The United States…

An Imperial Power

IsolationismWhen George Washington left office, he

warned America not to get caught up in “entangling alliances.”

In other words, Washington thought it was best if America did not get too involved in Europe.

Many U.S. citizen believed in isolationism, which means the United States should not expand or get too involved in foreign affairs because it could start wars.

Later on, isolationism will be a main reason America stays out of World War I.

ExpansionFrom America’s foundation, people were

expanding west.But people were expanding because of a need

for more land and because of manifest destiny.As people moved west, more states were added.

The last territory, Alaska, was added in the 1860s – but became a state in the 1950s.

The purchase of Alaska was nicknamed “Seward’s Folly” because Secretary of State William Seward had bought Alaska.

Americans thought that the purchase was stupid because it seemed that Alaska had no value.

CapitalismAfter all of the states had been taken, the need

for expansion changed.Now, the need for expansion came from the

growth of capitalism.With the new machines and industrial power,

factories were producing at record pace.Overproduction was seen as a huge problem.

Business owners could produce more of a product than people could actually buy.

Business owners wanted to be able to sell their products to other countries like China.

ImperialismSo, toward the end of the 19th century, many people

in the US starting believing in imperialism.Imperialism is when a country increases its power by

expanding its borders or acquiring new territories.The main reason that people wanted to see America

expand was because there was a need for new markets.

By expanding, the U.S. would have new “spheres of influence,” which are territories or countries over which a national has control.

By having these new territories, America could export more goods than it imports.

AKA: Mercantilism

Social DarwinismExpansion would be justified by Social

Darwinism.Many people saw it as America’s duty to

expand and take control of other territories in order to “civilize” the “inferior” people.

“The White Man’s Burden”

Take up the White Man's burden--Send forth the best ye breed--Go bind your sons to exileTo serve your captives' need;To wait in heavy harness,On fluttered folk and wild--Your new-caught, sullen peoples,Half-devil and half-child.

HawaiiBecause business owners wanted to sell their

products in China, they wanted America to take over islands in the Pacific Ocean.

This would make it easier for ships to carry cargo to China.

In the 1890s, many business leaders wanted the U.S. to take over a country called the Kingdom of Hawaii.

So, in 1893, a group of white plantation owners rebelled against the Queen of Hawaii, Queen Liliuokalani.

Hawaii would not become a state until 1959.

CubaIn the late 1800s, the island of Cuba was

still under Spanish rule.In 1895, the people in Cuba rebelled and

wanted to start their own government. Spain sent troops into Cuba to stop it.

Spain put thousands of the Cubans into concentration camps.

The camps had horrible conditions and many died there.

Yellow JournalismNewspapers in America began printing

stories with pictures about what was going on in Cuba.

These stories were often exaggerated. Sometimes, they were just made-up stories.

Newspaper companies just wanted to sell more papers and did not care about the facts.

This was called “yellow journalism.”These stories made many people angry at

Spain and sad for the Cubans.Many began to want war with Spain.

Spanish-American WarOn February 15th, 1898, a U.S. battleship called

the USS Maine was anchored in a harbor in Cuba.While the men onboard were sleeping, the Maine

suddenly exploded.258 men were killed.Spain was immediately blamed for the explosion.Later, it turned out that the explosion was just

an accident.Congress declared war on Spain in April of 1898.The American cry was, “Remember the Maine,

and to hell with Spain!”

Cuba, Puerto Rico, and GuamIn less than 3 months, the U.S. had won the Spanish-

American War.Puerto Rico, Guam, and Wake Island became U.S.

territories.The war ended with the Treaty of Paris (1898).Cuba was promised by America that it would be

allowed to be independent.But, to keep power over Cuba, the “Platt Amendment”

was passed.This was an amendment in Cuba’s Constitution and it

did 3 things:1) The U.S. government could have 2 naval bases in Cuba 2) America could send its military whenever it felt

necessary3) Limited what the new government of Cuba could do.

The PhilippinesAmerica also took control of the Philippines

during the Spanish-American War, since it was a colony of Spain.

Some Americans wanted The Philippines because it offered an easy route to China, while others saw no use in The Philippines at all.

The question was: Should The Philippines become part of the United States?

One group said NO because they thought that the Filipinos would never be able to join American culture and act “white.”

This group was the Anti-Imperialist League

The PhilippinesAnother group was led by President McKinley. He said that it was the United States’ moral

responsibility to govern and look after The Philippines because they were too weak to do it themselves.

Both of these groups gave classic arguments of Social Darwinism.

The Filipinos did not want Americans governing for them and fought for 2 years to end American control.

Finally, in 1902, the Philippines became an “unorganized territory” of the U.S. and later became its own country.

The PhilippinesFilipinos were treated badly and not given

the same rights as Americans.Supreme Court ruled in the Insular Cases

that the Constitution does not give rights to those who do not live in a U.S. state.

These events negatively impact the opinion of America worldwide.

ChinaThe United States feared that other countries

would take control of China and not allow U.S. business to sell their products there.

The other countries already had “spheres of influence” in China, where they controlled trade and ports.

So, the United States announced an “Open Door Policy.”

The Open Door Policy demanded that foreign countries leave China open for trade.

The U.S. demanded that ships be allowed to pass through the ports.

Boxer RebellionThere were many Chinese people who

hated that foreigners had so much control of their country.

So, in 1900, these people launched the “Boxer Rebellion” to try and kick out Europeans and Americans.

The United States led a force of troops who put down the rebellion.

This caused many Chinese people to dislike America.

The Panama CanalPresident Theodore Roosevelt wanted to be able to

move U.S. ships between a canal near Panama.This meant ships would not have to go around South

America to get to the Pacific Ocean.The French had tried to build a canal there already,

but had failed. Panama was controlled by Colombia at the time.

Colombia, however, would not allow the U.S. to build a canal.

But, in 1903, a group of rebels in Panama decided to start a revolt against Colombia.

Roosevelt sent the U.S. Navy to help them.They won, and in exchange gave the U.S. permission

to build a canal.

The Panama CanalThe Panama Canal construction was a

massive project and was finally finished in 1914.

Panama also did not like the fact that the United States kept control of the canal.

The Panamanians began to resent the United States’ presence in their country.

Finally, the canal was given to Panama in 1999.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_655031&feature=iv&src_vid=-vi19z4LEi0&v=fA-pnN54uPw

The Roosevelt CorollaryIn 1904, President Theodore Roosevelt issued

the Roosevelt Corollary.This was an extension of the Monroe Doctrine.The Monroe Doctrine had said that the U.S.

would not allow European powers to colonize countries in North or South America.

The Roosevelt Corollary took it a step further. It said that the United States could use its military if the countries in Latin America could not pay off their debts to other countries.

Roosevelt wanted to make sure that other countries did not try to invade in South America when they were owed money.

The Roosevelt CorollarySeveral times during the 20th century, the

military was used to take over South American ports in order to pay their countries’ debts for them.

This gave America a reputation as being a “policeman” in South America.

This policy became nicknamed “Big Stick” Diplomacy.

One Roosevelt’s most famous quotes was: “Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far.”

This view of America as a “policeman” is still present in South America and many other places.

The Great White FleetTo show off America’s military power and

Navy, Roosevelt sent the “Great White Fleet” around the world.

The Great White Fleet was a newly-constructed modern fleet of ships.

The tour of the Great White Fleet was further evidence of Roosevelt’s “Big Stick” Policy.

This was a warning to the rest of the world that the United States was becoming a world power and could enforce the law.

Taft: “Dollar Diplomacy”When William Howard Taft became president after

Theodore Roosevelt, he tried a slightly different approach.

He wanted to “substitute money for bullets.”He thought that by investing money in other

countries’ economies, this would make them more stable.

As a result, a more stable country is less likely to have revolutions or internal conflict.

This would allow the United States to sell its products in these countries.

This policy was directed mainly at China and Latin America.

It created enemies for the U.S., especially in Latin America.

Wilson: “Moral Diplomacy”When Woodrow Wilson became president in 1913,

he promised to change course. He did not like “dollar diplomacy.”

Instead, Wilson wanted “moral diplomacy.”Wilson based his foreign policy on the view that

the United States represented a moral country that the rest of the world should try to copy.

This policy said that the U.S. should support ONLY democratic nations.

Wilson promised not to send the military into foreign countries as much as his predecessors.

This did not happen, however, as Wilson sent the military many times.

Wilson: “Moral Diplomacy”For example, Wilson did not like the Mexican

president, Pancho Villa. Pancho Villa had killed some Americans near

the border.So, Wilson sent troops to try and capture Villa.

He said that he would use “moral diplomacy” to “teach the Mexicans to elect good men.”

Effects of ImperialismBecause of the policies of these presidents, the

United States became more involved in foreign affairs than ever before.

America had especially become more involved in Latin America.

The United States’ intervention (sending troops, investing money, etc) in other countries had created enemies.