The blueprint for hemispheric hegemony: Joel Roberts Poinsett and the first United States diplomatic mission to Mexico
Abstract
At the beginning of the 1820's, the United States had survived two wars with the British Empire and found itself poised to begin the road toward becoming a powerful presence on the world political scene. The birth of new nations to the south of the United States, occasioned by the disintegration of the Spanish Empire, provided the fledgling nation with the opportunity to develop the political and diplomatic skills necessary to one day project their power beyond their own borders. The purpose of this study is to take a closer look at the political interactions between the United States and Mexico during the 1820's to determine the level of influence that this initial contact had on the development of American foreign policy within the hemisphere. It is the author's contention that the lessons learned by American policy makers marked a firm break from the democratic idealism of the founding fathers towards a more cynical and pragmatic world view. This break led to the eventual aggrandizement of the United States and to the detrimental dysfunction of Mexico and other Latin American nations.
Degree
Ph.D.
Advisors
Hearden, Purdue University.
Subject Area
American history|International law
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