03/28/2016
Fenster (FDR’s Shadow), a specialist in 19th-century American history, details the political strategies behind President Thomas Jefferson’s decision to dispatch teams of explorers to the vast lands west of the Mississippi River. During Jefferson’s administration, the U.S. confronted major threats from the global superpowers of that time—Britain, Spain, and France—all of whom wished to carve up the weak, newly independent nation. A major part of Jeffersonian strategy consisted of using citizen explorers—most of whom were personally recruited old friends and outlaws, including Meriwether Lewis, William Clark, George Hunter, William Dunbar, Thomas Freeman, Peter Custis, and Zebulon Pike—to take possession of the newly acquired Louisiana Territory. By avoiding the burden of deploying of a large military force to the territory, Jefferson skirted political opposition and found a means to “absorb” the West without provoking the European powers. The dangerous expeditions were plagued with disease, attacks by Native Americans, natural disasters, crew mutinies, and peril from rival nations. Fenster skillfully profiles the “Men of Jefferson” who were selected to spearhead the exploration efforts, but it’s the wily, resourceful Jefferson who steals the show with his ambitious vision, ability to gauge foreign opposition, and advantageous use of the federal treasury to support his missions. Agent: Joëlle Delbourgo, Joëlle Delbourgo Associates. (May)
At the dawn of the 19th century the stakes for American expansion were incalculably high. Even after the purchase of the Louisiana Territory, Spain coveted that land and sought to retain it. With war expected at any moment, Jefferson played a game of strategy, putting on the ground the only Americans he could: a cadre of explorers who finally annexed it through courageous exploration.
President Jefferson most famously recruited Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, but at the same time other teams did the same work in places where it was even more crucial. William Dunbar, George Hunter, Thomas Freeman, Peter Custis, and Zebulon Pike were all dispatched on urgent missions to map the frontier and keep a steady correspondence with Washington about their findings.
They weren't always well-matched-with each other and certainly not with a Spanish army of a thousand soldiers or more. These tensions threatened to undermine Jefferson's goals for the country, leaving the United States in danger of losing its foothold in the West. Jefferson's America*rediscovers the robust and often harrowing action from these seminal expeditions and illuminates the president's vision for a continental America.
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President Jefferson most famously recruited Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, but at the same time other teams did the same work in places where it was even more crucial. William Dunbar, George Hunter, Thomas Freeman, Peter Custis, and Zebulon Pike were all dispatched on urgent missions to map the frontier and keep a steady correspondence with Washington about their findings.
They weren't always well-matched-with each other and certainly not with a Spanish army of a thousand soldiers or more. These tensions threatened to undermine Jefferson's goals for the country, leaving the United States in danger of losing its foothold in the West. Jefferson's America*rediscovers the robust and often harrowing action from these seminal expeditions and illuminates the president's vision for a continental America.
Jefferson's America: The President, the Purchase, and the Explorers Who Transformed a Nation
At the dawn of the 19th century the stakes for American expansion were incalculably high. Even after the purchase of the Louisiana Territory, Spain coveted that land and sought to retain it. With war expected at any moment, Jefferson played a game of strategy, putting on the ground the only Americans he could: a cadre of explorers who finally annexed it through courageous exploration.
President Jefferson most famously recruited Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, but at the same time other teams did the same work in places where it was even more crucial. William Dunbar, George Hunter, Thomas Freeman, Peter Custis, and Zebulon Pike were all dispatched on urgent missions to map the frontier and keep a steady correspondence with Washington about their findings.
They weren't always well-matched-with each other and certainly not with a Spanish army of a thousand soldiers or more. These tensions threatened to undermine Jefferson's goals for the country, leaving the United States in danger of losing its foothold in the West. Jefferson's America*rediscovers the robust and often harrowing action from these seminal expeditions and illuminates the president's vision for a continental America.
President Jefferson most famously recruited Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, but at the same time other teams did the same work in places where it was even more crucial. William Dunbar, George Hunter, Thomas Freeman, Peter Custis, and Zebulon Pike were all dispatched on urgent missions to map the frontier and keep a steady correspondence with Washington about their findings.
They weren't always well-matched-with each other and certainly not with a Spanish army of a thousand soldiers or more. These tensions threatened to undermine Jefferson's goals for the country, leaving the United States in danger of losing its foothold in the West. Jefferson's America*rediscovers the robust and often harrowing action from these seminal expeditions and illuminates the president's vision for a continental America.
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Jefferson's America: The President, the Purchase, and the Explorers Who Transformed a Nation
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Jefferson's America: The President, the Purchase, and the Explorers Who Transformed a Nation
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Product Details
BN ID: | 2940170128358 |
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Publisher: | HighBridge Company |
Publication date: | 05/10/2016 |
Edition description: | Unabridged |
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