New Territory Settled (College Board AP® US History): Study Guide

James K. Polk & Annexation

Timeline

James K. Polk’s Presidency

• Polk was president from 1845 to1849

• He believed in Manifest Destiny, which emphasized the nation’s divine right to expand

• Polk oversaw:

  • the annexation of Texas (1845)

  • the acquisition of Oregon Territory (1846)

• His policies and legislation included:

  • support for Western expansion 

  • incorporation of new territories into the Union

  • new laws to make expansion more appealing to farmers and settlers

  • encouragement of migration and development

• Polk’s policies had an impact on the slavery debate

  • The addition of new states increased tensions between pro-slavery and anti-slavery groups

  • Each new state’s status (free or slave) could tip the balance of power in Congress

Texas 

• In 1820, Mexico encouraged American settlers to migrate to Texas, a state of Mexico at that time

• Stephen F. Austin, one of the first empresarios, helped to establish a colony of American settlers

• These settlers were mostly:

  • Protestant

  • Southerners

  • slave owners 

  • pro-slavery

• Mexico, under the dictator Santa Anna, tried to enforce laws saying that:

  • all settlers in Texas must convert to Catholicism

  • slavery was banned

• Santa Anna was forced to bring the military in to gain compliance from the American settlers, which led to conflict

• This led to the Texas War for Independence (1835–36) between the Texan settlers and Mexico

Key battles in the Texas War for Independence

The Alamo: 

• The Alamo was a major defeat for Texas, which sought independence from Mexico

  • It led to the deaths of nearly all of the 200 settlers seeking independence

  • It spurred Texans to seek revenge

Battle of San Jacinto:

• Sam Houston, a former congressman from Tennessee, had moved to Texas, where he took up the cause of the settlers wanting to separate from Mexico

  • Houston led Texan troops at the Battle of San Jacinto to defeat Mexican force

  • The Mexican government was defeated at the Battle of San Jacinto

• Texas won independence

• As a result of Houston’s efforts during the Texas War for Independence, the people of Texas elected him their first president in 1836

Oregon

• Britain and the United States shared control of Oregon

  • The British claimed the entire territory of Oregon as they had a profitable fur trade in place

  • American farmers began to immigrate to the region

• The border dispute was resolved

  • The 49^th Paralle became the official boundary

    • Everything south of the 49^th Parallel became part of the United States

    • Everything north of the 49^th Parallel remained British territory (now Canada)