The fall of Mexico City on Sept. 14, 1847, to American troops led by General Winfield Scott was the decisive blow that gained victory for the United States in the Mexican-American War. With all of its major cities occupied, Mexico had to accept the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, signed on Feb. 2, 1848, ending the war. This treaty transferred a huge swath of territory to the United States, including all of the present-day states of California, Nevada and Utah, as well as parts of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Wyoming.
The war with Mexico—precipitated by America’s annexation of Texas—created controversy even as it began, with members of the public and press questioning its justification; they saw it as little more than an American land grab. The fall of Mexico City began with the American capture of a castle on a hill overlooking the city, called the Battle of Chapultepec, on Sept. 13, 1847. Yesterday, on the 163rd anniversary of that battle, Mexican President Felipe Calderon referred to the war as an “unjust military aggression motivated by clearly imperialistic interests.” Some Americans in 1847 would have agreed.
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