Summary: In this policy paper, I will be discussing the Indian Removal Act of 1830 and its implications on the Cherokee Tribe. Although the Indian removal Act of 1830 affected not only the Cherokee Tribe in the southeast part of the United States, but for this paper, I will be discussing how the Indian Removal Act affected the Cherokee Tribe. The Indian Removal Act was signed into law by Andrew Jackson on May 28, 1830, authorizing the president to grant unsettled lands west of the Mississippi in exchange for Indian lands within existing state borders. A few tribes went peacefully, but many resisted the relocation policy. During the fall and winter of 1838 and 1839, the Cherokees were forcibly moved west by the United States government.
President Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, the president of Mexico at the time, started to move the governmental system of Mexico towards a dictatorship. This in conjunction with the annulment of the constitution of 1824 early in the year of 1835 cause compelled large numbers of federalists to revolt. Though Texas was a part of Mexico at the time, many of its residents were used to a federalist government paired with vast amounts of freedoms. One of these freedoms that these residents missed the most was freedom, and the right, to own slaves. The Texians became quite displeased with Mexico’s shift towards centralism and their abolition of slavery in 1831.
While some groups favored escaping white harassment through resettlement, many more opposed the idea of leaving their ancestral homes. Their desire to stay was reinforced by the unhappy experiences of small groups of Cherokees, Delawares, Shawnees, and others who had accepted a land exchange and gone westward between 1785 and 1800. After the War of 1812 and the elimination of the British as a potential ally, Indian removal became a basic item in virtually all treaties with Native groups. In 1817 John C. Calhoun, a strong advocate of Indian removal, was named secretary of war by James Monroe. Calhoun joined forces with the war hero Andrew Jackson and Lewis Cass, governor of Michigan Territory, to urge formal adoption of a removal
The farmers, who were now demanding governmental reforms in addition to protection from hostile Native Americans, forced the governor to flee. Bacon then led another expedition against the Native Americans, defeating them at the Battle of Bloody Run. While Bacon was engaged in this effort, Berkeley began to raise a force to fight him. Marching against Jamestown a second time, Bacon captured the city and burned it in September 1676. In the following month, Bacon died suddenly and his rebellion immediately collapsed.
Eager for land to raise cotton, the settlers pressured the federal government to acquire the Indian Territory. Georgia, in particular, was the main source of the dispute. It was the largest state at the time and was involved in a jurisdictional dispute with the Cherokee nation. President Jackson hoped the removal of Native Americans would resolve the crisis in Georgia. The Indian Removal Act was also very controversial, while Native American removal, in theory, was voluntary.
This first skirmish between these two sides happened in 1755, when a young officer by the name of George Washington and his militia tried to take down one of the French’s main forts, Duquesne. However they failed as the French proved to be a much greater force than expected, and Washington was forced to surrender and retreat. The French had the Indians on their side which was a big advantage to them, and more Indians who had been kicked out by the British colonists also saw this as an opportunity to settle some old scores. This resulted in a second loss for the British as they once again tried to take Fort Duquesne. This time though, they lost 70 percent of their men, and their general, Edward Braddock.
As the Indians were forced to leave the land white people just came over and took part of the land that belong to the reservation and there was nothing the Indians could do about it. The discovery of gold made matters even worst as Americans came across the land looking for fortune in large numbers and in the process destroyed the land and the ecosystem. Their vast numbers drove away the bison herds and forced them to change their emigration patterns, which made it a lot more difficult for the Indians to sustain themselves. In addition to being forced to move to small reservations they were put on rationed food and supplies from the U.S government and to change their culture all against their will. The reservations were not set on the best land; those were given to white Americans.
The west was expending inevitably. The Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 established the Sioux Reservation. The U.S government pledged to keep whites out of this territory. In 1874 Lt. Col. George Custer and his army discovered gold in the Black Hills, which led to different battles between the Americans and Sioux who just wanted to defend their area, homes and way of life. On June 25, 1876 Lt. Custer was defeated at the Battle of Little Big Horn by the chiefs, Sitting bull, Gall, Crazy Horse and their men.
Just like many European powers prior to the 20th century, the United States looked at how the new world was developing. Consequently, it was looking to expand and create more opportunity to flourish. One of the reasons for this idea of expansion was the need to gain more natural resources for industrial development. The United States attempted to seek
While Lincoln was afraid to upset Border States by calling for Black troop, not all of his generals had his same sentiment. General Benjamin Butler, in August of 1961 enacted what is commonly known now as the first Confiscation Act. Under this act, any property used by Confederacy troops could be confiscated. This include slaves who by this time maintained roles such as clearing fields of dead bodies, cooks, or other menial service jobs. General John Freemont of Missouri attempted to enact an order which would have freed all slaves.