VA Standards of Learning

1. Theodore Roosevelt’s
Foreign Policy
USII.5b

2. Digital Resources
History Channel :
Theodore Roosevelt’s Foreign Policy
The Century: America’s Time
Seeds of Change (3 of 3) – Roosevelt Corollary & The Panama Canal
Start at 7:32
End at 10:13
Evernote Lesson Bundle for the Roosevelt Corollary:
https://www.evernote.com/pub/brownb46/rooseveltcorollary
PBS: The Panama Canal
Panama Canal: PBS America

3. What’s a Corollary?
Definition: (noun)
a. Something that follows directly from
something that has been proven
b. Something that naturally follows

4. The Monroe Doctrine, 1823
Speech to Congress, December 2, 1823
1. The U.S. would stay out of European Affairs
2. The U.S. would not interfere with already existing
European colonies in the Western Hemisphere
3. No other nation could form a NEW colony in the
Western Hemisphere
4. Any attempt by a European nation to interfere with a
nation in the Western Hemisphere would be viewed as
a HOSTILE action…meaning an act of war
“[Peoples of the West] are henceforth not to be considered as
subjects for future colonization by any European Powers.”
Source: http://www.americaslibrary.gov/aa/monroe/aa_monroe_doctrine_2.html

5. 1900 Presidential Campaign: McKinley & Roosevelt
“The American Flag has not been planted in foreign soil to acquire
more territory but for Humanity’s Sake”

6. Background Information:
• Prior to the Spanish American War,
the U.S. had a policy of staying out
of the affairs of European nations.
• Theodore Roosevelt was an
imperialist…he believed that the
U.S. should be able to take control of
foreign nations for America’s
economic benefit.
• However, if he said this publicly, it
would not only make him look
bad…it would make the United
States look bad.
• He had to find an acceptable way to
justify American Imperialism.
http://astem.edublogs.org/

7. Roosevelt’s Justification
for American Imperialism:
• At the time, Latin American
banks were struggling to repay
loans borrowed from European
nations.
• This debt gave the European
nations an opportunity to seize
valuable assets from the Latin
American nations in return for
the money they were owed.
• This was a threat to American
business interests in Latin
American.
• This provided Roosevelt with the
opportunity to transform the U.S.
into a true imperial power!
http://astem.edublogs.org/

8. The Roosevelt Corollary: “Chronic Wrongdoing”
1904, in a speech to Congress, Roosevelt announced his amendment to the Monroe
Doctrine: In your handout, highlight any key words or phrases that provide insight into
the main purpose of the Roosevelt Corollary.

9. C. NOTES: Main Goal of the Roosevelt Corollary
1. Asserted the United States’ right to interfere in the
_________ matters of other nations in the __________.
2. Claimed the United States’ right to exercise international
____________.
3. Advocated the _________ Diplomacy, such as the building
of the ______________.
economic Americas
Panama Canal
police power
Big Stick

10. Roosevelt’s Foreign Policy:
“Big Stick Diplomacy”
“Speak softly and carry a big stick, you will go far.”
- Teddy Roosevelt

11. “The World’s Constable”
Source: http://kids.britannica.com/comptons/art-123246/A-cartoon-from-1905-shows-US-President-Theodore-Roosevelt-using

12. Panama Canal
“Panama – A New Sister Republic”

13. Examples of the
Roosevelt Corollary in Action: