It’s all God’s Destiny - “Blood and Thunder: An Epic of the American West” by Hampton Sides.
The United States of America has occupied the area where it is now not from the very beginning of its existence. For example, the Americans bought Louisiana from the French in 1803 for 15 million dollars in those days.
However, some of the lands - New Mexico or California - gained as a result of the war with Mexico.
It was happening, as is usual with Americans, under grandiloquent slogans.
This time it was not a fight for democracy, though later on it was the favorite phrase in the US.
Here, journalist John Louis O'Sullivan flashed the second, beyond the propagation of democracy, the mission of the United States. "God's Destiny,"he put it in word so modestly, in American language, meant no more than the right of Americans to take over the areas between the Atlantic and the Pacific, in the extended concept, the right to control the entire Western hemisphere. In the beginning, the "God’s Destiny" movement concerned to the occupation of the territory of Oregon.
On this occasion, one can not forget about the role played by James Knox Polk - 11th President of the USA (he served in the years 1845-1849). A character whom history treated a bit after neglect - because who outside of the US and Americans heard about him? I also learned about the President Polk from this lecture.
It does not occur on any dollar banknote, which clearly shows that it has not been treated by countrymen with due respect. And this is also a very interesting politician at least in the opinion of Hampton Sides.
First of all, it was not overly corrupt, which apparently was not popular in this position.
Secondly - he made almost all pre-election promises, including the fact that he will not run for a second term. Thirdly - and most importantly - it is because of him that the US has enlarged its territory by more than 30%. He won the election under the slogan of joining Texas to the Union - he kept his word in his first year of office. After a two-year war with Mexico, he added to his achievements the incorporation of California, Utah, New Mexico, most of the current Arizona, Colorado, and parts of Wayoming.
He was not happy with anyone or anything, he claimed that everything could be done better, and his subordinates who carried out the presidential visions did it either badly or too subtly. Just one argument can be used to justify this approach of President Polka - he did not save himself, he worked several hours a day. He died - probably from overwork, 3 months after the end of his term.
It is a pity that today we don’t have politicians so devoted to the office, that they don’t fulfils their election promises.
The new lands were tempting for everyone, they were a promised paradise in the “God’s Destiny”, a fertile land for settlers, deposits of precious minerals, and an area for the designation of a railway line linking the shores of both oceans. The invasion of New Mexico was to make President Polek fulfill his dreams of conquering and joining the largest territory in the history of the existence of the United States. The American-Mexican war provoked by successful fortunes had a chance to end in this area as peaceful as it was for those times. However, the audacity and arrogance of whites from the East ultimately led to the escalation of violence. This also concerned policy towards indigenous people.
The whole history of the war with Mexico is presented through the prism of one man - the legend of the Wild West - Kit Carson.
The figure is very interesting and extraordinary. A great trapper, trailer, geographic guide, second lieutenant of the US Army, a traveler who knows a lot of languages and Native Americans and ... illiterate. Not very tall but very strong, taciturn and modest, which was unique in the contemporary West. A righteous man, loyal, understanding the Indians as hardly anyone. Married several times with Native Americans from different tribes. Which absolutely did not prevent him from carrying out, as he called it, "perfect slaughter" on the Indians.
"Blood and Thunder” is not only about political missions and military strategies, but it’s tells stories of simple people: Susan Magoffin - the only white American women who reached Santa Fe, Kit Carson's family or the Massacre at Mountain Meadowsk, whose surprising perpetrators remained unpunished. These are also stories about Navajo, their social structures, beliefs and traditions, about the ancient Indian culture, which has reached an exceptionally high level of development. These are also stories about peach orchards, labyrinths of mountain trails, snow storms, rocky wastelands and fields of grass to the horizon. The history of the Wild West myth that was born here and which had little to do with the truth.
This documentary reportage written in a rather attractive way and a great style resembles a storyline more. Evan Sides does not give strict assessments to any of the sides of the conflicts at the time, does not undermine the rules, considering that they were natural for that period. Moral and ethical assessments of the presented activities are left to the reader.