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corporation.

The Republic of Texas was no more but had become the Lone Star State.

THE MEXICAN WAR

Texas Historian, T.R. Fehrnbach says in his book Lone Star , “The Mexican War is
now generally seen by American and other historians for what it was: a
Presidential war of dominant Administration policy, carried out for strategic
reasons against the wishes of a considerable body of public opinion. The War was
tremendously successful for two reasons: American arms were surprisingly and
quickly victorious and the goals, immense though they might seem, were limited
to the acquisition of territory either useless to, or only under the nominal control

of, Mexico.”

In other words, it was politically inspired. The result was that Mexico was removed
forever as a rival for domination of the North American continent. The U.S.
wanted to expand West to the Pacific Ocean the consequence of which would be
no other powerful nation could establish themselves in North America. America
would control the continent. This is called “manifest destiny”.

America began to prepare for a war with Mexico even before Texas became a
state. When it became certain Texas would be annexed President Polk sent
General Zachary Taylor with a small army into Texas “to protect Texas during
negotiations”. Taylor marched to the Rio Grande and built a fort at a strategic
place. He moved a detachment to a bend in the river overlooking the Mexican
town of Matamores allegedly “to keep the large Mexican force there under
observation.”

Each morning the U.S. army group would raise “Old Glory” with fife and drum
in full view of the Mexican army which inflamed the Mexicans living in the area.
Mexico sent an additional 1500 troops into the area.

One day an American patrol blundered into a Mexican army trap and were
captured. The Mexican army then rode to the fort Taylor had built, fired on it
and withdrew. Taylor sent a dispatch to Washington saying, “ hostilities may now

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