1.2.2
Manifest Destiny
'Manifest Destiny'
'Manifest Destiny'
White people moved west for a number of reasons, including their religious beliefs.
Manifest destiny
Manifest destiny
- If the American population was concentrated on the East Coast of America, it would be very hard to defend the whole nation against foreign enemies. They needed to distribute the population all over the country to protect the nation.
- The view of ‘manifest destiny’ was that the Christian God wanted white American settlers to rule the whole continent of North America.
- This had bad implications for the indigenous Plains Indians.
'The American Way of Life'
'The American Way of Life'
- Manifest destiny can be understood as 'obvious fate'.
- White settlers saw their domination of North America as part of an inevitable process that was desired by God.
- Settlers felt they had a duty to spread 'the American way of life' on the plains.
- The Mormon church, created by Joseph Smith, still to this day tries to spread its beliefs and principles to new people all over the world, spreading their way of life.
- Writers such as Horace Greeley encouraged this movement through his advice, 'Go West, young man'.
1The Early Settlement of the West, c1835-c1862
1.1The Plains Indians: Beliefs & Way of Life
1.2Migration & Early Settlement
2Development of the Plains, c.1862–c.1876
2.1The Development of Settlement in the West
3Conflicts & Conquest, c.1876–c.1895
3.1Changes in Farming & Settlement
Jump to other topics
1The Early Settlement of the West, c1835-c1862
1.1The Plains Indians: Beliefs & Way of Life
1.2Migration & Early Settlement
2Development of the Plains, c.1862–c.1876
2.1The Development of Settlement in the West
3Conflicts & Conquest, c.1876–c.1895
3.1Changes in Farming & Settlement
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