Chapter 20: Imperialism, 1880–1914

TIMELINE

1893	Queen Lilioukalani of Hawaii overthrown
1896	William McKinley elected president
1898	Hawaii annexed  • United States declares war on Spain  • Battle of San Juan Hill forces Spain to surrender
1899	Open Door policy on China adopted
1900	Boxer Rebellion occurs
1901	Theodore Roosevelt assumes presidency
1902	Rebellion in the Philippines is put down by the United States
1903	Panama “revolts” against Columbia  • Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty negotiated
1904	Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine issued
1914	Panama Canal completed

IMPORTANT PEOPLE, PLACES, EVENTS, AND CONCEPTS

Emilio Aguinaldo

de Lome letter

Insular Cases

Open Door policy

rebellion in the Philippines

spheres of influence

Albert Beveridge

Sanford Dole

Admiral Alfred T. Mahan

Queen Liliokalani

Roosevelt Corollary

Josiah Strong

Anti-Imperialist League

Foraker Act

Maine

Panama Canal Zone

Rough Riders

Governor Valeriano “Butcher” Weyler

Boxer Rebellion

Guantanamo Bay, Cuba

José Marti

Platt Amendment

Spanish-American War

yellow journalism

“It seems to me that God, with infinite wisdom and skill, is training the Anglo-Saxon race for an hour sure to come in the world’s future…. There are no more new lands. The unoccupied arable lands are limited and soon will be taken…. Then will the world enter upon a new stage of its history—the final competition of races, for which the Anglo-Saxon race is being schooled.”

—Josiah Strong, Our Country: Its Possible Future and Its Present Crisis, 1885

INTRODUCTION

In the years after the Civil War, Americans settled the lands between the Mississippi River and the Pacific Ocean. But toward the end of the century, the United States, as Josiah Strong predicted in the quote above, looked overseas and became an imperialistnation. A series of factors led the United States to become imperialist, and a series of issues emerged once the United States gained an empire.

CAUSES OF AMERICAN IMPERIALISM

There are several reasons the United States entered the imperialist race:

•  Industrial development: As an industrial power, the United States needed raw materials, some of which could not readily be obtained within the country. Also, American industrialists were looking for new markets to which they could export their manufactured goods. Albert Beveridge, an Indiana senator, argued for an imperialist policy on economic grounds.

•  Military considerations: The United States saw itself in competition with European powers. Admiral Alfred T. Mahan argued that America needed to expand its military, especially its navy, in order to protect shipping lanes. Mahan specifically urged the government to establish coaling stations throughout the world (such as Hawaii), to establish military bases in the Caribbean, to build a canal through Panama, and to build a modern navy.

•  Social reasons: Some people, such as Josiah Strong, believed in the superiority of the Anglo-Saxons. Implicit in this racist notion was the idea that nonwhite peoples were incapable of governing themselves. Others felt that the next logical step in fulfilling the nation’s manifest destiny was overseas expansion. Some Protestants felt a responsibility to bring their God to those whom they considered heathens. It was also argued that the superiority of the country’s democratic institutions required the United States to play a more active role in the world.

•  Pro-imperialist presidents: The election of 1896 brought the pro-business and expansionist William McKinley (Republican) to office. McKinley was assassinated after re-election in 1901. The equally expansionist Theodore Roosevelt took office and occupied the White House until 1909; he was followed by fellow Republican and expansionist William H. Taft.

THE UNITED STATES AS AN IMPERIALIST POWER

The United States had acquired contiguous territory from the time of the Louisiana Purchase, but it did not look abroad until the 1880s.

Hawaii

One of the first overseas acquisitions of the United States was Hawaii. American business became interested in Hawaii and its sugar crop in the middle of the 19th century. American businessmen played an increasingly important economic, and even political, role on the islands, and in 1887, they pressured the king to give the planters special privileges, including sole voting rights. The next Hawaiian ruler, Queen Lilioukalani, challenged the growing power of the planters. The planters rebelled, and the U.S. military intervened on their behalf (1893). In 1898, Hawaii was annexed by the United States.

The Spanish-American War

Cuba had been a colony of Spain for centuries. By the 1860s, an independence movement had developed, but it failed to achieve its goal. In the meantime, U.S. businesses became interested in Cuban sugar. In 1895, José Marti again raised the cry of independence. Spain responded with severe measures. Spanish governor Valeriano Weyler placed many people in concentration camps, where many died from the harsh conditions.

A number of events led to U.S. participation in the war:

•  Yellow journalism: “Butcher” Weyler’s actions were recounted in the daily newspapers in the United States. Sensationalistic “yellow journalism” aroused the sympathy of the American public for the Cubans fighting for independence from a European power. Many Americans recalled the nation’s own struggle for independence from Great Britain.

•  The de Lome letter: A letter written by Enrique Dubuy de Lôme, the Spanish minister to the United States, criticized President McKinley for being weak and ineffectual. The letter was intercepted by Cuban rebels and leaked to the press. It angered many Americans.

•  The Maine sinks: An explosion occurred in the Havana harbor, sinking the U.S. battleship Maine and killing 260 people. The press and the U.S. government immediately blamed Spain and vowed revenge. A later investigation showed that the explosion happened from within the ship and was probably an accident.

Despite Spanish concessions, the United States declared war on Spain in 1898. Much of the fighting took place in the Spanish colony of the Philippines. Commander George Dewey and rebel leader Emilio Aguinaldo defeated Spanish troops there. In Cuba,Theodore Roosevelt and his Rough Riders won the battle of San Juan Hill and forced the Spanish to surrender.

The Treaty of Paris (1898) stipulated that Cuba would become independent, that Guam and Puerto Rico would become U.S. possessions, and that the United States would pay Spain $20 million for the Philippines.

Aftermath of the Spanish-American War

The war created a small, yet far-flung, empire for the United States. The country ran into a series of difficulties in governing its possessions, but it emerged as a powerful nation.

•  Although the United States fought side-by-side with Filipino rebels during the Spanish-American War, it did not grant the Philippines independence. Many Americans favored granting independence, but McKinley argued that the Philippines was not ready for that responsibility. Emilio Aguinaldo led a fierce rebellion in the Philippines against the United States that lasted three years (1899–1901), far longer than the Spanish-American War. After 300,000 Filipino casualties, the rebels capitulated. The Philippines was not granted independence until 1946.

•  Cuba received its independence after the Spanish-American war, but the United States insisted that the Cuban constitution contain a provision, the Platt Amendment, which gave the United States the right to intervene in Cuban affairs and to maintain a naval base on the island. The amendment compromised Cuba’s independence. U.S. troops intervened on three separate occasions when the United States perceived that its investments were threatened, making Cuba a protectorate of the United States. Some historians see these incursions as sources of the anti-American feelings that came to the fore when Fidel Castro led a successful revolution in 1959. The United States still maintains a naval base at Guantanamo Bay.

•  Many Puerto Ricans hoped for independence, while some argued for U.S. statehood, but the American government rejected both. The Foraker Act (1900) denied U.S. citizenship to Puerto Ricans, while allowing the president of the United States to appoint Puerto Rico’s governor and members of the upper house of the legislature. In the Insular Cases, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that “the Constitution does not follow the flag”—that is, constitutional rights don’t necessarily apply to people living in U.S. territories. Over the years, Puerto Rico evolved into its present commonwealth status, wherein Puerto Ricans select their own leaders and have U.S. citizenship rights.

The Open Door Policy in China

With the United States in possession of Hawaii and the Philippines, interest in trading with Asia was strong. China, with its vast population and nearly nonexistent industrial capacity, seemed like a logical market for U.S. goods. The major European powers, with similar interests in China, had carved out spheres of influence there, wherein a particular country had exclusive trading rights. The United States thought the most productive strategy was to push for all nations to have equal access to China. This became known as the Open Door policy. The United States gained some clout in China by helping to suppress the anti-Western Boxer Rebellion (1900). The European powers acquiesced to U.S. demands.

The Panama Canal

Under President Theodore Roosevelt, the United States embarked on building a canal across Panama to connect the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Such a canal would facilitate trade between Asia and the east coast of the United States and would also allow for more rapid deployment of U.S. forces. When Colombia, which controlled Panama at the time, was slow in negotiating with the United States, the United States encouraged a rebellion of Panamanians against Colombia. U.S. warships aided the rebels, and Panama became independent. The new nation quickly negotiated the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty with the United States, which granted the latter the 10-mile-wide Canal Zone. The huge construction project lasted 10 years and cost over 5,000 lives. The Panama Canal has greatly increased U.S. power. It was returned to Panama’s possession in 1999 as part of a treaty worked out by President Carter in 1977.

The Roosevelt Corollary

Theodore Roosevelt advocated a more active role for the United States in Latin America. Determined to protect U.S. interests and investments, he argued that the United States should “speak softly and carry a big stick.” The Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine set forth that the United States would not only see European intervention in Latin America as a threat, but it would intervene if U.S. investments were threatened. The nation would, in effect, act as an “international police force” in Latin America.

William H. Taft, Dollar Diplomacy, and Anti-Imperialists

Taft, the Republican who succeeded Roosevelt, continued Roosevelt’s interventionist policies (for example, Nicaragua in 1911). Critics of U.S. imperialism used the term “dollar diplomacy” to imply that business interests drove U.S. foreign policy. Some Americans, notably novelist Mark Twain and politician Carl Schurz, questioned America’s imperialist policies. The Anti-Imperialist League pointed out the racist assumptions in the belief that native peoples could not govern themselves. The league argued that U.S. policy should not function to protect the investments of the wealthy.

SUMMARY

The actions of the United States from the 1890s to the outbreak of World War I established the country as a presence on the international stage. The United States successfully opened new markets to its substantial industrial output. While the country often relied on armed force, like its fellow imperialist powers in Europe, it made an effort to avoid direct control over foreign lands; rather, it attempted to establish a series of relationships that safeguarded U.S. interests. While such actions enhanced the country’s power and wealth, they were often met with hostility abroad. Clearly, the policies implemented during this period marked the end of U.S. isolationism.

•  Annexation: The process of acquiring new territories

•  Dollar diplomacy: Derisive term for U.S. foreign policy in the early 20th century designed to protect the investments of U.S. corporations in Latin America

•  Imperialism: A policy of empire building in which a nation conquers other nations with an aim toward increasing its power and controlling those nations; this was one of the causes of World War I

•  Protectorate: A country whose affairs are partly controlled by a stronger country; the United States established several protectorates, such as Cuba, in the 20th century.

REVIEW QUESTIONS

1.   The Platt Amendment and the Roosevelt Corollary are similar in that they both

(A)    pushed the Progressive agenda into new areas.

(B)    were welcomed by American anti-imperialists who believed in self-determination for all people.

(C)    led to war with European powers.

(D)    expanded the role of the United States in foreign nations.

(E)    were attacked by critics who argued that the president was assuming too much power.

2.   The Spanish-American War is often considered a turning point in U.S. history because it

(A)    helped spark an industrial revolution.

(B)    ushered in a period of isolation from world affairs for the United States.

(C)    made the United States a significant imperialist power.

(D)    led to the formation of the League of Nations.

(E)    ended the period of laissez-faire and led to greater government involvement in economic matters.

3.   The Open Door policy

(A)    divided China into spheres of influence.

(B)    allowed for U.S. intervention in Cuban affairs.

(C)    stated that the United States reserved the right to intervene in the affairs of Latin American nations.

(D)    called for free trade with Africa.

(E)    called for equal access to trade with China for all nations.

4.   Alfred Mahan is best known in American history for his argument that

(A)    the Philippines should have been granted independence after the Spanish-American War.

(B)    non-Anglo-Saxon peoples are genetically inferior and, therefore, incapable of self-rule.

(C)    the United States should develop its naval power and establish overseas colonies if it hoped to be a world power.

(D)    Jim Crow laws served the interests of both African Americans and whites in that they maintained social order and harmony.

(E)    the power of the industrial giants needed to be reigned in if America were to maintain its democratic government.

ANSWERS AND EXPLANATIONS

1.    D

The years just before and just after 1900 marked an increase in U.S. involvement in world affairs. The Platt Amendment was put into the Cuban constitution at the behest of the United States. It stated that the United States reserved the right to intervene in Cuban affairs. The Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine stated that this right extended to all the nations of Latin America. The United States has exercised this right both in Cuba and throughout Latin America when it has perceived its interests to be threatened. Although some Progressives supported U.S. expansion overseas, this was not central to the “Progressive agenda.” Further, the undemocratic implications of both the Platt Amendment and the Roosevelt Corollary rankled many Progressives. For similar reasons, choice (B) is wrong. These two documents compromised self-determination for Cuba and, indeed, for all of Latin America. Anti-imperialists would certainly oppose them. The one instance in which Latin American affairs led to war with a European power—the Spanish-American War—preceded both the Platt Amendment and the Roosevelt Corollary. Neither raised questions of presidential power; both had congressional approval.

2.    C

The United States gained an empire as a result of the Spanish-American War. The United States played a more aggressive role in world affairs after this war. If anything, industrialization was a cause of the war, not a result. The war ushered in a period of increased U.S. intervention in the world, not isolation. World War I, not the Spanish-American War, led to the formation of the League of Nations. The U.S. government was never fully separate from the economy, as a true laissez-faire policy would require. Alexander Hamilton was an early advocate of government intervention in the economy. It is true that over time, the level of government intervention has increased. Perhaps the most pronounced expansion of government policies into the economy occurred during the New Deal.

3.    E

In the 1800s, the major European powers had divided China into spheres of influence, within which a particular European power would have exclusive trading rights. The United States did not have a sphere of influence, so it proposed that all of China be open to all nations for trade. This is the essence of the Open Door policy. U.S. intervention in Cuban Affairs refers to the Platt Amendment. The United States’ reserving the right to intervene in the affairs of Latin American countries refers to the Roosevelt Corollary. Free trade with Africa was not a major U.S. government pronouncement.

4.    C

Admiral Mahan urged the United States to build up its naval strength and to become an imperialist power. He and Josiah Strong are often cited as promoters of U.S. imperialism. An anti-imperialist, such as Carl Schurz or Mark Twain, would have taken the position in choice (A). Choice (B) was an argument made by many Americans, such as Josiah Strong and proponents of social Darwinism. The Democratic Party, more than the Republicans, held the position expressed in choice (D) during the period between Reconstruction and the New Deal. Choice (E) is a position taken by Socialist Eugene V. Debs and muckraker journalists of the Progressive Era.