2. American Imperialism
• Today we will:
• Look at the US in global imperialism
• The Spanish-American War
• Cuba
• Guam
• The Philippines
• Puerto Rico
• Does imperialism have to mean holding a territory?
• China
• The Caribbean and Latin America
• Next time we will:
• Look at an overview of the test results
• Continue the Progressive Era
5. Reading #1
• As you read, make note of the justifications for imperialism.
• What were some of Kipling’s justifications for imperialism?
• When did Kipling write this poem?
• To whom was it directed?
• Did everyone feel this way about imperialism?
• Why was this idea of taking up “the White man’s burden,” even
more bizarre, given the occasion?
6. The idea of Imperialism in the US
• 1890 – Alfred Thayer Mahan – President of the US Naval War College
• Published The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660-1783
• National power stems from a strong navy and global holdings
• Less a history, more a call to establish American dominance in the Caribbean,
Central America, and the Pacific.
• Henry Cabot Lodge – Senator from MA, friend of Theodore Roosevelt
• “We must not be left behind.”
• John Fiske – Harvard Professor and Historian
• Used Social Darwinism to justify the Anglo-Saxon, English speaking
dominance of other races.
• The press instigates this new fervor for imperialism
7. The Pacific
• Alaska - Аляска
• William H. Seward – Secretary of State under President Andrew Johnson
• Had initially wanted British Columbia (Canadian Province) to join the US
• Found out that Russia wanted to sell Alaska
• Bought Alaska for $7.2 million in 1867
• Was derided for this, but it proved to be a much better deal in the long run
• Samoa
• Granted the US a naval base in 1878, Germans and British establish similar
arrangements
• 1887 – Civil War in Samoa is resolved by making the island a joint protectorate
8. The Pacific (cont.)
• Hawaii
• Independent, unified nation since 1795
• 1875 – Signs an exclusive trade agreement with the US for sugar
• Sugar plantation owners were mostly American, labor was mostly Chinese and
Japanese
• 1891 – Queen Liliuokalani put restrictions in place to limit the growing power of
the American plantation owners
• The US Ambassador (John L. Stevens) uses US Marines to overthrow the Queen
• President Harrison waited until leaving office to bring the issue of annexation to
the Senate.
• President Cleveland tried to restore the Queen to her throne, but was
opposed by the whites in Hawaii (who created their own Republic in 1894).
• President McKinley sees HI as a strategic decision and annexes in 1898.
9.
10. The War of 1898 (Spanish-American War)
• Cuba
• Cubans had been revolting against Spanish rule for half a century
• Usually violently suppressed
• By the late 1800s the US did more business with Cuba than mainland Spain
• Many sugar plantations were now owned by Americans
• 1895 – Cubans revolt again (called the Cuban War for Independence)
• President Cleveland tries to keep the US neutral, but congress supports the Cuban
rebels by recognizing their right to rule
• Pres. McKinley maintains neutrality for a time, but public support for Cuba increased
• What fueled this public sentiment?
• What sparked the war with Spain?
• What prevented the US from annexing Cuba?
11. War of 1898 (cont.)
• Theodore Roosevelt was adamantly pro-war
• At the time he was the Assistant Secretary of the Navy
• Sent orders to Commodore George Dewey (commander of the US Asiatic Squadron) to
attack the Spanish at the Philippines if war was declared in Cuba (this is before a
declaration occurred).
• As soon as war is declared and a call put out for volunteers, he resigns his
post to join the Army
• Recruits a group known as the Rough Riders that he helps lead into battle
• Makes a name for himself as a leader, but it was always his goal to be a war hero
• US forces in Cuba
• Navy ships blockade the Spanish ships in port
• Army troops begin their assault in the south
• War was declared on April 25, the Spanish in Cuba surrendered July 17.
12. War of 1898 (cont.)
• After the surrender in Cuba US forces moved to Puerto Rico on July
25th, the next day Spain asked for a cease-fire, which was signed on
August 12.
• Philippines
• Commodore Dewey had followed Roosevelt’s orders and his fleet made it to
Manila Bay within five days of the declaration (they had been at Hong Kong)
• Swiftly defeated the outdated Spanish Warships there and awaited
reinforcements
• When it looked like British and German ships might step in to take the islands Dewey
allies himself with Emilio Aguinaldo, the leader of the Filipino Nationalist movement that
had been fighting the Spanish for independence on land. Spain surrenders the
Philippines on August 13.
• Treaty signed in Paris on Dec. 10, 1898
• Cuba is independent, PR and Guam annexed by US, Philippines stay occupied
• New government in Cuba grants an eternal lease of naval station at
Guantanamo Bay to the US in 1900
13. The Philippine-American War
• The Treaty of Paris did not resolve the status of the Philippines
• The US would eventually pay $20 million to Spain for the Philippines, PR, and Guam
• Congress barely ratifies the treaty, largely because so many people were against keeping
the Philippines
• Business and military interests in East Asia fueled support for keeping the
territory
• Pres. McKinley cites national glory, commerce, racial superiority, and evangelism to justify
denying independence
• Emiliano Aguinaldo is named president and declares independence, again
• This conflict sets off another war that would last three years (1898-1902) and cost many
more lives than the War of 1898
• Anti-imperialist sentiment grows as the war carries on
• Andrew Carnegie and the Anti-Imperialist League offer $20 million to buy back Filipino freedom
• Former Presidents Cleveland and Harrison, Mark Twain, Jane Addams, and others encourage
freedom for the Philippines
• When did the Philippines gain independence from the US?
14. Reading #2
• Foreign sentiment about the Americans in
the Philippines
• Read the two articles
• Compare and contrast the different responses
• What do you find interesting or noteworthy?
• Are these reactions expected? Why or why not?
• Newspapers played a large part in instigating the
war with Spain. What term for biased journalism
comes from this period?
15. China
• China
• “Open Door” policy allowed for spheres of commercial influence without
starting a land grab
• In 1900 a reaction to all of the foreign influence the Qing Dynasty allowed
arises
• Known as the Boxer Rebellion, they focused on ousting foreign commercial holdings and
especially Christian missionaries.
• An 8 nation coalition enters China to put down the rebellion (American, Austro-Hungarian,
British, French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Russian)
• The Qing ruler sees this as an invasion, sends troops to repel them
• The Boxers and Chinese Troops are defeated
• Russia seizes parts of Manchuria, the Japanese defeat the Russians (Russo-
Japanese War 1904-1905)
• While European business interests remain in China, the new major power in the region is
Japan
16. The Caribbean and Latin America
• The Panama Canal (completed in 1914)
• What is the significance of this canal?
• Was started by a French company in 1881
• US buys the partially completed canal in 1903
• Columbia (which controlled Panama after independence from Spain) did not
agree to our offer of $10 million for the canal land
• The US supports (funds, arms, etc.) a successful Panamanian Revolution
• Pays Panama the $10 million (and $250,000 a year for a perpetual lease)
• The Caribbean and elsewhere in Latin America
• After German and British Warships blockade Venezuela to force debt
repayment, President Roosevelt and the US want to avoid any other foreign
military in our “backyard.” This results in the so-called Roosevelt Corollary
(1904) to the Monroe Doctrine (1823).
• Allowed for US intervention in foreign affairs when it would prevent others
from intervening.
17.
18. Final Thoughts
• Take out a sheet of paper
• Write your name on it.
• Have you changed your mind? Is the United States an empire?
• Turn it in on your way out.
• For next time:
• Read Chapter 21
• We will start with Teddy Roosevelt
• Begin the Progressive Era
