Remembering a Forgotten War

1. Set Focus
Pose this essential question: How can historical events affect relationships between nations?

2. List Vocabulary
Share some of the challenging vocabulary words in the article (see right). Encourage students to use context to infer meanings as they read.

• ramifications (p. 19)
• admonished (p. 19)
• proponent (p. 19)
• annexation (p. 20)
• atrocities (p. 20)
• illicit (p. 21)

3. Engage
Remind students that America began as 13 colonies along its eastern coast. Ask: What do you know about America’s expansion westward? Be prepared to briefly remind students of key historical events, such as the Louisiana Purchase, the journey of Lewis and Clark, and the Trail of Tears.

4. Read and Discuss
Ask students to read the Upfront article about the Mexican-American War. Review why the article is a secondary source. (It was written by someone who didn’t personally experience or witness the events.) Then pose these critical-thinking questions and ask students to cite text evidence when answering them::

• What is Manifest Destiny? How did this idea help lead to the Mexican-American War? (Manifest Destiny is the 19th-century belief that the U.S. was destined to spread democracy across the continent. President James Polk was a proponent of Manifest Destiny, so he took action to expand America all the way west to California. However, much of this land was already claimed by Mexico, which led to the tensions that eventually incited the Mexican-American War.)

• According to the article and the timeline, what was the Texas Revolution of 1835-36? How did it lay the groundwork for the Mexican-American War? (Starting in 1835, settlers from the U.S. who’d migrated to Mexican territory declared themselves the Republic of Texas and forced the Mexican president to recognize their independence. In 1845, President Polk annexed the region, making Texas a state, and brought troops to a disputed area. A skirmish resulted, which led Polk to declare war.)

• Did abolitionists support the Mexican-American War? Why or why not? (Abolitionists opposed the war. They believed Polk provoked the war as an excuse to take Mexico’s land. In addition, abolitionists believed that Polk, a Southerner who supported slavery, planned to designate the newly formed region as slave-owning in order to tip the balance of power in Congress toward legalized slavery.)

• According to the article, how has Mexico’s response to the war been different from that of the U.S.? (The article says that the U.S. has mostly forgotten about the war, despite its importance to the nation’s history, while Mexico’s loss of its land “still haunts Mexican imagination.” Many Mexicans believe the war was unfair and, as a result, Mexico is still leery of provoking the U.S.)

5. Use the Primary Sources
Project, distribute, or assign in Google Classroom the PDF ‘The Most Unjust [War] Ever Waged,’ which features an excerpt from the memoirs of President Ulysses S. Grant, who served as an Army captain during the Mexican-American War. Discuss what makes the speech a primary source. (It provides firsthand evidence concerning the topic.) Have students read the excerpt and answer the questions below (which appear on the PDF without answers).

• How would you describe the tone and purpose of this excerpt from Grant’s personal memoirs? (The tone can be described as formal yet angry and remorseful. The purpose is to explain his reasons for disagreeing with the war.)

• According to Grant, what was the purpose of the Mexican-American War? (Grant believes that the main purpose of the war, including the events leading up to it, was merely to gain land from which slaveholding states might be created, thus shoring up support for slavery in Congress.)

• Did Grant feel the Mexican-American War was justified and fairly won? Explain using evidence from the text. (No, Grant feels the Mexican-American War was unjustified and not fairly won. He says the American government at the time was “not considering justice in their desire to acquire additional territory.” He adds that the original annexation was recognized only because the Mexican president was threatened, and he says that the resulting war was “one of the most unjust ever waged by a stronger against a weaker nation.”)

• In the last paragraph, Grant says that “Nations, like individuals, are punished for their transgressions.” According to Grant, what was America’s transgression and how was it punished? (Grant is saying that the annexation of Texas and the resulting war were transgressions because they were unjustified and achieved under false pretenses. He also implies that the war was a “conspiracy” to add slaveholding states to the U.S. Grant goes on to say that, because the “Southern rebellion,” or the secession of the Southern states, was an “outgrowth” of the Mexican-American War, he believes that the Civil War, which was the most bloody and expensive in his lifetime, was America’s punishment for its bad behavior.)

• How does this excerpt contribute to your understanding of the Mexican-American War? How does it supplement the information presented in the Upfront article?  (Answers will vary, but students may note that this excerpt further explains what an opponent of the war thought, or that it shows that even someone who successfully fought in the war opposed it, which shows just how controversial the war was.)

6. Writing Prompt
Do you think the Mexican-American War would be supported by the American people today? Explain in a brief essay.

7. Quiz
Use the quiz to assess comprehension and Organizing Ideas to reinforce outlining skills.

8. Classroom Debate
Was the Mexican-American War justified?

9. Mini Research Project
Have students research the circumstances and events surrounding the Texas Revolution of 1835-36. Invite students to share what they found most interesting and illuminating about this episode in history.