Chapter 10
Section 2
The Spanish – American War
The Press and It's Effect on US Involvement
in the Conflict Between Spain & Cuba
The press exaggerated the Cuban conflict
further increasing American
support for the Cubans
In their competition for readers, Joseph
Pulitzer of the New York World and William
Randolph Hearst printed sensational, often
exaggerated, stories in order to sell
newspapers in what became known as
yellow journalism
260 American sailors were killed when an
explosion on the US battleship
Maine caused the sinking
of the ship in Havana Harbor
Cause of the explosion was unclear,
but many Americans blamed Spain
Congress approves $50 million
that president McKinley requests
to prepare for war
Spain offers to negotiate but would
not consider Cuban independence
Congress then passes a resolution
declaring the island independent and
gave Spain three days to leave the island
Attached to the resolution was the
Teller Amendment which stated that the US
had no interest in taking control of Cuba
The resolution caused Spain to
declare war on the US on April 24, 1898
The next day Congress and President
McKinley declared war on Spain
War With Spain
The US had a more powerful navy
Commodore George Dewey led the
American Asiatic squadron at Hong Kong
in an effort to overtake the Philippines
Dewey’s ships boldly sailed into
Manila Bay, Philippines and destroyed
Spain’s Pacific fleet
(381 Spanish died, 0 Americans)
When the war began,
US military had about
28,000 soldiers… By the end
of the war, the US had 280,000
Of the few thousand members of the US
forces who died during the war, only a
small percentage died in battle… The
majority died of yellow fever and other
deadly diseases
The most colorful group of soldiers in the
war was the First Volunteer Cavalry, the
Rough Riders organized by Theodore
Roosevelt (a future president)
The US had a bigger army
than the Spanish
Spain asks for peace and signs a
cease-fire on August 12, 1898
The Question of Cuba
The peace treaty placed
Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines
under US control
Some Americans opposed the treaty and
formed the Anti-Imperialist League
who accused the US of building
a colonial empire
President McKinley set up a
military government in Cuba to
create stability in the area
(and allow the US greater control)
McKinley appointed General Leonard
Wood governor and he began quickly
building schools and a sanitation system
Dr. Walter Reed was sent to Cuba
as the head of the Army
Yellow Fever Commission
The Platt Amendment allowed the US to
intervene in Cuban affairs and limited
Cuba’s rights to make treaties
New US Lands
Spain surrendered the Philippines to the
US in exchange for $20 million
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Filipinos had hoped for independence
When the US decided to keep the
Philippines, angry Filipinos started a
guerilla war against the US that would
last 3 years in 1902 (Full independence
doesn’t come until 1946)
Likewise, Puerto Rico had
hoped for independence
Puerto Rico became a commonwealth
(a territory of the US)
The Jones Act gave US citizenship to
Puerto Ricans and opened both houses
of Puerto Rico’s legislature to
free elections in 1917
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