INTERVIEW - Why has the conquest of the West become a myth? 

2024-02-02T04:09:10.103Z

Highlights: The history of the United States of America begins on the east coast, where the thirteen pioneer colonies were established which became the first states in 1776. In 1893, the historian Frederick Jackson Turner made the process of conquest of the West, which was then completed, the matrix of American identity. “It is precisely in these wild spaces that these men and women, by pushing back the border, transformed their European origins to become Americans” explains the historian. Virginie Girod receives Annick Foucrier, professor emeritus of North American history at Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University.

The history of the United States of America begins on the east coast, where the thirteen pioneer colonies were established which became the first states in 1776. However, the West and its conquest occupy a special place in the American imagination . To understand what makes the American West specific in the construction of American identity, Virginie Girod receives Annick Foucrier, professor emeritus of North American history at Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University. At the time of independence, acquired in 1783, the United States was nothing like the geographic giant of today. Wedged between the Atlantic and the Appalachian mountain range, the country is looking west to expand. In charge is Thomas Jefferson, third president of the United States. An expansionist, he negotiated the purchase of Louisiana from France and organized several trips to explore the territories beyond the Mississippi. The most famous of these remains the Lewis and Clark expedition. Leaving in 1804, the forty members managed to reach the Pacific and return. At the time, the West was an unknown territory. “We thought there must be a huge mountain of salt and mammoths,” laughs Annick Foucrier. In the wake of these essentially scientific expeditions, the United States expanded its territory through annexations. In 1853, the “Gadsen Purchase” completed American expansion to the West. After having enlarged the territory, it must now be populated and occupied. “First of all, it’s the railway. These are very long distances, the rail is essential for communications” recalls Annick Foucrier. “The American West also has spectacular landscapes: Yosemite, Yellowstone... considered by Americans as the equivalent of cathedrals in Europe.” In 1893, the historian Frederick Jackson Turner made the process of conquest of the West, which was then completed, the matrix of American identity. According to him, “it is precisely in these wild spaces that these men and women, by pushing back the border, transformed their European origins to become Americans” explains the historian. Strongly criticized because it erases the violent dimension of expansion and obscures the role of minorities, Turner's story nevertheless serves as a basis for Americans to construct the myth of their young nation. “Hollywood has taken all of this to make it an attraction, there is a whole re-creation of the past of the West” summarizes Annick Foucrier. Themes covered: conquest of the West, United States, cowboy, Hollywood