How Did Andrew Jackson Affect America

One of Andrew Jackson’s reason behind the Indian Removal Act was so that the United States could achieve their goal of Manifest Destiny, which is the belief Americans had that God meant for their country to be expanded from east to west coast.

Over the course of United States history, every president has changed the country in many ways. Some have changed it for the good of the country, and some have changed it for the worse. However, some have changed it in ways disputed whether they are for the betterment of this great nation. One of these many presidents in the infamous Andrew Jackson. During his time in office, he caused many changes. Some even believed that he was abusing his executive power in ways that a king might, they nicknamed him “King Andrew.”

Andrew Jackson had a big impact on American politics. Some people think that he influenced politics in a benefiting way, while other people dislike his ideas. It was because of him that there was a so called “Jacksonian Era.” This era lasted from 1824 to 1860. During this time, Jackson was President of the United States. It was an era that “addressed the inequalities in American society.” The Jacksonian Era was a crucial period of time in American history when the role of the President and Federal Government changed. Things like the Bank War, Missouri Compromise, Gold Rush, Seneca Falls Convention, Indian Removal Policy, a change in voting requirements and the split of the Democratic Republicans changed the United States forever.

In the early 19th Century, the Manifest Destiny led many White Americans to conquer new territories and force Native Americans out of their homeland. The growing population caused the need for people to move to have more space for farms and crops. The religious groups were also wanting to sweep God’s word across the nation by going west. The Native Americans were unwilling to give up their land and fought to keep it. Outmatched by the U.S. Military, the Indians were forced to leave and settle in a territory that was not claimed by Whites. Andrew Jackson, the 8th President of the United States, participated in some of the battles with the Natives Americans and the removal of 5 different tribes from their homeland into what is now Oklahoma.1 This research paper is to study about Andrew Jackson, his battles with the Natives, and what led to the Trail of Tears.

The Indian Removal Act was very controversial during its time, receiving influence from individuals, local, state and mostly by the federal government. This act gave the president, Andrew Jackson, the authority to make transactions with Indian tribes in the Southern region of the United States. The Indian Removal Act was a deal made by President Andrew Jackson with the Indian tribes, forcing them to leave their occupied land, which happened to be federal territories west of the Mississippi River. President Andrew Jackson’s primary method in Indian Removal was his speech to Congress regarding his opinions on the act, which included many positive outcomes that would happen if the Indians were to leave the territory. He claimed that this act would not only benefit the United States as a whole, but it would also benefit the Indian people. This benefit was called “Manifest Destiny” or the idea of the United States expanding its territories from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific. This expansion would benefit the country not just economically, but agriculturally as well. However, “Manifest Destiny” was only an idea, and in order for this idea to become a reality, the governments had to take action. This action in entirety was the removal of the Indian tribes from the southern regions, making them travel through very harsh conditions so that Americans could settle in their former homeland. Overall, the American government wanted to rid the

In 1830, President Andrew Jackson addressed Congress stating two Native tribes had accepted the terms of the Indian Removal Act. Jackson said he hoped the two tribes consent would set an example for the other tribes to leave because he thought leaving was an advantage for them. He explained, “It puts an end to all possible danger of collision between the authorities of the General and State governments on account of the Indians.” The two different civilizations didn’t agree, which lead to violent conflicts that lasted centuries. For thirty years, the United States had tried to come to find a way to get the two civilizations reach an agreement. The Indian Removal Act became the United States government’s solution that ended the violent encounters. This Act removed the Natives from northern Tennessee, southern Louisiana, western Alabama and the state of Mississippi, which helped the United

This did not have any positive effects but hurt the country economically. Not only that, Andrew signed a law called Indian Removal act where he forced “Native Americans...to retire from river to river and from mountain to mountain until some of the tribes have become extinct” [Document 8]. This contradicts to his idea of democracy where all power are to all people. The all people excludes Native Americans which is very undemocratic. He was clueless on the suffering of the Native Americans and completely ignored their well being. Lastly, Andrew vetoed the national bank as he believed it to be “too rich and powerful too often bend the acts of government to their selfish purposes” which had a negative impact on the nation as this fulfilled the country’s financial needs [Document 4]. Jackson seemed to be biased against the elites such as wealthy landowners as he had no trust on what the country deemed to be important for the country’s best interest. On the other hand, letters written by Andrew Jackson to his wife Rachel expressed his thoughts and caring for his Creek Indian son who they adopted after the battle of Tallashatchie [Document

Throughout Andrew Jackson’s presidency, he sought to represent the common man, but in doing so has negatively affected the American people. Many of the decisions that Jackson made were thoughtful resolutions to complex conflicts that threatened to dismantle the Union. Though he resolved conflicts, the effects of his decisions were felt beyond their benefits. Decisions made by Andrew Jackson such as the veto of the Second National Bank, which was positive in theory but ultimately led to severe shortcomings economically, questioned the ideas of the Jacksonian Democrats. These Jacksonian Democrats were guardians of the United States Constitution, political democracy, individual liberty, and equality of economic opportunity for the most part; however, there were pitfalls with their ideas.

Andrew Jackson’s influence on the politics of his time was remarkable. He was the only president to have an era named after him. He also changed the way this country was run and expanded the country’s borders. He changed much, but the four most important aspects of this era, in chronological order, were his victory over the British, his defeat in the presidential race of 1824, his successful presidential campaign in 1828, and his decision to remove Native Americans to land west of the Mississippi. His victory over the British in the Battle of New Orleans lifted his popularity exponentially. He was a newfound American hero, and this pushed his political ambitions towards the White House. In 1824 Jackson was defeated in a close presidential

Although he was basically robbed of the presidency in 1824, Andrew Jackson was elected by 70% of the votes cast in the Electoral College and a soaring 60% in popular participation in the 1828 election. In reference to Andrew Jackson, Andrew Stevenson said in his eulogy, “Born a simple citizen, of poor but respectable parents, he became great by no other means than the energy of his own character, and being, as he seems to have been, the favorite of nature and heaven.” Throughout his whole political life, Andrew Jackson proved a great leader with large numbers of supporters. During his 8 eight years in the Presidency, Andrew Jackson brought many positive changes to the American political landscape. His impact on America was so great, in fact,

Introduction: Andrew Jackson help to restore hope to the American people. He emphasized that “anyone can succeed through hard work and natural ability rather than unearned power and privilege.”

The Market Revolution adversely affected the liberty of Native Americans residing within the United States because they were seen as an obstacle to the country’s economic progress. As the Market Revolution ideas of commerce and expansion took hold in the minds of the people, these white citizens shared the view that Native Americans were hindering the goal of expansion. It was the United State’s God-ordained right to occupy and settle the land westward (Manifest Destiny), and the Native Americans were in the way. The conflicts with Native Americans has existed in America since the first settlers, but with the increased emphasis on commerce and development brought by the Market Revolution, the relations worsened. In 1823, during the case of Johnson v M’Intosh, the Supreme Court claimed that Native Americans only had the “right of occupancy” on their land, and that they did not own it. In 1830, under Jackson’s administration, the Indian Removal Act was created which tried to move the 5 Civilized Tribes out of their lands. Finally, in the Trail of Tears during 1838-1839, 18,000 Cherokee men, women, and children were forcibly removed from their lands and relocated to Oklahoma by federal soldiers. Soon

Andrew Jackson did not further the success in America. Jackson corrupted the government to gain power. He Forced Native Americans to flee their homes. Jackson also created the spoil system to further himself and hurt others. Andrew Jackson is a fabricator and a cheater.

Andrew Jackson helped to provide for a strong protection of popular democracy and individual liberty to the United States. Andrew Jackson known as the people’s president held a strong emotion in the states right’s which advocated to the increase of executive power. President Andrew Jackson was good for his country, because he provided certain decisions that helped form America into a better place than where it was before. President Andrew Jackson showed significant positives towards the people of the United States. President Andrew Jackson’s creation of the Democratic Party still exists today. His great efforts to eliminate the Bank of the United States helped to pay off all the national debts in America.

One of the defining moments of President Andrew Jackson’s career, if not the most significant, was the Indian Removal Act of 1830. This was a controversial bill at the time and the impact from it is still felt today. The Indian Removal Act directly led to the displacement of thousands of Native Americans; including four thousand deaths during the Trail of Tears, the forced march from Georgia to Oklahoma. While overt racism played a clear role in relocating Native Americans past the Mississippi, it is possible that other factors were at play. The living conditions in many of the states were poor for Natives and Jackson hoped that giving them a new location to live could remedy these problems while opening the land up for white settlers.