How the USA used money, muscle and sometimes brazen land-grabs to expand its territory: Alaska, Louisiana, Hawaii, Pacific islands and more

The United States of America, notorious for overthrowing governments, infringing upon the sovereignty of other nations and invading foreign lands to further national or strategic interests, commenced its journey by committing these very actions, as it eventually grew from 13 colonies to 50 states.

The Western power ruthlessly wielded its economic and military superiority in the name of “manifest destiny” to either push other countries into agreements or engage in warfare, while persistently expanding its landmass and global influence. Furthermore, this cold approach has been witnessed time and again, remarkably even to this day, from the Middle East to Venezuela and even Greenland.

The US buys Alaska for 2 cents per acre from Russia

Alaska, with a GDP of more than $55 billion, is presently the 49th state in the United States. However, it was once part of the Russian Empire, which was handed over in a deal known as the “Cessation of Alaska” or the “Alaska Purchase,” to the US. On 30th March 1867, the latter agreed to pay just $7.2 million or nearly two cents per acre for the 1,518,800 square kilometres of territory.

Russian Tsar Alexander II wanted to sell Alaska because he believed that it would be difficult to protect the land in the case of a war with his country’s main adversary, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The Ottoman Empire’s setback served as the foundation for the decision. Russia chose to give up its area after losing over 12,000 soldiers and running out of resources.

Interestingly, Russia and the US were on the same side at the time due to their shared dislike of the British Empire. Therefore, the move was made in spite of advice not to proceed further. US Secretary of State William Seward and Russian Minister Eduard de Stoeckl discussed the deal following the conclusion of the American Civil War. Afterwards, the US Senate approved the treaty on 9th April, 1867, and President Andrew Johnson signed the same in May.

Louisiana joins the U.S

In 1803, the United States made a similar land agreement known as the “Louisiana Purchase,” in which $15 million was paid to France for around 827,000 square miles of territory west of the Mississippi River. The sale not only added extensively to the size of the young country but also set it on a path of westward expansion across the continent. It also prevented further occupation of North Americbyof Spain and France.

The region close to New Orleans was already desired by the United States. The main goal was to protect its ability to sail ships through Spanish territory down the Mississippi River and unload cargo at New Orleans for transportation to Europe and the Atlantic coast. Additionally, Louisiana’s strategic location at the mouth of the pivotal river and the presence of a large number of American immigrants and traders there made the US interested in owning the entire state.

After learning that Louisiana had been transferred from Spain to France, the United States dispatched its diplomat Robert Livingston to France in 1801 in an attempt to acquire New Orleans. Afterwards, President Thomas Jefferson sent James Monroe, one of the founding fathers, to negotiate a contract when Napoleon Bonaparte first rejected the proposal.

However, he then offered not only New Orleans but all of Louisiana to the US in April 1803 in light of the financial problems and military setbacks. The change of heart happened a few days before Monroe was scheduled to arrive in Paris. The Marquis de Barbe-Marbois, minister of finance, mediated the conditions of the “Louisiana Purchase” with Livingston and Monroe. As a result, $11,250,000 was given by the US in exchnage Louisiana and $3,750,000 to settle claims of its own citizens against France.

Texas separates from Mexico and enters the US.

Texas was originally part of Mexico,o where a substantial population of Americans led by Stephen F. Austin moved close to the Brazos River. It was after Mexico invited foreigners to the barely inhabited area following its independence from Spain in the 1820s. However, the decision proved to be fatal, as it concluded in the separation of the entire region and its addition to the United States.

The Mexican government’s attempts to govern over these semi-autonomous American enclaves by the 1830s sparked insurrection since the outsiders soon outnumbered the locals. As a result, Texas proclaimed its independence from Mexico in March 1836 during an armed confrontation with the government.

Sam Houston was elected president by the people of the Republic of Texas, who supported his region’s admission to the US for the sake of political and economic benefits. Therefore, it became the 28th state in the US on 28th December 1845. The action sparked the Mexican-American War and widened the irreconcilable divisions in the US on the subject of slavery. Texas had legalised slavery and broke away 15 years later to become the Confederate States of America before rejoining the union after civil war.

The Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo

The Mexican W, ar which was fought between April 1846 and February 1848, contributed to the already broadening expanse of the US territory. The Army of the West entered New Mexico territory at the start of the War in 1846, taking control of Las Vegas on 15th August and Santa Fe three days later. The first American military fort in New Mexico, Fort Marcy, was built northeast of Santa Fe on 23rd August. Charles Bent was named governor, and a civil government was formed on 22nd September.

Afterwards, New Mexico, which included modern-day Arizona and other territories, was given to the United States by the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo at the conclusion of the Mexican War in 1848. It received more than 525,000 square miles or 1,360,000 square kilometres of land, including Arizona, California, western Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas and Utah from Mexico for a payment of $15,000,000. The U, S in retu, rn agreed to settle the more than $3,000,000 in claims made by American citizens against Mexico.

The treaty also laid down the border between the Gila River and the Rio Grande. With this, the seizure of New Mexico and California, alongside the acknowledgement of the Rio Grande as the southern border of Texas, had been accomplished by the US. The Organic Act of the Territory of New Mexico, a part of the “Compromise of 1850,” defined New Mexico as a territory and assigned it a civil territorial administration. Over time, these annexed regions soon became part of the union in the coming years.

The annexation of Hawaii

On one hand, the United States persisted in expanding its territory by paying minimal amounts to exploit the vulnerability of some nations waging wars and shaping treaties, while on the other hand, it used its military strength to subjugate nations under its flag. A similar situation occurred in Hawaii, in the Pacific, where American and British missionaries arrived with the intention of converting the locals to Christianity in the 1820s.

Afterwards, the independent kingdom’s economy initially became reliant on the US, after which military action took place for its annexation. The region started to attract corporate investors who purchased vast areas of land and established a plantation economy centred on capitalism in place of traditional Hawaiian agricultural methods. In the meantime, discussions over Hawaii’s potential annexation to the US started in the 1850s as its sugar and whale industries grew more dependent on the country’s trade.

The wicked plan came to fruition when the executive monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom was pressured to make a conditional surrender after US troops invaded the country without reason on 16th January 1893. “Committee of Safety,” led by Sanford B. Dole, overthrew the queen with the implicit assistance of the United States. On 1st February, Minister John Stevens declared Hawaii a US protectorate and acknowledged Dole’s new administration.

Dole presented the US Senate with an annexation treaty and declared independence when he was pressured to resign. President William McKinley formally supported Hawaiian annexation in his presidential platform when he assumed office in 1896. He also made a treaty with the Republic of Hawaii in 1897. Nevertheless, the independence was fleeting since Hawaii was designated a US territory and achieved statehood as the 50th state on 21st August 1959.

The Guano Islands Act

The United States even smelled the potential in bird excrement to enhance its resources and extend its territory. These feces known as Guano is an extraordinary fertiliser for farmlands. However, guano deposits were uncommon and geographically dispersed, consisting of small and isolated islands covered in layers of this waste that had accumulated over centuries or perhaps millennia.

Hence, the Guano Islands Act of 1856, which permitted any American citizen to claim a deserted island rich in guano on behalf of their nation, was passed by the US Congress out of a hunger for productivity and military advantage.

Afterwards, Americans embarked on naval excursions to locate guano and declare it as their territory. The nation deployed a 22-gun warship to collect and assess guano in 1857 from the newly “owned” islands under this statute, as dozens of such places in the Pacific and Caribbean were grabbed.

Resources were taken from the islands as American flags were raised there. The United States claimed over a hundred islands under the act, but later vacated them after the guano ran out.

Expansionism and island hopping: US takes over Pacific islands

During the 19th century, the United States continued to press for a greater presence in and across the Pacific Ocean as part of its westward expansion, which extended beyond North America. Hence, it adopted a blend of 19th-century expansionism and the “island hopping” military tactic during World War II and gained control of Pacific islands.

US officials and individuals were initially encouraged to explore the Pacific region by the promise of gains from commerce with China. The United States swiftly broadened its footprint throughout the territory as a result of the China trade. They realised that travelling to the Asian land and developing a presence there entailed a network of ports spanning the Pacific Ocean.

Moreover, the United States was engaged in combat on two fronts: the Pacific and Europe. Thus, the “island hopping” strategy was designed by Admiral Chester Nimitz and General Douglas MacArthur to travel across the ocean and get closer to Japan by winning wars on Pacific islands to confiscate military bases.

It involved avoiding well-fortified islands in favour of capturing weakly defended areas that can aid the following advance. Defenders were forced to suffer from malnutrition and illness when Japanese strongholds were cut off. The United States was able to leapfrog across the Pacific owing to this new scheme. Over the course of three years, this plan would bring American soldiers nearly all the way around the Pacific.

Notably, the urge for an important centre of operations in the Pacific to aid American interests in China prompted the formation of the US base in Hawaii. The purchase of the Philippines from Spain in 1898 was the result of this maritime expansion as well, which transformed into a crucial goal for the US.

The country secured considerable commercial, political, and military interests as well as territorial possessions in the Pacific region by 1900, and turned into a prominent world power.

The foundation of US based on expansionism

The foundation of the United States is primarily based on brutal annexation and expansion, which has shaped its current shape and form, positioning it as the third-largest country worldwide. Each star on the “Old Glory” carries a distinct tale of how it came to be represented on the flag.

It is crucial to understand that the country has not only relied on this century-old strategy but has acted more aggressively and attacked different parts of the world for its interests, through direct invasions, regime changes and more.

The ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in Bangladesh, the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and the current targeting of exceptionally resource-rich Greenland by President Donald Trump illustrate the same.

According to the White House, Trump views Greenland as a top national security concern for the United States, given the increasing activities of China and Russia in the Arctic. “Acquiring Greenland is important to deter our adversaries in the Arctic,” the statement added.

Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, a partner of the United States. Clearly, even allies are not immune to the schemes of Washington, which continuously adheres to the principle of “might is right” irrespective of who is seated in the Oval Office.

More importantly, as history indicates, the US never deviates from its imperialist ambitions without regard for the repercussions for others. Hence, what might deter them from pursuing a similar course in Greenland? International laws, diplomatic restrictions, the sanctity of sovereignty, or such ideals are pertinent to the country only for the purpose of imposing them on others and never for its own implementation.