Why did the Americans take California away from Mexico?

Why did the Americans take California away from Mexico?

• A. It was a gift
• B. They believed they owned it because they farmed the land
• C. They won it in a war
• D. It always belonged to America

Answer: (B)

The main idea this question tests is how the United States expanded its territory in the 1840s and how California became part of the United States. Lands between nations are ultimately determined by military victory and formal agreements, not by farming or personal claims. In the 1840s, the United States fought Mexico in the Mexican–American War. The U.S. defeated Mexico, and the fighting ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848, through which Mexico ceded California and a large portion of the modern Southwest to the United States. So California became American not because it was given as a gift or because farmers there claimed ownership, but because it was won in war and then legally transferred by treaty.

The main idea this question tests is how the United States expanded its territory in the 1840s and how California became part of the United States. Lands between nations are ultimately determined by military victory and formal agreements, not by farming or personal claims.

In the 1840s, the United States fought Mexico in the Mexican–American War. The U.S. defeated Mexico, and the fighting ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848, through which Mexico ceded California and a large portion of the modern Southwest to the United States. So California became American not because it was given as a gift or because farmers there claimed ownership, but because it was won in war and then legally transferred by treaty.