A Country of Vast Designs: James K. Polk, the Mexican War and the Conquest of the American Continent
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.47 (781 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0743297431 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 592 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2015-03-12 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
From Publishers Weekly Merry, president and editor-in-chief of Congressional Quarterly Inc., offers a wide-ranging, provocative analysis of the controversial presidency of James K. Merry's conclusion that history turns not on morality but on power, energy and will may be uncomfortable, but he successfully illustrates it. Merry makes a strong case that Polk's America embraced a sweeping vision of national destiny that he fulfilled. (Nov.)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. Merry uses congressional debates and newspaper quotations to depict the genesis of a fundamental, enduring debate on America's nature and role. His political career was devoted to extending American power across the continent. All rights reserved. Elected president in 1844, he pursued confrontational diplomacy with Britain, structured a war with Mexico and enlarged the U.S. Polk. Using a broad spectrum of published and archival sources, Merry depicts Pol
Calhoun; and ex-president Martin Van Buren, like Polk a Jackson protégé but now a Polk rival. This was a time of tremendous clashing forces. history.. The struggle between a slave-owning South and an opposing North was leading inexorably to Civil War. When James K. Polk was elected president in 1844, the United States was locked in a bitter diplomatic struggle with Britain over the rich lands of the Oregon Territory, which included what is now Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. In a one-term presidency, Polk completed the story of America's Manifest Destiny -- extending its territory across the continent, from sea to sea, by threatening England and manufacturing a controversial and unpopular two-year war with Mexico that Abraham Lincoln, in Congress at the time, opposed as preemptive. Robert Merry tells this story through powerful debates and towering figures -- the outgoing President John Tyler and Polk's great mentor, Andrew Jackson; his defeated Whig opponent, Henry Clay; two famous generals, Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott; Secretary of State James Buchanan (who would precede Lincoln as president); Senate giants Thomas Hart Benton and Lewis Cass; Daniel Webster and John C. In a grippi
reviewer"Rediscovering Polk" according to reviewer25. "A Country of Vast Designs" is an excellent reminder of how a well researched and well written book can illuminate what was an otherwise dark and often forgotten piece of the American landscape. Merry's detailed and colorful story telling add depth, perspective and entertainment. For example, his account of the Democratic nomination of 18Rediscovering Polk reviewer25 "A Country of Vast Designs" is an excellent reminder of how a well researched and well written book can illuminate what was an otherwise dark and often forgotten piece of the American landscape. Merry's detailed and colorful story telling add depth, perspective and entertainment. For example, his account of the Democratic nomination of 1844 reminds us how crafty our nineteenth century politician were - orchestrating power plays in whispers and back rooms - and how luck played a major role in one's nomination. Particularly gripping is the brief description of the removal of Polk's bladder stone under the . Rediscovering Polk reviewer25 "A Country of Vast Designs" is an excellent reminder of how a well researched and well written book can illuminate what was an otherwise dark and often forgotten piece of the American landscape. Merry's detailed and colorful story telling add depth, perspective and entertainment. For example, his account of the Democratic nomination of 1844 reminds us how crafty our nineteenth century politician were - orchestrating power plays in whispers and back rooms - and how luck played a major role in one's nomination. Particularly gripping is the brief description of the removal of Polk's bladder stone under the . reminds us how crafty our nineteenth century politician were - orchestrating power plays in whispers and back rooms - and how luck played a major role in one's nomination. Particularly gripping is the brief description of the removal of Polk's bladder stone under the . 5 said Rediscovering Polk. "A Country of Vast Designs" is an excellent reminder of how a well researched and well written book can illuminate what was an otherwise dark and often forgotten piece of the American landscape. Merry's detailed and colorful story telling add depth, perspective and entertainment. For example, his account of the Democratic nomination of 18Rediscovering Polk reviewer25 "A Country of Vast Designs" is an excellent reminder of how a well researched and well written book can illuminate what was an otherwise dark and often forgotten piece of the American landscape. Merry's detailed and colorful story telling add depth, perspective and entertainment. For example, his account of the Democratic nomination of 1844 reminds us how crafty our nineteenth century politician were - orchestrating power plays in whispers and back rooms - and how luck played a major role in one's nomination. Particularly gripping is the brief description of the removal of Polk's bladder stone under the . Rediscovering Polk reviewer25 "A Country of Vast Designs" is an excellent reminder of how a well researched and well written book can illuminate what was an otherwise dark and often forgotten piece of the American landscape. Merry's detailed and colorful story telling add depth, perspective and entertainment. For example, his account of the Democratic nomination of 1844 reminds us how crafty our nineteenth century politician were - orchestrating power plays in whispers and back rooms - and how luck played a major role in one's nomination. Particularly gripping is the brief description of the removal of Polk's bladder stone under the . reminds us how crafty our nineteenth century politician were - orchestrating power plays in whispers and back rooms - and how luck played a major role in one's nomination. Particularly gripping is the brief description of the removal of Polk's bladder stone under the . A Country of Vast Designs is an excellent portrait of James K. Polk's one term as our 11th president in the Manifest Destiny age Quick! How many books have you read on James Knox Polk (1795-18A Country of Vast Designs is an excellent portrait of James K. Polk's one term as our 11th president in the Manifest Destiny age C. M Mills Quick! How many books have you read on James Knox Polk (1795-1849) our eleventh President of the United States? Most honest readers would admit to perusing none and knowing little about this important president! Robert Merry's excellent biography of Polk and his tumultous times hopes to rectify the paucity of knowledge most citizens have of Polk and his age. James Knox Polk was born in North Carolina in 1795. He moved to Nashville, Tennessee where he became a lawyer coming under the influence of the formidable 7th President Andrew Jackson. Wheras Jackson, the hero of New Orleans and Democratic president . 9) our eleventh President of the United States? Most honest readers would admit to perusing none and knowing little about this important president! Robert Merry's excellent biography of Polk and his tumultous times hopes to rectify the paucity of knowledge most citizens have of Polk and his age. James Knox Polk was born in North Carolina in 1795. He moved to Nashville, Tennessee where he became a lawyer coming under the influence of the formidable 7th President Andrew Jackson. Wheras Jackson, the hero of New Orleans and Democratic president . "A Country of Vast Designs:" an excellent book about a largely forgotten American president. My long-term goal of reading a scholarly biography of every American president took another giant step forward recently when I completed “A Country of Vast Designs,” an excellent book about James Knox Polk, the eleventh President of the United States.Written by Robert W. Merry, “A Country of Vast Designs” is outstanding. It provides a great deal of insight into how Polk became President, what his accomplishments were while in office; and what his legacy was after he finished his single four-year term.James K. Polk was a Democrat from Tennessee, the same state that claimed Andrew J
He has been a Washington correspondent for The Wall Street Journal and the executive editor of the Congressional Quarterly. Robert Merry is the editor of The National Interest. He has written for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Weekly Standard, The National Review, The American Spectator, and The National Interest. The author of McKinley, he lives in McLea