The Age of Jackson and Westward Expansion Unit Test How did the US Mexican War impact the issue of slavery in the United States? (1 point)
The US Mexican War had a significant impact on the issue of slavery in the United States. As part of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which officially ended the war in 1848, the United States acquired significant territories in present-day California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and parts of Colorado and Wyoming. The question of whether these territories would be admitted as free or slave states intensified the sectional tensions between the North and the South.
The debate over the expansion of slavery was already a contentious issue in the United States at the time. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 had established a balanced relationship between free and slave states, but the acquisition of new territories from the Mexican War disrupted this balance. The Southern states argued for the extension of slavery into the newly acquired territories, believing it was their right to expand the institution. On the other hand, many in the North opposed the expansion of slavery, citing moral and economic reasons.
In 1850, the Compromise of 1850 was passed, which aimed to alleviate tensions by addressing the issue of slavery in the newly acquired territories. It allowed for popular sovereignty, which meant that the residents of these territories would decide for themselves whether to permit or prohibit slavery. This attempt to find a compromise ultimately failed, as conflicts continued to arise over the issue of slavery in the subsequent years.
The US Mexican War, by acquiring new territories, intensified the debate over the expansion of slavery in the United States and ultimately led to further divisions between the North and the South, which played a significant role in the lead up to the American Civil War.