Having read Jon Mecham's excellent bio on Jackson's White House years, here's what I took from it regarding Indian removal:
- Indian removal was all but inevitable, given the massive support it had from the "western" states at the time; however , there was a large number of people who fought it.
- Supporters of removal argued that it was humane because otherwise there would be constant conflicts between white settlers and Indian tribes leading to extermination.
- Henry Clay favored removal; in fact he wanted to exterminate the tribes. He only opposed removal because Jackson supported it. (Clay HATED Jackson.)
- Not all removal was by force; many tribal leaders voluntarily accepted removal in exchange for larger land grants west of the Mississippi.
- One reason Jackson supported Georgia vs the Supreme Court was that with the looming Tariff fight, he did not want to alienate another southern state.
Yes Indian removal was a dark chapter in our nation's history, but the fact was, it was going to happen sooner or later; there was simply too much desire for land by the US.