What is the importance of Manifest Destiny in the United States history?

Manifest Destiny was a major source of national pride during the nineteenth century. The population of the United States during this period was largely young, agrarian, and upwardly mobile. People aspired to own Western lands as they would best be suited to agriculture. The availability of cheap land made everyone in the country think that they could become rich, reinvent themselves, or otherwise have a better life. Americans believed that it was their God-given duty to spread their system of governance all over the American continent.

Many saw the Native Americans as only another obstacle that had to be removed in the name of "American progress." This explains why the treaties signed with Western tribes were often voided before the ink dried on the document. Southerners wanted to expand West into Texas in order to take advantage of land available for cotton, hence the war for Texas independence and the ensuing Mexican War ten years later. Americans considered their way of governance to be best and sought to expand this as far as possible.

Americans also maintained a tradition held since the Puritans that God showed his favor on people by blessing them with prosperity. As Americans grew rich from the resources of the West, either natural wealth or manufactured, they only said that this demonstrated God's favor on American expansion. In 1890 it was proclaimed that the frontier was closed in that most of the West was becoming or already "settled." Frederick Jackson Turner, a noted historian, stated that Americans would miss a major part of their pioneer hardiness if there was no new areas for expansion.

What is the importance of Manifest Destiny in the United States history?

The notion of Manifest Destiny helps to illuminate a fundamental difference in both the experience of American History as well as the retelling of it.  The O'Sullivan phrase was meant to express American belief in superiority and provided the rationale behind United States Expansionism.  For a nation that had been victorious against England, twice, and for one that had been developing new notions of economic progress, to expand was seen as something that was both needed and mandated by the idea that America had been "chosen" to lead.  The confidence in United States Exceptionalism is underscored by the belief that America is unique to the world scene, and thus it has a unique destiny to lead over all.  This helps to illuminate a "consensus" view of telling American History, which stresses the belief in American progress and success as essential to the narrative of American History.  The opposite point of view of this would involve seeing Manifest Destiny as something that usurped land and power from other nations and people, that defined American progress at the cost of others, and a vision of economic progress controlling all aspects of American Identity.  Within this vision of Manifest Destiny would involve a telling of American History that is steeped in a "conflict" view, which details that the progression of American History is one where conflict and crisis helps to define American notions of power and superiority.  Manifest Destiny is a period in American History where individuals are poised, to some extent, in making choices between both how the history is viewed and how it is told.

What is the importance of Manifest Destiny in the United States history?

Manifest Destiny has been a major force in US history.  It was very important in causing the expansion of the US in the 1800s.

Let's define it as the idea that A) America and American civilization should take control of as much land as possible and B) that this should be done because Americans had a culture and government that were superior to those of the people around them.

The major impacts of the concept were the expansion across America (the "winning of the West") and the Mexican-American War.

Does it define us as a people?  It certainly defined us during those years.  We used it as a justification for taking land from the less-developed people -- the Indians and the Mexicans and then overseas places such as the Philippines.

The idea that we should spread our ways (if not our actual control) to other people and other parts of the world is part of what has caused us to do things like invade Iraq in modern times.

How is Manifest Destiny important to westward expansion?

Manifest Destiny is a nineteenth-century doctrine that rationalizes the expansion of the United States' borders and is the primary reason behind the country's westward expansion. Proponents of the ideology concluded that Americans were destined to expand the country from "sea to shining sea" through developing western territories.

Due to the Second Great Awakening, a Protestant religious revival, many Americans held a feverish belief that it was God's will they move west and bring his word to nonbelievers. Not all settlers heading west were in it for the divine mission, however. The expansion was profitable for many businesses. As families and individuals went westward, they needed supplies, churches, and other services.

The Manifest Destiny doctrine helped expand America's borders to the Pacific Coast. In 1848, the discovery of gold in California would help reinforce the country's belief in the ideology.

How is Manifest Destiny important to westward expansion?

Manifest destiny was important as one of the causes behind westward expansion.  Manifest destiny was the idea that the United States was destined by God to expand out across the North American continent.  The idea was that the US had a system of government, a society, and a religion that was superior to that of the Indians and the Mexicans.  Therefore, the US deserved to have the land more than those groups did.  The US was sure (people thought) to make better use of the land and to use it to improve the world as a whole.  This idea helped to motivate westward expansion.