USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Since 1762, Spain had owned the territory of Louisiana, which included 828, 000 square miles. The territory made up all or part of fifteen modern U.S. states between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains.

Detailed explanation-2: -In this transaction with France, signed on April 30, 1803, the United States purchased 828, 000 square miles of land west of the Mississippi River for $15 million. For roughly 4 cents an acre, the United States doubled its size, expanding the nation westward.

Detailed explanation-3: -But France’s ruler at the time, Napoleon Bonaparte, was losing interest in establishing a North American empire and needed funds to fight the British, so he directed his emissaries to offer not just New Orleans but all of the Louisiana Territory to the Americans.

Detailed explanation-4: -French Foreign Minister Talleyrand offers to sell Louisiana Territory to U.S. In one of the great surprises in diplomatic history, French Foreign Minister Charles Maurice de Talleyrand makes an offer to sell all of Louisiana Territory to the United States.