|
|
Article: 'Manifest destiny' used to justify America's expansion; Politicians hoped to appropriate all of North America
- Article from:
- Telegraph - Herald (Dubuque)
- Article date:
- December 25, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2005 Telegraph - Herald (Dubuque). Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
|
Some people coin phrases. Journalist John L. O'Sullivan minted one
this week (Dec. 27) in 1845 when he wrote in The Democratic Review
that it was America's "manifest destiny to overspread and to possess
the whole of the continent, which Providence has given us."
O'Sullivan's phrase quickly caught on, and "manifest destiny" was
soon invoked by countless politicians to justify America's inexorable
expansion west and inevitable appropriation of the North American
continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
The fact that, at the time, significant parts of that continent -
in particular the California and Oregon territories - belonged to
other nations was considered a minor irritant.
"Our ...