an article in 1839 which, while not using the term "Manifest Destiny", did predict a "divine destiny' for the United States based upon values such as equality, rights of conscience, and personal enfranchisement-- "to establish on earth the moral dignity and salvation of man". John Louis O'Sullivan ( November 15, 1813 – March 24, 1895) was an American columnist and editor who used the term " Manifest The History of the United States Democratic Party is an account of the oldest Political party in the United States and arguably TalkDemocratic This destiny was not explicitly territorial, but O'Sullivan predicted that the United States would be one of a "Union of many Republics" sharing those values. ^[4]

Six years later O'Sullivan wrote another essay which first used the phrase Manifest Destiny. In 1845 he published a piece entitled Annexation in the Democratic Review,^[5] in which he urged the United States to annex the Republic of Texas, not only because Texas desired this, but because it was "our manifest destiny to overspread the continent allotted by Providence for the free development of our yearly multiplying millions". The Republic of Texas was a sovereign Nation in North America between the United States and Mexico that existed from 1836 to ^[6] Amid much controversy, Texas was annexed shortly thereafter, but O'Sullivan's first usage of the phrase "Manifest Destiny" attracted little attention. The Texas Annexation of 1845 was the voluntary Annexation of the Republic of Texas by the United States of America as Texas, the ^[7]

O'Sullivan's second use of the phrase became extremely influential. On December 27, 1845 in his newspaper the New York Morning News, O'Sullivan addressed the ongoing boundary dispute with Great Britain in the Oregon Country. Events 537 - The Hagia Sophia is completed 1512 - The Spanish Crown issues the Laws of Burgos, governing the Year 1845 ( MDCCCXLV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The Oregon boundary dispute (or Oregon question) arose as a result of competing British and American claims to the Pacific Northwest of See also Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain (Breatainn Mhòr Prydain Fawr Breten Veur Graet Breetain is the larger of the two main islands Oregon Country or Oregon (to be distinguished from the American State also called Oregon) was a predominantly American term referring to O'Sullivan argued that the United States had the right to claim "the whole of Oregon":

And that claim is by the right of our manifest destiny to overspread and to possess the whole of the continent which Providence has given us for the development of the great experiment of liberty and federated self-government entrusted to us. ^[8]

That is, O'Sullivan believed that God ("Providence") had given the United States a mission to spread republican democracy ("the great experiment of liberty") throughout North America. In Theology, Divine Providence, or simply Providence, is the sovereignty superintendence or agency of God over events in people's lives and throughout A republican democracy is a Republic which has democratic Forms of government. Because Britain would not use Oregon for the purposes of spreading democracy, thought O'Sullivan, British claims to the territory should be overruled. O'Sullivan believed that Manifest Destiny was a moral ideal (a "higher law") that superseded other considerations. ^[9]

O'Sullivan's original conception of Manifest Destiny was not a call for territorial expansion by force. He believed that the expansion of the United States would happen without the direction of the U. S. government or the involvement of the military. After "Anglo-Saxons" emigrated to new regions, they would set up new democratic governments, and then seek admission to the United States, as Texas had done. In 1845, O'Sullivan predicted that California would follow this pattern next, and that Canada would eventually request annexation as well. California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page He disapproved of the outbreak of the Mexican-American War in 1846, although he came to believe that the outcome would be beneficial to both countries. ^[10]

Ironically, O'Sullivan's term became popular only after it was criticized by Whig opponents of the Polk administration. The Whig Party was a Political party of the United States during the era of Jacksonian democracy. James Knox Polk ( November 2 1795&ndashJune 15 1849 was the eleventh President of the United States, serving from March 4 1845 to March 4 1849 On January 3, 1846, Representative Robert Winthrop ridiculed the concept in Congress, saying "I suppose the right of a manifest destiny to spread will not be admitted to exist in any nation except the universal Yankee nation. Events 1431 - Joan of Arc is handed over to the Bishop Pierre Cauchon. For the game see 1846 (board game. Year 1846 ( MDCCCXLVI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display Robert Charles Winthrop ( Boston Massachusetts, May 12, 1809 &ndash Boston Massachusetts, November 16, 1894) was " Winthrop was the first in a long line of critics who suggested that advocates of Manifest Destiny were citing "Divine Providence" for justification of actions that were motivated by chauvinism and self-interest. Despite this criticism, expansionists embraced the phrase, which caught on so quickly that its origin was soon forgotten. O'Sullivan died in obscurity in 1895, just as his phrase was being revived. In 1927, a historian determined that the phrase had originated with him. ^[11]

Themes and influences

Historian Beshoy Shaker has noted that three key themes were usually touched upon by advocates of Manifest Destiny:

1. the virtue of the American people and their institutions;
2. the mission to spread these institutions, thereby redeeming and remaking the world in the image of the U. Virtue ( Latin virtus; Greek) is moral Excellence. Personal virtues are characteristics valued as promoting individual S. ; and
3. the destiny under God to accomplish this work. God is the principal or sole Deity in Religions and other belief systems that worship one deity. ^[12]

The origin of the first theme, later known as American Exceptionalism, was often traced to America's Puritan heritage, particularly John Winthrop's famous "City upon a Hill" sermon of 1630, in which he called for the establishment of a virtuous community that would be a shining example to the Old World. American exceptionalism (cf " Exceptionalism " refers to the belief that the United States differs qualitatively from other Developed nations A Puritan of 16th and 17th century England was an associate of any number of religious groups advocating for more "purity" of Worship and Doctrine, John Winthrop ( 12 January 1587/8 26 March 1649) led a group of English Puritans to the New World, joined City upon a hill is a phrase that is associated with John Winthrop 's Sermon "A Model of Christian Charity" given in 1630 The Old World consists of those parts of Earth known to Europeans Asians and Africans in the 15th century In his influential 1776 pamphlet Common Sense, Thomas Paine echoed this notion, arguing that the American Revolution provided an opportunity to create a new, better society:

We have it in our power to begin the world over again. Common sense (or when used attributively as an Adjective, commonsense, common-sense, or commonsensical) based on a strict construction Thomas Paine (January 29 1737 &ndash June 8 1809 was an English Pamphleteer, Revolutionary, radical, Inventor, and Intellectual In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" A situation, similar to the present, hath not happened since the days of Noah until now. The birthday of a new world is at hand. . .

Many Americans agreed with Paine, and came to believe that the United States had embarked upon a special experiment in freedom and democracy—and a rejection of Old World monarchy in favor of republicanism—an innovation of world historical importance. Republicanism is the Value system of Governance that has been a major part of American civic thought since the American Revolution President Abraham Lincoln's description, in his December 1, 1862 message to Congress, of the United States as "the last, best hope of Earth" is a well-known expression of this idea. Abraham Lincoln (February 12 1809 &ndash April 15 1865 the sixteenth President of the United States, successfully led his country through its greatest internal Events 800 - Charlemagne judges the accusations against Pope Leo III in the Vatican Year 1862 was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting on Monday Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, in which he interpreted the Civil War as a struggle to determine if any nation with America's ideals could survive, has been called by historian Robert Johannsen "the most enduring statement of America's Manifest Destiny and mission". The Gettysburg Address is a speech by US President Abraham Lincoln and one of the most quoted speeches in United States history. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South ^[13]

Not all Americans who believed that the United States was a divinely favored nation thought that it ought to expand. Whigs especially argued that the "mission" of the United States was only to serve as virtuous example to the rest of the world. If the United States was successful as a shining "city on a hill," people in other countries would seek to establish their own democratic republics. Thomas Jefferson initially did not believe it necessary that the United States should grow in size, since he predicted that other, similar republics would be founded in North America, forming what he called an "empire for liberty. Thomas Jefferson (April 13 1743 – July 4 1826 was the third President of the United States (1801–1809 the principal author of the Declaration of Independence " However, with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, which doubled the size of the United States, Jefferson set the stage for the continental expansion of the United States. For the film see Louisiana Purchase (film. The Louisiana Purchase (French Vente de la Louisiane "Louisiana Sale" Many began to see this as the beginning of a new "mission"—what Andrew Jackson in 1843 famously described as "extending the area of freedom. Andrew Jackson (March 15 1767 June 8 1845 was the seventh President of the United States (1829&ndash1837 " As more territory was added to the United States in the following decades, whether or not "extending the area of freedom" also meant extending the institution of slavery became a central issue in a growing divide over the interpretation of America's "mission. Slavery in the United States began soon after English colonists first settled Virginia in 1607 and lasted until the passage of the Thirteenth "

Effect on continental expansion

John Quincy Adams, painted above in 1816 by Charles Robert Leslie, was an early proponent of continentalism. Charles Robert Leslie (1794-1859 English genre painter was born in London on 19 October 1794. Late in life he came to regret his role in helping U. S. slavery to expand, and became a leading opponent of the annexation of Texas.

The phrase "Manifest Destiny" is most often associated with the territorial expansion of the United States from 1815 to 1860. This era, from the end of the War of 1812 to the beginning of the American Civil War, has been called the "Age of Manifest Destiny. The War of 1812 was fought between the United States of America and the British Empire, particularly Great Britain and her North American colonies Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South " During this time, the United States expanded to the Pacific Ocean—"from sea to shining sea"—largely defining the borders of the continental United States as they are today. The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions " America the Beautiful " is an American Patriotic song. The term continental United States refers to the 48 contiguous states located on the North American continent south of the border with Canada plus the District ^[14] The first events leading to the term can be traced back to Francis Drake, who landed in the Pacific Northwest in 1578 and claimed the land for England as "New Albion". As a result, the early charters for the atlantic colonies established in the 17th century went from "sea to sea", a phrase later incorporated into Manifest Destiny.

Continentalism

The nineteenth century belief that the United States would eventually encompass all of North America is known as "continentalism". An early proponent of this idea was John Quincy Adams, a leading figure in U. John Quincy Adams (July 11 1767 &ndash February 23 1848 was an American diplomat and politician who served as the sixth President of the United States S. expansion between the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and the Polk administration in the 1840s. For the film see Louisiana Purchase (film. The Louisiana Purchase (French Vente de la Louisiane "Louisiana Sale" James Knox Polk ( November 2 1795&ndashJune 15 1849 was the eleventh President of the United States, serving from March 4 1845 to March 4 1849 In 1811, Adams wrote to his father:

The whole continent of North America appears to be destined by Divine Providence to be peopled by one nation, speaking one language, professing one general system of religious and political principles, and accustomed to one general tenor of social usages and customs. John Adams (October 30 1735 July 4 1826 was one of the most influential Founding Fathers of the United States. For the common happiness of them all, for their peace and prosperity, I believe it is indispensable that they should be associated in one federal Union. ^[15]

Adams did much to further this idea. He orchestrated the Treaty of 1818, which established the United States-Canada border as far west as the Rocky Mountains, and provided for the joint occupation of the Oregon Country. The Convention respecting fisheries boundary and the restoration of slaves between the United States and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, also known as the The Canada – United States border is the international Border between Canada and the United States. Oregon Country or Oregon (to be distinguished from the American State also called Oregon) was a predominantly American term referring to He negotiated the Transcontinental Treaty in 1819, purchasing Florida from Spain and extending the U. The Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819 settled a border dispute in North America between the United States and Spain. S. border with Spanish Mexico all the way to the Pacific Ocean. And he formulated the Monroe Doctrine of 1823, which warned Europe that the Western Hemisphere was no longer open for European colonization. The Monroe Doctrine is a US doctrine which on December 2 1823 stated that European powers were no longer to colonize or interfere with The Western Hemisphere, also Western hemisphere or western hemisphere, is a geographical term for the half of the Earth that lies West

The Monroe Doctrine and Manifest Destiny were closely related ideas: historian Walter McDougall calls Manifest Destiny a "corollary" of the Monroe Doctrine, because while the Monroe Doctrine did not specify expansion, expansion was necessary in order to enforce the Doctrine. A corollary is a statement which follows readily from a previously proven statement Concerns in the United States that European powers (especially Great Britain) were seeking to acquire colonies or greater influence in North America led to calls for expansion in order to prevent this. In his influential 1935 study of Manifest Destiny, Albert Weinberg wrote that "the expansionism of the [1830s] arose as a defensive effort to forestall the encroachment of Europe in North America. "^[16]

British North America

Although Manifest Destiny was primarily directed at territory inhabited by Mexicans and American Indians, the concept played a role in U. The United Mexican States ( or commonly Mexico (ˈmɛksɪkoʊ () is a federal constitutional Republic in North America. Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples from the regions of North America now encompassed by the continental United States S. relations with British North America (later Canada) to the north. British North America consisted of the colonies and territories of the British Empire in continental North America after the end of the American Revolutionary Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page From the time of the American Revolution, the United States had expressed an interest in expelling the British Empire from North America. In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power. Failing to do that in both the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812, Americans came to accept the British presence on their northern border, but fears of possible British expansion elsewhere in North America were a recurrent theme of Manifest Destiny. In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" The War of 1812 was fought between the United States of America and the British Empire, particularly Great Britain and her North American colonies

Before 1815

During the American Revolution and the early years of independence there were both peaceful and violent attempts to include Canada in the United States. The Revolutionaries hoped French Canadians would join the Thirteen Colonies in the effort to throw off the rule of the British Empire. This article concerns Patriots in the American Revolution. For other uses see Patriot (disambiguation. The Thirteen Colonies were part of what became known as British America, a name that was used by Great Britain until the Treaty of Paris (1783 recognized the Canada was invited to send representatives to the Continental Congress, and was pre-approved for joining the United States in the Articles of Confederation. The Continental Congress was a convention of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, also the Articles of Confederation was the governing Constitution of the alliance of thirteen independent and In the Paris peace negotiations, Benjamin Franklin attempted to persuade Britain to cede Canada to the United States. The Treaty of Paris, signed on September 3, 1783, and approved by the Congress of the Confederation on January 14, 1784, formally Benjamin Franklin ( April 17 1790 was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States of America. Canada was invaded during the War of Independence, and again during the War of 1812. Background In the spring of 1775 the American Revolutionary War began with the Battle of Lexington and Concord. None of these measures proved successful in bringing Canada onto the side of the Thirteen Colonies.

These attempts to expel the British Empire from North America are sometimes cited as early examples of Manifest Destiny in action. The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power. Some scholars, however, including Canadian historian Reginald Stuart, argue that these events were different in character from those during the "Era of Manifest Destiny. " Before 1815, writes Stuart, "what seemed like territorial expansionism actually arose from a defensive mentality, not from ambitions for conquest and annexation. "^[17] From this point of view, Manifest Destiny was not a factor in the outbreak of the War of 1812, but rather emerged as a popular belief in the years after the war. ^[17]

Filibustering in Canada

Americans became increasingly accepting of the presence of British colonies to the north after the War of 1812, although Anglophobia continued to be widespread in the United States. Anglophobia (from Latin Anglus "English" + Ancient Greek φόβος -phobos "fear" is a hatred or fear of the English Many Americans, especially those along the border, were hopeful that the Rebellions of 1837 would bring an end to the British Empire in North America and the establishment of a republican government in Canada. The Rebellions of 1837 were a pair of Canadian armed uprisings that occurred in 1837 and 1838 in response to frustrations in political reform and ethnic conflict Republicanism is the Ideology of governing a nation as a Republic, with an emphasis on Liberty, Rule of law, Popular sovereignty Of those events John O'Sullivan wrote: "If freedom is the best of national blessings, if self-government is the first of national rights, . . . then we are bound to sympathise with the cause of the Canadian rebellion. "^[18] Americans like O'Sullivan viewed the Rebellions as a reprise of the American Revolution, and—unlike most Canadians at the time—considered Canadians to be living under oppressive foreign rule.

Despite this sympathy with the cause of the rebels, belief in Manifest Destiny did not result in widespread American reaction to the Rebellions, in part because the Rebellions were over so quickly. O'Sullivan, for his part, advised against U. S. intervention. Some American "filibusters"—unauthorized volunteer soldiers often motivated by a belief in Manifest Destiny—went to Canada to lend aid to the rebels, but President Martin Van Buren sent General Winfield Scott to arrest the filibusters and keep peace on the border. A filibuster is someone who engages in an unauthorized military expedition into a foreign country to foment or support a revolution Martin Van Buren (December 5 1782 July 24 1862 was the eighth President of the United States from 1837 to 1841 Winfield Scott ( June 13, 1786 &ndash May 29, 1866) was a United States Army general Diplomat, and presidential candidate Some filibusters persisted in secretive groups known as the Hunter Patriots, and tried to stir up war in order to "liberate" Canada—the so-called "Patriot War" was one such event—but American sentiment and official government policy were against these actions. The Frères chasseurs (French for "Hunter Brothers" though they were also referred to as the Hunter Patriots and Hunters' Lodges) were a paramilitary organization The Patriot War was a series of battles that occurred in 1837 between Canadians who had come down from Upper Canada into Western New York State, and the The Fenian raids after the American Civil War shared some resemblances to the actions of the Hunters, but were otherwise unrelated to the idea of Manifest Destiny or any policy of American expansionism. The Fenian raids were attacks by members of the Fenian Brotherhood based in the United States, on British army forts customs posts and other targets in ^[19]

"All Oregon"

Manifest Destiny played its most important role in the Oregon boundary dispute with Great Britain. The Oregon boundary dispute (or Oregon question) arose as a result of competing British and American claims to the Pacific Northwest of The Anglo-American Convention of 1818 had provided for the joint occupation of the Oregon Country, and thousands of Americans migrated there in the 1840s over the Oregon Trail. The Convention respecting fisheries boundary and the restoration of slaves between the United States and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, also known as the Oregon Country or Oregon (to be distinguished from the American State also called Oregon) was a predominantly American term referring to Pioneers traveled across the Oregon Trail, one of the main overland migration routes on the North American Continent, in wagons in order to settle new parts of the The British rejected a proposal by President John Tyler to divide the region along 49th parallel, and instead proposed a boundary line further south along the Columbia River, which would have made what is now the state of Washington part of British North America. John Tyler Jr (March 29 1790 January 18 1862 was the tenth President of the United States (1841-1845 and the first ever to obtain that office via succession The 49th parallel north is a Circle of latitude that is 49 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. The Columbia River (known as Washington ( is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Advocates of Manifest Destiny protested and called for the annexation of the entire Oregon Country up to the Alaska line (54°40ʹ N). Presidential candidate James K. Polk used this popular outcry to his advantage, and the Democrats called for the annexation of "All Oregon" in the 1844 U.S. Presidential election. James Knox Polk ( November 2 1795&ndashJune 15 1849 was the eleventh President of the United States, serving from March 4 1845 to March 4 1849 The United States presidential election of 1844 saw Democrat James Knox Polk defeat Whig Henry Clay in a close contest that turned on foreign

As president, however, Polk renewed the earlier offer to divide the territory along the 49th parallel, to the dismay of the most ardent advocates of Manifest Destiny. When the British refused the offer, American expansionists responded with slogans such as "The Whole of Oregon or None!" and "Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!", referring to the northern border of the region. (The latter slogan is often mistakenly described as having been a part of the 1844 presidential campaign. ) When Polk moved to terminate the joint occupation agreement, the British finally agreed to divide the region along the 49th parallel, and the dispute was settled diplomatically with the Oregon Treaty of 1846. The Oregon Treaty, officially known as the Treaty with Great Britain in Regard to Limits Westward of the Rocky Mountains, Buchanan-Packenham

American westward expansion is idealized in Emanuel Leutze's famous painting Westward the Course of Empire Takes its Way (1861). Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze ( May 24, 1816 &ndash July 18, 1868) was a German American history painter best-known for The title of the painting, from a 1726 poem by Bishop Berkeley, was a phrase often quoted in the era of Manifest Destiny, expressing a widely held belief that civilization had steadily moved westward throughout history. George Berkeley (ˈbɑrkli (12 March 1685 14 January 1753 also known as Bishop Berkeley, was a Philosopher. (more)

Despite the earlier clamor for "All Oregon," the treaty was popular in the U. S. and was easily ratified by the Senate, particularly because the United States was by that time at war with Mexico. Many Americans believed that the Canadian provinces would eventually merge with the United States anyway, and that war was unnecessary—and counterproductive—in fulfilling that destiny. The most fervent advocates of Manifest Destiny had not prevailed along the northern border because, according to Reginald Stuart, "the compass of Manifest Destiny pointed west and southwest, not north, despite the use of the term 'continentalism'. "^[20]

Mexico and Texas

Manifest Destiny proved to be more consequential in U. S. relations with Mexico. The United Mexican States ( or commonly Mexico (ˈmɛksɪkoʊ () is a federal constitutional Republic in North America. In 1836, the Republic of Texas declared independence from Mexico and, after the Texas Revolution, sought to join the United States as a new state. The Republic of Texas was a sovereign Nation in North America between the United States and Mexico that existed from 1836 to The Texas Declaration of Independence was the formal declaration of independence of the Republic of Texas from Mexico in the Texas Revolution. The Texas Revolution or Texas War of Independence was fought from October 2 1835 to April 21 1836 between Mexico and the Texas (Tejas portion of the Mexican This was an idealized process of expansion which had been advocated from Jefferson to O'Sullivan: newly democratic and independent states would request entry into the United States, rather than the United States extending its government over people who did not want it. The annexation of Texas was controversial as it would add another slave state to the Union. Presidents Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren declined Texas's offer to join the United States in part because the slavery issue threatened to divide the Democratic Party. Martin Van Buren (December 5 1782 July 24 1862 was the eighth President of the United States from 1837 to 1841

Before the election of 1844, Whig candidate Henry Clay and the presumed Democratic candidate, ex-President Van Buren, both declared themselves opposed to the annexation of Texas, each hoping to keep the troublesome topic from becoming a campaign issue. Henry Clay Sr ( April 12, 1777 &ndash June 29, 1852) was a nineteenth-century American statesman and Orator who This unexpectedly led to Van Buren being dropped by the Democrats in favor of Polk, who favored annexation. Polk tied the Texas annexation question with the Oregon dispute, thus providing a sort of regional compromise on expansion. (Expansionists in the North were more inclined to promote the occupation of Oregon, while Southern expansionists focused primarily on the annexation of Texas. ) Although elected by a very slim margin, Polk proceeded as if his victory had been a mandate for expansion.

"All Mexico"

After the election of Polk, but before he took office, Congress approved the annexation of Texas. The Texas Annexation of 1845 was the voluntary Annexation of the Republic of Texas by the United States of America as Texas, the Polk moved to occupy a portion of Texas which was also claimed by Mexico, paving the way for the outbreak of the Mexican-American War on April 24, 1846. Events 1479 BC - Thutmose III ascends to the throne of Egypt, although power effectively shifts to Hatshepsut (according to For the game see 1846 (board game. Year 1846 ( MDCCCXLVI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display With American successes on the battlefield, by the summer of 1847 there were calls for the annexation of "All Mexico," particularly among Eastern Democrats, who argued that bringing Mexico into the Union was the best way to ensure future peace in the region. ^[21]

This was a controversial proposition for two reasons. First, idealistic advocates of Manifest Destiny like John L. O'Sullivan had always maintained that the laws of the United States should not be imposed on people against their will. The annexation of "All Mexico" would be a violation of this principle. And secondly, the annexation of Mexico was controversial because it would mean extending U. S. citizenship to millions of Mexicans. Senator John C. Calhoun of South Carolina, who had approved of the annexation of Texas, was opposed to the annexation of Mexico, as well as the "mission" aspect of Manifest Destiny, for racial reasons. John Caldwell Calhoun (March 18 1782 &ndash March 31 1850 was a leading United States Southern politician and political philosopher from South Carolina during South Carolina ( is a state in the southern region ( Deep South) of the United States of America. He made these views clear in a speech to Congress on 4 January 1848:

[W]e have never dreamt of incorporating into our Union any but the Caucasian race—the free white race. Events 46 BC - Titus Labienus defeats Julius Caesar in the Battle of Ruspina. Year 1848 ( MDCCCXLVIII) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap The Caucasian race, sometimes the Caucasoid race, is a term of Racial classification, coined around 1800 by Johann Friedrich Blumenbach for the " To incorporate Mexico, would be the very first instance of the kind, of incorporating an Indian race; for more than half of the Mexicans are Indians, and the other is composed chiefly of mixed tribes. Demographic dynamics In 1900 the Mexican population was 136 million For indigenous peoples in the United States other than Hawaii and Alaska see also Native Americans in the United States. Mestizo is a Spanish term that was coined during the Spanish Empire to refer to people of mixed European and Amerindian ancestry in Latin I protest against such a union as that! Ours, sir, is the Government of a white race. White People is the second album by Handsome Boy Modeling School. . . . We are anxious to force free government on all; and I see that it has been urged … that it is the mission of this country to spread civil and religious liberty over all the world, and especially over this continent. It is a great mistake. ^[22]

This debate brought to the forefront one of the contradictions of Manifest Destiny: on the one hand, while racist ideas inherent in Manifest Destiny suggested that Mexicans, as non-whites, were a lesser race and thus not qualified to become Americans, the "mission" component of Manifest Destiny suggested that Mexicans would be improved (or "regenerated," as it was then described) by bringing them into American democracy. List of racism-related topics|Racism by country Racism, by its simplest definition is the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that Racism was used to promote Manifest Destiny, but, as in the case of Calhoun and the resistance to the "All Mexico" movement, racism was also used to oppose Manifest Destiny. ^[23]

The controversy was eventually ended by the Mexican Cession, which added the territories of Alta California and Nuevo México to the United States, both more sparsely populated than the rest of Mexico. The Mexican Cession is a historical name for the region of the present day southwestern United States that was ceded to the U Alta California (Upper California was formed in 1804 when the Province of the Californias, then a part of the Commandancy General of the Provincias Internas in the Santa Fe de Nuevo México (shortened to Nuevo México or Nuevo Méjico, translated as New Mexico) was a province of New Spain that existed Like the "All Oregon" movement, the "All Mexico" movement quickly abated. Historian Frederick Merk, in Manifest Destiny and Mission in American History: A Reinterpretation (1963), argued that the failure of the "All Oregon" and "All Mexico" movements indicates that Manifest Destiny had not been as popular as historians have traditionally portrayed it to have been. Merk wrote that, while belief in the beneficent "mission" of democracy was central to American history, aggressive "continentalism" were aberrations supported by only a very small (but influential) minority of Americans. Merk's interpretation is probably still a minority opinion; scholars generally see Manifest Destiny, at least in the 1840s, as a popular belief among Democrats and an unpopular one among Whigs.

Filibustering in the South

After the Mexican-American War ended in 1848, disagreements over the expansion of slavery made further territorial annexation too divisive to be official government policy. Many Northerners were increasingly opposed to what they believed to be efforts by Southern slave owners—and their friends in the North—to expand slavery at any cost. The proposal of the Wilmot Proviso during the war, and the emergence of various "Slave Power" conspiracy theories thereafter, indicated the degree to which Manifest Destiny had become controversial. The Wilmot Proviso was introduced on August 8, 1846, in the United States House of Representatives as a rider on a $2 million appropriations The Slave Power (sometimes referred to as the " Slaveocracy " was a term used in the Northern United States (primarily in the period 1840-1875 to characterize

Without official government support, the most radical advocates of Manifest Destiny increasingly turned to military filibustering. A filibuster is someone who engages in an unauthorized military expedition into a foreign country to foment or support a revolution While there had been some filibustering expeditions into Canada in the late 1830s, the primary target of Manifest Destiny’s filibusters was Latin America, particularly Mexico and Cuba. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la Though illegal, the filibustering operations in the late 1840s and early 1850s were romanticized in the U. S. press. Wealthy American expansionists financed dozens of expeditions, usually based out of New Orleans. New Orleans (nʲuːˈɔrliənz nʲuːˈɔrlənz French: La Nouvelle-Orléans) is a major United States port city and the largest city in Louisiana

Filibuster William Walker, who launched several expeditions to Latin America, ruled Nicaragua, and was captured and executed in Honduras

The United States had long been interested in acquiring Cuba from the declining Spanish Empire. William Walker ( May 8, 1824 &ndash September 12, 1860) was an American filibuster, adventurer and Mercenary Nicaragua (ˌnɪkəˈrɑgwə officially the Republic of Nicaragua () is a representative democratic republic and the largest nation in Central America Honduras in Spanish, República de Honduras) is a democratic republic in Central America. The Spanish Empire (Imperio Español was one of the largest Empires in history and one of the first Global empires In the 15th and 16th centuries As with Texas, Oregon, and California, American policy makers were concerned that Cuba would fall into British hands, which, according to the thinking of the Monroe Doctrine, would constitute a threat to the interests of the United States. Prompted by John L. O'Sullivan, in 1848 President Polk offered to buy Cuba from Spain for $100 million. Polk feared that filibustering would hurt his effort to buy the island, and so he informed the Spanish of an attempt by the Cuban filibuster Narciso López to seize Cuba by force and annex it to the U. Narciso López (1797&ndash1851 was an adventurer and soldier famous for his attempts to liberate Cuba from Spain in the 1850s S. , and the plot was foiled. Nevertheless, Spain declined to sell the island, which ended Polk's efforts to acquire Cuba. O'Sullivan, on the other hand, continued to raise money for filibustering expeditions, eventually landing him in legal trouble. ^[24]

Filibustering continued to be a major concern for presidents after Polk. Whigs presidents Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore tried to suppress the expeditions. Zachary Taylor (November 24 1784 &ndash July 9 1850 was an American military leader and the twelfth President of the United States. Millard Fillmore ( January 7 1800 &ndash March 8 1874 was the thirteenth President of the United States, serving from 1850 until 1853 and the last member of the Whig When the Democrats recaptured the White House in 1852 with the election of Franklin Pierce, a filibustering effort by John A. Quitman to acquire Cuba received the tentative support of the president. Franklin Pierce (November 23 1804 &ndash October 8 1869 was an American politician and the fourteenth President of the United States, serving from 1853 to John Anthony Quitman (b September 1 1799, Rhinebeck New York July 17 1858) was an American politician and soldier Pierce backed off, however, and instead renewed the offer to buy the island, this time for $130 million. When the public learned of the Ostend Manifesto in 1854, which argued that the United States could seize Cuba by force if Spain refused to sell, this effectively killed the effort to acquire the island. The Ostend Manifesto was a secret document written in 1854 by U The public now linked expansion with slavery; if Manifest Destiny had once had widespread popular approval, this was no longer true. ^[25]

Filibusters like William Walker continued to garner headlines in the late 1850s, but with the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1860, the "Age of Manifest Destiny" came to an end. William Walker ( May 8, 1824 &ndash September 12, 1860) was an American filibuster, adventurer and Mercenary Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South Expansionism was among the various issues that played a role in the coming of the war. The main explanation for the origins of the American Civil War was slavery, especially the issue of the expansion of slavery into the territories. With the divisive question of the expansion of slavery, Northerners and Southerners, in effect, were coming to define Manifest Destiny in different ways, undermining nationalism as a unifying force. According to Frederick Merk, "The doctrine of Manifest Destiny, which in the 1840s had seemed Heaven-sent, proved to have been a bomb wrapped up in idealism. "^[26]

Native Americans

Manifest Destiny had serious consequences for American Indians since continental expansion usually meant the occupation of Native American land. Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples from the regions of North America now encompassed by the continental United States The United States continued the European practice of recognizing only limited land rights of indigenous peoples. For indigenous peoples in the United States other than Hawaii and Alaska see also Native Americans in the United States. In a policy formulated largely by Henry Knox, Secretary of War in the Washington Administration, the U. Henry Knox ( July 25, 1750 &ndash October 25, 1806) was an American Bookseller from Boston who became the chief S. government sought to expand into the west through the legal purchase of Native American land in treaties. Indians were encouraged to sell their vast tribal lands and become "civilized", which meant (among other things) for Native American men to abandon hunting and become farmers, and for their society to reorganize around the family unit rather than the clan or tribe. The United States therefore acquired lands by treaty from Indian nations, often under circumstances which suggest a lack of voluntary and knowing consent by the native signers. Advocates of civilization programs believed that the process of settling native tribes would greatly reduce the amount of land needed by the Indians, making more land available for homesteading by white Americans. Thomas Jefferson believed that while American Indians were the intellectual equals of whites, they had to live like the whites or inevitably be pushed aside by them. Thomas Jefferson (April 13 1743 – July 4 1826 was the third President of the United States (1801–1809 the principal author of the Declaration of Independence Jefferson's belief, rooted in Enlightenment thinking, that whites and Native Americans would merge to create a single nation did not last his lifetime, and he began to believe that the natives should emigrate across the Mississippi River and maintain a separate society, an idea made possible by the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. The Age of Enlightenment or The Enlightenment is a term used to describe a phase in Western philosophy and cultural life centered upon the eighteenth century The Mississippi River is the second longest River in the United States, with a length of from its source in Lake Itasca in Minnesota to For the film see Louisiana Purchase (film. The Louisiana Purchase (French Vente de la Louisiane "Louisiana Sale"

In the age of Manifest Destiny, this idea, which came to be known as "Indian Removal", gained ground. Indian Removal was a nineteenth century policy of the government of the United States to ethnically cleanse Native American tribes living east of the Mississippi Although some humanitarian advocates of removal believed that American Indians would be better off moving away from whites, an increasing number of Americans regarded the natives as nothing more than "savages" who stood in the way of American expansion. As historian Reginald Horsman argued in his influential study Race and Manifest Destiny, racial rhetoric increased during the era of Manifest Destiny. Americans increasingly believed that Native Americans would fade away as the United States expanded. As an example, this idea was reflected in the work of one of America's first great historians, Francis Parkman, whose landmark book The Conspiracy of Pontiac was published in 1851. Francis Parkman ( September 16, 1823 &ndash November 8, 1893) was an American historian best known as author of The Oregon Trail Pontiac's Rebellion was a war launched in 1763 by North American Indians who were dissatisfied with British policies in the Great Lakes region after Parkman wrote that Indians were "destined to melt and vanish before the advancing waves of Anglo-American power, which now rolled westward unchecked and unopposed".

Alaska purchase

The Alaska Purchase for $7,200,000 from the Russian Empire occurred in 1867 at the behest of Secretary of State William Seward. The Alaska Purchase (otherwise known as Seward's Folly or Seward's Icebox) by the United States from the Russian Empire occurred in 1867 at the behest The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya Secretary of State is a commonly used title for a Government Official. This article is about the New York Governor and Secretary of State The territory purchased was 586,412 square miles (1,518,800 km²) of the modern state of Alaska. A mile is a unit of Length, usually used to measure Distance, in a number of different systems including Imperial units United States The kilometre ( American spelling: kilometer) symbol km is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to one thousand Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent

Beyond North America

As the Civil War faded into history, the term Manifest Destiny experienced a brief revival. In the 1892 U.S. presidential election, the Republican Party platform proclaimed: "We reaffirm our approval of the Monroe doctrine and believe in the achievement of the manifest destiny of the Republic in its broadest sense. The United States presidential election of 1892 was held on November 8 1892 The Monroe Doctrine is a US doctrine which on December 2 1823 stated that European powers were no longer to colonize or interfere with " What was meant by "manifest destiny" in this context was not clearly defined, particularly since the Republicans lost the election. In the 1896 election, however, the Republicans recaptured the White House and held on to it for the next 16 years. The United States presidential election of November 3 1896 saw Republican William McKinley defeat Democrat William Jennings Bryan in a campaign considered by During that time, Manifest Destiny was cited to promote overseas expansion. United States overseas expansion follows the expansion of US frontiers on the North American continent (see Mexican-American War, War of 1812, and Territorial Whether or not this version of Manifest Destiny was consistent with the continental expansionism of the 1840s was debated at the time, and long afterwards. ^[27]

For example, when President William McKinley advocated annexation of the Territory of Hawaii in 1898, he said that "We need Hawaii as much and a good deal more than we did California. William McKinley Jr ( January 29, 1843 September 14, 1901) was the twenty-fifth President of the United States, and the last The Territory of Hawaii, abbreviated officially as TH, was established on July 7, 1898 and dissolved on August 21, 1959 when It is manifest destiny. " On the other hand, former President Grover Cleveland, a Democrat who had blocked the annexation of Hawaii during his administration, wrote that McKinley's annexation of the territory was a "perversion of our national destiny. Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18 1837 June 24 1908 was both the twenty-second and twenty-fourth President of the United States. " Historians continued that debate; some have interpreted the overseas expansion of the 1890s as an extension of Manifest Destiny across the Pacific Ocean; others have regarded it as the antithesis of Manifest Destiny. The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions ^[28]

Spanish-American War and the Philippines

In 1898, after the sinking of the USS Maine in the harbor at Havana, Cuba, the United States intervened on the side of Cuban rebels who were fighting the Spanish Empire, beginning the Spanish-American War. "The Maine" redirects here For the pop punk band see The Maine (band. Havana ( IPA: aˈβana officially Ciudad de La Habana, is the Capital city, major port and leading The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la Although advocates of Manifest Destiny in the 1840s had called for the annexation of Cuba, the Teller Amendment, passed unanimously by the U. The Teller Amendment was an amendment to a Joint resolution of the United States Congress, enacted on April 20, 1898, in reply to President S. Senate before the war, proclaimed Cuba "free and independent" and disclaimed any U. S. intention to annex the island. After the war, the Platt Amendment (1902) established Cuba as a virtual protectorate of the United States. The Platt Amendment was a rider appended to the Army Appropriations Act, a United States federal law passed on March 2, 1901, which In International law, a protectorate is a autonomous territory that is "protected" by a stronger state or entity hense the protector which engages to protect If Manifest Destiny meant the outright annexation of territory, it no longer applied to Cuba, since Cuba was never annexed.

Unlike Cuba, the United States did annex Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines after the war with Spain. Guam ( Chamorro: cha Guåhån) officially the Territory of Guam, is an island in the western Pacific Ocean and is an organized unincorporated Puerto Rico (ˌpwertoˈriko officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ("Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico" {{lang-en|"Associated Free State of Puerto Rico"}} The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP The acquisition of these islands marked a new chapter in U. S. history. Traditionally, territories were acquired by the United States for the purpose of becoming new states, on equal footing with already existing states. These islands, however, were acquired as colonies rather than prospective states, a process validated by the Insular Cases, in which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that full constitutional rights did not automatically extend to all areas under American control. See Colony and Colonization for examples of colonialism which do not refer to Western colonialism The Insular Cases are several US Supreme Court cases decided early in the 20th century The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States and leads the federal judiciary. In this sense, annexation was a violation of traditional Manifest Destiny. According to Frederick Merk, "Manifest Destiny had contained a principle so fundamental that a Calhoun and an O'Sullivan could agree on it—that a people not capable of rising to statehood should never be annexed. That was the principle thrown overboard by the imperialism of 1899. "^[29] (The Philippines was eventually given its independence in 1946; Guam and Puerto Rico have special status to this day, but all their people are full citizens of the United States. )

On the other hand, Manifest Destiny had also contained within it the idea that "uncivilized" peoples could be improved by exposure to the Christian, democratic values of the United States. In his decision to annex the Philippines, President McKinley echoed this theme: "There was nothing left for us to do but to take them all, and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and civilize and Christianize them. . . . " Rudyard Kipling's poem "The White Man's Burden", which was subtitled "The United States and the Philippine Islands", was a famous expression of these sentiments, which were common at the time. Joseph Rudyard Kipling (30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936 was an English Author and poet " The White Man's Burden " is a poem by the English poet Rudyard Kipling. Many Filipinos, however, resisted this effort to "uplift and civilize" them, resulting in the outbreak of the Philippine-American War in 1899. After the war began, William Jennings Bryan, an opponent of overseas expansion, wrote that "‘Destiny’ is not as manifest as it was a few weeks ago. For other persons of the same name see William Bryan and William Jennings. "^[30]

Later usage

After the turn of the nineteenth century to the twentieth, the phrase Manifest Destiny declined in usage, as territorial expansion ceased to be promoted as being a part of America's "destiny. " Under President Theodore Roosevelt, the role of the United States in the New World was defined, in the 1904 Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, as being an "international police power" to secure American interests in the Western Hemisphere. Theodore Roosevelt (ˈroʊzəvɛlt October 27 1858 January 6 1919 also known as T The Roosevelt Corollary was a substantial amendment to the Monroe Doctrine by U The Monroe Doctrine is a US doctrine which on December 2 1823 stated that European powers were no longer to colonize or interfere with Roosevelt's corollary contained an explicit rejection of territorial expansion. In the past, Manifest Destiny had been seen as necessary to enforce the Monroe Doctrine in the Western Hemisphere, but now expansionism had been replaced by interventionism as a means of upholding the doctrine. Interventionism is a term for a Policy of non-defensive (proactive activity undertaken by a Nation-state, or other Geo-political Jurisdiction

President Woodrow Wilson continued the policy of interventionism in the Americas, and attempted to redefine both Manifest Destiny and America's "mission" on a broader, worldwide scale. Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28 1856—February 3 1924 was the twenty-eighth President of the United States. Wilson led the United States into World War I with the argument that "The world must be made safe for democracy. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All " In his 1920 message to Congress after the war, Wilson stated:

. . . I think we all realize that the day has come when Democracy is being put upon its final test. The Old World is just now suffering from a wanton rejection of the principle of democracy and a substitution of the principle of autocracy as asserted in the name, but without the authority and sanction, of the multitude. This is the time of all others when Democracy should prove its purity and its spiritual power to prevail. It is surely the manifest destiny of the United States to lead in the attempt to make this spirit prevail.

This was the first and only time a president had used the phrase "Manifest Destiny" in his annual address. Wilson's version of Manifest Destiny was a rejection of expansionism and an endorsement (in principle) of self-determination, emphasizing that the United States had a mission to be a world leader for the cause of democracy. Self-determination is defined as free choice of one’s own acts without external compulsion and especially as the freedom of the people of a given Territory to determine their This U. S. vision of itself as the leader of the "free world" would grow stronger in the 20th century after World War II, although rarely would it be described as "Manifest Destiny", as Wilson had done. For other uses of the word see Free world (disambiguation. The Free World is a Cold War -era term often applied to or used by non- World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including ^[31]

Today, in standard scholarly usage, Manifest Destiny describes a past era in American history, particularly the 1840s. However, the term is sometimes used by the political left and by critics of U. S. foreign policy to characterize interventions in the Middle East and elsewhere. In this usage, Manifest Destiny is interpreted as the underlying cause (or the beginning) of what is perceived by some as "American imperialism". American Empire is a term referring to the political economic military and cultural influence of the United States.

See also

History of U.S. expansion and influence

Foreign relations

List of military actions

List of bases

Non-interventionism

Overseas expansion

Overseas interventions

Pax Americana

Territorial acquisitions

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• Golden Circle — an attempt at Cultural Imperialism in Central America after the failed Federal Republic of Central America. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The foreign policy of the United States is highly influential on the world stage as it is a Superpower. From 1776 to 2008 there have been hundreds of instances of the deployment of United States military forces abroad and domestically This is a list of United States military bases currently located around the world The diplomatic policy whereby a nation seeks to avoid alliances with other nations in order to avoid being drawn into wars not related to direct territorial self-defense has had a long history United States overseas expansion follows the expansion of US frontiers on the North American continent (see Mexican-American War, War of 1812, and Territorial In addition to direct annexation of land the United States has been involved in a number of covert and overt military interventions that have had the effect of expanding United States influence Pax Americana ( Latin: "American Peace" describes a period of relative Peace in the Western world since the end of World War II in This is a simplified list of United States territorial acquisitions, beginning with American independence. The Golden Circle was a pan-Caribbean political alliance inspired by the Burr conspiracy, in the 1850s that would have included many countries into a United States-like federal Cultural imperialism is the practice of promoting distinguishing separating or artificially injecting the Culture or language of one nation into another The Federal Republic of Central America, also known as the United Central Provinces of America, was a short-lived American State in Central America
• Frontier Thesis — Frederick Jackson Turner conclusion that the wellsprings of American exceptionalism and vitality have always been the American frontier. The Frontier Thesis or Turner Thesis is the conclusion of Frederick Jackson Turner that the wellsprings of American exceptionalism and vitality have always For other people of this same name see Frederick Jackson and Frederick Turner Frederick Jackson Turner ( November 14, 1861 American exceptionalism (cf " Exceptionalism " refers to the belief that the United States differs qualitatively from other Developed nations A frontier is a Political and Geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary, or of a different nature
• The White Man's Burden — an influential poem by Rudyard Kipling advocating colonization by the United States
• Young America movement — a political and literary movement with connections to Manifest Destiny
• Expansionism — for expansionist ideas in other countries
• Thomas Hart Benton — Missouri senator, proponent of western expansion
• Stephen A. Douglas — prominent spokesman of "Young America"
• Horace Greeley — helped popularize the phrase "Go West, young man. " The White Man's Burden " is a poem by the English poet Rudyard Kipling. Joseph Rudyard Kipling (30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936 was an English Author and poet The Young America Movement was United States political concept popular in the 1840s In general expansionism consists of expansionist policies While some have linked the term to promoting Economic growth (in contrast to no growth / Sustainable policies Thomas Hart Benton nicknamed "Old Bullion" ( March 14, 1782 &ndash April 10, 1858) was a U Stephen Arnold Douglas ( April 23, 1813 - June 3, 1861) was an American politician from the western state of Illinois, and Horace Greeley ( February 3, 1811 &ndash November 29, 1872) was an American editor of a leading newspaper, a founder "
• Duff Green — writer, politician, and prominent Manifest Destiny advocate

Notes

References

• Dunning, Mike. "Manifest Destiny and the Trans-Mississippi South: Natural Laws and the Extension of Slavery into Mexico. " Journal of Popular Culture 2001 35(2): 111-127. ISSN 0022-3840 Fulltext: Ebsco
• Fresonke, Kris. West of Emerson: The Design of Manifest Destiny. U. of California Press, 2003. 201 pp.
• Greenberg, Amy S. Manifest Manhood and the Antebellum American Empire. Cambridge U. Press, 2005. 323 pp.
• Haynes, Sam W. and Christopher Morris, eds. Manifest Destiny and Empire: American Antebellum Expansionism. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press, 1997. ISBN 0-89096-756-3.
• Hofstadter, Richard. Richard Hofstadter ( August 6, 1916 - October 24, 1970) was an American Historian and DeWitt Clinton Professor of American History "Cuba, the Philippines, and Manifest Destiny" in The Paranoid Style in American Politics and Other Essays. New York: Knopf, 1965.
• Horsman, Reginald. Race and Manifest Destiny: The Origins of American Racial Anglo-Saxonism. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1981.
• McDougall, Walter A. Promised Land, Crusader State: The American Encounter with the World Since 1776. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1997.
• May, Robert E. Manifest Destiny's Underworld: Filibustering in Antebellum America. U. of North Carolina Press, 2002. 426 pp.
• Merk, Frederick. Manifest Destiny and Mission in American History: A Reinterpretation. New York, Knopf, 1963.
• Pinheiro, John C. "'Religion Without Restriction': Anti-catholicism, All Mexico, and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. " Journal of the Early Republic 2003 23(1): 69-96. ISSN 0275-1275
• Sampson, Robert D. "The Pacifist-reform Roots of John L. O'Sullivan's Manifest Destiny" Mid-America 2002 84(1-3): 129-144. ISSN 0026-2927
• Smith, Gene A. Thomas ap Catesby Jones: Commodore of Manifest Destiny (Library of Naval Biography Series. ) Annapolis: Naval Inst. Press, 2000. 223 pp.
• Stephanson, Anders. Manifest Destiny: American Expansionism and the Empire of Right. New York: Hill and Wang, 1995. ISBN 0-8090-1584-6; ISBN 0-89096-756-3. (review)
• Stuart, Reginald C. United States Expansionism and British North America, 1775–1871. Chapel Hill, N. C. : University of North Carolina Press, 1988. ISBN 0-8078-1767-8
• Tuveson, Ernest Lee. Redeemer Nation: The Idea of America's Millennial Role. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1968.
• Weeks, William Earl. Building the Continental Empire: American Expansion from the Revolution to the Civil War. Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 1996. ISBN 1-56663-135-1.
• Weinberg, Albert K. Manifest Destiny: A Study of Nationalist Expansionism in American History. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins, 1935. Cited by many scholars.

Further reading

• Brown, Charles H. Agents of Manifest Destiny: The Lives and Times of the Filibusters. University of North Carolina Press, 1980. ISBN 0-8078-1361-3.
• Burns, Edward McNall. The American Idea of Mission: Concepts of National Purpose and Destiny. New Brunswick, N. J. : Rutgers University Press, 1957.
• Graebner, Norman A. , ed. Manifest Destiny. Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill, 1968.
• Heidler, David S. and Jeanne T. Heidler. Manifest Destiny. Westport, Conn. : Greenwood Press, 2003.
• Hietala, Thomas. Manifest Design: American Exceptionalism and Empire, 2003. Previously published as Manifest Design: Anxious Aggrandizement in Late Jacksonian America, 1985.
• May, Robert E. Manifest Destiny's Underworld: Filibustering in Antebellum America. University of North Carolina Press, 2002. ISBN 0-8078-2703-7.
• Morrison, Michael A. Slavery and the American West: The Eclipse of Manifest Destiny and the Coming of the Civil War University of North Carolina Press. 1997.
• Sampson, Robert D. John L. O'Sullivan and His Times Ohio: Kent State University Press, 2003.

External links

• Manifest Destiny and the U.S.-Mexican War: Then and Now
• The March 1845 Inaugural Address of James K. Polk.