What were the effects of Manifest Destiny?

Manifest Destiny forms the rationale behind American imperialism. The concept suggested that it was the responsibility of the European settlers to colonize and bring civilization to their new environment. The belief also fueled the Westward Expansion, which led to mass relocations of the Native Americans. These relocations were followed by annexation of Texas under James K. Polk, the President of the United States at the time.

The United States was also set for further expansion when it forced the extension of the boundary with Canada and later with Mexico. Some of the territories were acquired through conquest and others through purchase. The insatiable demands for more territorial expansion saw the US making moves on Cuba after helping rebels in their fight against Spain. Conflict with Spain (as in the Spanish-American War) saw the US acquisition of the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico.

For the United States, the effects of Manifest Destiny were pretty positive.  The main impact was that the United States got much larger and much wealthier.  Manifest Destiny was the idea that God had destined the US to spread out across the continent of North America.  It was not specified how much land the US was to take, but people believed that God wanted the country to expand.  God had destined the US for this because it had the best religion, the best people (racially) and the best culture.  This led to things like the war with Mexico in the 1840s and all of the military actions that pushed Indians off their lands and on to reservations.  These actions greatly increased the size of the US and also made it richer by allowing it to take things like the gold of California and the silver of Nevada.

For others, Manifest Destiny had more negative effects.  For the Native Americans and for Mexico, it meant losing their land.  The Native Americans who were not killed outright in the wars were forced on to reservations where they lost their ability to live freely and to pursue their traditional way of life.  As a country, Mexico was humiliated and weakened by being defeated in a war and by having so much territory taken away.  Mexicans who lived in the areas taken by the US typically found themselves losing wealth and status as they came to be seen as foreigners in their new land.

In these ways, Manifest Destiny affected different groups in different ways.

What were the political effects of Manifest Destiny in the U.S.?

Manifest Destiny is an expression that first appeared in an 1845 Democratic Review editorial to describe the drive toward obtaining land in order to expand the boundaries of United States territory. The term is generally thought to be originated by editor John O’Sullivan. Those who supported this concept believed that it was God’s destiny for Americans to spread their principles of authority, democracy and capitalism across the entire North American continent, which had commenced with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.

It spurred the move toward gobbling up large parcels of land, including the annexation of Texas and the drive to add Oregon and California to the new nation. But as is typically the case when territorial expansion occurs quickly, there were political, social and cultural repercussions. These included the Mexican-American War and the displacement and ill-treatment of Native American, Hispanic, and other non-European people living in the regions that were now controlled by the United States. Adding new states to the Union also drove the increasing argument over slavery, raising the question of whether they would allow slavery or not, which eventually led to the Civil War.

Manifest Destiny, the idea that the United States had the divinely-ordained right to expand all the way to the west coast, had a number of political effects. For one thing, it led to the election of several Democratic presidents, notably James K. Polk, who actively promoted it. It led to the annexation of Texas, which led to the Mexican War, itself driven largely by the idea of manifest destiny. The war resulted in the acquisition of the enormous Mexican Cession, essentially the entire American Southwest, including California. This led to a major indirect political effect of manifest destiny--the political showdown between slave and free states over whether slavery would be allowed in the newly acquired territories. When California applied for admission to the Union, it sparked a major debate over these issues, one which was only momentarily quieted with the Compromise of 1850. Westward expansion was inextricably tied to the ideology of manifest destiny, and it was the persistence of westward expansion that stirred up the lingering issue of slavery. Manifest destiny, or various iterations of it, also contributed to the continued expropriation of Indian lands, which were taken by whites with the assistance of the federal government and the U.S. Army.

How did Manifest Destiny impact American foreign policy?

Manifest Destiny had a very profound impact on U.S. foreign policy both in terms of the westward expansion towards the Pacific and in terms of relationships with other countries.  The United States, of course, was initially comprised of the original 13 colonies-turned-states.  Its relentless expansion, most prominently with the Louisiana Purchase, the earliest manifestation of American expansionism, meant that the newly-established nation would inevitably run up against the interests of additional colonial powers, especially the British and Spanish, as well as against Mexico.  The westward movement of American settlers, supported through the growing military capabilities of the U.S. Army, entailed a continuous series of confrontations with Native tribes, for whom these European interlopers constituted a foreign invasion in and of itself. The most significant direct confrontations, in addition to the genocidal practices involving the Native populations, involved Mexico and Great Britian, the former to the southwest, the latter to the north. The Mexicans would eventually be forced to cede tremendous territories to the Americans, including the temporarily independent and sovereign Republic of Texas, and the British would take measures to ensure that U.S. expansionism was curtailed at the Canadian frontiers.

Overseas, Manifest Destiny was viewed as a symbol of growing U.S. might and influence.  The European character of most of the settlers staking claims across the North American continent meant an intense interest in these developments in European capitals.  The growth of the U.S. Navy would facilitate the expansion of trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific trade, as commercial shipments were less likely to be upset by foreign naval patrols.  Manifest Destiny represented the growth of a new global power, although that global influence would not be felt until the global conflagrations that would sweep Europe during the 20th Century.

What was the influence of Manifest Destiny?

The main impact of Manifest Destiny was that it helped encourage the United States to aggressively spread across the continent. 

Manifest Destiny was the idea that America was destined to spread itself over a wider and wider territory.  People who believed in Manifest Destiny believed that the US was the best country in the world.  They believed it was superior to all others in terms of its government, its religion, and its society.  In addition, it was greatly superior to Mexico and to the Indians in racial terms.  Because of this, they felt, the US deserved to spread across the continent.

Not surprisingly, this attitude helped to encourage Americans to take more territory in North America.  It helped to push them into the war with Mexico in the 1840s.  It helped to justify the taking of the Native Americans’ territories in the time of westward expansion.  This, of course, had tremendous impacts on the United States as it helped to make the country much bigger and more powerful.