Some events cannot be fully measured at the time of their occurrence. It requires decades, even centuries, to understand their full significance. Next to winning our national independence, the purchase of the Louisiana territory had the largest influence on the development of our country. Although the purchase was one of the greatest achievements of this nation, the circumstances involved in this action should have warranted the dismissal of this act. President Jefferson overstepped his Executive Limitations with the purchase of the Louisiana Territory.
             The sale of the Louisiana territory to the United States by Napoleon Bonaparte was the result of rivalries between France, Spain, and Great Britain. "In 1762, France ceded the territory known as "Louisiana" to Spain, after being under Spanish rule for forty years"(Winship, 32). As Spain began to decline in world power, France became interested in the territory and forced Spain to return the territory. As time progressed, Napoleon realized that he could not defend this territory, and decided to sell it.
             In the year 1803, The United states paid France 15 million dollars for the territory. The nation acquired eight-hundred and twenty-eight thousand square miles west of the Mississippi river. Unlike the large Empires of the past, this deal was settled without vicious battles, unsuspected attacks, or even a single drop of blood being shed. This peaceful negotiation was to the advantage of both parties involved. France gained wealth in not just one way, but two. First, there was the direct payment of the money from the United States. Secondly, there was the advantage of saving mineral, and human, resources. Not a single man would be killed defending this vast land in a foreign place, not a single shot of gunpowder or buckshot would be wasted in the hopeless attempt to defend themselves from a vast enemy. The United States, with it's numerous farmers and min...