Monroe Doctrine Dbq

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History Final Essay
Americans were convinced it was their man-made destiny to expand and conquer the land towards the Pacific Ocean. People believed that the westward land was rightly theirs because it was given to them by God though the idea of the Manifest Destiny. As time passed, the American population grew quickly, therefore the immediate need for more resources and land arose. However, America was not the only country to prosper in numbers; European nations also grew and needed new places to colonize to satisfy their growing population as well. With that being the case, the Monroe Doctrine was established as concrete warning towards European powers to not attempt any more colonization. The policies of the Monroe Doctrine and the beliefs …show more content…

Therefore, after two years of development, President James Monroe gave a speech to Congress in 1823 regarding the idea of establishing a solution to Adams exigence to form a foreign policy by creating the Monroe Doctrine. This policy stressed a noncompliant attitude from America towards European nations to not colonialize in the Western Hemisphere or else face retaliation. The United States declared to Europe and other foreign nations through this doctrine that they “will consider any attempt on their part to extend their system to any portion of this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety" of the United States (Monroe). This doctrine did not affect the already established colonies of European powers that had declared their independence from America. It claimed that the United States would not interfere with European affairs and stay neutral as long as Europe followed the policy of halting western colonization. With this, the United States would become its own nation by fully separating associations with European cultures and colonies and demonstrating American …show more content…

The term Manifest Destiny was coined by John O’ Sullivan in 1845 to describe America’s destiny to expand westward in the North American region. This idea comes the precedents set up by the Doctrine of Discovery and Monroe’s Declaration. According to Robert J. Miller, there are three aspects that justify America’s need to conquer the western hemisphere. "First, the United States possesses unique moral virtues other countries do not possess. Second, the United States has a mission to redeem the world by spreading republican government and the American way of life around the globe. And third, the United States were divinely ordained to accomplish these tasks" (Miller). Manifest Destiny was used to justify the annexation of Texas, the Mexican American War, and westward expansion through the Indian Removal Act. Americans believed that their values lined up with the right for them expand west by all means, such as acts of violence. With America rapidly multiplying in population, the need for more land to create homesteads and establishments was needed and could be solved by expanding west. By spreading colonies west, the United States was able to develop and prosper as a nation promoting its values, influences, and technology out

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