Customer Reviews

The Louisiana Purchase (History Channel)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My interest in Louisiana Purchase dates back to my touring in New Orleans in 2003, which is the bicentennial. Then I know the St. Louis Arch and the Lewis and Clark Expedition are also related to this. It also leads me to eagerly know more about Thomas Jefferson. I am very glad that at least one, and the only one so far, DVD is available for the topic of the Louisiana Purchase.

The strength of this DVD is the comprehensive explanation of the background. The America's west expansion and Spain's closing the port of New Orleans motivate the necessity to gain control of New Orleans. Haiti's overthrowing France and Napoleon's attempt to wage war against the Britain, thus needing money, play key factors to the success of acquiring New Orleans and even the whole Louisiana Territory. During the going, good luck also stands by Jefferson's side. Last, Britain's loan to the US government seals the whole deal, which is quite ironic.

Overall, the international situation, including the aspects of US, France, Spain and Britain, at that time is well explained. I enjoy this very much and learn a lot deeper than before. The dispute and the impact of the Louisiana Purchase, however, are not addressed much in this film. I think this arrangement, or sacrifice, is good for most people. At least, it opens a door for more deeper understanding.

The Louisiana Purchase is one of the most significant events of the US history and it is delightful to learn it from this DVD.

This 50 minute History Channel dvd gets a full five stars from me because it effectively and entertainingly explains one of the most significant yet complex set of events in American History.

The fledgling U.S. fought for independence from 1775 to 1781 and in the resulting Treaty of Paris of 1783 gained not only independence but a vast national domain west to the Mississippi. In the 1846-1848 Mexican-American War, the U.S. took roughly the northern half of the Mexican Republic at a cost of 13,000-plus American lives, 25,000-plus Mexican lives and $15 million. This "first-third" and "third-third" (fractions not exact, of course) of the continental land mass of the United States were wrested away from other nations through the expenditure of years of bloodshed and millions of national treasure. In between, in 1803, the United States acquired the very significant "second-third" of the puzzle with nary a drop of blood spilled and by means of political intrigue and diplomatic negotiation.

To say that the U.S.'s acquisition of the 800,000 mile-plus tract that was the Louisiana Territory by accident and plain good luck is not an exaggeration. Americans tend to look back at this transaction as an inevitability and because accomplished so easily, as sort of a footnote to the national narrative. Nothing could be further from the truth.

The intricacies of the interplay of seemingly random developments are clearly illustrated in this video--quite an accomplishment, really, for a 50 minute program. Spain acquired Louisiana from France in the wake of France's loss to England in the French and Indian wars. The United States, after independence, finally obtained from Spain the right to navigate the Mississippi River and deposit goods for trade on New Orkeans docks--the 1795 Pinckney Treaty. That agreement was rendered meaningless when Napoleon regained the territory from Spain in the secret Treaty of San Ildefonso. Napoleon planned to re-conquer Haiti--San Domingue, as they called it--which had successfully revolted from France led by the brilliant leader Toussaint L'Overture, the "Haitian George Washington"; the "Black Napoleon." Napoleon, irked at this effrontery by a black ex-slave and desirous of re-acquiring the former gem of the French Empire sent an army headed by his brother-in-law General Chearles LeClerc to re-conquer Haiti and from there move on to occupy Louisiana, which would serve as a bread-basket for France and Haiti both. But LeClerc and thousands of his men died of Yellow Fever and the Haitians were never subdued, Louisiana was never occupied. Moreover, renewed war with England loomed, and Napoleon decided to turn the vast Louisiana Territory into fast cash. President Jefferson, un-nerved that the expansive French and not the somnolent Spanish controlled the Mississippi, sent envoys to regain the right of navigation and deposit or to acquire some small strip of land for American use. The envoys were flabbergasted when the French minister Talleyrand instead offered the entire vast territory. With no directive from Jefferson and no explicit constitutional power to do so, they agreed to pay $15 million for the territory--more than the minimum Napoleon would have been willing to accept, the dvd points out.

All these players and all this intrigue are well-developed in the 50 minute dvd. It is, therefore, well worth a history teacher's use of all or part of it to explain to American History classes, in a mostly very interesting way, this signal event in the creation of the "sea to sea" continental U.S. Empire. The taliking-head historians do a very good job of explaining these complexities in broad strokes that do not, however, distort by over-simplification. I have used the dvd for high school classes, but the general adult audience, if interested in great events of American History also will be both informed and entertained by this dvd.

Very often in American History outside influences are left out of the discussion. With the Louisiana Purchase, a great deal does not make sense unless the issues of distribution, Spain and the port of New Orleans, France and the Haiti situation are brought to light. This program did a decent job of pulling in the relevant outside influences that lead to one of the greatest turning points in What America would become. This DVD is definitely worth having on the shelf.

One of the better documentaries the History Channel has done. It gives untold tales of the significances of France, Spain, Haiti, and the Frontiersmen, among others, who played a significant factor in this Purchase that would shape the United States. In school you they'll tell you that Napoleon didn't see much signifance in holding New France, and some will tell you that Haiti was a factor, but don't tell you much more. They don't even bother to mention that Spain use to own the land for a period of time. Also, the past attempt of Jefferson is also never mentioned, and History did a great job on mentioning what is usually not, and that's what these type of documentaries are supposed to do. I'd give a a 4.6, but five stars is the closest to it, and that's the rating....

This work stresses that acquiring the Louisiana Purchase was a fluke. It's questionable whether Napoleon had the right to sell it and whether Thomas Jefferson had the right to buy it. We learn that it was almost designated a territory for Natives or that frontiersmen may have tried to secede with it. The work never mentions the term "constructionism," but that's the sophisticated idea at which they are getting.

Not looking at racial matters, these countries influenced each other. The American Revolution spurred the French Revolution which spurred Haiti's liberation. Still, as an African American, I was surprised and pleased to learn of the role of Blacks in this matter. The work said Napoleon's only interest in New Orleans was to have a place to watch a restless Haiti. It said Napoleon was incensed that Toussaint L'Ouverture dressed and posed as he did. Too often, Black scholars are only interviewed in documentaries if Black subjects are the matter at hand. This documentary included a Black professor. Near the end of the work, a Caucasian scholar says, "LA was filled with free Blacks, Natives, French, and many others. This contrasted greatly with the US which was largely composed of free whites and enslaved Blacks. The purchase hinted at the Civil War to come and the diversity matter with which this country still struggles." Whoa!: what a powerful interpretation! I must admit though, it was sad to learn that Haiti was France's largest exporter then and now it's the poorest nation in this hemisphere.

For some reason, most scholars interviewed here work at Johns Hopkins, an East Coast university mostly known for its medical strengths. One person named Dr. Bell is hot and viewers will benefit from seeing this cutie. Still, I am surprised that scholars from Washington University or Tulane, institutions located in the LA Purchase, were not interviewed.

This work mentioned that national figures often wrote messages in code. I am familiar with that practice as related to the Navajo Code Talkers or Alan Turing's time, but I didn't know the practice was important in the 18th Century. They say not all Americans agreed with the purchase, but do not mention that buying Alaska was even more of a scandal later. The reenactments were not annoying like they often are in historical works.