The territory of the United States is very interesting, there is an enclave in the far north, but the middle zone does not belong to the United States, but to Canada.
This will undoubtedly increase the cost of management for the United States, which should swallow up the middle ground.
This middle ground is the province of Columbia, whose capital is Vancouver, which has a large Chinese population.
But in fact, Vancouver had the opportunity to choose to join the United States, and there was no resistance.
However, Vancouver finally chose Canada, resulting in the current situation of Alaska being separated from the United States.
So, why did the United States miss out on this place, and what advantages does Canada have over the United States?
The United States wants to go crazy with Vancouver
The U.S. missed Vancouver, not because the U.S. didn't want the place.
On the contrary, in order to get the province of Columbia, including Vancouver, the United States has resorted to all means and engaged in a protracted battle with Canada.
In the end, it was because of the defeat to Canada that he did not take this place.
This place is not very important in the first place, and the United States does not have to do it.
But in 1867, a major event occurred that caused Columbia to become a favorite in the eyes of the United States.
One day in 1867, Tsarist Russia suddenly approached the U.S. government and wanted to sell Alaska to the United States.
The U.S. government official tentatively asked, "How much are you going to sell?"
Tsarist officials did not talk nonsense either, and directly reported a shocking figure: "7 million dollars!"
The U.S. official's brain buzzed, and his lips trembled to reconfirm to the Tsarist official: "How much?"
Tsarist officials still say the same thing: "$7 million!"
The US official immediately said: "One word is a deal!"
In this way, the United States acquired more than 1 million square kilometers of land at the price of $7 million for cabbage.
The Tsarist government was bleeding in their hearts, they didn't want to sell this land, but they were fighting the Crimean War with Britain, and the war was unfavorable.
If, at this time, Britain attacked from the North American colonies and attacked Alaska, Tsarist Russia would be caught in a two-front war.
And Alaska's defenses are empty, and they will definitely collapse with one blow.
After the fall of Alaska, the British army will inevitably force its way across the Bering Strait, and at that time, Siberia may not be owned by Tsarist Russia.
At that time, the United States happened to be at odds with Britain, so Tsarist Russia decided to sell the United States a favor, which was tantamount to giving Alaska to the United States.
But as the saying goes, people have only one worry before they are full, but they have countless troubles after they are full.
The territory of the United States has become bigger, and it has picked up an Alaska for nothing, but the management problem has become a big problem.
The solution to this problem was to connect the territory between Alaska and the United States, which at the time was a British colony.
Relations between Britain and the United States have been very bad since the United States defeated Britain in the Revolutionary War, so it is impossible for Britain to cede Colombia to the United States.
If the United States wants Vancouver, it can only attack it by force, but the United States does not have the ability to do so.
In fact, not only Vancouver, but also the whole of Canada and the United States wanted to swallow it up, and really attacked, but it ended in failure.
At that time, Canada was only a small part of the Atlantic coast, and it had just become self-governing from the British.
However, the difference between Canada and the United States is that the United States resisted by force and became independent, while Canada was determined by the United Kingdom's agreement to allow it to be autonomous.
Therefore, although Canada is self-governing, it is still one family with the United Kingdom.
When the Americans drafted the Declaration of Independence, they also invited Canada to participate in it, but Canada refused.
Otherwise, when we talk about the early United States, we would not be thirteen states in North America, but fourteen states.
However, when the United States failed to win over Canada, it decided to attack it by force.
The United States wants to annex Canada, in addition to expanding its territory, but also hoping to eliminate the threat of its own north.
However, the American offensive was met head-on by Britain and Canada.
Mistakes
When the United States attacked Canada, not only did it not annex any land, but was invaded by the Anglo-Canadian forces.
The White House was burned down, and the walls were so black that it was impossible to see at all.
After the two sides reached a peace agreement, the U.S. government came back and saw that the office had become this ghost, so it had to paint the walls with white paint, and it was called the White House from then on.
This happened in 1812, when the United States took Alaska, half a century had passed, but the United States still did not dare to use force against Canada.
It stands to reason that the United States will not be able to get this part of Colombia no matter what.
But as the saying goes, God doesn't die of hunger, and the United States has once again encountered a good opportunity.
The British colonial companies were mismanaged, making Colombia unable to make ends meet and unable to pay its debts, and the British government did not intend to take care of them.
In the end, the colonization company picked on the problem and said that we don't want this place, and let the Colombians decide for themselves to join the United States or Canada!
The reason why Britain is so generous is indeed to squeeze out the value of Colombia.
When the colonists came to Colombia, they mainly wanted to pan for gold, and as for governing the city, it was all incidental.
However, as the gold rush dissipated, the population began to decline, and by 1870 there were just over 30,000 people.
The British Empire never made a loss-making deal, and Vancouver used to be a treasure, but now it is a burden, and it has to be thrown away.
For Vancouver, there are only two options, either to join Canada or join the United States.
But it is clear that the United States is much more powerful than Canada, and the United States is confident that it can get this place.
Many of Vancouver's immigrants came from the United States and did not contradict the United States in any way.
But there is one advantage that the United States does not have, and that is distance.
Although it is said that the territory of the United States on the east coast of the Pacific Ocean borders Colombia, these territories were not effectively developed at that time.
The core area of the United States is still in the thirteen eastern states, and a trip to Vancouver takes nearly a month even by train.
Canada is a different story, with Vancouver taking only 10 days by train from the heart of Canada.
When the Canadian proposal was put in front of the Vancouver Chinese, Vancouver immediately decided to join Canada.
Some people may wonder why Alaska can become a U.S. territory, which is closer to Vancouver.
In fact, there is nothing that can't be done, the main thing is that Alaska was sold to the United States by Tsarist Russia, and Alaska itself doesn't count.
And which side Vancouver wants to join is entirely up to itself.
As a result, the United States and Vancouver missed out, and Canada became a country larger than the United States when it got the land.
It turned out to be a completely wise decision for Canada to take Vancouver.
Although Vancouver had not been effectively developed at the time, it gradually became a thriving coastal city.
Swings and roundabouts
Vancouver was not included in the pockets of the United States, which is indeed a great regret for the United States.
This means that the United States will not only lose the opportunity to connect with Alaska, but will also face the huge enemy of Canada.
Don't look at the very good relations between the United States and Canada now, in fact, at that time, the relationship between the two countries could not be said to be incompatible, and it could also be said that they did not like each other.
After all, Canada still has the King of England as its head of state, and at that time it listened to the British government in everything.
On the eastern border between the United States and Canada, both sides built a large number of fortifications in preparation for a possible war.
However, in the end, no war broke out between the two countries, and these fortifications were all in vain.
The two world wars had left Britain in a state of limp and the United States on a shaky rise, and Canada could no longer be on par with the United States.
Don't look at Canada with such a large area, but successive Canadian governments have no ambitions and just want to hug other people's thighs.
Seeing that Britain could not hold its thighs, Canada really threw itself into the arms of the United States.
This is also a helpless move, after all, Canada's core area is on the dividing line between the two countries, and Canada cannot ignore the threat of the United States in any way without the British cover.
At present, Canada is highly dependent on the United States politically and economically, and the United States is solely responsible for its security militarily.
Although the United States did not acquire Vancouver as a key region, the whole of Canada is now the most loyal base of the United States.
It can really be said that Seon lost his horse, and he didn't know if it was a blessing!
And Vancouver has indeed developed very rapidly under the rule of Canada, and there is also a credit to the Chinese.
As mentioned earlier, Vancouver is the city with the largest number of Chinese in Canada, accounting for about one-fifth of the city's population.
This is because in the last years of the Qing Dynasty, many Chinese people chose to go overseas to make a living.
The Vancouver area is in the midst of a gold rush and is a new city, so there are many Chinese people who come to try their luck.
These Chinese are hardworking and brave than whites, blacks and local aborigines, and have played a huge role in the construction of Vancouver.
After the Canadian government acquired jurisdiction over Colombia, it built a direct railway to Vancouver, involving tens of thousands of Chinese workers.
In view of the great contribution of the Chinese to the local construction, the Vancouver government later established a memorial building.
After the improvement of transportation lines, people from eastern Canada continued to migrate to the city, which led to the prosperity of the city's economy.
Vancouver is now known worldwide as a tourist city and is considered one of the most livable cities.
The Port of Vancouver has also become the largest port in Canada, through which people from countries outside the Americas can reach Canada directly from the Pacific Ocean.
This has undoubtedly facilitated exchanges between other countries and Canada, and has also virtually helped to enhance Canada's own status, without having to obey the arrangements of the United States in everything.
epilogue
Canada can get the province of Columbia, it can get the port of Vancouver, but the United States can't, because of the difference in the way the two countries get land.
Land in the United States was either won or bought, and it was never obtained in vain.
And Canada's land was completely given by Britain for free, just to make Canada self-governing and then contain the United States.
Columbia was the last British colony in North America.
Although Britain left the local people to decide, the land was previously given to Canada, and according to inertia, Canada deserved this land.
Although the United States said that it also desperately wanted to get Vancouver, the United States has swallowed too much land and urgently needs to digest it.
- Author: Shanhai
- Editor: Shanhai