Imperialism & Spanish-American War Notes
Imperialism Debates
William Jennings Bryan opposed conquest, emphasizing the importance of avoiding a conquest-driven path.
The learning objective focuses on the similarities and differences in attitudes regarding the nation's proper role in the world.
Post-1790s U.S. foreign policy prioritized westward expansion, safeguarding U.S. interests abroad, and limiting foreign influence in the Americas.
Following the Civil War, the U.S. showed increased interest in overseas trade, establishing bases/territories in the Caribbean Sea and across the Pacific Ocean due to a booming industrial economy.
After 1890, there was a debate on whether the U.S. should join imperialist nations in acquiring overseas territories or remain true to its anti-colonial traditions.
Expansion after the Civil War
William H. Seward, as Secretary of State (1861-1869), was highly influential, akin to John Quincy Adams.
Seward prevented Great Britain and France from supporting the Confederacy during the Civil War.
He annexed Midway Island, pursued rights to build a canal in Nicaragua, and purchased Alaska.
Despite advocating expansionism, he couldn't convince Congress to annex Hawaii or purchase the Danish West Indies.
Purchase of Alaska
Russia and Great Britain both initially claimed Alaska.
Russia controlled it, establishing a seal hunting colony, but it became an economic burden due to British takeover risks.
Russia sought buyers, and Seward advocated for the U.S. to purchase Alaska.
In 1867, Congress bought Alaska for 7.2 million due to Seward's lobbying and appreciation for Russian support during the Civil War.
Many Americans initially saw no value in Alaska, calling it "Seward’s Folly" or “Seward’s Icebox”, and ignored its development.
Imperialism: Debates
Hawaiian Islands
American missionaries and entrepreneurs settled in Hawaii in the mid-1800s.
A U.S. commission explored using Pearl Harbor in Hawaii (Sandwich Islands) due to its location on sea lanes from California to China.
In 1870, Ulysses S. Grant aimed to control Pearl Harbor and establish new trade treaties with the native kingdom.
Hawaiians agreed to a treaty in 1875, granting the United States exclusive rights to Hawaiian sugar.
In 1893, American settlers overthrew the Hawaiian monarch, Queen Liliuokalani, and sought annexation by the U.S. to avoid high tariffs on Hawaiian sugar.
President Grover Cleveland opposed imperialism and blocked Republican efforts to annex Hawaii.
The Era of “New Imperialism”
The 19th century saw industrialized nations conquering and dividing Africa, Asia, and the Pacific Islands, marking renewed imperialism.
Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Japan, and Belgium gained control through force or economic dominance.
The United States participated, primarily aiming for economic and diplomatic influence rather than military action.
Expansion into new territories was a continuation of past U.S. behavior, but overseas land acquisition was new.
Expansion was supported for a mix of reasons.
Economic Interests
Growing U.S. industries strongly supported expanding economic interests.
Foreign countries offered raw materials (minerals, oil, rubber) and markets for products.
Republicans, closely tied to business leaders, generally supported imperialist foreign policy.
Farmers were eager to sell overseas, viewing growing city populations in the U.S. and internationally as markets for wheat, corn, and livestock.
Political and Military Power
Some believed the U.S. needed to compete with imperialistic nations to avoid being a second-class power.
Alfred Thayer Mahan argued for a strong navy in his book The Influence of Sea Power Upon History (1890).
Mahan argued that a strong navy was crucial for securing foreign markets and becoming a world power.
His book was influential among American citizens and political leaders in Europe and Japan.
U.S. naval strategists used Mahan's arguments to persuade Congress to fund modern steel ships and acquire overseas islands like Samoa for coaling and supply stations.
By 1900, the U.S. Navy was the third largest in the world.
Theodore Roosevelt and Henry Cabot Lodge advocated for expanding U.S. naval power and influence.
Social Fears
The Panic of 1893, labor-management conflicts, and the perceived end of the frontier caused social turmoil fears.
Overseas territories were seen as a safety valve for dissatisfied urban workers and farmers.
Darwinism and Religion
Expansion into the Caribbean, Central America, and the Pacific was viewed as an extension of Manifest Destiny.
Darwin’s concept of survival of the fittest was applied to competition among countries.
Expansionists wanted to acquire territories to demonstrate strength.
Reverend Josiah Strong argued in Our Country: Its Possible Future and Present Crisis (1885) that Anglo-Saxons were “the fittest to survive.”
Strong believed Protestant Americans had a religious duty to colonize and spread Christianity and their superior civilization to “less fortunate” peoples.
Many missionaries in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific Islands believed in White racial superiority, though some had humanitarian motives.
Americans called for U.S. government involvement in foreign affairs to support these missionaries.
Popular Press
Newspaper and magazine editors increased circulation by publishing adventure stories about distant places.
These stories increased public interest and demand for a larger U.S. role in world affairs.
Opposition to Imperialism
Many in the United States strongly opposed imperialism for several reasons:
Belief in self-determination: People should govern themselves everywhere, not just in the United States.
Rejection of imperialist racial theories: Denied White biological superiority and the right to rule others, though many feared adding nonwhite people to the country.
Support for isolationism: Following George Washington's advice to avoid foreign entanglements.
Opposition to the expense of imperialism: Building a large navy and controlling foreign territories would be too costly.
Imperialism: Debates
Latin America
The United States had a special interest in the Western Hemisphere, acting as a protector against European ambitions since the Monroe Doctrine in the 1820s.
James G. Blaine played a key role in extending this tradition.
Pan-American Diplomacy
Blaine's work to foster closer ties between the U.S. and Latin America resulted in the first Pan-American Conference in Washington in 1889.
Representatives aimed to promote cooperation on trade and other issues, creating a permanent organization.
Blaine hoped to reduce tariffs, but despite that goal not being achieved, the foundation was laid for hemispheric cooperation on economic and political matters.
The Pan-American Union evolved into the Organization of American States in 1948.
Cleveland, Olney, and the Monroe Doctrine
A key use of the Monroe Doctrine in the late 19th century occurred during a boundary dispute between Venezuela and British Guiana.
In 1895 and 1896, President Cleveland and Secretary of State Richard Olney insisted that Great Britain arbitrate the dispute, citing the Monroe Doctrine.
The British initially resisted but conceded due to the importance of U.S. friendship.
Arbitrators ruled mainly in favor of Britain, but Latin American nations appreciated U.S. efforts to protect them from European domination.
The Venezuela boundary dispute marked a turning point in U.S.-British relations, leading to friendship instead of rivalry, which proved vital in the 20th century.
Growing Conflict over Imperialism
The Monroe Doctrine set a precedent for U.S. interference in the Americas, initiating a political battle over the country's future.
One side supported anti-colonial traditions rooted in independence against Great Britain, while the other pursued economic and global power.
The conflict between imperialists and anti-imperialists intensified during the Spanish-American War and the colonization of the Philippines.
The Spanish-American War and U.S. Foreign Policy to 1917
Senator Albert Beveridge advocated for Anglo-Saxon expansion to new markets and lands.
The learning objective is to explain the causes and effects of the Spanish-American War.
The first targets of American imperialism were the Caribbean islands.
Expansionists had desired Cuba since the 1850s.
By the 1890s, motives for U.S. intervention in Cuba included American investments in Cuban sugar, Spanish misrule, and the Monroe Doctrine.
U.S. involvement in Cuba, located 90 miles south of the U.S., led to involvement in the Philippines, located thousands of miles to the west.
Spanish-American War
In the 1890s, American public opinion was influenced by jingoism, an intense nationalism that called for an aggressive foreign policy.
Expansionists wanted the U.S. to become a world power like European imperialist nations.
Presidents Cleveland and McKinley opposed military action abroad due to moral and economic reasons.
Specific events and background pressures led to popular demand for war against Spain.
Causes of the War
Jingoism, economic interests, and moral concerns made the U.S. more willing to go to war in 1898.
Cuban Revolt
Cuban nationalists fought to overthrow Spanish rule between 1868 and 1878 and renewed the struggle in 1895.
They aimed to either push Spain out or draw the U.S. in as an ally by sabotaging and attacking Cuban plantations.
Spain sent General Valeriano Weyler and 100,000 troops to crush the revolt.
Weyler forced civilians into camps, resulting in tens of thousands of deaths from starvation and disease, earning him the title
The Progressive Era
The Progressive Movement emerged from the urban middle class, driven by professional associations, Protestants, and older-stock Americans advocating for societal reforms based on pragmatism.
Muckrakers like Henry Demarest Lloyd, Lincoln Steffens, Ida Tarbell, and Jacob Riis exposed corruption and social issues through investigative journalism.
Voting Rights & Government Reform
Reforms included the secret ballot, direct primaries, direct election of senators (17th Amendment), and tools like initiative, referendum, and recall to increase voter influence.
City and state governments saw reforms such as the commission plan and manager-council plan to improve efficiency and combat corruption; leaders like Charles Evans Hughes and Hiram Johnson implemented progressive policies, including regulatory commissions based on the "Wisconsin Idea."
Social and Labor Reform
Social reforms addressed temperance, child labor (National Child Labor Committee), compulsory education, and worker protection, championed by figures like Florence Kelley (National Consumers’ League).
Landmark Supreme Court cases like Lochner v. New York and Muller v. Oregon dealt with labor regulations; the Triangle Shirtwaist fire highlighted the need for workplace safety reforms.
Theodore Roosevelt Presidency
Roosevelt's "Square Deal" aimed for balanced interests; he pursued trust-busting, distinguishing between "good" and "bad" trusts, and passed legislation like the Elkins Act (1903) and Hepburn Act (1906) to regulate industries.
The The Jungle by Upton Sinclair led to the Pure Food and Drug Act and Meat Inspection Act (1906), ensuring food safety.
Roosevelt emphasized conservation through the Newlands Reclamation Act (1902) and established national forests, working with figures like Gifford Pinchot.
William Howard Taft Presidency
Taft continued some progressive efforts, such as the Mann-Elkins Act (1910) and the 16th Amendment (income tax), but controversies like the firing of Pinchot and the Payne-Aldrich Tariff (1909) caused a split in the Republican Party.
Election of 1912
The Socialist Party, led by Eugene V. Debs, advocated for public ownership and workers' rights. The election saw Taft (Republican), Roosevelt (Bull Moose Party, advocating "New Nationalism"), and Wilson (Democrat, advocating "New Freedom") competing for the presidency.
Wilson won, and his "New Freedom" influenced later reforms like the New Deal.
Woodrow Wilson Presidency
Wilson focused on tariff reduction (Underwood Tariff, 1913), banking reform (Federal Reserve Act, 1914), and stronger antitrust measures (Clayton Antitrust Act, 1914).
Additional reforms included the Federal Trade Commission, Federal Farm Loan Act (1916), and the Child Labor Act (1916), though the latter was deemed unconstitutional.
African Americans in the Progressive Era
Racial segregation and lynchings persisted, with limited support from Progressives; Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. Du Bois debated the best approach for Black progress.
New civil rights organizations like the Niagara Movement (led by Du Bois), the NAACP, and the National Urban League emerged to fight for equality and economic advancement.
Women and the Progressive Movement
Activists like Carrie Chapman Catt (NAWSA) and Alice Paul (National Woman's Party) pushed for women's suffrage, leading to the 19th Amendment in 1920.
Progressive women also addressed issues like birth control (Margaret Sanger), education