Controversy and Consequences
• Before the war with Mexico was even complete, the issue of the expansion of slavery came to the forefront of political debates • The issue of slavery split both major parties into northern and southern
factions and fueled the creation of the Free-Soil Party.
• With the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, the war with Mexico came to an end and the United States gained a vast swath of new territory in the Southwest seizing half of Mexico’s territory. • The issue of slavery in the new territories further divided Americans in the
aftermath of the war as the question of organizing the newly claimed territories commenced.