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The War with Mexico (Vol.1&2): Complete Edition
WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE
Historian Justin Harvey Smith takes a sweeping look at the conflict which grew from the United States’ 1845 annexation of Texas. Viewed by Mexico as their territory, this sparked Mexican forces attacked U.S. forces, and Congress declared war. From 1846 to 1848, the two countries fought a bitter battle over territory, trade, debt, and the treatment of American citizens living in Mexico – with lasting implications on the trajectory of the development of the continent.
Now published for the first time in a single volume, this work outlines the war which began in April 1846, when a detachment of American troops under the command of General Zachary Taylor clashed with Mexican forces near the Rio Grande. Despite initial setbacks, the U.S. achieved a series of decisive victories, including at the Battle of Buena Vista and the Battle of Chapultepec. By 1848, Mexico had been defeated, and the two nations signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which ceded a significant amount of territory to the U.S., including California, Nevada, Utah, and parts of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming.
The war had a significant impact on both nations. For Mexico, the loss of territory was a major blow, and the war contributed to political instability and economic hardship. For the U.S. – and the Administration of President James Polk - the war cemented its position as a dominant power in North America and set the stage for its territorial expansion westward across the American Frontier. However, the war also deepened divisions over issues such as slavery, as many Americans questioned the morality of acquiring new territory that could potentially become slave states.
This is a must-read of a critical period in American history, and a sweeping look at an often overlooked event.
Chapters About the Justin Harvey Smith (1857- 1930) was an American historian and specialist on the Mexican–American War. He was educated at Dartmouth College and Union Theological Seminary, and also served as chairman of the Historical Manuscripts Commission of the American Historical Association. He wrote a number of works including The Annexation of Texas, The War with Mexico, Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony, Arnold's March from Cambridge to Quebec, and The Troubadours at Home. Smith's papers were donated to the Latin American collection of the University of Texas library (now the Benson Latin American Collection).
Historian Justin Harvey Smith takes a sweeping look at the conflict which grew from the United States’ 1845 annexation of Texas. Viewed by Mexico as their territory, this sparked Mexican forces attacked U.S. forces, and Congress declared war. From 1846 to 1848, the two countries fought a bitter battle over territory, trade, debt, and the treatment of American citizens living in Mexico – with lasting implications on the trajectory of the development of the continent.
Now published for the first time in a single volume, this work outlines the war which began in April 1846, when a detachment of American troops under the command of General Zachary Taylor clashed with Mexican forces near the Rio Grande. Despite initial setbacks, the U.S. achieved a series of decisive victories, including at the Battle of Buena Vista and the Battle of Chapultepec. By 1848, Mexico had been defeated, and the two nations signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which ceded a significant amount of territory to the U.S., including California, Nevada, Utah, and parts of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming.
The war had a significant impact on both nations. For Mexico, the loss of territory was a major blow, and the war contributed to political instability and economic hardship. For the U.S. – and the Administration of President James Polk - the war cemented its position as a dominant power in North America and set the stage for its territorial expansion westward across the American Frontier. However, the war also deepened divisions over issues such as slavery, as many Americans questioned the morality of acquiring new territory that could potentially become slave states.
This is a must-read of a critical period in American history, and a sweeping look at an often overlooked event.
Chapters About the Justin Harvey Smith (1857- 1930) was an American historian and specialist on the Mexican–American War. He was educated at Dartmouth College and Union Theological Seminary, and also served as chairman of the Historical Manuscripts Commission of the American Historical Association. He wrote a number of works including The Annexation of Texas, The War with Mexico, Our Struggle for the Fourteenth Colony, Arnold's March from Cambridge to Quebec, and The Troubadours at Home. Smith's papers were donated to the Latin American collection of the University of Texas library (now the Benson Latin American Collection).
693 pages, Paperback
First published August 6, 2012
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About the author
Justin Harvey Smith
46 books3 followersJustin Harvey Smith was a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian specializing in the Mexican-American War.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 2, 2023
A racist but militarily accurate account of the War with Mexico
In my effort to read all of the Pulitzer Prize Winning novels, biographies, histories, plays and poetry collections as part of the #pulitzerprizereadingchallenge is to distance myself from contemporary thinking and allow the the biases of the time in context of the work. That was very difficult while reading this as the writer is not only a triumphal nationalist but obviously extremely racist with very insulting opinions of both the indigenous as well as the mestizos who made up the Mexican population. To him they were stupid, lazy, self important, unreasonable and wholly unworthy of the rich land they called home and should have been grateful that American settlers and , in their wake, our soldiers, flag and business people will make better use of the land and resources. In fact, his whole conclusion, trite nationalism indicative of his era, #justinharveysmith was not only making the rationale for a war that conquered not just #texas but all of the #Mexican north, our American #southwest that gave us the whole of #newmexico , #colorado , #utah, #colorado , #arizona , #nevada and #california . That the westernmost of these states were about to yield up an incalculable amount of #gold and #silver to make #columbus and #pizarro feel inadequate is barely touched on as, in Smith's view, the #unitedstates was bringing civilization to a barbaric people, barely acknowledging the fact that empires had resigned for thousands of years in Mexico with complex societies, religion, culture and architecture that had thrived long before Europeans had figured out how to sail boats.
This is why I could not give five stars because the stellar military history is overshadowed by the gushing propaganda at the heart of the justification. If Smith had just chosen to be an historian rather than a virulent imperialist, he would have written a military history for the ages.
To his credit, his level of detail concerning the campaigns in Texas, Utah and California that served as preludes to the #mexicanamerican war is astounding and better places in context and perhaps suggests a higher and more long term level of national coordination than what more histories suggest in our stumbling into empire. History has not so far revealed a detailed and coordinated plan to make the United States what it is today as our messy multi-tiered democracy and constitutional separation of powers lends itself to uncoordination. But, as this book reveals, #manifestdestiny was more than a catchy vision statement and the #monroedoctrine much more than a guiding principle made clear with all that had to take place in advance of the war with Mexico so that a pieced together, hodge lodge of state militias and a tiny Army and Navy could tear off half a nation against a well defended nation. A fascinating study that, despite the triumphalism, is a masterful work of military and political history in and oft overlooked period of the American story.
#readtheworldchallenge #readtheworld #globalreadingchallenge #americanhistory #unitedstateshistory #mexicanhistory
In my effort to read all of the Pulitzer Prize Winning novels, biographies, histories, plays and poetry collections as part of the #pulitzerprizereadingchallenge is to distance myself from contemporary thinking and allow the the biases of the time in context of the work. That was very difficult while reading this as the writer is not only a triumphal nationalist but obviously extremely racist with very insulting opinions of both the indigenous as well as the mestizos who made up the Mexican population. To him they were stupid, lazy, self important, unreasonable and wholly unworthy of the rich land they called home and should have been grateful that American settlers and , in their wake, our soldiers, flag and business people will make better use of the land and resources. In fact, his whole conclusion, trite nationalism indicative of his era, #justinharveysmith was not only making the rationale for a war that conquered not just #texas but all of the #Mexican north, our American #southwest that gave us the whole of #newmexico , #colorado , #utah, #colorado , #arizona , #nevada and #california . That the westernmost of these states were about to yield up an incalculable amount of #gold and #silver to make #columbus and #pizarro feel inadequate is barely touched on as, in Smith's view, the #unitedstates was bringing civilization to a barbaric people, barely acknowledging the fact that empires had resigned for thousands of years in Mexico with complex societies, religion, culture and architecture that had thrived long before Europeans had figured out how to sail boats.
This is why I could not give five stars because the stellar military history is overshadowed by the gushing propaganda at the heart of the justification. If Smith had just chosen to be an historian rather than a virulent imperialist, he would have written a military history for the ages.
To his credit, his level of detail concerning the campaigns in Texas, Utah and California that served as preludes to the #mexicanamerican war is astounding and better places in context and perhaps suggests a higher and more long term level of national coordination than what more histories suggest in our stumbling into empire. History has not so far revealed a detailed and coordinated plan to make the United States what it is today as our messy multi-tiered democracy and constitutional separation of powers lends itself to uncoordination. But, as this book reveals, #manifestdestiny was more than a catchy vision statement and the #monroedoctrine much more than a guiding principle made clear with all that had to take place in advance of the war with Mexico so that a pieced together, hodge lodge of state militias and a tiny Army and Navy could tear off half a nation against a well defended nation. A fascinating study that, despite the triumphalism, is a masterful work of military and political history in and oft overlooked period of the American story.
#readtheworldchallenge #readtheworld #globalreadingchallenge #americanhistory #unitedstateshistory #mexicanhistory
February 17, 2021
First, I have to offer a disclaimer. To say I finished reading this book is not close to accurate. In fact, I only read the preface and chapter 1. I could not stomach reading anymore of the racial hatred presented in the first 30 pages. The writer describes the native Mexicans as looking like their donkeys. He states that they were lazy and incapable of learning. This is just the beginning of the vitriol that spewed from the author's pen. I would like to think this book an outlier but it won the 1919 Pulitzer for history. You have to remember it was in this time period that widely popular "Birth of a Nation" depicted the KKK riding in to save the day. Unfortunately, much of the imagery of Mexicans remains with us which some political parties capitalize on to ,mobilize their base. I gave the book 1 star begrudgingly as it is the lowest ranking possible.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews