Manifest Destiny and Empire · American Antebellum Expansion

" . . . a very satisfying collection, with edifying perspectives on an era in which expansionists prevailed."-- Southwestern Historical Quarterly

Six scholars consider important aspects of American antebellum expansion in this collection of studies newly available in paperback.

Robert W. Johannsen of the University of Illinois at Urbana offers fresh insight into the meaning of the term "manifest destiny," arguing for a broader definition.

John M. Belohlavek of the University of South Florida takes a close look at the expansionist attitudes of Caleb Cushing, a Massachusetts politician, diplomat, reformer, and intellectual.

Thomas R. Hietala of Grinnell College examines the complicated clash of cultures (the result of Manifest Destiny) and how it was viewed by observant individuals such as George Catlin, a painter who traveled and lived among Native Americans just prior to the expansionist surge of the 1840s.

Winner of the Webb essay competition for 1996, Samuel J. Watson of Rice University studies U.S. Army officers' responses to territorial expansionism between 1815 and 1846. Sam W. Haynes uncovers the social and political complexities, including a widespread fear of Great Britain, that made Texas' annexation the most divisive issue of its day. Finally, Robert E. May of Purdue University offers a compelling examination of American filibustering during the Manifest Destiny era.