From 1764 until 1800, Spain owned the land that came to be called the Louisiana Territory. In 1800, Spain secretly transferred the territory to France after being pressured to do so by the France's new leader, Napoleon. The Spanish were supposed to retain control of the territory until the French could send their own governor. In 1802, at the urging of Napoleon, the Spanish governor suspended the provision of the Pinkney Treaty that allowed American farmers to store their crops free of charge in New Orleans until they could be shipped to markets to the east and north.
How did Thomas Jefferson deal with this diplomatic crisis? Study the slides below to learn how the United States how the U.S. regained access to the Louisiana Territory.
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The Negotiations When President Jefferson found out that the right of deposit at New Orleans had been suspended, he told Robert Livingston, the American Minister to France, to try to stop the transfer of the Louisiana Territory to France. When that failed, he sent James Monroe to France to assist Livingston in trying to purchase New Orleans. The two men were authorized to spend $2 million for New Orleans, but Jefferson told them privately that they could offer up to $9,375,000 for New Orleans and the Florida's, if France would sell both. Napoleon wasn't interested in selling either.
Then, to everyone's surprise, Napoleon changed his mind and offered to sell the entire Louisiana Territory to the United States. France was on the verge of going to war with Britain again and desperately needed money to fund their troops. Napoleon was also worried about a possible alliance between the United States and Britain. He hoped that agreeing to sell Louisiana to the United States might keep America from siding with the British.
Jefferson's Dilemma As a Democratic-Republican, President Jefferson was a strict constructionist: He believed that as president, he could only exercise those powers specifically listed in the Constitution. And the Constitution did not give the president the power to purchase territory from another country. Fortunately for Jefferson, the Constitution does empower the president to negotiate treaties with other countries. Jefferson's Cabinet members encouraged him to use his treaty-making power to purchase the territory, and Jefferson followed their advice.
The Purchase The Louisiana Purchase Treaty was approved in 1803. Under the terms of the treaty, the United States agreed to pay France $15 million for the Louisiana Territory. With the territory encompassing 530 million acres, the United States wound up paying approximately 3 cents per acre – an extremely cheap price even by 1803 standards! On December 20, 1803 the United States formally took possession of the territory. Adding the Louisiana Territory doubled the size of the United States. |
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Napoleon Changes His Mind
Do you understand the key elements of the Louisiana Purchase? See if you can answer these questions about the event.
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Which country did Jefferson need to persuade to sell New Orleans and the surrounding region?
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Spain
France
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Why did the United States need access to the Louisiana Territory?
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to store crops before shipping them to market
to pipe water from the area for irrigating crops
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Why did France finally agree to sell the Louisiana Territory?
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They were about to go to war with Britain.
They wanted a better trade deal with United States.
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Complete
Question
Did the Louisiana Purchase violate the Constitution?
