1783 after the victory of the war of independence, the United States decided to control the whole of North America. 1835, the United States incited planter rebellion in Texas, Mexico. 1845, the United States annexed Texas and made greater territorial claims. It not only demarcated the border between Texas and Mexico, but also forcibly bought California and New Mexico from Mexico. So war is inevitable in the end. 1846, the United States declared war on Mexico. The 1 1 president of the United States, Polk (1845 ~ 1849), led by Zachary Taylor (who later became the 12 president), sent 3,500 regular troops to attack northern Mexico. Polk's targets are California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Wyoming.

A tattered American army

In Texas, a volunteer army of about 60 thousand people joined Taylor's team. Most of them are not prepared for a brutal war at all, and their uniforms are varied and even tattered. In a letter to his wife, Napoleon Dana, then lieutenant of the army, described it this way: "People here wear all kinds of clothes according to their own preferences, some have colorful shirts, while others prefer jackets; Some people wear straw hats, many people wear wide-brimmed hats, and some even wear cotton trousers. Look, this is what we played at that time ... I was wearing an old straw hat and blue plaid pants knitted by my baby, but unfortunately my legs were worn out, eye to eye and hole to hole. Do you remember my coat? It's washed white now. In this way, the enemy bullets will not recognize me as an official. "

Although the US military has approached the border, Mexicans still don't take them seriously, because in terms of numbers, the Mexican army is three times more than the US military, and even the outside world is optimistic about Mexico. The Times of London made it clear that the Mexican army was "stronger than the American army".

Historian Rofeld did not stop at the uniforms of both sides. He outlined a more realistic picture: "The situation is obviously not good for Mexico. Mexico has a population of 7.25 million, only half that of the United States; In addition, Mexico is under the leadership of an unstable government ... the army is inevitably involved in the infighting for state power, which has a considerable impact on morale and military discipline; Until 1847, the Mexican army also asked soldiers to salute or take off their hats in front of officers. "

Although the Mexican army has a number of new cavalry on the battlefield, such as lancers, light cavalry and heavy cavalry, the advantage of the US military lies in their command system. Taylor, Scott and other senior commanders are excellent generals, supported by a group of commanders at all levels who graduated from West Point Military Academy, with about 200 people. This includes Robert Lee and hiram grant, that is, these junior officers fought their own battles in the later civil war.

The democratic government sent troops, but they never really wanted their children to win successfully. On the contrary, President Polk hoped Scott would make enough mistakes on his way to Mexico.

The victory in the northern battlefield made Polk neglect Taylor.

In the first few encounters, the United States won a series of victories in northern Mexico and gained the initiative. However, their success was soon greatly reduced by the terrible epidemic. Cholera, measles and yellow fever began to break out, and at least 1500 soldiers fell down and died in the summer of 1846. In September, Taylor arrived in Monterey (now a city in western California). Texas cavalry and American regular army occupied artillery positions on the highlands around the city, then turned the muzzle and stormed Monterrey. This action resulted in 120 American soldiers killed and 368 injured, while Mexico suffered even more casualties.

The news of Monterey's capture caused a sensation in America, and everyone applauded. In this way, Taylor became the best candidate for the opposition presidential candidate. Polk wanted to stop the war, but he was strongly criticized by public opinion. The opposition says the president is too kind to Mexicans. Polk was riding a tiger, so he ordered Taylor to be stationed in Monterrey. Most of his troops joined Scott's team and prepared to go straight to the heart of Mexico.

From amphibious landing to decisive battle

In order to completely defeat Mexico, US President Polk ordered the US troops to advance into the Mexican capital. Because it takes 800 kilometers of rural roads to capture Mexico City by land, Polk decided to use American maritime power to transport an army of 9,000 people to Veracruz (a seaport in eastern Mexico) through the Gulf of Mexico. The army is led by Scott.

Veracruz is the largest port on the east coast of Mexico and has important strategic value. Scott concentrated 13000 troops, equipped with 50 cannons, and attacked the port with the support of the navy's Gulf of Mexico sub-fleet. The port is guarded by 4000 Mexican soldiers, and its fortifications are strong. In order to complete the amphibious attack, Scott specially ordered a special landing craft and made intensive training and careful preparations for the troops. On March 9, the US military began to land on the beach 5000 meters southeast of Veracruz. Because the Mexican army did not resist, 8,000 American troops landed smoothly without any casualties. Then, the US military began to besiege Veracruz, and 72 US warships and army artillery brutally shelled Veracruz for several days. The city was severely damaged by the heavy artillery fire of the American army.

After the occupation of Veracruz, American troops rushed to the Mexican capital, and in September, American troops arrived in Mexico City. Mexican President Santa Ann deployed large troops in Mexico City, and at the same time deployed a considerable number of troops on the two wings: one is the mill near Malimo, and the other is the Chapel Pego fortress overlooking the city. On September 8, American troops attacked Malimo at night. The adventure was a great success. Mexican troops were forced to leave the factory. Later, it was discovered that this mill was not a place to produce guns, but a warehouse to store grain and grass.

Five days later, the attack on Pego Church began. Scott mobilized artillery to bombard the fortress all day. On the morning of September 13, 500 volunteers took a ladder and began to storm. This is a cruel battle. Rushed in front is the United States Marine Corps (this action has also been written into the song of the United States Marine Corps), and the commander-in-chief of the assault operation, Major Twiggs, charged in front with his beloved double-barreled shotgun and died here. Because the Marine Corps was so brave, 13 of the 23 officers were promoted immediately after the war. The Mexican army is also unambiguous. The students in the military academy braved the bullets and fought back bravely, killing and injuring American troops everywhere. After the Mexican army ran out of bullets, it fought hand-to-hand with the enemy. Finally, six young students fought to the last man and died gloriously, so they were called "young heroes".

/kloc-On the evening of September, 0/3, Santa Ann saw that the tide had run out and led his troops out of the city to retreat. He released all the prisoners in the prison in order to make trouble for the American troops entering the city. The mayor of Mexico City begged Scott and asked his army to respect the rights of his people. At dawn the next day, American troops entered the city in large numbers.

Grant wrote in his autobiography: "When we entered the city, American troops were ambushed everywhere." "The street is deserted and almost a dead city, except for gunshots from hidden places from time to time."

A strange envoy

1847 in April, before the end of the war, US President Polk sent Nicolas Twist, secretary of the State Council, to Mexico. His mission was to make Mexico give up California and New Mexico peacefully, but in June 1847, with the smooth progress of the war, the president not only demanded more land, but also thought that Drizzt had humiliated his mission and wanted to recall it.

But twist refused to go home. 1848 On February 2nd, Drizzt negotiated and signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo on the basis of the initial instructions. According to the treaty, the United States will pay Mexico $6.5438+0.5 million and compensate its citizens for $3.25 million in losses caused by fighting Mexico. In exchange, Mexico ceded 2.3 million square kilometers of land.

There is no doubt that President Polk felt incredible about this guy's free will, and domestic expansionists also thought that the territory of the United States was too small, but in March of 10, the Senate actually approved the treaty, and Mr. Drizzt, who ignored the president's orders, was fine.

1849 Polk refused to run for re-election as president, returned to his home in Tennessee, and died a few months later. Because he opened up a large new frontier for the United States and peacefully solved the border problem with Canada, he was rated as "almost great" president by historians.

The US-Mexico War was the first time that the US military fought in a foreign country and used steam warships for the first time in the war. This war is also the first time that the United States has been fought by professional troops alone. The victory of conquest was "great", but the price was not low: at least $654.38 million in military expenditure and 654.38 million+3,000 soldiers' lives were footnoted. In addition, as some historians later said, the expansion of the border was accompanied by the expansion of the slave-holding States, which eventually led to the American Civil War.

American Historical Paper "American Westward Movement"

A sudden SARS disrupted our normal study, but it also gave us enough time to read some books. On the recommendation of He Laoshi, I read two books, American Independence and Initial Prosperity and American Civil War and Gilded Age, published by People's Publishing House, and got a certain understanding of American history. While lamenting that the United States has miraculously changed from a small country in a corner to a great country in hundreds of years, I am also impressed by the hard work and tenacious entrepreneurial spirit of the American people.

Since I was admitted to Peking University from Gansu, and now the development of the western region is in full swing, I am particularly interested in the chapter "The Movement of the Mainland Expanding westward" in the book, so I take it as my reading report.

/kloc-the westward movement in the 0 ~ (th) century was the process of American people's economic development and territorial expansion from the Appalachian mountains to the western region, and it was an important factor of American economic leap. From the end of 18 to the end of 19, it took about 100, which expanded the territory of the United States from 13 colonies along the Atlantic coast during the War of Independence to a vast area along the Pacific coast at the end of 19. This is a huge and far-reaching social migration movement in American history, which is called incarnation by American historian Turner. Millions of Americans have worked hard, creating great material wealth for the United States, greatly promoting the leap of the American economy and making the United States a world industrial power.

1783 America won its independence. According to the provisions of the Paris Peace Treaty, the territory of the United States has expanded from more than 900,000 square kilometers in the state of Kloc-0/3 before independence to more than 2.3 million square kilometers. It reaches Florida in the south, Canada and the Great Lakes in the north, the Atlantic coast in the east and the Mississippi River in the west. However, this territory was not enough to meet the needs of American social development, so the United States began to expand to the west of the Mississippi River and annexed large areas of France, Spain, British colonies and Mexico by means of purchase and war. 1803, when Napoleon was busy coping with the European war, the United States bought a vast area called Louisiana (with an area of about 830,000 square miles) from France for150,000 dollars. The United States seized Florida from Spain in 18 10 and 18 19; 1846, Britain was forced to sign a contract to extend the U.S. border at 49 degrees north latitude to the Pacific coast and exclude the British from this area. 1846 and 1853, the United States launched a war with Mexico, and after the victory, it bought a large area of land in Mexico, totaling about 950,000 square miles. By 1853, the United States had pushed its border to the Pacific coast, covering an area of 7.77 million square kilometers, more than seven times its territory when it declared independence.

In the process of mainland expansion, the theory that fate is determined by nature was born. 1845 In July, John, editor-in-chief of American Magazine and Democratic Review, the new york publication of Irish People's Party, was elected. O' Sullivan claimed that foreign governments tried to prevent the merger of Texas, limiting God's will to extend his destiny to the North American continent, and thus put forward the slogan "Destiny is determined by heaven" for the first time, and then Congressman Robert? Winthrop 1846 1.3 put forward in Congress: "Our right to destiny extends to the whole continent." O 'Sullivan actively advocated his theory, and boasted again in new york Morning Post on February 27th of 1845+ 12: "God has given us the right to develop in the whole continent." Its basic meaning has three points, one is the inevitability of the establishment of the United States of America; Second, the legitimacy of American territorial expansion; The third is to spread the sanctity of the democratic system. Due to the economic crisis from 1837 to 1845, the emergence of various new social thoughts, and the tremendous pressure of rapid population growth, the theory of "Destiny" flourished in the mid-1940s of 19, and was regarded by the ruling class as a good recipe for economic recovery and a powerful tool for American expansionists, and was widely used to demonstrate the annexation and annexation of Oregon by the United States at that time.

While the mainland expanded, the United States also began the process of emigrating and colonizing the vast western region, that is, the westward movement. The western part of the United States refers to the vast area from the west of the Appalachian Mountains to the Pacific coast, but it is divided into two parts by the west bank of the Mississippi River: the old west in the east and the new west in the west. Traditionally, people divide the new west into two parts, and the dividing line is the Rocky Mountain. The west of the Rocky Mountain to the Pacific coast is called the Far West, and the east of the north and south of Kansas City is the prairie. In the westward movement, the first thing is to develop the old west.

The Federal Parliament promulgated three land decrees and land regulations on the development of the old western region in 1784, 1785 and 1787 respectively. Soon after, a decree was issued to establish a territorial system in the old west. According to this law, the Northwest Territory was established in the same year (1787) and the Southwest Territory was established in 1790. The development of the old west officially began, and two development zones appeared: Northwest Development Zone (Northwest Territory) and Southwest Development Zone (Southwest Territory). The so-called "territorial system" refers to the jurisdiction of the governor, clerk and three judges appointed by the federal congress in developed areas. Once the territory has developed to a certain extent, it can establish a state government and join the United States of America to become a state. Encouraged by these preferential policies, pioneers and overseas investors from the eastern Atlantic States first poured into the area north of the Ohio River and established the first settlement in the Northwest Territory from 1787 to 1788. Some immigrants went down the Ohio River and established a settlement in what is now Cincinnati. 1803, Ohio, the northwest territory, was the first state since the establishment of the westward movement, namely Ohio. With the continuous development of northwest territory and the influx of immigrants, some territories have been established, such as Indiana territory (1800), Michigan territory (1805) and Illinois territory (1809). By 1802, the population of Indiana is 25,000, and the population of Illinois is 13000. By 18 14, the area from the north of the intersection of the Ohio River and the Mississippi River to the Great Lakes was developed, forming the largest granary in the United States, namely the famous Great Lakes Plain. The development of the Great Lakes Plain is a great victory in the western development of the United States, which has established a large agricultural base for the United States.

In order to further develop the western region, the US government promulgated more favorable land laws in 1800, 1804 and 1820 respectively. For example, according to the land law of 1800, you can sell two yuan per mu (equal to 6.072 city mu), buy 320 mu at one time, pay the land price of 1/4 within 20 days, and pay the remaining land price within 4 years, and the land will become the property of the purchaser. The land law of 1804 stipulates that the land price will be reduced to $0.64 per acre, and 160 acre can be purchased at one time. 1820 the land law once again lowered the land price and reduced the amount of land purchased. The price per mu of land is lowered to $65,438 +0.25, and 80 mu can be purchased at a time. This policy of repeatedly lowering land prices and reducing the amount of land purchased aims to encourage small and medium-sized farmers and ranchers to come to the west, and also to prevent the emergence of big real estate and rampant land speculation. By 1830, pioneers and immigrants poured into Kentucky, Indianapolis and Wisconsin and established territories in these areas. From 183 1, immigrants from the east and Europe continued to flow to the northwest territory, thus establishing Iowa and Minneapolis. By 1858, the above-mentioned territories had successively met the conditions for statehood, and all of them joined the Federation after statehood. Thus, the northwest territory of the old west was developed.

While developing the northwest territory, the southwest territory has also been gradually developed. The southwest territory is the second largest development zone in the old west, and immigrants from the eastern States of the United States and foreign countries are also flooding in. Six years later, the first state was established here, named Tennessee. By 1800, the population settled and developed in the southwest territory has reached as many as 300,000, mainly engaged in planting corn and tobacco. 1793, Whitney invented the cotton gin, which greatly promoted the development of cotton planting in the United States, and the development of cotton planting promoted the influx of various immigrants into the Great Plains north of the Gulf of Mexico. By 18 19, 200,000 people had settled in the bay plain alone, and the land sold to them reached 2.28 million mu (138.44 million mu). They established Alabama in 18 17 and 18 19 respectively. Pioneers planted cotton on a large scale here, and the cotton produced accounts for 1/2 of the national cotton, which is called "cotton kingdom". Cotton growers and other pioneers spread across the Mississippi River to Arkansas. Arkansas was granted territorial status in 18 19, and its population reached 70,000 in 1835. On the eve of the civil war, two plain development zones, the Great Lakes Plain and the Bay Plain, were formed in the old west. The former is in the north, mainly producing corn and wheat, using hired labor for production; The Gulf Plain is in the south, mainly producing cotton and tobacco, using slaves for production. This led to the situation of "one country, two systems" in the United States at that time, and the civil war broke out because of these two different labor systems. The development of the North-South Plain shows that the whole old west has been basically developed.

With the development of the old west, the colonization of the new west has gradually begun. 1804, president Jefferson sent two investigation teams to develop the new west. A delegation set out from St. Louis, along the Missouri River and the Columbia River, inspected the northern part of the new west and reached the Pacific coast westward. Another delegation visited the south-central region of the new west and went west to the Red River. The activities of these two investigation groups kicked off the development of the new west.

In the process of developing the new western region, the far western region should be developed first, and the development of the far western region is closely related to four major events. First,1In the 1940s and 1950s, the United States seized Texas, New Mexico, Oregon, California and Arizona from neighboring Mexico by force and diplomatic means, and began large-scale immigration to develop these areas. By the end of 19, it has become the most important industrial and agricultural base in the United States and a state in the United States. Second, large-scale construction of transportation facilities. The pioneers first opened up several passages from the old west to the west, crossed the prairie and crossed the Rocky Mountains to reach the Pacific Ocean, the most famous of which was the "California-Oregon Road". The opening of these passages played a great role before the construction of railways and highways, and thousands of pioneers and immigrants arrived in the distant west for development through them. 1862, the federal parliament decided to establish the United Pacific Railway Company and the Central Pacific Railway Company, and decided that the two railway companies would build a transcontinental railway. At the same time, a railway from Kansas City across the prairie to Denver was built and connected to the Union Pacific Railway in Cheyenne. 1864, the federal central government approved the construction of the North Pacific Railway. 1879, Topeka-Santa Fe railway was completed. After the Civil War, the United States set off a wave of railway construction. By 1893, four trunk railway networks have been built in the old west and the new west: Union Pacific Railway (188 1), North Pacific Railway (1882), Dabei Railway (1893) and Chicago. In 1862 ~ 1893 alone, the United States built 225,300 kilometers of railways in its west, at least twice as much as China's national railways at present. In addition, many inland waterways have been opened, many canals have been dug and tens of thousands of kilometers of roads have been built. Large-scale construction of a nearly modern national transportation network is one of the most important factors for the success of the United States in developing the new west and the old west, and it is also the main content of developing the west. Third, the "gold rush" that shocked the world in the far west from 65438 to 2009 stimulated the development of the far west. 1848 gold mine discovered in Sacramento, California. Gold diggers flocked to the far west from all over the United States and other countries in the world, and the population of the far west increased greatly, and the development here entered a climax. On the one hand, the "gold rush" attracted a large number of immigrants, on the other hand, it also brought huge funds for the development of the western United States, especially the development of the far west. 19 After the "gold rush" in the 1960s, a large number of gold prospectors turned to industries such as industry, commerce and agriculture, and the distant west also began the process of industrialization. Fourth, the civil war (186 1 ~ 1865) ended with the victory in the north, which eliminated the divisions that hindered the country's development and allowed the country to concentrate its main forces on developing the west, especially the far west.

The development of the prairie began after the civil war. In the past, after the development of the old west, pioneers did not stay in the prairie and went straight to the distant west. This is because there is little precipitation in the prairie, and the average annual precipitation is less than 5 1cm. It is a dry and uninhabited place, so immigrants can't settle here and have to cross it. However, after the civil war, many important factors emerged to promote its development. The first is the new invention of agricultural technology, such as dry farming and farm tools suitable for developing prairie; Secondly, large-scale construction of railway and other transportation facilities; Third,1The Homestead Law approved by the President in March, 889 also applies to the prairie. According to this land law, any American citizen can get 160 acres (97 1.5 acres) of land as long as he pays the certificate fee of 10, and he can get absolute property rights after farming this land for five years. Fourth, industry and commerce have developed not only in the eastern developed areas, but also in the old west and even in the far west, so the demand for raw materials, industrial products, sales markets and capital investment markets is expanding day by day. These factors have formed a powerful driving force to promote the development of the prairie, which in turn has promoted the further development of the United States.

In this way, in the 1990s of 19, a vast grassland was finally developed from the north to the US-Canada border, south to the Gulf of Mexico, east to the north-south line of Kansas City, and west to the Rocky Mountain, forming the largest animal husbandry base and another major agricultural base in the United States. 1890, the US Census Bureau announced to the world: "Most undeveloped land has been occupied by settlers acting alone." American historian Turner commented: "This short official statement shows that a great movement in history has ended." Turner's "Great Movement" obviously refers to the westward movement of the United States.

The development of the western region has completely changed the face of the United States: large areas of wasteland have been reclaimed, a large number of capitalist farms have been established, and the development of agriculture in the western region has provided a large number of grain, raw materials, export products and domestic markets for industrial development; It has changed the layout of the labor force in the United States, promoted the formation of a unified domestic market and the rapid development of complementary trade between East and West. The development and utilization of resources in the west also meet the needs of industrial development, and the transportation industry is also developing rapidly ... The westward movement of the United States has stimulated the creativity and economic vitality of Americans, improved the comprehensive national strength and international status of the United States, and is of great significance to the take-off of the entire national economy of the United States. At the same time, it expanded the territory of the United States and consolidated the capitalist regime. In addition, whether the newly opened land in the west is operated according to the mode of production of the northern bourgeoisie or the mode of production of plantation slavery in the south has also become one of the reasons for the civil war, further opening the way for the development of American capitalism and further consolidating the rule of capitalism. More importantly, the long-term and arduous development of the western region has honed the will quality of Americans, enhanced their democratic consciousness, and cultivated the national spirit of self-reliance, courage and fearlessness, active exploration, forge ahead and courage to explore. At the same time, the unique western culture has far-reaching influence and has become one of the world's cultural treasures.

An analysis of american intervention in mexican revolution.

During the Mexican bourgeois revolution (1910-1917), the US government intervened twice. Compared with countless other large-scale military operations in American history, these two acts of aggression are insignificant, but compared with the military operations frequently launched by the United States in Latin America and achieved fruitful results in the same period, these two acts of military intervention have the characteristics of "the largest scale and the military achievements are not obvious". Because these two military actions took place during the First World War and before the United States joined the European War, this special historical background is undoubtedly of great significance for prompting the United States to join the European War, carry out military reform and enhance its military strength. At the same time, through the discussion of these two military actions, we can also reflect the nature and some characteristics of the US invasion of Latin America and the Caribbean in the same period. For these two military operations, many books and materials are only a rough overview, or simply demonstrate one or several aspects, without detailed overall records and in-depth and detailed discussions. The author has conducted in-depth research and discussion on these two military operations. Firstly, this paper briefly reviews the rapid development of American economic strength before the two military operations, the surging expansion trend of thought and the frequent military operations launched around the world, focusing on the rise of American military forces at the end of 19 and the beginning of the 20th century. It also briefly introduces the domestic situation in Mexico before 19 19 17 revolution and the course of10-1917 revolution. The article further analyzes the reasons of American military intervention from the aspects of economy, politics and military strategy, and discusses in detail the fuse, war purpose, plan and process of the two military actions. At last, the article comments on the two military actions from the aspects of their nature, the reasons for the failure of the United States, their historical influence and characteristics. At the same time, it also refutes the wrong statements and opinions of some bourgeois scholars. In nature, the two military actions of the United States are undoubtedly typical acts of aggression; The nature of the war, the resistance from all walks of life in Mexico, the strong support from international progressive forces such as Latin America and the crisis situation in which the United States is increasingly involved in the European war have led to the failure of American intervention. At the same time, these two armed interventions also had a far-reaching impact on the history of the United States and Mexico. From a military point of view, the two military operations are tantamount to a major exercise and training of the US Army, which has established the spirit of war for the upcoming European war, and more importantly, exposed many problems of the US military so that the US government and the military can correct them in time; The two military actions also accelerated the appearance of American defense law 19 16 and other military laws, and accelerated the pace of American participation in the First World War. For Mexico, American intervention has hindered its historical process and socio-economic development, but at the same time, it has also strengthened the Mexican people's national consciousness and awareness of safeguarding national resources. The two military operations have the following characteristics: the strength of the warring sides is very different; The United States sent troops twice, which was large in scale, long in time and high in cost, but the military achievements were minimal; These two military operations also showed the embryonic form or some characteristics of modern warfare; Pershing expedition has many characteristics of low-intensity war in contemporary America. During the two Mexican revolutions, President Wilson's "idealism" got the most incisive expression. Idealism and realism in American diplomacy had a fierce collision, conflict and contradiction in two military operations, and idealism eventually went bankrupt.