The USA has influenced the history of Mexico more than any other country in Latin America. There is no other Latin American country that lost so much at the hand of their power hungry neighbor from the north. In one single act the US took all the land making up the areas of present day California, Arizona, Utah, and Nevada from Mexico, in one of the largest land seizures of the century. This act was one of the results of the Mexican-American war of 1846, and will remain to be a topic of hostility between Mexican American relations till the end of time. The war is a historical event that has a shadow of suspicion cast over it. It seems to be misunderstood by all sides and the more that one looks into and researches the events of the war, the more vague the accounts become. .
There are Historians that believe that the war was a result of circumstance, that no one person or government can be held responsible. There are others like the author of The Great American Landgrab, Orlando Martinez, that feel; "It is a tale of an unjust act brought about by immoral men in order to satisfy purely material ends." Either way, whether Hawk or Dove, it is clear that this war was void of structure and legitimate cause. Instead of being fought to secure Liberal Democracy, or Capitalism, it was fought for egos and false illusions of divinity. This was a war that was riddled with errors and mistakes. These mistakes added to the uncertainty of the war and exposed the lack a professionalism on both sides. Much of the major discussions were made not in the arena of government, but by the soldiers on the field. This was a war that made people both heroes and villains at the same time. .
There are so many sides to the war that it is nearly impossible to decipher what actually took place. All we really know is that the USA invaded and conquered Mexico, and gained all the land North of the Rio Grande as a result. The problem that arises when studying the war is the cloud of uncertainty that surrounds it.
