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Abstract:
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This document represents one of the earliest in a progression of events that would lead to the Mexican American War. From 1825 until Texas declared its independence in 1836, the United States made attempts to purchase Texas from the Mexican government. It is no surprise that Texas's separation from Mexico would lead to renewed efforts to acquire it. This, in turn, led to a debate within the United States over the possible annexation of Texas - a debate hinging largely on the concerns of northerners who feared that annexation would encourage the spread of slavery. As much as this debate raised tensions between northerners and southerners in the United States, it created an even tenser political situation between the United States and Mexico, which refused to acknowledge its independence. The United States' recognition of Texas and the subsequent debate over its annexation, then, did not sit well with Mexican leaders. The document presented here represents the beginning of this tension since it calls for the U.S. House of Representatives to create a salary for a minister to Texas, a move that was followed just three days later by the Senate's official recognition of Texas as an independent nation. |