Witnessed from Fort Marcy Hill

Witnessed from Fort Marcy Hill. Prince Park. You are standing on Fort Marcy Hill, a site of human occupation for a thousand years. Pueblo Indians and their ancestors lived here. Between 1600 and 1680, the hill was common land for Santa Fe colonists. The Spanish built a small fort on a hill nearby to house the guardia de prevencion, the city guard. In 1846, early in the Mexican-American War, the hill became a haven for U.S. Army soldiers, who were threatened by local people opposing American occupation., Turbulent times were seen from this hill above Santa Fe. The election of James K. Polk in 1844 pushed the United States towards a policy of westward expansion. While the U.S. government annexed Texas and looked west at the Mexican provinces of New Mexico and California, Mexico refused to negotiate. Following a skirmish between Mexican troops and an American mounted patrol in a disputed area along the Texas-Mexico border, President Polk declared war on May 13, 1846., Three Trails to Santa Fe, The hustle and bustle of trade unfolding on the plaza below could be witnessed from Fort Marcy hill. Before 1821, the 1,600-mile El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro (Royal Road of the Interior), from Mexico City to Santa Fe, had served as Santa Fe's only legal trading route and communications link with the outside world., After Mexico gained independence from Spain in 1821, early traders like William Becknell discovered that there were big profits to be made by bringing trade goods over the 900-mile Santa Fe Trail that stretched between Missouri and Santa Fe. Soon, New Mexico merchants traveled over a third route, the Old Spanish Trail, trading wool for horses and mules in California., With travel along three trails, Santa Fe became a major trading hub. Two-way commerce along the trails fostered international business, because merchants now had connections from Mexico to New York, London, and Paris. Ultimately, the Santa Fe Trail also had became a major route for the American invasion of Mexico., (photo captions:), ·This 1836 map shows Santa Fe and the Mexican province of New Mexico well beyond the border of the United States., ·A great deal changed during the following 14 years. In 1845 Texas became part of the United States. New Mexico became an American territory in 1848. By 1850 California was in the U.S. and the present-day U.S.-Mexico border was established.