180k views
3 votes
The treaty of guadalupe hidalgo and the gadsden purchase increased the area of the united states by _____. one fourth one fifth one half one third

2 Answers

4 votes

Final answer:

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the Gadsden Purchase increased the area of the United States by one third, with the Treaty adding significant southwestern territory and the Purchase finalizing southern U.S. border

Step-by-step explanation:

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the Gadsden Purchase were significant in increasing the territory of the United States. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended the Mexican-American War and led to Mexico ceding a large portion of its land to the U.S. This territory eventually became parts of California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Utah, Nevada, Colorado, Wyoming, and Kansas, significantly expanding U.S. holdings and furthering the concept of Manifest Destiny. Following this, the Gadsden Purchase in 1854 acquired a smaller area for the purpose of building a southern transcontinental railroad. Combining the land acquired from both, the increase to the United States' area was substantial.

The Mexican Cession as a result of the Treaty represented approximately 525,000 square miles. Considering the total area of the United States at the time, this land increase amounted to roughly one third of the country's size before the acquisition. Therefore, the correct answer to how much the area of the United States was increased by is one third.

User Phil Helix
by
8.0k points
4 votes

Final answer:

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the Gadsden Purchase increased the area of the United States by one-third.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the Gadsden Purchase significantly expanded the territory of the United States. Through the treaty, which ended the Mexican-American War, and the subsequent land purchase, the United States acquired a vast territory that eventually became part or all of several states including California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Utah, Nevada, Colorado, Wyoming, and Kansas. This expansion contributed greatly to the concept of Manifest Destiny, as the nation grew territoriality.

In terms of land area, Mexico ceded approximately 525,000 square miles to the United States as a result of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which represented more than half of its territorial land mass at the time. This land cession, coupled with the additional territory acquired through the Gadsden Purchase, increased the land area of the United States significantly. To quantify this, we can approximate based on the approximate total area of the U.S. before these acquisitions to assess that it increased by about one-third.

Considering the totality of the land ceded by Mexico and then acquired through the Gadsden Purchase, the correct answer to the student's question is that the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo and the Gadsden Purchase increased the area of the United States by one-third.

User Fentas
by
8.9k points
Welcome to QAmmunity.org, where you can ask questions and receive answers from other members of our community.