Friday, January 16, 2026

The prospect of the US buying Greenland, by choice or by force, as mentioned by US President Donald Trump, gives historians a sense of déjà vu.

Le Monde is a French newspaper founded in 1944 by Hubert Beuve-Méry. It is the most widely read paid national daily newspaper in France, with 2.44 million readers in 2021, and the most widely circulated, with around 500,000 subscribers, including 414,000 digital subscribers and 87,000 print subscribers.

Long before coveting Greenland, the US expanded by opening its checkbook

From the early 19th century on, the United States expanded by acquiring territory through purchase or force. By expressing interest in Greenland, Donald Trump has revived that tradition.

By  (San Francisco (United States) correspondent)

Published on January 13, 2026, at 8:00 pm (Paris), updated yesterday at 10:23 am

Lire en français

An American caricature depicting the Monroe Doctrine, proclaimed by President James Monroe in his address to Congress on December 2, 1823.
The prospect of the US buying Greenland, by choice or by force, as mentioned by US President Donald Trump, gives historians a sense of déjà vu. 
The 19th-century was a period of territorial acquisitions for the expanding country: 
  1. Louisiana (from France) in 1803, then 
  2. Florida (from Spain) in 1819, 
  3. Alaska (from the Russian Empire) in 1867 and the 
  4. Philippines (from Spain) in 1898.
"The idea of acquiring Greenland is not new. 
It's been around since the 19th-century,"  
---Henry William Brands Jr, a specialist in American history and professor at the University of Texas at Austin, told Le Monde. 

It was linked to the acquisition of Alaska, which was then under Russian control.

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