Why was the Mexican Cession wanted by U.S.?
100731
The Mexican Cession is a historical name for the region of the present day southwestern United States that was ceded to the U.S. by Mexico in 1848 under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo following the Mexican-American War. The cession of this territory from Mexico was a condition for the end of the war. For the 38 years between 1810, when Mexico declared its independence from Spain, and 1848, the region had formed approximately one-third of the territory of Mexico; prior to that, it had been a part – albeit a remote one, largely without European settlement – of the Spanish colony of New Spain for some three centuries.\n\nIt includes all of the present-day states of California, Nevada, and Utah, as well as the portions of:\n\nArizona excluding the region later annexed in the Gadsden Purchase \nColorado west of the boundary of the former Republic of Texas \nNew Mexico west of the Rio Grande and excluding the Gadsden Purchase \nWyoming west of the former Republic of Texas boundary and south of the 42nd parallel. \nThe treaty also specified the U.S.-Mexican border as being at the Rio Grande (Río Bravo del Norte). Previously the portion of Texas between the Nueces River and the Rio Grande had remained disputed throughout the existence of the Republic of Texas. The United States had already claimed the area as part of the Texas Annexation in 1845.
470985
There wasn't much of a coherent argument. People were scared because of the Panic of 1893 that the US was running out of natural resources and capital, and businesses feared that they would need to have new land to be able to be competitive in the industrial world. The actual expansion that took place was justified by accusations that Spain was abusing its colonies, and so we had a moral obligation to come to their aid, but that's clearly not why we went to war with Spain.
525306
The 5th of May is not Mexican Independence Day, but it should be!  And Cinco de Mayo is not an American holiday, but it should be.  Mexico declared its independence from mother Spain on midnight, the 15th of September, 1810.  And it took 11 years before the first Spanish soldiers were told and forced to leave Mexico. \n\nSo, why Cinco de Mayo?  And why should Americans savor this day as well?  Because 4,000 Mexican soldiers smashed the French and traitor Mexican army of 8,000 at Puebla, Mexico, 100 miles east of Mexico City on the morning of May 5, 1862. \n\nThe French had landed in Mexico (along with Spanish and English troops) five months earlier on the pretext of collecting Mexican debts from the newly elected government of democratic President (and Indian) Benito Juarez.  The English and Spanish quickly made deals and left.  The French, however, had different ideas. \n\nUnder Emperor Napoleon III, who detested the United States, the French came to stay.  They brought a Hapsburg prince with them to rule the new Mexican empire.  His name was Maximilian; his wife, Carolota.  Napoleon's French Army had not been defeated in 50 years, and it invaded Mexico with the finest modern equipment and with a newly reconstituted Foreign Legion.  The French were not afraid of anyone, especially since the United States was embroiled in its own Civil War. \n\nThe French Army left the port of Vera Cruz to attack Mexico City to the west, as the French assumed that the Mexicans would give up should their capital fall to the enemy -- as European countries traditionally did. \n\nUnder the command of Texas-born General Zaragosa, (and the cavalry under the command of Colonel Porfirio Diaz, later to be Mexico's president and dictator), the Mexicans awaited.  Brightly dressed French Dragoons led the enemy columns.  The Mexican Army was less stylish. \n\nGeneral Zaragosa ordered Colonel Diaz to take his cavalry, the best in the world, out to the French flanks.  In response, the French did a most stupid thing; they sent their cavalry off to chase Diaz and his men, who proceeded to butcher them.  The remaining French infantrymen charged the Mexican defenders through sloppy mud from a thunderstorm and through hundreds of head of stampeding cattle stirred up by Indians armed only with machetes. \n\nWhen the battle was over, many French were killed or wounded and their cavalry was being chased by Diaz' superb horsemen miles away.  The Mexicans had won a great victory that kept Napoleon III from supplying the confederate rebels for another year, allowing the United States to build the greatest army the world had ever seen.  This grand army smashed the Confederates at Gettysburg just 14 months after the battle of Puebla, essentially ending the Civil War. \n\nUnion forces were then rushed to the Texas/Mexican border under General Phil Sheridan, who made sure that the Mexicans got all the weapons and ammunition they needed to expel the French.  American soldiers were discharged with their uniforms and rifles if they promised to join the Mexican Army to fight the French.  The American Legion of Honor marched in the Victory Parade in Mexico, City. \n\nIt might be a historical stretch to credit the survival of the United States to those brave 4,000 Mexicans who faced an army twice as large in 1862.  But who knows? \n\nIn gratitude, thousands of Mexicans crossed the border after Pearl Harbor to join the U.S. Armed Forces.  As recently as the Persian Gulf War, Mexicans flooded American consulates with phone calls, trying to join up and fight another war for America. \n\nMexicans, you see, never forget who their friends are, and neither do Americans.  That's why Cinco de Mayo is such a party -- A party that celebrates freedom and liberty.  There are two ideals which Mexicans and Americans have fought shoulder to shoulder to protect, ever since the 5th of May, 1862.
502005
A better option would be to allow the Mexican public an opportunity to vote themselves in to a negotiated merger, or essentially a referendum on the performance of their government over the past century.  Of course the Mexican Goverment would never allow that any more than US Goverment would.  A huge amount of the reason that Mexicans come to the US looking for jobs is that the PRI managed to keep Mexico's economy from developing in a normal fashion during the bulk of the 20th century.  Some of the pandering of the US goverment to Mexico could very well be explained by a desire to see the PAN remain in control of the Goverment in Mexico, however in the long run the US needs to secure it's borders, punish US employers of Illegals and do what we can in helping Mexico provide enough jobs for their own population.  Though hypothetically combining the two countries does make some sense.
220871
The United Mexican States or Mexico (Spanish: Estados Unidos Mexicanos or México; regarding the use of the variant spelling Méjico, see section The name below) is a country located in North America, bordered by the United States to the north, and Belize and Guatemala to the southeast. It is the northernmost and westernmost country in Latin America, and also the most populous Spanish-speaking country in the world. Mexico is considered the most advanced country in Latin America.[citation needed]\n\nThe country is often referred to by Mexicans as the Mexican Republic (Spanish: Republica Mexicana) although this is not the officially recognised title. The term State of Mexico (Spanish: Estado de Mexico) does not refer to the country, but only to one state within Mexico, located near the centre of the country adjacent to the Federal District.\n\nOn September 16, 1810, independence from Spain was declared by Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, a Catholic priest in the small town of Dolores, causing a long war that eventually led to the official recognition of independence from Spain in 1821 and the creation of the First Mexican Empire. Actually, Hidalgo declared the independence from France, as José Bonaparte (Napoleon's brother), also known in Mexico as Pepe Botella (Spanish: Bottle Joe, as he had a fame of a heavy drinker), was ruling Spain at that time. The initial intention of the movement, then, was to obtain independence from France while still remaining part of Spain. As the war escalated, however, the objective changed to independence from Spain.\n\nAfter independence, Spanish possessions in Central America which also proclaimed independence were all incorporated into Mexico from 1822 to 1823, with the exception of Chiapas.\n\nSoon after achieving its independence from Spain, the Mexican government, in an effort to populate its sparsely-settled hinterlands, awarded land grants in a remote area of the northernmost state of Coahuila y Tejas to hundreds of immigrant families from the United States, on the condition that the settlers convert to Catholicism and assume Mexican citizenship. It also forbade the importation of slaves, a condition that, like the others, was largely ignored.\n\nIn the 1860s, the country again suffered a military occupation, this time by France, seeking to establish the Habsburg Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian of Austria as Emperor of Mexico, with support from the Roman Catholic clergy and conservative elemens of the upper class as well as some indigenous communities. The Second Mexican Empire was then overthrown by President Benito Juárez, with diplomatic and logistical support from the United States and the military expertise of General Porfirio Díaz. General Ignacio Zaragoza defeated the French Army (arguably the most powerful in the world at the time) at the city of Puebla on May 5, 1862, celebrated as Cinco de Mayo ever since. However, after his death, the city was lost in early 1863, following a renewed French attack which penetrated as far as Mexico City, forcing Juárez to organize an itinerant government.\n\n \nBenito Juarez, important figure of Mexican historyNapoleon III of France, Emperor of France, returned Maximillian as Emperor of Mexico from 1864 to 1867. In mid-1867, following repeated losses in battle to the Republican Army, Maximilian was captured and executed by Juárez's soldiers, along with his last loyal generals,Mejia and Miramon in Querétaro. From then on, Juárez remained in office until his death from heart failure in 1872.\n\nAfter Juárez's death, Mexico experienced economic growth under the liberal and pro-European rule of Porfirio Díaz. Foreign investment allowed the development of the oil industry and the construction of a railroad system across the country. This period of relative peace and prosperity is known as the "Porfiriato". His mandate, however, was mostly undemocratic and benefited the middle and upper classes, while the Amerindian indigenous pop
718663
Good point! I totally agree with you. And another thing that stumps me is when thy go around waving the mexican flag. I thought they wanted to be Americn citizens.
467326
The 5th of May is not Mexican Independence Day, but it should be!  And Cinco de Mayo is not an American holiday, but it should be.  Mexico declared its independence from mother Spain on midnight, the 15th of September, 1810.  And it took 11 years before the first Spanish soldiers were told and forced to leave Mexico.\n\nSo, why Cinco de Mayo?  And why should Americans savor this day as well?  Because 4,000 Mexican soldiers smashed the French and traitor Mexican army of 8,000 at Puebla, Mexico, 100 miles east of Mexico City on the morning of May 5, 1862.\n\nThe French had landed in Mexico (along with Spanish and English troops) five months earlier on the pretext of collecting Mexican debts from the newly elected government of democratic President (and Indian) Benito Juarez.  The English and Spanish quickly made deals and left.  The French, however, had different ideas.\n\nUnder Emperor Napoleon III, who detested the United States, the French came to stay.  They brought a Hapsburg prince with them to rule the new Mexican empire.  His name was Maximilian; his wife, Carolota.  Napoleon's French Army had not been defeated in 50 years, and it invaded Mexico with the finest modern equipment and with a newly reconstituted Foreign Legion.  The French were not afraid of anyone, especially since the United States was embroiled in its own Civil War.\n\nThe French Army left the port of Vera Cruz to attack Mexico City to the west, as the French assumed that the Mexicans would give up should their capital fall to the enemy -- as European countries traditionally did.\n\nUnder the command of Texas-born General Zaragosa, (and the cavalry under the command of Colonel Porfirio Diaz, later to be Mexico's president and dictator), the Mexicans awaited.  Brightly dressed French Dragoons led the enemy columns.  The Mexican Army was less stylish.\n\nGeneral Zaragosa ordered Colonel Diaz to take his cavalry, the best in the world, out to the French flanks.  In response, the French did a most stupid thing; they sent their cavalry off to chase Diaz and his men, who proceeded to butcher them.  The remaining French infantrymen charged the Mexican defenders through sloppy mud from a thunderstorm and through hundreds of head of stampeding cattle stirred up by Indians armed only with machetes.\n\nWhen the battle was over, many French were killed or wounded and their cavalry was being chased by Diaz' superb horsemen miles away.  The Mexicans had won a great victory that kept Napoleon III from supplying the confederate rebels for another year, allowing the United States to build the greatest army the world had ever seen.  This grand army smashed the Confederates at Gettysburg just 14 months after the battle of Puebla, essentially ending the Civil War.\n\nUnion forces were then rushed to the Texas/Mexican border under General Phil Sheridan, who made sure that the Mexicans got all the weapons and ammunition they needed to expel the French.  American soldiers were discharged with their uniforms and rifles if they promised to join the Mexican Army to fight the French.  The American Legion of Honor marched in the Victory Parade in Mexico, City.\n\nIt might be a historical stretch to credit the survival of the United States to those brave 4,000 Mexicans who faced an army twice as large in 1862.  But who knows?\n\nIn gratitude, thousands of Mexicans crossed the border after Pearl Harbor to join the U.S. Armed Forces.  As recently as the Persian Gulf War, Mexicans flooded American consulates with phone calls, trying to join up and fight another war for America.\n\nMexicans, you see, never forget who their friends are, and neither do Americans.  That's why Cinco de Mayo is such a party -- A party that celebrates freedom and liberty.  There are two ideals which Mexicans and Americans have fought shoulder to shoulder to protect, ever since the 5th of May, 1862.  VIVA! el CINCO DE MAYO!!
430724
IT'S ALL A CONSPIRACY!  Seriously, I agree.  My question is why can't Mexico make their nation a prosperous democracy as well.  The differences between the U.S. and Mexico is staggering.
463552
"In late 1861, Napoleon III of France sent his troops to Mexico, supposedly to collect debts owed by a previous Mexican government. President Benito Juárez had agreed to pay these debts, but only in installments. The true goal of Napoleon III was to dispose of the Mexican Constitutional Government, set up a monarchy favorable to France, and then expand control to Central and South America.\n\nNapoleon III's troops occupied the port city of Veracruz on December 8, 1861. The expedition's true goal soon became apparent."\n\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Puebla\n\nhttp://www.historychannel.com/tdih/tdih.jsp?category=general&month=10272957&day=10272970
849587
The US could invade anyone it wants to, including Mexico or up here in Canada. the question is: why would they?
549850
The only salvation for Mexico's corrupt society is to force the U.S. to take upon itself all the millions of Mexican citizens it cannot find jobs for, homes for, schools for, hospitals for, or prisons for. Mexico looks to the U.S. as a source of remittance income, the hugely valuable drug trade, and a dumping grounds for the societal problems it has no ability, stomach, or interest to tackle as any other respectable nation would.
659136
Hey thewanderer862004.  I think you need to read up on American history.  The US did attack and capture Mexico City, but we gave it back because it was 2 weeks after the end of the Mexican-American war in 1848.\n\nHowever, The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, signed on February 2, 1848, ended the war and gave the U.S control of Texas, California, Nevada, Utah, and parts of Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, and Wyoming.
389320
Because they signed a contract with the U.S. government obliging them to do so, if so ordered.  \nAny more dumba** questions?
611696
Because Mexico has had it really hard to build a Democracy. With out a democracy it is really hard to create a good Economy and with out a good Economy it is hard to create the same opportunities for everyone (food, place to live, education, employment, etc...) So it is not that the gov of Mexico wants to play rude with mexicans. It is question of politics. And yes, i agree with the person above me, civic culture is not learned at school so unfortunately there is corruption in the government. So, it is hard for us to keep all of us happy because we live in a place we love but many of us are poor and do not have the opportunities we wish for. \nThe basic difference (in a historic sight) is that the US started from cero, and Mexico started from 300 years of spanish coloniage. During those days Spain was not as GB in the sense of democracy and liberties, Parliament representation etc... So we had a bad example, so to speak. And a really unequal society to begin with. On the contrary the US had an equal society and therefor they could build a stable democracy and a stable free country (free economy and free life). For us, during the 19. Centrury, it was really hard to build a proper State because we were on war the whole century, independance war, invasions (US, France) and civil war. Until 1920 that formally the civil war ended we had a "democratic" government under a democratic constitution, but this government, in order to create peace between the revolutionary parties, created a state party the PRI, and this party stayed during 70 years on the government. So, until the early 80`s we had a real party system. Then until 2000 another party won the presidential race and we had Fox as president. Fox has tryied to make better conditions (economicall as well as social) but it is not so easy and less in this times when the economy of a country depends on the global trade. And what makes our situation worse is that we have to trade and compete with one of the most powerful economies in the world: the US, because of our geografical situation. And because of that, Mexico is isolated from Sudamerica also, where they have their own cooperation system in a more simetric way. So to answer to your question Mexico wants to keep their people happy, Mexico wants to secure the land. Mexicans love their country (i love my country) but it is not so easy you know? That is one of the reasons many people do not like the opinions of US citizens in these matter, because for us democracy and freedom are so hard to get, and for you are so normal. It is not normal and it is REALLY hard to get.
910942
There is really no way to explain why except to say that the government of mexico is totally concerned with what others are doing at the cost of it's own people. It is the type of government that would rather keep more than half of it's people below poverty and at the same time have legislative meeting to petition the American government to allow criminals to walk free in American society. The government of mexico and the people who put them there are NOT accepted as a world class country for just that type of reason.
614766
OH HELL NO! Never. Mexico govt. would never go for it...they'd lose too much power. U.S. is better off with out them.
658577
The reason that land belongs to the United States is because the people that lived there at the time wanted to be a part of the United States, not Mexico. Apparently, nobody wants to live in Mexico since they all want to come here. I wouldn't want to live in Mexico. If I were a Mexican citizen I would want the whole country of Mexico to become part of the United States.