What events led to the Louisiana Purchase?

The Mississippi River can be considered one of the key highways tying the United States together during the time of the Early Republic. For many farmers residing west of the Appalachian Mountains, the river represented the optimal path for transporting their goods east and maintained a line of communications with the other half of the country. However, with that being said, control of the port city of New Orleans ultimately dictated control of the Mississippi River.

However, in answering this question, it would also be useful to discuss the French half of this equation and to be aware of the turmoil surrounding the French Revolution, which saw the rise of Napoleon (and the expansion of French power on the continent). In addition, it it also important to be aware of the Haitian Revolution, which also played a critical role in shaping this history.

The French colony of Saint-Domingue (later Haiti) was the most profitable of France's territorial possessions and the key to Napoleon's own American ambitions. Therefore, Napoleon put considerable effort into reimposing French control on the island and reinstating slavery (an effort that would end in failure for the French forces). Meanwhile, you should also consider the political picture in Europe itself (and continued tensions between France and Great Britain). Given these various difficulties, Napoleon ultimately offered to sell the entire Louisiana territory to the United States, and this offer was was accepted.

After the Revolutionary War, Americans began to settle in the Ohio River valley.  The Appalachian Mountains made it very expensive and difficult to transport goods to the east coast.  The cheapest way to ship goods to the coast was to float them down the Ohio River, then down the Mississippi River to New Orleans, where they could be transferred to ocean going vessels for shipment to the east coast and Europe.  The problem was that the U.S. had no control over New Orleans and Thomas Jefferson, president at the time of the Louisiana Purchase, feared that the U.S. would lose its right of deposit at New Orleans.  At the time, Louisiana was controlled by Spain, but in a secret agreement, Spain was to cede Louisiana to France in exchange for a Spanish Kingdom in Italy.  With knowledge of this agreement, Jefferson sent Robert Livingston, and then James Monroe, to France to negotiate the purchase of New Orleans from Napoleon for $10 million. With the hopes of a Caribbean empire based on the sugar trade dashed with the loss of Santo Domingo, Napoleon lost interest in controlling Louisiana. In need of money to continue his European wars, Napoleon offered the U.S. the entire Louisiana territory, more than 800,000 square miles, for $15 million.  One problem confronted Jefferson.  He was a strict constructionist and did not see anything in the Constitution which would give him the power to purchase Louisiana.  What he did know was that he did have the power to negotiate treaties. Knowing that this deal was in the best interest of the United States, he put the purchase of Louisiana in a treaty which the Senate later ratified.  In 1830, the United States doubled in size with the purchase of Louisiana from Napoleon for $15 million.

The United States needed to be able to use the port of New Orleans. Not only did we depend on using the port to ship our products, we also needed to store our goods there until they could be shipped. There was concern that our ability to use the port and to store our goods there would be impacted when France took control of this region.

President Jefferson instructed our minister to France, Robert Livingston, to try to buy New Orleans and West Florida for $10 million. The French responded that they were willing to sell us the entire Louisiana Territory for $15 million. If we made this purchase, it would double the size of the United States.

President Jefferson hesitated to make the purchase because he was a person who believed in a strict interpretation of the Constitution. Since the Constitution didn’t say anything about the President buying land, President Jefferson wasn’t sure he could make the deal. However, President Jefferson was persuaded to make the deal, allowing the United States to double the size of the country.

What were the circumstances surrounding the Louisiana Purchase?

France had claimed the Louisiana Territory in the 1600's. However, in 1763, they ceded their right to most of the territory to Spain. The U.S. had a treaty with Spain that allowed the U.S.to use New Orleans without paying a duty on their goods. In 1800, Napoleon arranged a treaty with Spain to retake the territory. This alarmed many Americans, including President Jefferson, because they were afraid of French control of such an important area to the the United States. Jefferson sent James Monroe to Paris to try to buy the area from France. At first, Napoleon was reluctant but eventually he realized he needed money because he was about to fight a war with England. He realized his troops would not be able to defend Louisiana so the Americans might simply annex the territory. So, he agreed to sell the territory to the U.S. for $15 million. The only problem was that Jefferson did not believe he had the constitutional authority to make such a purchase. Eventually, after consulting with his advisors, Jefferson agreed that the powers given to the President to negotiate treaties were sufficient to allow him to make the purchase. The U.S. Government borrowed the money from English and Dutch banks and eventually paid $27 million in loans and interest for this huge amount of land which doubled the size of the United States.

What historical circumstances led to the Louisiana Purchase?

After the French-Indian War in 1763, France lost all of its North American holdings but maintained control of the island of Haiti.  After this war, Spain owned the land that would be known as the Louisiana Purchase.  During the Napoleonic War, France regained the territory and Napoleon intended on using the land as a granary to feed his army and the island of Haiti to provide sugar for trade.  In 1803, the slaves of Haiti overthrew their French masters and declared an independent nation.  Napoleon now saw the North American land as a hindrance, as it would be something else to defend against the British.  When Jefferson sent ambassadors to Napoleon to ask to use the port of New Orleans, Napoleon surprised them by offering to sell the entire territory, encompassing millions of acres.  Jefferson instructed his envoys to create a deal with the French, and the treaty was sent to Congress.  Congress, while upset that they were not consulted and that this massive land purchase was supposed to be outside the presidential realm of power, signed off on the popular land purchase, thus overnight more than doubling the size of the United States.