Imperialism and WW1

Alaska

• Bought from Russia for $7.1 million

• Got in 1867

• Nicknamed Seward’s Folly/ Seward’s Icebox

  • American ppl thought purchase was dumb~ thought it was a useless land w/ little potential value

• Found hidden resources: gold, oil, timber, fur

Hawaii

• Got in late 1880’s 

• Before US intervention, had monarchy

  • Final leaders: King Kalakua, Queen Liliuokalani

• US troops invaded Hawaii and overthrew monarchy

• Wanted it for its good spot for military base, and also shipping

• Agreement to send tax-free sugar to USA, giving American planters more $$

Panama

• 1880’s: French company tried to solve problem of traveling from Atlantic to Pacific

  • Put project on hold cuz company went bankrupt

• 1902: US tried to buy canal area from Colombia, but didn’t get it

• 1903: US bought canal from Panama after they got independence

• Canal allowed for faster travel from Atlantic to Pacfic oceans (can go through canal instead of around South America)

• US owns canal, NOT all of Panama!!

Cuba

• Got in 1890’s 

• Ruled by Spain (Jose Marti)

• US knew that many countries under Spanish rule wanted independence, so used this as excuse to send troops to Cuba

• Wanted Cuba bcuz…

  • Similar history/ economy to US

  • Close to American South

• Spanish American war started bcuz of USS Maine engine failure 

  • Big misunderstanding

• US won fight in Cuba bcuz of Rough Riders

Puerto Rico

• Got in 1898

• Also got cuz of Spanish-American War

• Became Protectorate of US

Phillipines

• Got in 1898

• Controlled by Spain. With help from US, got independence and rlly grateful for US help

• Became suspicious of US, and later found out that US only helped since they wanted territory

  • Thought Filipinos were unfit to rule themselves

  • Scared that British, French, Japanese might get land before them

• Battle of Manila Bay : fought between US/Spain navies

  • US won using brand new steel ships (against Spanish wooden ships) ← Big Stick

• US got more influence, trading areas, military bases in Pacific

China

• Lasted 1899-1901

• Wanted to set up businesses in China to help trade

  • Countries like GB, Germany, France, Russia, Japan, Italy also wanted to set up trade in China

• Cuz of sm demand in area, US tried to set up Open Door Policy

• Chinese didn’t like this ← Boxer Rebellion

  • Chinese lost against 8-nation alliance (the ones who wanted to set up business)

• US didn’t control China

  • Knew controlling them would be impossible since Chinese kept rebelling

How did Hawaiians and Filipinos react to U.S. acquisition?

both had very negative reactions

• both territories acquired very unfairly, since the US either overthrew their govt or betrrayed them

• US thought country’s ruling system was bad and gaslit themselves into thinking they needed to overtake them (“for helping”)

Rough Riders

horseless cavalry led by Teddy Roosevelt

• Formal name is “Colonel Leonard Wood’s First US Volunteer Cavalry”

Teddy Roosevelt

leader of the Rough Riders

Yellow Journalism

type of journalism that presents little/no well-researched news and instead eye-catching headlines to sell newspapers

• Often exaggerated

Spheres of Influence

geographical area where outside nations exert special economic/political control

Big Stick

 nickname given to the US navy since they were so powerful

The Maine

ship exploded when entering Havana Harbor. US thought Spanish planted bomb, and this started the war. Ship acc exploded cuz of engine failure

Protectorate

Larger country takes over smaller country and protects them from foreign threat/influence. In return, ppl of smaller country are considered citizens of larger country

Imperialism

The policy of extending the rule/authority of an empire/nation over foregin countries, OR acquiring/holding colonies/dependencies

Pro-Imperialist Arguments

• Economic: new markets, cheap labor, raw materials

• More military bases

• Competiton w/ Europeans to be world power

• Spread US political, religious, social values (diplomacy)

• Social Darwinism: the idea that some ppl become powerful in society cuz they’re just “better”

Anti-Imperialist Arguments

• High monetary + huma cost

• Hypocritical- goes against values of democracy and self-determination

• Fear of sparking future conflicts

• Increase of things “foreign”

• Enough problems within own country

Open Door Policy

aimed to give all nations = trading rights to China, even tho Chinese ppl had no say and wasn’t officially agreed on by Western countries

Boxer Rebellion

Chinese rebellion after so many foreign nation tried to take over there nation

M.A.I.N. Causes

Militarism, Alliances, Imperialism, Nationalism

Militarism

• Policy of building up strong armed forces to prepare for war

• Strong militaries make it easier to run an empire too

Alliances

union formed for mutual benefit between countries

• Triple Alliance: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy

• Triple Entente: France Britain, Russia

Nationalism

advocacy of or support for the political independence of a particular nation or people

Berlin Conference

• European countries spent 4 months dividing up Africa amongst themselves

  • Some call this “scramble for Africa”

  • It was much more calculated

  • No Africans were invited

  • Abt imperialism

  • Economic expansion

  • Exploitation of Africa for resources

Archduke Ferdinand

• His death was the catilyst for WW1

• At Sarajevo, Bosnia, on June 28,1914, the Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Duchess Sophia, were murdered by a Serbian nationalist assassin, plunging Europe into war

• Austria declared war against Serbia, and countries began to take sides, starting the war

Why did Russia leave WWI?

• Russia having hard time 

• Millions of soldiers died

• Millions of civilians are hungry

• Russi had civil war (bcuz of Tsar Nicholas II)

• They backed out of WWI

Central Powers

• Germany

• Austria-Hungary

• Bulgaria

• Ottoman Empire

Allied Powers

• France 

• GB

• Russia

Why were Americans afraid of the Russian Revolution?

• US had growing labor movement

  • Ppl joining unions

  • Going on strike for better pay/working conditions

• LOT of labor organizers are socialist or communist

• Many from Eastern Europe

• Ppl scared Russian Revolution will spread to US

Communism

• Political and economic belief where equality and public control is most important

  • Closes gap between rich and poor

  • Often are atheist

  • No more private businesses, govt controls economy

  • One political party

Espionage & Sedition Acts

• Acts that made it illegal to speak against the war, to speak ill of the US govt, to speak ill of US military and to spread infor that was considered against US govt

  • Empowered the post office to stop mail it thought was seditious

  • Mostly used against socialists/communists

Eugene Debs

• Labor Organizer and Socialist

• Spoke out against US going to war

• Believed “American involvement as a class struggle wherein workers were to be sacrificed for corporate benefit and greed”

• Imprisoned for nearly 2 years

• Runs for President from prison

Wartime Preparedness

• Entire shift in US domestic economy

• All industries were transitioned to war industries

  • Cars → tanks

  • Canned for for soldiers

  • Clothing → uniforms and bandages

  • Munitions and guns

• Civilian needs became less important

War Bonds

• bond= loan to govt

• Expression of patriotism

• US raised over $21 billion through bonds

Harlem Hellfighters

• Army still segregated at this point

• Many white troops refused to fight with black troops

• Lot of black regiments sent to fight with French

• 369th Infantry Regiment “Harlem Hellfighters” was highly decorated

Armistice Day

• WWI ends

• Germany surrenders and agrees to stop fighting

• In the end…

  • 10 million soldiers died

  • 10 million civilians died

  • Over 20 million ppl injured

• Nov 11, 1918

Treaty of Versailles

• June 28, 1919

• Official peace treaty between Germany and Allied Powers

• Forced Germany to…

  • Accept all responsibility for war

  • Pay billions in reparations to Allied Powers

  • Lose African colonies

  • Disarm military

• Goal was to punish Germany

Wilson’s 14 Points

• President Wilson believed if every country followed 14 principles, there would not be another WW

• Speech was given to Congress

• Believed speech outline how to rebuild the world

  • Dismantling empires

  • Allowing new nations to emerge

League of Nations

• 14th point in Wilson’s points

• International organization for peace

  • Help resolve conflicts that would arise between countries

  • Many European countries eagerly joined

• US Congress didn’t join

  • Afraid country would be pulled into other ppl’s conflicts and wars

• doesn’t exist anymore, replaced by the UN

No Man’s Land

the strip of land in between both of the enemy trenches. Most of the fighting takes place. 

Shell Shock

nervous condition or mental disorder where a military veteran never comes out of the stress and fear they felt while fighting. 

• AKA PTSD

Gas Warfare

• 1st used by Germany

• Didnt use much at first since many countries thought it was inhumane way to kill someone

• Common gasses were mustard gas and chlorine gas

  • Both cause permanent lung damage + intense suffering

Sentry

job which requires a soldier to keep watch of their territory, and make sure to protect their lines from enemies. 

• Considered one of the most important jobs in trenches

• If failed, punishment is execution

Major Problems for Soldiers

• Trench Foot ~ over exposure to wet feet, causing it to decay/malform. Must have foot cut off if its too bad

• Dysentery ~ no access to clean water cause inflammation/damage to lining of large intestine

• Trench Rats ~ rats never left the trenches and would feed off the dead bodies

Selective Service Act

• Drafting

• Age 21-30 men need to sign up

• Abt 2.4 million men were drafted

• Many were inexperienced fighters and didnt’t see action for 12 months

Dough Boys

Nickname for American soldiers

Segregation

• Troops were segregated

• Even segregated blood

• Most given jobs like cooking; couldn’t fight

Women in the Military

• Hello Girls~ army radio/switchboard operators

• Salavation Army Donut Dollies: served donuts to troops to boost morale

• Other Jobs~ nurses, typists, telegraphers

Women in the Homefront

• Took over working in factories since men were overseas

• Took over jobs usually done by men (build ships, work on railroads, etc)

• Pay increases

• More $ = more independence (many liked this)

  • When men came back, some women didn’t want to give their jobs back since they didn’t want to give up their freedom

  • No job = being homemaker again

Regulating Economies

• Govt controls prices/supply of food and gas

  • Needed for war effort

• Companies can’t strike

• Wealthiest Americans taxed 77% of income

Great Migration

• African Americans started moving north for work

• Also got small increase in pay and job availability, but still discriminated against