Building Support for Imperialism
• Beginning in the 1880s, Americans wanted the
United States to become
a world power.
-Imperialism = the economic and political
domination of a strong nation over weaker
nations
-extractive economy = economy in which an
imperial country removed raw materials from its’
colonies
(pages 392–394)
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Causes of Expansion
(1) Economic - to acquire more raw materials for
industries & new markets
(2) Military – to protect the investments we need foreign
bases for our ships to refuel
-Alfred T. Mahan – Influence of Sea Power on History
(3) Ideological –”Social Darwinism” & belief that God had
given Americans ability to expand
-Frederick Turner – expansion acted as a “safety
valve” to stop internal conflicts
Expansion in the Pacific
Businesses were investing in foreign countries and were very
concerned about protecting those investments
-Matthew Perry trips to Japan
-Alaska in 1867 from Russia
-- Industrialism led to a growing need for foreign markets
(especially in Latin America, Samoa)
-- ex. Hawaii – taken from Hawaiian Queen Liliuokalani for
American businessmen in 1893
-1898 it became a US territory
In our history, the US has followed 3
foreign polices:
(1)Isolationism – not getting
involved at all in other countries
(2) Imperialism
(3) Interventionism – not actually
getting involved, but giving help
and supplies when needed.
**Cuba was one area in Latin America
that U.S. business invested in heavily
-90 miles off the coast of Florida
-under Spanish rule (very brutal to the
native Cubans)
[Spain also controlled the Philippines]
-the native Cuban people wanted
independence
-they began to revolt against the Spanish
government but the Spaniards just increased the
brutality
*When the Cuban government became a threat to
our investments in 1898
-President McKinley ordered the battleship Maine
into Havana Harbor to protect our investments
and evacuate Americans if needed in January,
1898
-on February 15, 1898, the ship exploded killing
260 men
-an early investigation discovered what looked like
a submarine mine but could not prove it was the
Spanish
-78 years later discovered it was really a faulty
boiler
**Back in the U.S. newspapers said the Spanish
were to blame
-yellow journalism- reporters that stir up the
emotions of the readers without actually
paying attention to the facts
-Newspapers competed to sell papers
-Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst
**At first President McKinley
opposed any type of U.S.
intervention,
-but eventually he agreed to help
on April 24, 1898.
2. What does the article want the US to do?
3. How does the letter describe McKinley?
4. What effect did the resignation of DeLome have
on the US?
5. Besides economic, what other causes were
there?
6. How confident were the reporters that it was truly
a bomb?
7. What was the hope of Woodford on the part of
Spain?
Now, from the list of causes, rank them 1 –
7, with 1 being the most important cause
& 7 having the least influence.
Next, explain why you have chosen your
#1 cause as being the most important
reason we went to war with Spain.
**War actually began in the Philippines where a
revolt was also going on
-Emilio Aguinaldo led a revolt and believed that the
U.S. would help him set the Philippines free
-the entire Spanish fleet was sunk at the Battle of
Manila by Commodore George Dewey on May
1, 1898
-US lost only one sailor
–this victory removed Philippines from Spanish
control
-However, the U.S. remained in control of the
Philippines until after World War II
-later, Aguinaldo would lead a revolt against the
US
**The American army was untrained and
unequipped
-not ready to fight in the jungle-like conditions
-5,000 died from typhoid, yellow fever, and the
effects of eating tainted meat and food (took so
long to get food to them)
• Theodore Roosevelt (not yet president)resigned as Asst. Secretary of the Navy to
join in the fighting in Cuba
-he organized the Rough Riders
- a volunteer unit made up of men from all
areas (retired soldiers, society elites)
-remembered for their charge up San Juan Hill
to defeat the Spanish in the battle
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to listen to the audio again.
• July 3, 1898- U.S. navy sunk Spanish fleet in
Cuba
-took control of Puerto Rico without much fight
-August 12, 1898, Spain signed an armistice
-Called the "Splendid Little War", it did not last
long (little over 3 months)
-but had a very lasting impact on the US
Peace Treaty
-McKinley began to set up military
governments in Latin America
-Cuba given independence but had to include
the Platt Amendment in their Const.
(-it said that if Cuba got into trouble, we could
take it over
-gave U.S. right to est. a naval base there –
Guantanamo Bay)
-U.S. also got control of Guam, Puerto Rico,
Philippines for $20 million
-In 1917 Puerto Ricans were made citizens of the
United States.
**United States now is a world player
.
**Theodore Roosevelt
-Spanish-American War hero
-VP under McKinley (who died in 1901 from an
assassins’ bullet {Leon Czolgosz} )
-as president, he wanted to increase U.S. world
involvement
-"Speak softly and carry a big stick"
--1907 – he sent his newly built navy on a “goodwill
tour of the world” – called the Great White Fleet
-to show the increased power of the US military
**Roosevelt Corollary
-was added to the Monroe Doctrine (1824)
(it warned European nations to stay out of
western hemisphere problems)
-R. C. gave the U.S. the right to intervene or
police Latin America
-was used to justify intervention in Dominican
Republic, Panama, and Cuba when needed.
-problem with it?
• -Foreign Policy – plan that guides the activities
and relationships of one country in its’
interactions with other countries
• -Imperialism – you already know this one
•
-Isolationism – a policy of national isolation by
staying away from alliances and other
international political and economic relations
• - Interventionism – government interference in
economic affairs at home in political affairs of
another country
**Panama (a province of Colombia)
-ever since the 1500's, people wanted a canal
there
-1880 the French bought a 5 year lease (from
Colombia) for the land and tried but couldn't
finish the job
-Roosevelt got sole ownership by buying out the
French
-we still had to get permission from Colombia
-they refused because they wanted to sell it to the
highest bidder
-U.S. backed a revolt in Panama and helped them
gain their independence from Colombia
-2 weeks later they gave the U.S. permission to
build the canal
-1904 construction started
-However, after it was built, 1921 the U.S. made
$25 million payment to Colombia
-biggest obstacle was the diseases carried by
mosquitoes ( malaria and yellow fever )
-realized that to stop the illness you had to stop the
mosquitoes
-enacted a policy of not allowing any standing
water anywhere near the construction zone
-finally a doctor, William Gorgas, developed
penicillin to take
-geography also made it difficult – torrential rain &
mudslides
-took over 43,000 workers to complete
-finally completed in 1914, costing $400 million
-ships had to pay to go through it
- highest fare = $331,200 (2008,
Disney Magic cruise ship)
- lowest fare = $.36 (1928, Richard
Halliburton swam the canal)
http://www.pancanal.com/eng/general/howitwork
s/como-tour.html
**Philippines
-although they were promised independence,
-helped the U.S. by giving an easy access
route to China and rest of Asia
-freedom forces fought against US until they
were put down
-remained under U.S. until 1946
**China
- was a limitless market
- Also a very weak nation so foreign
countries did much business there
- "spheres of influence"- foreign
powers controlled the economic and
political decisions of certain regions
of China
-U.S. supported the Open Door Policycalled for equal commercial opportunity
for all nations trading with China
-1900- a group of Chinese rebels (called the
Boxers) wanted to get the foreigners out
of China
-they rebelled against all of the foreign
businesses located in China and killed
300 of them
- troops were sent in from U.S.,
Russia, Japan, Britain
- eventually they were defeated
• President Roosevelt felt he had an
“international duty” to act as a police
officer
-U.S. had a right to impose its values
on weaker countries and to protect
American interests
-many countries developed a
resentment toward the U.S. because
of this belief
• 1912 election- William Howard Taft
elected President (Rep.)
-"Dollar Diplomacy"-encouraged the U.S. to invest in foreign
countries rather than sending troops
-to make the country stable ("substitute
dollars for bullets")
• 1916- Woodrow Wilson elected
-believed in a "Moral Diplomacy"- work for
world peace
• Mexican Revolution (1910- 1917)
-Mexican leader General Vicoriano Huerta
-U.S. wanted to help Venustiano Carranza
take control
- April 1914 U.S. forces attacked Vera
Cruz and full war was avoided because
Brazil and Chile stepped in
-Pancho Villa, a supporter of Huerta,
attacked several U.S. towns on the
Mexican-American border
-killed many people
-but fled back into Mexico before he could
be captured
-late 1914 Carranza did take over and
promised to help the U.S. find Villa, but we
never did
-Focus would turn to Europe, about to
explode into WWI
WORLD WAR I
Reasons for the war:
(1) By 1907, countries in Europe were competing
alliances
-1879- Germany and Austria-Hungary
-1882- Italy joined and formed Triple Alliance (Central
Powers), but was a weak member
-This left France isolated
-1894- France and Russia joined together
-later Britain joined to form the Triple Entente
(Allies)
(2) nationalism- belief one's country is the best
(3) imperialism- a policy in which stronger nations
attempt to create empires by dominating
weaker nations
(a) gain raw materials, (b) new markets, (c)
milititary prestige
• (4) 1800's- Slavs formed the nations of Bulgaria,
Montenegro
-Serbia was also Slavic, but land-locked
--Austria-Hungary promised them the areas of
Bosnia & Herzegovina
-But Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia and
Herzegovina for themselves
-this made Serbia angry as well as Russia
because they needed a warm water port
-Groups formed which worked against AustriaHungary in Serbia
(5) June 28, 1914- Archduke Francis Ferdinand,
heir to the Austria-Hungary throne, went to
Sarajevo, the Bosnian capital.
-Both he and his wife were assassinated there by a
Serbian supporter named Princip
**Austria-Hungary believed that the Serbian
government had ordered the murder
• July 28, 1914- they declared war on Serbia
-Russia decided to help Serbia
-Germany declared war on Russia (Aug. 1) and
then France and Great Britain
Both sides believed that it would be over quickly.
The fighting would be brutal
-almost all of the fighting took place in central Europe
• September 1914 German forces made it to almost
Paris, France
-but were stopped by French and British troops.
• There both sides dug creating a stalemate.
-fought from trenches
-used this method due to the new types of weapons
• Fighting was now very sophisticated due to
modern technology
-machine gun- firing 450 rounds a minute
-tanks
-airplanes- used to spy on enemy and later to kill in
dogfights between enemy planes
-chemical warfare = poison chlorine gas
• Loss of life was greater than in past conflicts
-Battle of Verdun = 595,000
-Battle of Somme = Br. lost 60,000 in one day
-Morale sank due to fighting but not getting
anywhere.
-Soon war become one of attrition
-seeing which side could wear the other one
down
US INVOLVEMENT
• Americans fell into 3 different categories:
(1) Isolationists
(2) Internationalists
(3) Interventionists
-At 1st, officially, we were neutral, but events would change
that
-(1) During the fighting, Germany used submarines (called
"u-boats)
-but said that they would not sink a neutral ship
-how do you determine a neutral ship from a submarine?
-90 non-military ships (U.S.) sunk in a two month
period
-this upset President Woodrow Wilson greatly
**Lusitania - May 1915
-was sunk by a German submarine because it was
thought to be carrying ammunitions
-1200 people died (128 Americans)
• Wilson gave Germany an ultimatum- stop
bombing ships without warning
- they agreed = Sussex Pledge
- Not enough to get us into war
(2) **Early 1917- Russian Revolution
-people not happy with their leader so they decided
to overthrow him (Czar Nicholas II)
-V.I. Lenin = communist
-this took Russia out of the war completely
(3) 1917- a note was intercepted to the German
minister in Mexico from Arthur Zimmermann
-it encouraged Mexico to join the Central Powers
-if Mexico would attack U.S., then Mexico would get
southwestern part of U.S. when Central Powers
won
-This became known as the Zimmermann
Telegram (Note)
-Also, 4 unarmed U.S. ships were sunk
-Wilson felt that this was the last straw
-April 6, 1917- he asked for the U.S. to declare
war
-May 1917- military draft
-U.S. unprepared for war
• Industrial production in the U.S. became more aimed
toward the military
-asked people not to waste food
- sold Liberty Bonds to raise money to finance the war
-Congress passed several acts, which limited the
freedoms of American citizens
--Espionage Act- illegal to interfere with the draft
--Shenck v. US – limits on free speech during wartime
-support for the war was low in the beginning
-used propaganda to convince people to help & to get
behind the war effort
--Sedition Act- illegal to interfere with sells of
bonds or say anything bad about the
government
--imposed censorship on press
--limited the actions of the unions (too radical)
• When US did get “over there,” doughboysnickname for the infantrymen in WWI
• With Russia out, Central Powers thought it
would be easy to defeat Allies, but with the help
of the U.S. Allies became strengthened
• -Battle of Chateau –Thierry (in France) stopped
a German advancement
• -August 8, 1918- Battle of Amiens- Allies
stopped Central Powers westward advance
-August 11, 1918- Germany sensed end was near
and wanted to talk terms,
-but the Allies were not interested in any
agreement that Germany could get concessions.
-They wanted total surrender
-September- Allies began to hit Germany with
everything
-September 26 - final blow is given and Germany
begged for an end = the Battle of the Argonne
Forest
• -November 11, 1918 - armistice (ceasefire)
-More than 50,000 Americans died
-1 million French, 900,000 British, 20 million
civilians
• Long before the end of the war, President
Wilson began to think about a peace
agreement
• -January 8, 1918- he introduced his
"Fourteen Points Plan“
-called for an end to secret alliances
-allow for self-determination
-called for an organization made up of the
countries of the world to keep peace
(League of Nations)
• January 1919- peace conference met in
Paris
-The Big Four- Great Britain, France, Italy,
and U.S.
-France and Britain wanted to punish
Germany
-France determined never to be invaded
again so they wanted to make sure
Germany could not get strong again
-15 year French control of the mineral
resources of Alsace-Lorraine
-British wanted reparations (payments from
its enemy for the economic injury suffered
in the war)
- they wanted $33 billion (too much for
Germany to pay)
-called for the League of Nations to be
formed
**June 28, 1919- the Treaty of Versailles was
signed
• July 8- Wilson returned home to present the
treaty to get U.S. approval of the treaty (the
Senate must say yes)
• However, many did not like the treaty because
it called for the U.S. to join the League of
Nations and they wanted to return to
isolationism
• Wilson sets out across the country to get public
support for it
• but the treaty failed to pass the Senate.
• During his travels, he had a stroke and almost
died.
• July 2, 1921- Congress passed a joint resolution
formally ending the hostilities
• Red Scare (1919 – 1920)
-believed that a revolution could happen here just
like in _____?
-distrusted certain people, esp unions &
anarchists
-Nichola Sacco & Bartolomeo Vanzetti convicted
in 1921 of stealing & killing a paymaster;
executed in 1927
-Attorney General Palmer – Palmer Raids
Geography and History
The map below shows the expansion of the United States in
1900. Study the map and answer the questions on the
following slides.
Geography and History (cont.)
Interpreting Maps
Approximately how
far west is the
island of Guam
from the west coast
of the United
States?
Guam is
approximately 6,500
miles (10,500
kilometers) from the
west coast of the
United States.
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Geography and History (cont.)
Applying
Geography Skills
Why did the United
States acquire so
much island
territory in the
Pacific?
The United States
acquired it for
military and trade
purposes.
Click the mouse button or press the
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Click the mouse button or press the
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Click the mouse button or press the
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Click the mouse button or press the
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Click the mouse button or press the
Space Bar to display the answer.
• LOCATE THE FOLLOWING PLACES:
-Dominican Republic
-Haiti
-Puerto Rico
-Cuba
-Florida
-Panama
-Venezuela
-Nicaragua
-Colombia
-Midway
-Philippines
-Guam
-Hawaii
-American Somoa
-Japan
-United States
-Australia
-Europe
-Asia
-Africa