Louisiana Purchase

• 1. Colonial Origins And Transfers

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  In 1762, the Treaty of Fontainebleau transferred the vast Louisiana territory from France to Spain. This secret agreement followed French defeat in the Seven Years' War and shifted control west of the Mississippi River to Spanish hands. The British received lands east of the river during that same conflict. For decades, New Orleans served as a critical port for American merchants shipping agricultural goods. Pinckney's Treaty signed on the 27th of October 1795, granted U.S. traders right of deposit in New Orleans. In 1798, Spain revoked this treaty allowing American use of the port. Americans grew anxious about losing access to the Mississippi River outlet. Napoleon Bonaparte regained ownership of Louisiana through the Third Treaty of San Ildefonso in 1800. Spain ceded the territory back to France as part of his broader colonial ambitions. A transfer ceremony occurred on the 30th of November 1803, just three weeks before the formal sale to the United States. The final handover to American officials took place on the 20th of December 1803.

• 2. Napoleon's Strategic Calculus

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  France sent General Charles Leclerc to Saint-Domingue in December 1801 with orders to reassert control over the colony. Toussaint Louverture had consolidated power there after leading a slave rebellion against French rule. By early 1803, Napoleon abandoned plans to rebuild France's New World empire. More than two-thirds of his 7,000 troops died from disease and fierce resistance during the expedition. Without revenues from Caribbean sugar colonies, Louisiana held little value for him. War between France and Britain seemed unavoidable by March 1803 when he began planning an invasion of Great Britain. Napoleon needed peace with Britain to take possession of Louisiana effectively. Out of anger toward Spain and the unique opportunity to sell something useless yet not truly his, he decided to sell the entire territory. On the 10th of April 1803, Napoleon told Treasury Minister François Barbé-Marbois about considering the sale. Four days later, Barbé-Marbois offered Livingston all of Louisiana for fifteen million dollars. The American representatives were prepared to pay up to ten million dollars only for New Orleans and its environs. They remained dumbfounded when the vastly larger territory was offered at that price.

• 3. Jeffersons Constitutional Dilemma

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  Thomas Jefferson considered a constitutional amendment to justify the purchase but his cabinet convinced him otherwise. He rationalized the action as a guardian investing money for his ward's benefit. Henry Adams argued Jefferson acted hypocritically because of his strict constructionist views regarding the Constitution. Many Federalists believed he would have argued against such actions if Alexander Hamilton had been in charge. Majority Leader John Randolph led opposition in the House of Representatives. A vote to deny the request failed by two votes, fifty-nine to fifty-seven. The Senate consented to ratification on October 20 with a twenty-four to seven vote. Madison assured Jefferson that the purchase fell within even the strictest interpretation of the Constitution. Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin added that treaty negotiation power specifically granted to the president made territorial expansion legal unless explicitly excluded. The fledgling United States did not possess fifteen million dollars in its treasury. Instead it borrowed the sum from British and Dutch banks at an annual interest rate of six percent. The Senate authorized Jefferson to take possession of the territory on the 21st of October 1803.

• 4. The Financial Engineering Of 1803

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  Francis Baring and Company became the U.S. government's official banking agent in London following Bird Savage & Bird failure. Barings maintained close relationships with Hope & Co. of Amsterdam to facilitate underwriting the transaction. Pierre Labouchère from Hopes arrived in Paris in April 1803 to assist negotiations. French and American negotiators settled on eight hundred million francs down from an initial one hundred million franc price. The value of U.S. currency was set at five francs per dollar. As part of the deal, the U.S. assumed responsibility for up to two hundred million francs of French debts owed to citizens. The remaining sixty million francs were financed through bonds carrying six percent interest redeemable between 1819 and 1822. In July 1803, banks provided a ten million franc advance to France before any bonds were issued. First group of bonds appeared on the 16th of January 1804. Napoleon pressed banks to complete purchases quickly due to his need for funds. By April 1804, banks transferred forty point three five million francs to fully discharge obligations. Barings and Hopes acquired eleven point two five million dollars in bonds for just nine point four four million dollars. Last bonds paid off by United States Treasury in 1823. With interest total cost reached twenty-three million three hundred thirteen thousand five hundred sixty-seven dollars.

• 5. Exploration And Boundary Disputes

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  A dispute arose between Spain and the United States regarding extent of Louisiana boundaries. Territory boundaries had not been defined in treaties ceding it from France to Spain or back to France. President Jefferson organized four missions to explore and map new territory starting from Mississippi River. Lewis and Clark Expedition traveled up Missouri River beginning in 1804. Red River Expedition explored basin in 1806 while Pike Expedition turned south to Arkansas watershed that same year. Dunbar and Hunter Expedition covered Ouachita River waters from 1804 through 1805. Maps and journals helped define boundaries during Adams-Onís Treaty negotiations setting western boundary north up Sabine River to intersection with thirty-second parallel. Northern reaches extended into British possession Rupert's Land now part of Canada. Anglo-American Convention of 1818 ceded territory north of forty-ninth parallel including Milk River and Poplar River watersheds to UK. Eastern boundary below thirty-first parallel remained unclear until Perdido River became western boundary of Florida after ratification in 1821. Fort Osage along Missouri River built in 1808 established U.S. control over northern part of purchase region.

• 6. Slavery And The Missouri Compromise

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  European peoples primarily French Spanish and Mexican descent were largely Catholic within the Louisiana Territory. Large population of enslaved Africans existed because Spain continued transatlantic slave trade. South Louisiana received influx of French-speaking refugees fleeing large slave revolt in Saint-Domingue. Many Southern slaveholders feared acquisition might inspire American-held slaves to follow example of those in Saint-Domingue. They wanted government establish laws allowing slavery so they could support taking slaves there for new agricultural enterprises. Institution of slavery under U.S. law contributed to Civil War half century later. Status of slavery in each state became matter of contention as southern states wanted extension westward. Northern states strongly opposed admitting new states as slave states. Missouri Compromise of 1820 served as temporary solution to these tensions. In freedom suit reaching Supreme Court, slavery of Native Americans finally ended in 1836. Some slaves of mixed African-Native American descent still held in St. Louis when U.S. took over despite Spain prohibiting such enslavement since 1769.

• 7. Native American Dispossession

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  Louisiana Purchase negotiated between France and United States without consulting various Indian tribes living on land. Tribes had not ceded land to any colonial power before transaction occurred. Four decades following purchase era involved court decisions removing many tribes from lands east of Mississippi River. Resettlement efforts culminated in Trail of Tears movement during mid-nineteenth century. Debates over indigenous land rights persisted into mid-twentieth century through numerous court cases and tribal suits. Many legal challenges filed in 1930s for historical damages led to Indian Claims Commission Act passed in 1946. Felix S. Cohen Interior Department lawyer often quoted saying practically all real estate acquired since seventeen seventy-six purchased not from Napoleon but original Indian owners. Total cost to U.S. government of subsequent treaties and financial settlements up to year two thousand twelve estimated around two point six billion dollars. This amount equivalent to four hundred eighteen million dollars in 1803 dollars making fifteen million originally paid to France roughly three point five percent total paid for land including both France and Indians.