The Alamo

By Chavez marcial

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The Alamo began in 1844 when President James K. Polk ran on a Democratic platform that supported manifest destiny, the idea that Americans were supposed to live in the entire North American continent. The last act of the president John Tyler, the one before Polk was to annex the Republic of Texas in 1845. Polk wanted to claim California, New Mexico, and land near the unclear southern border of Texas. Still, Mexico was not so eager to let go of these territories.

Polk started by trying to buy the land. He sent an American diplomat, John Slidell, to Mexico City to offer $30 million for it. But the Mexican government said no to even meet with Slidell. Polk got mad. Was set to acquire the land, he sent American troops to Texas in January of 1846 to pursue the Mexicans into war.

When the Mexicans fired on American troops in April 25, 1846, Polk had the excuse he needed. He said “Mexico has invaded our territory and shed American blood upon American soil," and sent the order for war to Congress on May 11.

The act was questionable, many northerners thought that Polk, was trying to get land for the slaveholding South. Other Americans thought it was wrong to use war to take land from Mexico. One of those people were Second Lieutenant Ulysses S. Grant.

Even if during the war he showed no doubts about it, he later called the war "one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation. It was an instance of a republic following the bad example of European monarchies, in not considering justice in their desire to acquire additional territory."

Even with arguments over whether the war was the right thing to do or not. Americans had success on the battlefield. Young officers like Grant and Robert E. Lee, a guy that later lead armies against one another in the Civil War had their first combat experiences in Mexico.