Answer:
The correct answer is A. The armed conflict in which the US military intervened to prevent the expansion and growing independence of the Mormon community was the Utah War.
Explanation:
The Utah War was the conflict that took place from 1857 to 1858 between the US federal government and the Mormons in Utah.
Since the formation of the Utah Territory in 1850, complaints to the Mormon domination and forced enforcing of their customs, especially polygamy, have been received by the federal authorities. These sentiments were fueled by false reports of rebellion, which local representatives of federal authorities transmitted to Washington.
In 1857, President James Buchanan appointed Alfred Cuming, who was not a Mormon, the new governor of the Territory in return for Mormon Brigham Young. Mormons opposed this appointment. In May 1857, the president sent 2,500 troops to restore order and support Cuming.
In September 1857, the Mormons and Payut Indians launched an attack on civilians moving from Arkansas to California, which went down in history as the Mountain Meadows massacre; as a result, 120 immigrants, including women and children, were killed. Fearing revenge, the Mormons destroyed the army’s arsenals, thereby preventing the army from coming until the summer of 1858. A compromise was reached by this time.
In June 1858, troops entered the city of Salt Lake City, and Cuming took over as governor. The conflict resulted in a long distrust between the federal authorities and the local Mormon population, which prevented Utah from joining the United States as a state until 1896.
