AP U.S. History
Unit 8
American Imperialism and involvement in World War I
Focus while reading
• Clash between the United States government and Native Americans
in the western territories and the atrocities that resulted.
• The creation of the United States’ overseas empire
• The theories and justifications of both those that supported
imperialism and those that were opposed.
• Creation of the Open Door Policy in China
• United States interventionism in Central and South America.
• German violations of American neutrality and the role played by
economic ties and British propaganda in shaping American public
opinion about World War I.
• The effect of World War I on American civil liberties
• The nature of the Treaty of Versailles and the role it played in causing
World War II.
• The idealism of Woodrow Wilson, the formation of the League of
Nations, and opposition faced by Wilson at home.
Introduction to American
Imperialism
• Manifest Destiny shaped American expansion prior to the Civil
War, but this expansionist sentiment was interrupted by
Abolition, Women’s Rights, and Civil War.
• With the nation once again unified the United States resumed
its spirit of expansionism outside of the continental United
States.
• By the end of the Nineteenth Century the United States was a
major economic and military power, a status that was
enhanced further by participation in World War I, and
cemented by the outcome of World War II.
• Many of the “driving forces” behind Manifest Destiny returned
in the push for American Imperialism, but before the U.S.
could look outward it had to deal with issues related to Native
Americans in the west.
Unit 8.1: U.S. Policy towards the Native
Americans following the Civil War.
• What did the closing of the frontier mean for
American society?
• How did the “Indian Wars” lead to atrocities
committed by both the Native Americans and
United States military in the process of ending
resistance on the Great Plains?
• What role did the Dawes Severalty Act play in
the relationship between the Native American
tribes and the U.S. Government?
• What events resulted in the end of Native
American resistance on the Great Plains?
Unit 8.1: U.S. Policy towards the Native
Americans following the Civil War.
• What did the closing of the frontier mean for American
society?
• In 1890 the U.S. census officially declared that, with few exceptions, the
frontier had been settled.
• Frederick Jackson Turner authored “The Significance of the Frontier in
American History” detailing the reaction to this event.
• According to Turner, the Frontier had been the source of American
independence and individualism.
• It had led to the blossoming of democracy
• It made Americans inventive and pragmatic
• The availability of free land had been a “safety valve” for America’s
discontent, where would they go now?
• The death of the frontier coincided with the death of the dominance of rural
culture in American society. More people were now moving to the cities,
not out to rural areas.
• Turner believed that the death of the frontier doomed America to the class
division and class warfare that plagued Europe.
Unit 8.1: U.S. Policy towards the Native
Americans following the Civil War.
• How did the “Indian Wars” lead to atrocities committed by
both the Native Americans and United States military in the
process of ending resistance on the Great Plains?
• As white settlers closed the frontier the Native American lost his
homeland and his ability to live according to his traditions.
• Two-thirds of the Native population lived on the Great Plains as
nomadic hunter-gatherers, giving up farming in colonial times after
the Spanish introduced the horse.
• Andrew Jackson initiated the policy of forced removal of Eastern
Native American tribes on the belief that the land west of the
Mississippi would be forever “Indian Country”, but the
transcontinental railroad, gold rush, and Oregon Trail busted that
fantasy.
• The Treaty of Fort Laramie renewed the Reservation System,
establishing “permanent” boundaries for Indian lands, but if the
Buffalo weren’t going to cooperate with these boundaries the
Natives couldn’t either.
• Obviously these tensions led to conflict.
Unit 8.1: U.S. Policy towards the Native
Americans following the Civil War.
• How did the “Indian Wars” lead to atrocities committed by both the Native
Americans and United States military in the process of ending resistance on
the Great Plains?
• As miners, cattlemen, and homesteaders flooded onto Native lands war became
inevitable.
• Sporadic clashes turned into bloody wars characterized by horrific atrocity.
• In 1864 the Colorado Militia massacred Cheyenne women, children, and elderly under a
white flag of surrender at Sand Creek.
• In 1867 the Sioux slaughtered an Army column, dismembering bodies and gauging out eyes
(to disable their enemies in the afterlife).
• Conflicts between gold miners and Natives caused violence in the Black Hills of South
Dakota.
• Possibly the most significant event of the Indian Wars was the defeat (massacre) of General
Custer and his men at the Battle of Little Big Horn in 1876. The defeat of the “Rock Star
General” prompted more troops to be sent to the region and an intense pressure to force
tribes to reservation.
• In 1877 Chief Joseph tried to lead a band of Nez Pierce Indians to Canada, but were hunted
down and forced to reservation. Chief Joseph then made his famous statement “I am tired,
from where the sun now sets I shall fight no more forever”.
• Ultimately, the slaughter of the Buffalo doomed the Native American’s way of life
and pushed them onto Reservation.
Unit 8.1: U.S. Policy towards the Native
Americans following the Civil War.
• What role did the Dawes Severalty Act play in the relationship
between the Native American tribes and the U.S. Government?
• The Dawes Severalty Act of 1887 sought to remedy the problem of dealing
with each individual Native American Tribe as if it were a separate nation.
• By abolishing the tribal system, supporters of the Dawes Act hoped to
create a path to citizenship and civilization for the Native Americans by
turning them (Americanizing them) into farmers.
• Tribal land was divided up into 160 acre plots and Natives who stayed on
the land for 25 years and adopted the “habits of civilized life” would be
granted citizenship.
• Although 47 million acres were distributed to Native Americans, 90 million
acres of formerly reservation land would be sold by the government, land
speculators, or Native Americans themselves to whites.
• Disease and poverty ultimately reduced the Native American population to
200,000 by 1900, many of whom lived as wards of the Federal Government.
Unit 8.1: U.S. Policy towards the Native
Americans following the Civil War.
• What events resulted in the end of Native American resistance on the
Great Plains?
• The last effort to resist U.S. domination was the “Ghost Dance” Movement.
• When Sitting Bull, a famous Sioux Medicine Man and leader at the Battle of Little Big
Horn, initiated the movement to drive the whites from Native American ancestral
lands the U.S. Government sent the military to arrest him. When a skirmish broke
out at his arrest, Sitting Bull was shot and killed.
• The United States Military had by now come to associated Native American dancing
as a prelude to war. The Ghost Dance Movement heightened sensitivities to dancing
on reservation and usually prompted searches for illegal firearms.
• When one such search was conducted at Wounded Knee Creek Reservation in South
Dakota a shot was fired and the military massacred 200 Sioux women, children,
elderly, and others.
• The Massacre at Wounded Knee broke Native American resistance on the Great
Plains.
• The 1924 Snyder Act granted Native Americans citizenship, whether they complied
with the Dawes Act or not.
• As part of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal the Indian Reorganization Act (1934)
reestablished the Tribal System.
• Today 1.8 million Native Americans live, on and off reservation land, in the United
States as part of 116 different tribes.
Unit 8.2: The New Imperialism
• How was the philosophy of imperialism being
developed around the world and what role did
this play in shaping American support for the
concept?
• How did the importance of a powerful military
shape the urgency of American Imperialism?
• What role did religion play in the desire to
acquire an “overseas empire”?
• In what ways did the, previously discussed,
theory of Social Darwinism impact the nation’s
support for imperialism?
Unit 8.2: The New Imperialism
• How was the philosophy of imperialism being developed around the
world and what role did this play in shaping American support for
the concept?
• The United States was actually quite late getting into the race to build an
empire.
• Because of this, there was a greater sense of urgency because there was
limited territories available that were not already controlled by some
foreign rival.
• Social Scientists have produced numerous theories explaining the impulse
for imperialism:
• John Hobson: Colonies provide an answer to overproduction/underconsumption.
The Colony becomes a market for surplus commodities of the home country. A
critic of imperialism, Hobson argued you could solve this problem by simply
raising workers’ wages.
• Vladimir Lenin: The leader of the Bolshevik Revolution, Lenin saw imperialism as
a part of the nature of Capitalism.
• Rosa Luxemburg: A German Marxist, Luxemburg believed that when the
Capitalist nations of the world ran out of new colonies, that Capitalism would
collapse.
Unit 8.2: The New Imperialism
• How did the importance of a powerful military shape
the urgency of American Imperialism?
• The definitive work that explained the military component of
imperialism was written by Alfred T. Mahan (The Influence of
Sea Power Upon History).
• Mahan explained that in order for the United States to become
a major world power it had to enlarge and modernize its Navy
and acquire Pacific and Caribbean Colonies to serve as refueling
stations.
• Mahan also advocated for the construction of a canal through
Panama that would link the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and
strengthen the United States economically and militarily.
• Mahan’s work had a profound influence on President Theodore
Roosevelt, himself a staunch supporter of a U.S. Global Empire.
Unit 8.2: The New Imperialism
• What role did religion play in the desire to acquire an
“overseas empire”?
• The concept that civilized western (Anglo-Saxon) culture had an
opportunity, through imperialism, to take Christian civilization
out to lesser cultures was embraced by nativist Reverend Josiah
Strong.
• In many cases the “Missionary Rationale” was used to mute
criticisms of “Economic Imperialism” and justify such a foreign
policy to those that may have opposed the acquisition of new
markets and exploitation of raw materials in these lesser
developed nations.
• Strong and others pushed an agenda that it was the obligation
of the Anglo-Saxon race to dominate the world and civilized the
people of less-developed nations.
Unit 8.2: The New Imperialism
• In what ways did the, previously discussed, theory of
Social Darwinism impact the nation’s support for
imperialism?
• Advocates of imperialism maintained that the United States was morally and
biologically superior to those cultures and people that were being dominated.
• Imperialism was merely a reflection of that superiority.
• Rudyard Kipling (author of The Jungle Book) wrote the hymn to United States
Imperialism: The White Man’s Burden, in which he expressed that it was the
“cross to bear” of nations like the United States and Great Britain to civilize the
world.
• Others simply opposed a U.S. foreign policy based on ethical and theoretical
justifications.
• These people supported what has become known as Realpolitik, or the
Politics of Reality.
• Based on this a nation operates its foreign policy off of the practical and
realistic needs and concerns of the nation.
• Advocates of U.S. imperialism would argue that expanding a global empire
was both politically and economically necessary for the growing nation.
Unit 8.3: Methods used to
achieve imperialist aims.
• What was “Formal Imperialism” and what were
some examples of how this was employed by
the United States?
• What was “Informal Imperialism” and what
were some examples of how this was employed
by the United States?
• What did many politicians, military leaders, and
social scientists believe that the United States
stood to gain from a foreign policy based on
imperialism?
Unit 8.3: Methods used to
achieve imperialist aims.
• What was “Formal Imperialism” and what were
some examples of how this was employed by
the United States?
• Formal Imperialism is a pervasive method, used by
the United States and other nations, that involves the
physical presence of the mother country politically
and/or militarily.
• Examples of formal imperialism involving the United
States include:
•
•
•
•
Hawaii
Guam
Puerto Rico
The Philippines
Unit 8.3: Methods used to
achieve imperialist aims.
• What was “Informal Imperialism” and what were some
examples of how this was employed by the United States?
• In this sense of imperialism, formal control is not necessary.
• Instead of a physical presence in a colony, nation, or region the mother
country can use several other means to dominate that culture:
• Imperialists can “prop up” a “puppet” state and give financial/military
assistance to governments that support their agenda.
• The imperialist can draft treaties that subordinate the interests of the
dominated nation to the interests of the mother country.
• It can use economic leverage and trade agreements to inure that the
dominated region follows the political agenda of the mother country.
• John Hay’s “Open Door” Policy, first implemented in China then in other
continents, is an excellent example of this form of domination.
• The Open Door Policy allowed penetration of any area by imperialist nations
under the guise of “free trade”.
Unit 8.3: Methods used to
achieve imperialist aims.
• What did many politicians, military leaders, and social
scientists believe that the United States stood to gain from a
foreign policy based on imperialism?
• An imperialist policy would bring the economy out of immediate
economic crisis (The Depression of 1893).
• An imperialist policy would increase opportunities for investment.
• An imperialist policy would reduce tension between the working class
and the Corporations by:
• By increasing demand in overseas markets, unemployment would be
reduced.
• Some of the benefits of a policy of imperialism would be passed along to the
working class through increased wages
• Class tensions would be muted by an intensified patriotism
• Not to mention that the closing of the Frontier meant that there was
only one direction left to expand – outward.
Unit 8.4: Opponents of
Imperialism
• What role did Imperialism play in the
Presidential election of 1900?
• What groups and noted individuals were
vocally opposed to imperialism?
• What was it about imperialism that
offended those that were opposed to U.S.
involvement in this renewed expansionist
program?
Unit 8.4: Opponents of
Imperialism
• What role did Imperialism play in the Presidential election of
1900?
• The former President, Grover Cleveland, was staunchly opposed to
imperialism. He was against the annexation of Hawaii, for example.
• Republican President McKinley, who would preside over the annexation
of Hawaii and lead the U.S. into the Spanish-American War, was a
supporter of imperialism (although he was hesitant to go to war with
Spain).
• Republican Vice President Theodore Roosevelt was also a supporter of a
Global U.S. Empire. He was instrumental in destroying the Spanish Fleet
and conquering the Philippines as well as leading the famous
“Roughriders” in Cuba during the Spanish-American War.
• Democrat nominee William Jennings Bryan was opposed to imperialism,
he saw it as tool to make the corporate class even wealthier.
Unit 8.4: Opponents of
Imperialism
• What groups and noted individuals were
vocally opposed to imperialism?
• The Anti-Imperialist League
• William Jennings Bryan – politician
• Mark Twain – writer
• Andrew Carnegie – Economic
Activist/Philanthropist
• Charles Francis Adams – Scholar
• William Sumner - Scholar
Unit 8.4: Opponents of
Imperialism
• What was it about imperialism that
offended those that were opposed to
U.S. involvement in this renewed
expansionist program?
• The Costs necessary to maintain an Empire
• The immorality of denying others selfdetermination
• Opposition to the racist notion that
incorporating “lesser” cultures into a U.S.
Empire would weaken American purity.
Unit 8.5: The Spanish-American War and its
aftermath in Latin America
• What caused the United States to declare war
on Spain in 1898?
• What were the major military “turning points”
of the war?
• What were the terms of the Peace Treaty and
what role would the “Monroe Doctrine” play in
expanding U.S. influence over Latin America?
• As a newly established “World Power” the U.S.
asserted its expansionist agenda in Asia and the
Pacific. How did events in China and Japan lead
to an expanded U.S. role in the region?
Unit 8.5: The Spanish-American War and its
aftermath in Latin America
• What caused the United States to declare war on Spain
in 1898?
• Spain’s brutal treatment of Cuban civilians during a rebellion led
by poet/journalist Jose Marti.
• The United States’ support for the Cuban Independence
Movement (Cuba Libre).
• Cuba’s strategic location in the Caribbean made it valuable to
the United States in enforcing the Monroe Doctrine.
• The war between Cuban Rebels and the Spanish Authorities was
damaging American business interests in Cuba.
• Believing a war with Spain would expand newspaper
readership, William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer’s
newspapers unscrupulously sensationalized Spanish atrocities in
Cuba. The American reading public devoured the exaggerated
stories of the Yellow Press.
Unit 8.5: The Spanish-American War and its
aftermath in Latin America
• What caused the United States to declare war on Spain in 1898?
• The DeLome Letter
• In 1898 an American newspaper published the private letter of DeLome, a Spanish
Ambassador to the United States, stolen from his living quarters.
• In the letter, Deputy DeLome made derogatory remarks about President McKinley (although
Theodore Roosevelt had made worse statements about the President publicly).
• When the letter was published the American public was outraged. DeLome resigned his
post, but the damage was done.
• The Explosion of the U.S.S. Maine
• In 1898 the Battleship U.S.S. Maine was sent to the Port of Havana to protect American
nationals and American property in Cuba.
• One week after the DeLome incident, a massive explosion destroyed the Maine and killed
250 American Sailors.
• By the time the Yellow Press was through sensationalizing the explosion there could be no
other verdict than the Spanish had committed this atrocious act and murdered those
sailors.
• Although the true cause of the explosion is still a mystery , the American public was eager
for war with Spain to avenge the Maine and restore American honor.
• The Declaration of War came in the form of the Teller Amendment, which also guaranteed
the Cuban people independence and self-determination after the Spanish were defeated.
Unit 8.5: The Spanish-American War and its
aftermath in Latin America
• What were the major military “turning points” of the war?
• At the order of then Assistant Secretary to the Navy Theodore Roosevelt,
the U.S. Pacific Fleet sailed to the Philippines and destroyed the Spanish
Navy in Manila Bay on June 1, 1898.
• By August 1, 1898 Manila, Capital of the Philippines, was captured by
American forces assisted by Filipino rebels.
• Unprepared for tropical warfare, outgunned by the modern weapons of the
Spanish, and hastily trained and unorganized the U.S. Army and Cuban
rebels eventually wore down the Spanish and won victory.
• One of the most important events of the ground campaign in Cuba was the
famous “Charge up San Juan Hill” executed by the Roughriders Cavalry Regiment
and the Buffalo Soldiers.
• The Roughriders were a “snapshot” of Americana. The Cavalry Regiment
featured everything from western outlaws to New England Polo players.
• They were led by General Leonard Wood, but organized by the Second in
Command, Theodore Roosevelt who resigned his post as Assistant Secretary to
the Navy to go fight in Cuba.
• The Spanish Caribbean Fleet was destroyed at Santiago Bay on July 3, 1898
convincing the Spanish to open negotiations for peace.
Unit 8.5: The Spanish-American War and its
aftermath in Latin America
• What were the terms of the Peace Treaty and what role would the
“Monroe Doctrine” play in expanding U.S. influence over Latin America?
• The Treaty of Paris of 1898 was signed in December ending the war, its terms were as
follows:
• Cuba was granted its independence
• Spain relinquished control of Puerto Rico and Guam to the United States
• The U.S. acquired a key strategic base in Southeast Asia by purchasing the Philippines for
$20 Million from Spain. Unfortunately for the U.S. the Filipinos would rebel against U.S.
authority as they had against the Spanish. The Philippines would be granted their
independence after World War II in 1946.
• The Platt Amendment gave the United States the right to intervene in Cuban Affairs if
it felt that U.S. interests were threatened. It also gave the U.S. lease to a Naval Base
at Guantanamo Bay.
• The Foraker Act gave Puerto Rico substantial autonomy, while exerting heavy political
and economic influence over Puerto Rico as a Commonwealth of the United States.
• One controversy that arose from the situation in Puerto Rico was whether or not
people living in U.S. Overseas Territories were afforded protections under the
Constitution.
• In a series of cases known as the Insular Cases, the Supreme Court ruled that the
Constitution does not follow the flag, that people living under the United States Flag in
overseas territories are not automatically afforded constitutional rights.
Unit 8.5: The Spanish-American War and its
aftermath in Latin America
• What were the terms of the Peace Treaty and what role would the “Monroe Doctrine”
play in expanding U.S. influence over Latin America?
• Extensions of the Monroe Doctrine play a major role in Central America and the Caribbean:
• Theodore Roosevelt: The Roosevelt Corollary
•
•
•
Roosevelt pledged that the U.S. would act as an “International Police Power” to deal with “chronic
wrongdoers” in Latin America.
The Roosevelt Corollary was part of what Theodore Roosevelt called his “Big Stick Diplomacy”.
Roosevelt would use the U.S. Military to intervene in Latin American Affairs, and in the process created
serious Anti-American sentiment in the region.
• William Howard Taft: Dollar Diplomacy
•
•
•
Taft modified the Roosevelt Corollary by “replacing bullets with dollars”.
Wilson believed that political and economic instability in Latin America required U.S. intervention.
When he authorized American banks to help prop up Latin American governments, he would give them a
piece of the pie (for example granting a U.S. Bank control over the national railroad of Nicaragua).
• Woodrow Wilson: The Moral (Missionary) Diplomacy
•
•
•
A major focus of Wilson’s foreign policy was the “righting of past wrongs” in Puerto Rico, the Philippines, in
the Panama Canal, and in dealings with Mexico.
After involving the U.S. in a Mexican Civil War, Wilson sent the U.S. Army led by John J. Pershing to hunt down
a rebel leader named Poncho Villa, whose men were launching raids into Texas and New Mexico and
murdering Americans.
Wilson withdrew U.S. forces in 1917 as entry into World War I seemed imminent.
• At the Pan-American Conference in 1923 and 1928 the U.S. agreed to treat all Latin American
nations on “equal footing” and repudiated the Roosevelt Corollary.
• President Franklin Roosevelt, facing the prospect of World War II, would replace Dollar
Diplomacy with the Good Neighbor Policy.
• The Good Neighbor policy was intended to shore up U.S. alliances in Latin America by promising
that no nation would interfere in the internal affairs of another.
Unit 8.5: The Spanish-American War and its
aftermath in Latin America
• As a newly established “World Power” the U.S. asserted its expansionist
agenda in Asia and the Pacific. How did events in China and Japan lead to
an expanded U.S. role in the region?
• Gaining an economic foothold in China (as well as the rest of Asia) was significant to
building a powerful empire and improving your nation’s status.
• By 1914 it was clear that the United States and Japan were the leading candidates for
hegemony in Asia.
• Japan had defeated China in the Sino-Japanese War in 1895
• Japan defeated Russia in the Russo-Japanese War in 1905
• The U.S. had defeated Spain in the Spanish-American War in 1898 and acquired colonies in
the Pacific and Southeast Asia.
• The first decade of the twentieth century witnessed several attempts to mend the
steadily worsening relationship between the U.S. and Japan.
• President Theodore Roosevelt mediated the Treaty of Portsmouth ending the RussoJapanese War in 1905. (although the Japanese won concessions from Russia, the Japanese
Military class blamed Roosevelt for what they considered only modest gains).
• In the Taft-Katsura Agreement in 1905 the Japanese recognized U.S. control of the
Philippines and the U.S. recognized Japanese control of Korea.
• In 1907 Theodore Roosevelt sent the “Great White Fleet” on a world cruise that the
Japanese may have viewed as a threat to their dream of dominating all of Southeast Asia.
• The Root-Takahira Agreement improved (temporarily) relations between the two growing
powers.
Unit 8.5: The Spanish-American War and its
aftermath in Latin America
• As a newly established “World Power” the U.S. asserted its
expansionist agenda in Asia and the Pacific. How did events in China
and Japan lead to an expanded U.S. role in the region?
• Meanwhile, the other European Powers were in a massive territorial grab in
China.
• The U.S., in order to prevent the total dissection of China, authored the
“Open Door Policy”, which the Japanese supported in the Root-Takahira
Agreement.
• The intent of the Open Door Policy was to promote free trade in China,
really just to make sure that the United States was not excluded from the
rich China Market.
• In 1900 a group of Chinese traditionalists, known as the Boxers (actually the
Union of Harmonious Fists), rebelled in an effort to drive out the western
influences from China.
• The U.S. organized a coalition to put down the Boxer Rebellion and sent
20,000 soldiers to participate. The U.S. used its position of leadership to
organized a settlement that preserved Chinese Independence. The other
European powers, however, charged China indemnities for putting down
the rebellion in an effort to weaken the government. The U.S. gave back
the vast majority of its money to a very appreciative Chinese Government.
Unit 8.5: The Spanish-American War and its
aftermath in Latin America
• As a newly established “World Power” the U.S. asserted its expansionist agenda in
Asia and the Pacific. How did events in China and Japan lead to an expanded U.S.
role in the region?
• Other U.S. possessions in the Pacific:
• Hawaii
• The key commodity that fostered trade between American Merchants and Hawaiians was
Sugar.
• American Sugar Planters began seizing control of Hawaii when they forced the King to sign the
“Bayonet Constitution” limiting his own authority and the ability of Hawaiians to serve in their
own government.
• When the King died, his daughter (now Queen) Liliuokalani implemented a “Hawaii for
Hawaiians” Campaign, which prompted the American Sugar Planters, led by Sanford Dole, to
rebel and depose the Queen.
• The Rebellion was aided by U.S. Ambassador John Stevens who authorized the U.S. Navy to
assist the American rebels.
• Eventually Hawaii was annexed by the U.S. and became the 50th State to avoid paying a tariff
on Sugar.
• Samoa
• The U.S. received rights to a Naval Base in Samoa in the decade following the Civil War. (The
U.S. Navy nearly went to war with Germany over the islands, but the conflict was peacefully
resolved).
• Alaska
•
•
•
•
Alaska was purchased from Russia in 1867 for $7.5 million.
The purchase was heavily criticized as was Secretary of State William Seward for authorizing it.
It was called “Seward’s Ice Box” and “Seward’s Folly” by opponents of the purchase.
These critics were later silenced when gold and oil were discovered in the territory.
Practice Question #1
1. The Dawes Severalty Act of 1887:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Made Puerto Rico a protectorate of the United States
Placed limitations on the political rights of the citizens of Guam
Punished Spain for its abuses of the Cuban people
Was an attempt by the United States government to assimilate
Native Americans
Denied Native Americans their rights as citizens of the United
States
Practice Question #2
2. This theorist claimed that underconsumption in the center,
or mother country, is the primary reason why nations adopt
an imperialist policy.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Joseph Schumpeter
Vladimir Lenin
Rosa Luxemburg
Sanford Dole
John Hobson
Practice Question #3
3. The Open Door Policy was initially applied to:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Korea
Japan
China
Africa
Latin America
Practice Question #4
4. Alfred T. Mahan was influential during the era of New
Imperialism because of his:
A. Support for self-determination for conquered peoples
B. Advocacy for a large U.S. Navy in order to extend the nation’s
power internationally
C. Opposition to the U.S. adoption of an imperialist policy
D. Candidacy for the U.S. Presidency as an advocate of
imperialism
E. Defeat of the Spanish Fleet in Havana Harbor
Practice Question #5
5. Which of the following was not an opponent of U.S.
imperialism?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Theodore Roosevelt
Mark Twain
William Jennings Bryan
Charles Francis Adams
Andrew Carnegie
Practice Question #6
6. In the Taft-Katsura Agreement, Japan recognized the United
States’ control over the Philippines and the United States
recognized Japan’s control of:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
China
Korea
Guam
Hawaii
Cuba
Practice Question #7
7. Which of the following held that those living in U.S.
Territories are not accorded the same constitutional rights
as U.S. citizens?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Foraker Act
Jones Act of 1916
Root-Takahira Agreement
Insular Cases
Platt Amendment
Practice Question #8
8. The Teller Amendment:
A. Granted independence to the Philippines
B. Convinced the Filipino rebels to lay down their arms in return
for financial concessions
C. Recognized Japan’s influence over East Asia
D. Was a U.S. guarantee of self-determination to the Cubans once
Spain was defeated
E. Was Congress’s formal declaration of war against Spain
Practice Question #9
9. Which U.S. President repudiated the imperialist policies of
his predecessors?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Theodore Roosevelt
William McKinley
James K. Polk
Woodrow Wilson
William Howard Taft
Practice Question #10
10. Which one of the following was not a cause of the SpanishAmerican War?
A. The Yellow Press
B. The U.S. desire to prevent European nations from controlling
the Cuba
C. The U.S. desire to control Cuba for its strategic location in the
Caribbean
D. The sinking of the U.S.S. Maine
E. The DeLome Letter
Answer Key
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
E
A
C
B
A
B
D
D
D
B
Introduction to World War I
• At the same time that the U.S. was developing a vast new
Empire from the Pacific to the Caribbean, it was busy at home
trying to reform government and Big Business, and engaged in
attempts to further democratize the population (an era known
as the Progressive Movement).
• Meanwhile, in Europe storm clouds were forming that
forecasted impending war.
• Americans were generally indifferent to the troubles of the
“monarchies and dictatorships” of Europe and favored
continuation of Washington’s policy of neutrality with concern
to these “storm clouds”.
• The U.S. would ultimately join World War I in 1917 and the
outcome would elevate the U.S. to a mighty world power.
Unit 8.6: The 1914 Causes for World War I
and American Neutrality.
• What role did the three “Tragic –isms” play in creating a
climate conducive to warfare in 1914?
• How did the secret and entangling Alliances push what could
have been an isolated event into a World War?
• What role did the Assassination of the Archduke Franz
Ferdinand play in igniting the “Balkan Powder Keg”?
• What was the initial American response to World War I and
what role did this sentiment play in the election of 1916?
Unit 8.6: The 1914 Causes for World War I
and American Neutrality.
• What role did the three “Tragic –isms” play in creating a climate conducive
to warfare in 1914?
• Rise of Nationalism
• Over the course of time and many wars in Europe, various small nations had
been absorbed by larger European Empires (Britain, France, Germany, AustriaHungary, Italy, etc.).
• Around the turn of the 20th Century a strong desire for independence and ethnic
unity began to spread across Europe.
• These peoples sought self-determination and freely elected governments that
would represent their interests.
• Austria-Hungary was the best example of an Empire that consisted of various
ethnic and religious groups that began to desire independence.
• Growth of Imperialism
• Competition for new markets and various sources of raw materials, especially
during the “scramble for Africa” caused increased conflict between Germany,
France, and Britain.
• Increased Militarism
• A Naval Arms Race between the British and Germans was creating tensions.
• The French still harbored resentment toward the Germans over the loss of two of
her provinces (Alsace and Loraine) in the Franco-Prussian War and were building
their forces in the event the opportunity presented itself to take them back.
Unit 8.6: The 1914 Causes for World War I
and American Neutrality.
• How did the secret and entangling Alliances push what could have
been an isolated event into a World War?
• The resentments, rivalries, competition between these European
Empires led to the formation of antagonistic alliances.
• The two most important were the Triple Entente and the Triple Alliance.
• The Triple Entente (Allies) consisted of Great Britain, France, and Russia.
• The Triple Alliance (Central Powers) consisted of Germany, Austria-Hungary,
and the Ottoman Empire)
• Some agreements were secret, such as the agreement between Serbia
and Russia that Russia would back Serbia if ever attacked by AustriaHungary.
• Serbia was at that time backing a Terrorist Group called the Black Hand that
was attempting to destabilize Bosnia (which once belonged to Serbia)
• The Black Hand’s assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand would set
this war into motion.
• The U.S. would enter the war with the Allies (Triple Entente) in 1917.
Unit 8.6: The 1914 Causes for World War I
and American Neutrality.
• What role did the Assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand play in
igniting the “Balkan Powder Keg”?
• The Archduke was heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary and was promising the
people of Bosnia that he was going to bring reform and a greater sense of selfrule in the province.
• He was on a trip to Bosnia to show good will and improve relations with the
turbulent territory when he was assassinated.
• The Black Hand could not sit back and allow the Archduke to improve conditions
in Bosnia and prevent a revolution that would turn the territory back over to
Serbia. The intent was not to remain under the thumb of Austria-Hungary into
perpetuity.
• After several bungling attempts, Gavrilo Princep finally shot the Archduke and
his wife outside a sandwich shop and, in the process started the most
destructive war to that time.
• Austria-Hungary obviously mobilized to attack Serbia who they blamed for the
attack, Russia then mobilized to support Serbia, Germany mobilized against
Russia and prepared for war with Great Britain and France, and Great Britain
and France prepared for war with Germany.
Unit 8.6: The 1914 Causes for World War I
and American Neutrality.
• What was the initial American response to World War I and
what role did this sentiment play in the election of 1916?
• Woodrow Wilson’s biggest fear was that the war in Europe
would disrupt international trade.
• Wilson also hoped that a neutral United States could play a role
in mediating an end to the dispute (similar to what Roosevelt
had done for the Russians and Japanese in 1904).
• The United States would soon face violations of its neutrality by
both the British and Germans on the Atlantic as each tried
desperately to cut off the flow of supplies to their enemy.
Although the British were offending American rights, the actions
of Germany would soon overshadow the British crimes.
• Woodrow Wilson would win reelection in 1916 on the slogan
“He kept us out of War” although American neutrality had
already begun to crumble as of 1915.
Unit 8.7: Causes for American Involvement
and key “turning points” of American
involvement.
• How did Trade relationships, credit extensions, and British
propaganda play a role in deteriorating U.S. neutrality
between 1914 and 1917?
• What specific events led to U.S. intervention in 1917 and
what role did the Communist Revolution and withdrawal of
Russia from the War have on finally gaining support for U.S.
intervention?
• What challenges faced the American Expeditionary Force
(AEF – “The Doughboys”) in Europe?
• How did the “late through the door” Americans fare on the
battlefields of World War I?
Unit 8.7: Causes for American Involvement
and key “turning points” of American
involvement.
• How did Trade relationships, credit extensions, and British propaganda
play a role in deteriorating U.S. neutrality between 1914 and 1917?
• Filling British and French military contracts had brought the U.S. out of an
economic recession and where U.S. manufacturers would have liked to ship
goods to Germany as well, the British blockade prevented that from happening.
• Trade with Great Britain and France had quadrupled while trade with Germany
was almost non-existent.
• Then Woodrow Wilson authorized J.P. Morgan and other American bankers to
extend a $3 billion line of credit to Britain and France (money that would have
been surely lost if the Allies were defeated).
• Adding to these, the British had launched a highly successful campaign to
portray the Germans as modern-day Huns destroying innocent civilian
populations and creating a path of destruction wherever they went.
• Still, by early 1917, most Americans, especially in the West and Midwest favored
neutrality.
Unit 8.7: Causes for American Involvement
and key “turning points” of American
involvement.
• How did Trade relationships, credit extensions, and British
propaganda play a role in deteriorating U.S. neutrality between
1914 and 1917?
• Division and Opposition to the War
• Many Americans were deeply divided over support or opposition to one
particular group of combatants or the other.
• Irish-Americans and German-Americans supported the Central Powers because of ethnic
allegiance or simple hatred for the British.
• Many others felt a kinship to the French who shared our revolutionary spirit and had
assisted us during the American Revolution.
• “Forgive me not if I forget the faithful sword of Lafayette”
• Various politicians and activists gave voice to an anti-war sentiment and support
for neutrality.
• Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan resigned his post when Wilson threatened to
cut off diplomatic relations with Germany, believing that such rhetoric would lead the
U.S. into war.
• Jeanette Rankin, 1st woman elected to Congress, voted against U.S. intervention.
• Jane Addams was also quite outspoken in opposition to the war.
• American Socialists, led by Eugene V. Debs, opposed the war vocally from start to
finish (unlike their European counterparts).
• Many American Socialists were arrested, including Eugene V. Debs, for violation of the
Espionage and Sedition Acts and put in jail to silence their protests.
Unit 8.7: Causes for American Involvement
and key “turning points” of American
involvement.
• What specific events led to U.S. intervention in 1917 and what role did the Communist
Revolution and withdrawal of Russia from the War have on finally gaining support for U.S.
intervention?
• In 1915 Germany declared the waters around Britain a “war zone” and that all shipping
within that war zone (civilian, neutral, or combatant) was subject to be attacked by German
U-Boats.
• The inevitable eventually happened when a British Passenger Liner, the Lusitania, was
torpedoed by a German U-Boat resulting in thousands of deaths, including 128 Americans.
The American public was outraged.
• In 1916 President Wilson threatened to end diplomatic relations with Germany and the
Germans issued the Sussex Pledge promising to warn civilian ships and take care of civilian
passengers, which they abided by until 1917.
• In March 1917 the Russian Czar Nicholas II was overthrown by Bolsheviks led by Vladimir
Lenin. The Germans now faced only a single-front war in Western Europe, which meant
they no longer felt a need to appease the U.S.
• The Germans resumed “Unrestricted Submarine Warfare” in early 1917.
• In February of 1917 the British intercepted and published a telegram from the German
Foreign Minister to the government of Mexico (The Zimmerman Telegram). The telegram
promised Mexico the return of the Mexican Cession for military assistance if the U.S. should
enter World War I.
• Woodrow Wilson called a special session of Congress in April to draft a declaration of war
against Germany to stop Germany’s “War against Mankind” and to “make the world safe
for democracy).
Unit 8.7: Causes for American Involvement
and key “turning points” of American
involvement.
• What challenges faced the American Expeditionary Force (AEF – “The
Doughboys”) in Europe?
• Building an Army
• Although many volunteered, the Army had to be built primarily through the draft,
established by the Selective Service Act in 1917.
• African Americans were still forced to fight in segregated units, although an African
American Officers Training School was opened.
• W.E.B. Du Bois hoped that African American efforts in WWI would lead to greater
freedom at home, he would be sadly disappointed.
• Getting supplies to Europe
• Although German U-Boats would have a disastrous effect, the U.S. Navy initiated a
record-setting shipbuilding program and employed a “Convoy System” that severely
limited the destruction of supplies and reinforcements.
• Fighting in the Trenches
• Initially, the American Expeditionary Force (AEF), commanded by John J. Pershing, was
used to bolster British and French lines, but by June 1918 the AEF was responsible for
its own sector of the Western Front.
Unit 8.7: Causes for American Involvement and key “turning points” of
American involvement.
• How did the “late through the door” Americans fare on the battlefields of World War I?
• The AEF played a key role in the halting of the last major German offensive of the war.
• The Americans halted a German advance at Chatteau-Thierry on the Marne River then
launched a successful counter-attack at Belleau Wood.
• The AEF, at St. Mihiel as part of the Allied Meuse-Argonne Offensive, helped drive the
Germans back into Germany, which ultimately resulted in the signing of an armistice to
end the fighting.
• The Armistice was signed at 11:00 am on November 11th, 1918
• “All is Quiet on the Western Front”
• The AEF had to deal with many of the same atrocities that plagued European soldiers
throughout the war.
• Trench Warfare was brutal consisting of barbed wire, snipers, machine guns, tanks,
airplanes, and chemical weapons.
• Fortunately for the Americans, the late arrival meant that the AEF only had a limited
exposure to these types of conditions.
• U.S. Casualties after just a few months of fighting were horrific, but paled in comparison
with the loss of life suffered by the European combatants.
• 49,000 battlefield deaths
• 112,432 deaths total, many thousands more injured
• On top of the suffering of war, a Flu epidemic resulted in millions of deaths, military and
civilian, during the war.
Unit 8.8: The War at Home
• In what ways were civil liberties
encroached upon during World War
I?
• What did the Supreme Court have to
say about violations of civil liberties
during wartime?
• How did the United States mobilize
for World War I?
Unit 8.8: The War at Home
• In what ways were civil liberties encroached upon during
World War I?
• Despite the near unanimous support for U.S. intervention into World
War I in 1917 in Congress, there was still a moderate anti-war movement
during the “war years” that prompted Congress to taken action to deal
with threats to the war effort.
• The Espionage Act of 1917
• Created fines and jail terms for people “aiding the enemy” or “obstructing
the war effort”
• This could include calls for people to refuse to report for service
• The Postmaster-General was authorized to ban delivery of treasonous
literature
• The Sedition Act of 1918
• It was now illegal to discourage the purchase of war bonds.
• Also, disparaging the military, constitution, or government in general was
illegal.
• The Committee of Public Information
• Headed by Progressive George Creel it was designed to inspire support for
the war effort.
• However, by targeting people with “foreign-sounding” names and use of
propaganda it created a great deal of distrust amongst the public.
Unit 8.8: The War at Home
• What did the Supreme Court have to say about violations of
civil liberties during wartime?
• Schenk v. United States
• Schenk used the U.S. Mail to disseminate material
that urged young men from complying with the
draft and reporting for military service.
• Supreme Court Chief Justice Oliver Wendell
Holmes argued that these actions represented a
clear and present danger to the interests of the
United States.
• The Court ruled that civil liberties could be limited
in time of war.
• The Schenk case would be used to justify the
arrest and conviction of Eugene V. Debs.
Unit 8.8: The War at Home
• How did the United States mobilize for World War I?
• The Selective Service Act of 1917 created a draft to build up the military.
• The Federal Government’s intervention into the economy increased dramatically as a
result of World War I.
• The War Industries Board, headed by Bernard Baruch, was created to control all aspects of
industrial production and distribution
• The Fuel Administration, headed by Harry Garfield, shut down non-essential factories and
implemented daylight savings for the first time.
• The National War Labor Board, headed by William Howard Taft, worked to settle disputes
between labor and management and prevent labor strikes.
• The Food Administration encouraged Americans to start “Victory Gardens” and ration
important resources (meatless Mondays, Wheatless Wednesdays, etc.).
• Headed by future President Herbert Hoover
• Using the Lever Act, the Food Administration mobilized agriculture and established prices
that would encourage increased production.
• Tripled food supplies sent to the front lines in Europe
• The Committee of Public Information
• Headed by Progressive George Creel it was designed to inspire support for the war effort.
• However, by targeting people with “foreign-sounding” names and use of propaganda it
created a great deal of distrust amongst the public.
Unit 8.9: The Treaty of Versailles and the
formation of the League of Nations.
• What was the major difference between Woodrow Wilson’s
idealistic dream of “peace with honor” and the views of the
European powers at the Peace Conference in France?
• What were the key parts of Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen
Points?
• What were the components of the Treaty of Versailles?
• What factors led to U.S. opposition to Wilson’s League of
Nations and how did that effect the long-term success of the
organization?
Unit 8.9: The Treaty of Versailles and the
formation of the League of Nations.
• What was the major difference between Woodrow Wilson’s
idealistic dream of “peace with honor” and the views of the
European powers at the Peace Conference in France?
• The leaders that met in Versailles, France in 1919 to create a
settlement to end the war became known as the “Big Four” and did
not include representatives from Russia or Germany.
•
•
•
•
France – Clemenceau
Britain – Lloyd George
Italy – Orlando
U.S. – Woodrow Wilson
• The leaders of Britain and France were influenced deeply by their
nation’s losses (nearly 10 million young men and enormous
property damage).
• The leader of Italy was eager to gain territory from the settlement.
• Woodrow Wilson sought a “Peace with Honor” that would address
many of the root causes for the war and hopefully prevent future
catastrophic wars.
Unit 8.9: The Treaty of Versailles and the
formation of the League of Nations.
• What were the key parts of Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points?
• The elimination of secret treaties, the stimulus for which was the
Bolshevik Revelation that Britain and France had engaged in this
diplomatic practice before the war.
• Open access to the seas in times of war and peace, which was
important for economic expansion and trade
• Reduction of military stockpiles
• Adjustment of Colonial Claims
• Self-determination for Europeans, but not for those under colonial
control.
• The creation of an international assembly that would “afford
mutual guarantees of political independence and territorial
integrity” (The League of Nations; precursor to the United Nations
of today).
• Wilson believed that the League of Nations would provide a forum to
deal with the issues created by the first 13 points, resolve international
disputes, and make military confrontation obsolete.
Unit 8.9: The Treaty of Versailles and the
formation of the League of Nations.
• What were the components of the Treaty of Versailles?
• The provinces of Alsace and Loraine were returned to France
• The Rhineland was demilitarized (Germany was banned from fortifying
the western bank of the Rhine River)
• The German military was dramatically reduced in size and strength.
• Germany was forced to ship coal from the occupied Saar Region to
France for fifteen years.
• Germany lost all of its colonies.
• Austria-Hungary lost three-fifths of its land and three-fifths of its
population.
• New Nations were created: Czechoslovakia, Estonia, Latvia, Yugoslavia,
and Poland.
• The Central Powers were forced to pay crushing war reparations
• Germany was branded with “War Guilt” as the primary proprietor of the
war.
Unit 8.9: The Treaty of Versailles and the
formation of the League of Nations.
• What factors led to U.S. opposition to Wilson’s League of Nations and how did
that effect the long-term success of the organization?
• All of the delegates that Wilson sent to Versailles were Democrats.
• This angered potential Republican supporters, namely Henry Cabot Lodge (the most
influential leader in the Senate).
• Wilson, himself, traveled to France to work on the Treaty rather than stay at home
and galvanize support in the United States.
• This allowed the opponents of the Treaty and the League of Nations to undercut him in the
media and destroy support for the Treaty or the League before Wilson could get home to
make his case.
• Wilson came home in 1918 and launched a massive speaking tour that took the case
for ratification directly to the American people.
• The rigor of this tour took a massive toll on Wilson’s health resulting in a stroke that
paralyzed both his body and the potential ratification of the Treaty.
• Wilson’s wife and his Secretary of State essentially ran the White House until he was
replaced in 1920.
• Ultimately the Reservationists and Irreconcilables won the day. The U.S. would not
ratify the Treaty of Versailles, nor would she join the League of Nations.
• The Reservationists, led by Henry Cabot Lodge, would have supported ratification if certain
reservations were put in place to limit U.S. involvement in the League of Nations.
• The Irreconcilables were ultra-conservative Republicans that would never support the
Treaty or American participation in any body that could usurp American authority over its
own foreign policy.
Unit 8.10: American Isolationism in the
“interwar” years.
• What role did international agreements play in creating a
climate conducive to Isolationism?
• What challenges did the United States face in collecting its
debts from Great Britain and France? What made
repayment of these debts so difficult?
• How did the United States’ relationship with Central and
South American, as well as with the far-reaches of its
overseas empire, begin to change in the interwar years?
Unit 8.10: American Isolationism in the
“interwar” years.
• What role did international agreements play in creating a climate
conducive to Isolationism?
• The main emphasis of these agreements was to implement arms reduction
and pledge nations to banning “wars of aggression”.
• The Washington Naval Conference (1921-22)
• The initial proposal of Secretary of State Charles Evans Hughes was a Naval
Holiday, which would ban construction of new warships for a period of ten years
and hopefully end the prospects of a naval arms race.
• The Five-Power Naval Treaty
• The major world powers agreed to limits on tonnage of Capital Ships that could be
produced.
• They agreed to ban the use of poison gas and placed limits on the use of submarines.
• The Four-Power Treaty
• The U.S., Britain, France, and Japan agreed to limit their Pacific possessions by, in part,
not constructing forward military bases in the Pacific.
• The Nine-Power Treaty
• Reaffirmed the Open Door Policy in China
• Kellogg-Briand Pact (1928)
• This agreement outlawed wars of aggression.
• However, it did not include any kind of enforcement clause.
Unit 8.10: American Isolationism in the
“interwar” years.
• What challenges did the United States face in collecting its debts
from Great Britain and France? What made repayment of these
debts so difficult?
• President Coolidge, very pro-business, demanded that the billions of
dollars in loans extended to Britain and France be repaid.
• Britain and France said they could not repay the loans because they
were having difficulty collecting reparations from Germany.
• The Dawes Plan
• Significantly reduced Germany’s required reparations
• Provided loans to Germany so she could pay off Britain and France.
• The Allies then used the money from Germany to pay off the interest on their
loans owed to the United States.
• The Young Plan
• Further reduced Germany’s reparations and set up the Bank for International
Settlements to assist in repayment of reparations.
• Nevertheless, the Great Depression caused most nations that owed
money to the United States to default on their debts, which means the
U.S. simply lost that money.
Unit 8.10: American Isolationism in the
“interwar” years.
• How did the United States’ relationship with Central and South
American, as well as with the far-reaches of its overseas empire,
begin to change in the interwar years?
• The Pro-business approach of Calvin Coolidge led to resumed U.S.
military intervention in Central America, South America, and the
Caribbean.
• As we progressed through the 1920s and into the 1930s, however a
movement to improve relations with Latin America ensued.
• At the Pan-American Conferences of 1923 and 1928 the U.S. established that
Latin American nations would be treated on “equal footing” with the United
States.
• In 1928 the Clark Memorandum repudiated the Roosevelt Corollary.
• As part of the New Deal President Roosevelt established the Good Neighbor
Policy that stated that no nation would interfere in the internal affairs of
another.
• These measures dramatically improved U.S.-Latin American relations.
• The Tydings-McDuffie Act in 1946 finally granted the Philippines their
independence
Practice Question #11
11. Which of the following was not a cause of World War I?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Imperialism
Militarism
Secret Military Alliances
The Bolshevik Revolution
Nationalism
Practice Question #12
12. Which of the following was a member of the Central
Powers?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Germany
France
Britain
Russia
The United States
Practice Question #13
13. The spark that ignited World War I was:
A. The Zimmerman Note
B. The assassination of the Austrian heir to the throne by a Serb
nationalist
C. Germany’s ultimatum to Serbia
D. The sinking of the Lusitania
E. The sinking of the Sussex
Practice Question #14
14. In the Zimmerman Note:
A. Germany offered to compensate the United States for the
American lives lost in the Lusitania sinking
B. The United States agreed not to intervene in the war if
Germany halted its sinking of neutral shipping
C. The Germans agreed to help the Russian Bolsheviks overthrow
the tsar of Russia
D. The United States secretly agreed to supply the Allies with war
supplies in return for concessions following the war
E. The Germans promised to restore to Mexico the land it lost
after the Mexican-American War in return for a military alliance
with Germany
Practice Question #15
15. In the Sussex Pledge:
A. Germany promised to cease sinking passenger ships without
warning or care for the lives of passengers
B. Germany promised to resume U-Boat attacks on neutral
shipping if the United States continued to supply the Allies
C. President Wilson promised the Allies that the United States
would halt all U.S. trade with Germany
D. The Germans promised to stop using U-Boats to attack Allied
warships and merchant ships
E. The United States agreed not to arm its merchant fleet
Practice Question #16
16. In the U.S. Supreme Court case Schenck v. United States, the
Court ruled that:
A. The government could prohibit U.S. citizens from traveling on
ships of nations at war
B. Conscientious Objectors could not e forced to serve in the U.S.
military.
C. The government was not obligated to protect the lives or
property of those American citizens who opposed the war
D. The Espionage Act of 1917 was constitutional and speech that
represented a clear and present danger to the United States
would not be protected by the first amendment
E. The American Socialist Party represented a clear and present
danger to the United States.
Practice Question #17
17. Which of the following was not a feature of the Treaty of
Versailles?
A. Germany would be occupied by France and Britain for twenty
years
B. Germany would provide France with coal for fifteen years
C. Germany would pay reparations to the Allies
D. Alsace and Lorraine were returned to France
E. Germany would be demilitarized
Practice Question #18
18. Which of the following was an international agreement
designed to outlaw war?
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
The Five-Power Naval Treaty
The Treaty of Versailles
The Kellogg-Briand Pact
The Four-Power Treaty
The Nine-Power Treaty
Practice Question #19
19. The same year (1917) that the United States entered World
War I on the Allied side, this Allied power withdrew from
the conflict:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Britain
France
Italy
Belgium
Russia
Practice Question #20
20. The Dawes Plan and Young Plan:
A. Increased U.S. financial aid to South America
B. Repudiated the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine
C. Assisted Germany with its reparations payments and the Allies
with the repayment of debts owed to the United States
D. Provided for Filipino independence
E. Placed significant limitations on the role the United States
would play in the League of Nations.
Answer Key
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
D
A
B
E
A
D
A
C
E
C