Imperialism…American style
Political
Moral
White Man’s Burden
Josiah Strong
Our Country: Its Possible Future and its Present Crisis
It seems to me that God, with infinite wisdom and
skill is here training the Anglo-Saxon race for an
hour sure to come in the world’s future…the final
competition of races, for which the Anglo-Saxon is
being schooled…this race of unequaled energy,
with all the majesty of numbers and might of
wealth behind it-the representative, let us hope,
of the largest liberty, the purest Christianity, the
highest civilization…will spread itself over the
earth.
Economic?
• There was a desire to expand the American
market to improve economic health:
“Today we are making more than we can use. Today
our industrial society is congested; there are more
workers than there is investment. We do not need
more money-we need more circulation, more
employment. Therefore we must find new markets
for our produce, new occupation for our capital,
new work for our labor”
Albert Beveridge, from the American Spirit
Think this
played a
role?
With new markets and strong economic health,
domestic society would benefit:
“With these markets secured new life would be
given to our manufactories, the product of the
Western farmer would be in demand, the
reasons for and inducements to strikers with
all their attendant evils would cease.”
James Blaine, Secretary of State
We learned the 3 main reasons for
Imperialism
1. Moral: White Man’s Burden, Rev. Josiah
Strong’s arguments, Social Darwinism
2. Military/National Security/Political: Mahan’s
book… The influence of Sea Power upon
History. And competition from other nationsRoosevelt Corollary
3. Economic: Need to expand our national
economy beyond borders…expand markets
How did that Imperialism look?
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Expansion in the Pacific started with Alaska
Samoa-competition with Germany for the port of Pago Pago
Spanish American War 1898
Hawaii-we annexed in 1898
Puerto Rico-part of the bounty of the war
Philippines-the bounty of the war
Open Door in China-No other power shall claim China
Roosevelt Corollary
Panama-we will build a canal..helped them break away from
Columbia in 1903.
• Taft’s Dollar Diplomacy
• Nicaragua (Marines there from 1912-1925)
• Mexican intervention
Cuba and Spanish American War 1898
• Was under control from Spain and wanted
independence
• Fought against Spain and Spain retaliated very
harshly…so we used this opportunity to step in.
• “Remember the Maine. To hell with Spain!”
• Yellow Journalism-Hearst and Pulitzer, De Lome letter
• Jingoism: “this country needs a war”
• Teddy and the Rough Riders charged San Juan hill.
• Quick “war”…430 Americans died…more died of
disease.
When I next realized that the Philippines had dropped into our laps I confess I did
not know what to do with them. I sought counsel from all sides—Democrats as well
as Republicans—but got little help. I thought first we would take only Manila; then
Luzon; then other islands perhaps also. I walked the floor of the White House night
Were
controlled
bynotSpain
attothe
time,
and that I went
after•night
until midnight;
and I am
ashamed
tell you,
gentlemen,
down onRoosevelt
my knees and told
prayedDewey
Almighty God
for light
guidance more than one
to go
andandattack.
night. And one night late it came to me this way—I don’t know how it was, but it
• He brought in Aguinaldo from exile to fight the
came: (1) That we could not give them back to Spain—that would be cowardly and
Spanish
and
were
the
deal was
dishonorable;
(2) that
we could
notsuccessful.
turn them over toPart
Franceof
and
Germany—our
a promise
him that
webewould
help
self- (3)
commercial
rivals in theto
Orient—that
would
bad business
andwith
discreditable;
that we determination.
could not leave them to themselves—they were unfit for self-government—
and they would soon have anarchy and misrule over there worse than Spain’s was;
• that
McKinley,
from left
pressure,
give
up
and (4)
there was nothing
for us to dodecides
but to take not
them to
all, and
to educate
the and
Philippines.
the Filipinos,
uplift and civilize and Christianize them, and by God’s grace do the
very •best
we could by them,
as our
fellow-men
for whomus!
Christ also died.
Aguinaldo
then
ends
up fighting
Philippines
• This “insurrection” lasts for over 2 years and costs
more than 4300 American lives.
Puerto Rico and Guam
• Also part of the reward for defeating Spain
“Open Door” in China
• John Hay’s Open Door note in 1899 proposed
to keep China open to trade with all countries
on an equal basis.
• Boxer Rebellion happens in China and
international coalition goes to suppress. 1900
Roosevelt’s Big Stick!
• Panama Canal
• Roosevelt Corollary
• Russ-Japanese War 1904
Taft’s Dollar Diplomacy
U.S. operations in Latin America went from "warlike and
political" to "peaceful and economic".
• Rather than using the military and threats of it
to achieve American interests, Taft resorted to
economic means
– American bankers went into Latin American
countries and took over their debt and worked to
control their economies, thus creating a
dependence on American interests.
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Mahan
Josiah Strong
Aguinaldo
George Dewey
John Hay
Teller Amendment