The Legacy of 19the Spanish Civil Law in the State of California - Coursework Example

Jura Regalia The Legacy of 19th c. Spanish Civil Law in the of California During the 19th century, United s grew drastically in powerand size due to the rapid expansion that was pursued. The reasons for American Expansion during the nineteenth century were to gain power and have a significant influence over the region. President Thomas Jefferson purchased the Louisiana territory from France in 1803 which doubled the size of the new nation (Growth of a nation). The United States was facing threats from Britain and Britain had imposed an embargo on the US which was hurting the Americans. Hence in 1812, with President Madison in office, Congress declared war against the British. The war ended in 1814 and a treaty was signed between the US and the British and the relation returned to the same status as they were before the war and US neither gained nor lost any of its territory. In 1819, Alabama was declared as a free state and resultantly the US was divided into 11 Free states and 11 slave states. The Missouri crisis arose in 1819-1820 when Missouri applied for the status of slave state. But the Northerners rejected this application since they wanted to maintain a balance between the free and the slave states. So under Missouri compromise, Maine was declared as a Free State and Missouri as a slave state which maintained the balance between free and slave states and also accepted the Missouri’s application of being a slave state (Slave Country: American Expansion and the Origins of the Deep South). In 1821, Mexico gained independence from Spain and opened its borders to American settlers and due to this there was an inflow of American immigrants in Mexico. Texas was colonized in 1821 and the people of Texas revolted against the Mexican government in 1835 and became an independent state in 1836. The Indian removal act was passed in 1830 and according to this act, the president of US, Andrew Jackson, had the funds and the authority to remove the Indians by force if it was necessary (Spark notes). As a result, the tribes on the East of the Mississippi River were forced to march towards the Indian Territory which is now known as Oklahoma. In 1836, Arkansas was admitted as the slave state and Michigan was admitted in 1837 as a free state. Florida and Texas were admitted as slave states in 1845. All the land claimed by Texas was included and this was not accepted by Mexico since she consider this as a land grab of it’s territory and hence Mexican war (1846-1848) followed. The Americans invaded Mexico and conquered New Mexico, California and parts of Northern Mexico and consequently there was Mexican Cessation of the territories Texas and the entire Southwest including California for $15million. Later, gold was discovered in California which further contributed to the success of the region. In 1848, Iowa and Wisconsin were admitted as Free states. In 1850, California was declared as a free state and at the same time Texas was reduced in size. The Gadsden Purchase of 1853 completed the territory of the continental United States. After Texas, no more slave states were admitted. Minnesota and Oregon became Free states in 1858 and 1859 respectively. In the 1850’s battle between free and slaves turned to the territories and by 1860 each territory was free to choose whether it wants to be free or a slave state. The rapid expansion helped the United States to become a leading agricultural nation of the world. New technology and innovations were introduced which helped in the increased output of the economy and boosted economic growth in the region. The discovery of minerals also helped to boost the economic situation of the region, especially the discovery of gold in California in 1848. Moreover, manufacturing sector also flourished since new machinery and technology was used which improved the efficiency of the manufactured goods of the United States. The development of transportation had a significant impact in improving the economic situation of the region. The introduction of railways improved the transportation system and helped the region. Urbanization increased as people moved from smaller cities to large cities in search of work and this resulted in a rapid increase in the population of the major cities in the US. At that time the literature including novels, newspapers and philosophical works depicted the culture of a country. After 1820, the Americans started reading novels and philosophers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson praised the beauty of nature and the American culture was starting to develop (history of the United States expansion). A new printing press known as the lithography was introduced which enabled the writers to produce many copies of their works cheaply. Faster printing presses were also introduced and reduced the cost of printing newspapers. In 1837, Charles Dickens’s Oliver twist was published and gained popularity among the Americans. Similarly many novelists and philosophers published their works and this contributed in building a distinct American culture. The nineteenth century American education is commonly referred to as ‘the common school period’ since this was the time when education went from being completely private to being available to the common masses (19th century education). In 1821 first public high school was established so that even people, who could not afford private schools, could send their children to the public schools. Standardized courses were introduced so that children across the country were taught the same lessons. Steps were also taken to promote education among women and in 1823; Catherine Beecher founded the first private school for girls. In 1835, Oberlin College became the first coeducational college of the US and promoted education among the women. Due to these steps taken, the education level of the people of the U.S improved and contributed towards economic growth and better living standards of the people. The American expansion of the nineteenth century had immense consequences on the locals as well as the people living in the neighboring areas including Mexicans and Indians of the Southwest. American-Mexican war took place in 1846 and this helped the people of US to unite and promoted a new wave of patriotism among the nation. Resultantly, US won the war and conquered most of the Mexican areas. After the treaty signed between the British and the Americans in 1815, both regions enjoyed peaceful relations and till date we see that US and Britain have very good relations. The Indians in the Southwest were forced to leave US and most of the Indians were concentrated in a small region west of Mississippi which is now known as Oklahoma. Many battles were fought between the US army and the Indian tribes. Later the Indian tribes were granted US citizenship and Indian Territory became part of Kansas and Oklahoma. There was a civil war in America from 1861-1865 between the free and slave territories. This is regarded as one of the most catastrophic events in the US history since more than 600,000 people were killed in the war (Killing ground). However this civil war proved to be a blessing in disguise for America since it helped to unite the North and the South. The victory of the Free states also proved that democracy is not a fragile. Abraham Lincoln was the president that time and according to him the civil war was a test for democracy and its outcome would determine the fate of the whole world (The Gettysburg address) The locals gained a lot from the expansion as US became a large region with a booming economy and had considerable power. The living standards of the people improved due to high economic growth in the region. Hence the overall impact on the locals was very positive and beneficial for the people. Conclusion: The American expansion of the nineteenth century is one of the most significant events that history has ever witnessed. The expansion impacted the whole world significantly and the introduction of democracy was the most significant event in the world history. In conclusion, although lots of blood was shed and many wars were fought by US to gain 50 states that it today has, the American expansion has been beneficial for the whole world since it gave democracy and changed the complete map of the world. References: Growth of a nation. “animatedatlas.com/movie.html” retrieved on 25 June 2010 Slave Country: American Expansion and the Origins of the Deep South. “scribd.com/doc/17639175/Slave-Country-American-Expansion-and-the-Origins-of-the-Deep-South” SparkNotes Editors. “SparkNote on Westward Expansion (1807-1912).” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. n.d.. Web. 25 Jun. 2010. history of United States Expansion. “theusaonline.com/history/expansion.htm” retrieved on June 25, 2010 American Educational History. “cloudnet.com/~edrbsass/educationhistorytimeline.html” 19th century education. “chesapeake.edu/library/EDU_101/eduhist_19thC.asp” Killing ground. “books.google.com/books?id=YpAuHGkuIe0C&pg=PA&dq&hl=en#v=onepage&q&f=false” The Gettysburg address. “showcase.netins.net/web/creative/lincoln/speeches/gettysburg.htm” Read More