Territorial Expansion
When Washington retired from the presidency，the leaders of the country were sharply divided over the future course of development of the United States and over the French Revolution.The Federalists，led by Alexander Hamilton，wanted the country to become a strong industrialized commercial nation.They were more attached to England and advocated neutrality in the European war over the French Revolution.The Anti⁃Federalists headed by Thomas Jefferson wanted to develop the country into an agrarian yeoman republic to guarantee democracy.They supported the French Revolution，believing it represented republican principles，and they wanted to continue the Franco⁃American alliance formed during the American Revolutionary War.
During the administration of John Adams，who succeeded Washington as the second President and continued Federalist policies，the split became worse and the Anti⁃Federalists began to call themselves the Democratic Republicans.In 1800，Thomas Jefferson was elected President of the United States，which established the precedent of peaceful transfer of power from one political party to another.Jefferson’s election also helped to establish the system of party politics which has played a key role in American political life ever since.
Jefferson believed that only independent farmers could guarantee republican values.He encouraged people to settle on federal land in the west by lowering land prices.He believed that land ownership could offer people greater opportunities and preserve social equality.To ensure that there would be enough land for farmers，he sought territorial expansion further west.Most of the vast territory between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains was under French control.This region，known as the Louisiana Territory，covered about 2 million square kilometers of land.In January 1803，Jefferson’s administration purchased the Louisiana Territory from France for the price of＄15 million.This roughly doubled the size of U.S.territory and gave America full control of the Mississippi River.
England and France had been at war for most of the period since the French Revolution in 1789.The United States had adopted a neutral policy towards the war from the very beginning and had continued to trade with both sides.
However，neither France nor England respected American neutrality，rights and both countries began to seize American ships after 1805 when they imposed blockades on each other.Since the British Navy was much stronger than the French，it seized more American ships.In addition，the British often stopped American ships to search for deserted sailors.American sailors felt insulted and sometimes refused to stop，which led the British to fire on their ships.These British actions caused anger in the U.S.and led many to call for retaliation.The pressure for war was led by a group of young Congressmen from the west and the south who hoped to drive the British out of North America and open the door to expansion into Canada and Florida.New England Federalists opposed the push for war，since the British were their most important trade partners.
In June 1812，Congress declared war against Great Britain.The first phase of the war went badly for the United States，as the young country was no match for the British in military strength.At one point，the British captured the national capitol in Washington and burned much of the city.However，the U.S.continued to fight，and the British were more concerned about their war in Europe against Napoleon’s France.So after two years of inconclusive fighting against American armies，Great Britain offered to negotiate.The U.S.accepted the offer and the war ended on Christmas Eve of 1814.
The war created a sense of pride and confidence in the United States.It was called the“Second War of Independence”because it showed that the country could preserve the freedom it won in the original War of Independence.The war also showed the importance of industry and stimulated industrial development.Above all，the war demonstrated the necessity of a strong central government，and even the Democratic Republicans began to accept this principle.
After failing to conquer Canada during the war，the U.S.began to shift its attention southward.In 1819，the Monroe administration forced the Spanish to cede Florida to the United States.Two years later，word began to circulate in the United States that European nations were considering helping Spain to regain its lost colonies in Latin America，which had won independence when Spain was involved in European wars.The U.S.government decided that it would not tolerate this，and President James Monroe announced U.S.policy regarding the Americas in an address to Congress in 1823.Monroe warned European nations that the Americas were closed to further colonization，and he emphasized that the American political system was different from that of Europe.He declared that Europe should not try to expand its political system to the American continents，and conversely，that America would not interfere with internal European affairs.This policy would later become known as the Monroe Doctrine，and although it did not have an immediate impact，it laid down guidelines for U.S.foreign policy regarding the relationship between the Americas and Europe.The U.S.government would later use the Monroe Doctrine to repeatedly thwart European ambition in America and justify its own actions.
The United States also began to expand to the west after the War of 1812.Land⁃hungry Americans were constantly seeking new opportunities in the west.They were encouraged by a belief known as Manifest Destiny，which held that American expansion to the west was not only necessary，but that it was also God’s wish because of the superiority of American culture and political and economic systems.
Acting under these justifications，American settlers drove Indians out of their homes and seized their land.In 1830，Congress passed the Indian Removal Act to resettle the Indians to reservations west of the Mississippi River in order to make room for white settlers.The journey to the west was very often long and full of misery.In 1838，the Cherokee Indians were forced to leave their home in Georgia and to move to reservations 1，300 kilometers away.The trip was so hard that out of the 18，000 Cherokee Indians who initially set out，4，000 died on the way.As a result，this journey became known as the Trail of Tears.
The Trail of Tears
As of the late 1830s，the vast area west of the Rocky Mountains was not part of the United States.The northern part of the region，known as the Oregon Territory，stretched from the southern border of Alaska to the northern border of California and was under joint control of Britain and the United States.The area to the south，stretching from Texas to California，belonged to Mexico.In 1848，the United States went to war with Mexico over disputed territories in Texas.The war ended in a U.S.victory and the resulting cession of the huge territory extending from Texas to California.The U.S.also gained the territory north of California up to the border of today’s Canada at 49° north parallel through negotiations with the British government.The Americans achieved their goal of stretching from ocean to ocean.
This expansion cleared the way for more and more American settlers to move westward.Increasing numbers of people began to cross the Rockies into California and Oregon.The discovery of gold in California in 1849 began the great Gold Rush that brought many more people there.However，even as the nation was expanding，it was experiencing internal conflicts that threatened to tear it apart.