Abstract

So often presented as little more than a minor conflict that was a prelude to the U.S. Civil War, the historiography of the Mexican–American War is relatively underdeveloped in the 166 years since the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. Yet this overlooked war is as rich with complexities for historians to wrangle with as any other conflict in history. The U.S.’s first endeavor into a foreign conquest, it involved conventional warfare, guerrilla resistance, atrocity, desertion, and an anti-war element. Its results were as great as any war the U.S. has engaged in, doubling the nation’s land mass and bringing valuable minerals that would help enrich the young country.