The final campaign of the Mexican War, won by the United States on September 14, 1848. In early 1847, President James K. Polk and Gen. Winfield Scott planned to occupy Mexico City in order to force Mexico to concede in the war. Slowed by Mexican troops, as well as disease, Scott's army reached the outskirts of Mexico City in mid August, and after a series of major battles, finally outflanked Gen. Antonio López de Santa Anna's men. On February 2, 1848, diplomats signed the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, which granted the U.S. roughly half of what had hitherto been Mexican territory.
See the Introduction, Abbreviations and Pronunciation for further details.
