ap/ib american history mr. blackmon u.s....

AP/IB American History Mr. Blackmon

U.S. Imperialism

I. Background to ImperialismA. America held Europe in disdain

1. There was a belief in the superiority of American civilization, especially ourdemocracy

2. Deep suspicion of European monarchies and their decadent society3. The US was invulnerable to European attack.4. The US was equally unable to attack Europe5. Willingness to press whatever claims we had very hard

a. The Alabama claims of $15.5 million against Great Britain, settledin 1872

b. The pork inspection controversy with Germany (they wouldn't acceptour pork; very wise of them; the meat was not safe.)

c. The large Irish population was intensely anti-British, and politicianscould always gain votes by "twisting the lion's tail."

B. Mexico and Maximilian1. A protectorate was established by France over Mexico, utilizing conservative

elements in Mexican society and using the Austrian prince Maximilian as apuppet king.

2. Maximilian was held up by French bayonets.3. The United States was much too occupied during the Civil War to do

anything other than protest this violation of the Monroe Doctrine.4. In 1866, with the war over, Secretary of State William H. Seward protested

once again.a. This time, 200,000 veterans under Philip Sheridan were mobilized in

Texas.5. Wisely, the French comply and withdraw their forces from 1866-7.6. Without French support, Maximilian is doomed. He is defeated and executed

by Mexican nationalist forces.7. The Mexicans do not like us, but here the US certainly acted to defend

Mexican sovereignty.C. The Aggressive Foreign Policy of William H. Seward

1. The US purchases Alaska from Russia in 1867 for $7,200,000.a. It was called Seward's Icebox and Seward's Folly.

2. Midway Island in the Pacific is annexed in 1867. Its location made it animportant stop for trans-Pacific voyagers. Otherwise, why bother? The onlyinhabitants were gooney birds.

3. Seward also recommended the annexation of the Dominican Republic.a. The proposal was defeated owing to the Dominican Republic's

distance from the US and its racially mixed population.D. US exports grow steadily, especially n the 1880s

1. Increase in volume in 1880s

AP/IB American History Mr. BlackmonImperialism

2. We begin to export our manufactured goods as well as agricultural surpluses.a. In 1900, Carnegie enraged British steel manufacturers by winning the

bid to provide steel for the Uganda railroad.3. Exports are now seen as important if domestic consumption falters due to a

recession.a. Sen. Albert J. Beveridge provided an excellent formulation of the

ideology of expansion in 1898, "But today, we are raising morethan we can consume. Today we are making more than we canuse. Today our industrial society is congested: there are moreworkers than there is work; there is more capital than there isinvestment. . . . Therefore, we must find new markets for ourproduce, new occupation for our capital, new work for our labor."(Beveridge "The Taste of Empire" 201) More of this speech is quotedbelow under Social Darwinism

E. Darwinism in Foreign Policy1. Increasingly, I am becoming convinced that Social Darwinism, especially as

applied to foreign relations, is a truly evil philosophy, having provided arationale for untold human suffering.

2. Darwinism gave a new plausibility to Manifest Destiny:3. "Among nations or 'races' as well as among biological species, there was a

struggle for existence, and only the fittest could survive. If the strongdominated the weak, that was in accordance with the law of nature. It was anapplication to world affairs of the same . . . Darwinism that industrialists hadlong been applying to domestic economic affairs." (Current 599)

4. John Fiske, 1885, predicted that "the English-speaking peoples wouldeventually control every land that was not already the seat of an establishedcivilization." (Current 599)

5. Josiah Strong, a Congregationalist minister, wrote Our Country in 1885. Hebelieved that the Anglo-Saxon race, now centered in the US, possessed an'instinct or genius for colonization,' (this is the same idea as the 'germ theoryof democracy' which Frederick Jackson Turner attacked with his FrontierThesis) and represented the great ideas of civil liberty and pure Christianity[a Hegelian concept--liberty and Christianity are ideas/ideals with materialrepresentations] and was 'divinely commissioned to spread its institutionsover the earth. He saw the US as 'moving down upon' Mexico and all LatinAmerica and 'out upon the island os the sea, over Africa and beyond.' 'Cananyone doubt, Strong asked, 'that the result of this . . . will abe the survivalof the fittest?'" (Garraty 542)

6. John W. Burgess, the prominent professor at Columbia University, wrotePolitical Science and Comparative Law in 1890: "The Anglo-Saxons andTeutonic nations possessed the highest political talents. It as the duty of thesenations, he said, to uplift less fortunate peoples even to force superior


institutions on them if necessary. 'There is no human right to the status ofbarbarism.'" (Current 599)a. I am reminded of a comment by an American soldier in the

Philippines, referring to the model rifle issued US soldiers, that wewould "civilize them with a Krag."

b. These men are not simply ignorant bigots. They are well respected,highly educated racialist bigots.

7. Frederick Jackson Turner, who attacked the racialist 'germ theory' describedby Burgess, also contributed to the imperialist drive in a very significant way.This is ironic. By pointing to the frontier as the determinant force in thedevelopment of American political, social, and economic democracy, and bypointing out that the frontier was officially closed, he also pointed to the needto find new, overseas markets, to sustain out democracy and economy.

8. Alfred Thayer Mahan is the ablest and most effective apostle of imperialism.He is also the most important historian and theorist of naval warfare. Hisimportance transcends US history.a. His seminal work was The Influence of Sea Power Upon History

1660-1783, (1890), which traced the rise of the British Empire.b. He followed this with The Influence of Sea Power Upon the French

Revolution and Empire 1793-1812 (1892) and The Interest ofAmerica in Sea Power (1897)

c. Mahan's writings have deeply influenced US naval operations andtheory. World War I and II seem to illustrate the enduring validity ofhis ideas on naval grand strategy.

d. He believed that the great nations of history were sea-faring nations.e. The US was really a huge island, and therefore had to build our

greatness upon sea power.f. The essential components in sea power were:

(1) A productive domestic economy, which provides goods whichothers want

(2) Foreign commerce to engage in international trade(3) A large merchant marine to monopolize your trade(4) A powerful navy whose task was to defend the trade routes

and other national interests(5) Colonies to provide raw materials and to serve as bases for

the navy (especially important in an era of coal fired ships,which required frequent replenishment)(a) Please note that the cornerstone of today's US Navy

strategy is to protect the SLOCs, the Sea-Lines-of-Communication with Europe and our other allies.This was true when we fought the Kaiser, true whenwe fought Hitler and Japan, it would have been true


had we fought Russia.g. Applying his ideas to the situation of his day, Mahan recommended

(1) the construction of a modern fleet (the navy at the beginningof his writing career was a bad joke)

(2) That we obtain a string of coaling stations and bases in theCaribbean

(3) That we annex Hawaii as the central piece in our Pacifictrade.

(4) That we dig and control a canal across the Isthmus of Panama.(Current 600)

h. He numbered among his friends such policy makers as (1) Sen. Henry Cabot Lodge, Chairman of the Naval Affairs

Committee, later Foreign Relations Chair(a) Lodge brought in a bill in 1883 to begin constructing

a fleet of modern steel warships.(2) Benjamin Harrison's Secretary of the Navy Benjamin F. Tracy(3) Above all, then Assistant Secretary of the Navy and himself

a naval historian, Theodore Roosevelti. From Garfield to McKinley, naval appropriations increased.

(1) In 1898, the US possessed the 5th largest navy in the world(2) In 1900, the US possessed the 3rd largest navy in the world

9. Sen. Henry Cabot Lodge (1895) "It is not the policy of the United Statesto enter, as England has done, upon the general acquisition of distantpossession in all parts of the world. . . . while in the United Statesthemselves we hold the citadel of our power and greatness as a nation,there are outworks essential to the defense of that citadel which mustneither be neglected nor abandoned. . . . In the interests of our commerceand of our fullest development, we should build the Nicaragua Canal, andfor the protection of that canal and for the sake of our commercialsupremacy in the Pacific we should control the Hawaiian Islands andmaintain our influence in Samoa. . . . [W]hen the Nicaragua Canal isbuilt, the island of Cuba . . . will become to us a necessity. Commercefollows the flag, and we should build up a navy strong enough to giveprotection to Americans in every quarter of the globe and sufficientlypowerful to put our coasts beyond the possibility of successful attack."(Lodge 3-4)

10. Theodore Roosevelt (in a letter to Alfred Thayer Mahan) (1897) "If I hadmy way we would annex those islands [Hawaii] tomorrow. If that isimpossible I would establish a protectorate over them. I believe we shouldbuild the Nicaraguan canal at once, and in the meantime, that we shouldbuild a dozen new battleships . . . I am fully alive to the danger fromJapan. . . .But there are big problems in the West Indies also. Until we


definitely turn Spain out of these islands (and if I had my way that wouldbe done tomorrow), we will always be menaced by trouble there. Weshould acquire the Danish Islands [Virgin Islands]" (Roosevelt "Obstaclesto Immediate Expansion" 150-151)

11. Senator Albert J. Beveridge (1898) (Speaking in support of annexation of thePhilippines) "The commercial supremacy of the republic means that thisnation is to be the sovereign factor in the peace of the world. For theconflicts of the future are to be conflicts of trade--struggles for markets--commercial wars for existence. And the golden rule of peace is theimpregnability of position and invincibility of preparation. . . . As ourcommerce spreads, the flag of liberty will circle the globe an the highwaysof the ocean--carrying trade to all mankind--be guarded by the guns of therepublic. And as their thunders salute the flag, benighted peoples willknow that the voice of liberty is speaking, at last, for them: thatcivilization is dawning, at last, for them--liberty and civilization, thosechildren of Christ's gospel, who follow and never precede the preparingmarch of commerce. (Beveridge "The Taste of Empire" 201-202)

II. US Foreign Policy in AsiaA. I am going to organize this section by country. The problem with this approach is

that one can easily lose sight of simultaneous events, and see how policies towardChina, Japan, Philippines, Hawaii, etc. fit together. The strength of this approach isthat one can see how our policy toward any one country fits together. I believe thatyou must understand the latter before you can understand the former.

B. China1. The key to our Pacific diplomacy right up to the end of World War II was our

desire to trade with China.2. We opened commercial relations by the Treaty of Wanghia in 1844.

a. The treaty allowed trade and missionaries to enter.b. Among the families involved with trade with China were the Delanos

of New York--from whom Franklin Delano Roosevelt descended. This fact is probably not irrelevant to his decidedly pro-Chinaattitudes.

3. In 1894-5, the Sino-Japanese War broke out, as the emerging Japan beganflexing its muscles.a. Japan ended the war by seizing Korea.b. Other European powers moved to extend their spheres of influence.c. Secretary of State John Hay tried to protect US business interests.

(1) Anti-imperialist feeling in the US precluded any seizure ofChinese territory by the US. In this respect, the US wasclearly less predatory toward China than other nations. Wewished trade without military control.

(2) Hay issued the Open Door Notes in 1899, urging the


European powers to agree to respect the trading rights of allcountries and to impose no discriminatory duties; Chineseofficials were to continue to collect duties, not Europeanofficials.

(3) Russia rejected the notes; the others ignored them.(4) Hays then blandly announced that everyone had adopted his

Open Door Policy!!(5) The policy appears to work only because the other powers

distrusted each other so much.(a) The US wanted the benefits of trade with China but

was unwilling to face the costs of a sufficientmilitary presence i n the region to protect our longterm interests. Upon this bedrock of unrealisticthinking, the seeds of Pearl Harbor are planted.

(6) The Open Door Policy is the key to our Pacific foreign policythroughout the first half of the twentieth century. Do notforget that the crucial issue in our collision with Japan inWorld War II is the territorial sovereignty of China.

4. The Boxer Rebellion in 1900a. The Boxer Rebellion was a genuinely grass-roots nationalist rebellion

aimed at driving the 'foreign devils' off of Chinese soil.b. The European powers, including the US and Japan, sent troops to

break the rebellion, which began with attacks on the diplomaticcompounds in Beijing.

c. After the defeat of the Boxers, Hay acted to protect Chinese territorialintegrity--there was a real chance that permanent annexations couldhave been made.(1) He reasserted the principle of impartial trade.(2) His call for Chinese territorial integrity implied a US

commitment to Chinese independence.C. Japan

1. Our stormy relationship with Japan began when Commodore Matthew Perrysailed into Nagasaki Harbor and opened Japan up to the West after their longhibernation during the Tokugawa Shogunate. We signed a commercial treatywith them in 1858.

2. The Tokugawa Shogunate was ended in 1868, and the Meiji Restorationbegan. The Meiji marks the beginning of modern Japan.

3. The Japanese realized clearly that they had only two choices: modernize orbe exploited. The example of China acted as a constant reminder.

4. Modernization meant industrialization.5. Japan's position is very similar to Great Britain's except it has fewer

advantages. They are an island nation, with a large population(industrialization brought dramatic population growth). They could feed


themselves (on a starvation diet) but had no natural resources for industry.6. Modern Japan must trade to survive.7. The example of the Europeans taught the Japanese that colonies were

essential both as sources of needed raw materials and also as markets.8. Japanese expansion into Korea, Manchuria, and China is predicated upon this

need. Their expansion to the southwest was predicated upon a need for otherresources that China could not provide, such as rubber, tin, and above all, oil.

9. The example of the European powers taught the Japanese to achieve theirnational objectives by force and exploitation.

10. Japan has a long, militarist tradition. Imperialism blended easily with it, ormilitarism with imperialism.

11. To the Japanese, the condemnation leveled at themby Great Britain and the US in the 1920s and 1930swas sheerest hypocrisy. They felt that they wereonly doing what the Europeans had already done.They believed that they were fighting for nationalsurvival. They believed that weakness invitedattack, whereas strength meant respect. Theysuspected (probably correctly) that racism laybehind much of European opposition to theirexpansion. They knew that the Europeans alreadyhad what they wanted and were content to end thegame as winners. The Japanese did not have whatthey wanted, and did not want to quit the game justyet.

12. I do not wish to excuse Japanese aggression in World War II--it was brutaland itself racist (racism is not confined to Europeans). However, USforeign policy in the Pacific was extremelyunrealistic, and, in my view, inept. We failed torecognize the legitimate interests of Japan, failedto recognize the realities of Japanese power,failed to even attempt to provide a means by whichJapan could obtain needed resources by some othermeans than open war. Perhaps a different foreignpolicy would have failed anyway (indeed, I ratherthink, considering Japanese militarism, that itwould have), but the effort would have been worthit.

13. The first stage in Japan's expansion was the Sino-Japanese War in 1894. Asa result of this, Japan seized Korea.

14. The Russo-Japanese War 1905a. This brought them into conflict with the Russians, who were sabering

their way across Asia. The Russians have been pursuing an


exceptionally aggressive policy, with the Caucasus, Turkey, Persia,and Afghanistan as well as Manchuria as flashpoints.

b. The prize between them is Manchuria, which is rich in naturalresources.

c. The completion of the Trans-Siberian Railway signalled the openingof hostilities.

d. The war opened with a surprise attack by torpedo boats on theRussian Pacific fleet at their base in Port Arthur. The Japanese sentthe Russian fleet to the bottom.

e. Land fighting then opens as the Japanese lay siege to Port Arthur.Fighting is bitter and foreshadows World War I. The Japanese arebetter organized and better led, and eventually will take the fortress.

f. In the meantime, the Russian Baltic fleet sailed all the way aroundEurope and Africa (the British refused transit through the Suez) tobreak the siege.

g. The Japanese met them in ambush at Tsushima Straits. TheRussians were massacred. The Japanese fleet was more modern,more powerful, better trained, and far better led.

h. At this point, Germany (or, really, the Kaiser) began to make loud,aggressive noises that they would enter the war on Russia's side.(1) Kaiser Wilhelm has several motivations

(a) Tsar Nicholas is his cousin(b) Russia was a European nation being humiliated by an

Asian nation. The Kaiser was the first to proclaim the"Yellow Peril" from the East. He seems to havereally believed it. The defeat of Russia bya non-white nation is in fact animportant milestone in the end ofEurope's era of world domination.

(c) He also hoped to obtain greater concessions in Chinafor Germany.

i. With the war threatening to widen (and thus threaten everyone'strading interests), President Theodore Roosevelt offers his servicesto mediate peace treaty.(1) The Japanese agree, for although they are winning, they are

unprepared for a long war.(2) The Russians were facing an internal revolution, triggered by

the war, and need to end the war quickly as well.(3) The Treaty of Portsmouth gave Japan important concessions

in Manchuria, as well as half of Sakhalin Island.(a) Some of the provisions were unpopular in Japan, but

the treaty was very advantageous to Japan.


(b) Theodore Roosevelt received the Nobel Peace Prizefor his efforts

15. The Gentlemen's Agreement 1907a. Roosevelt faced one other problem with Japan, although one not of

his own making.b. In 1906 the San Francisco school district segregated Japanese

students. Japan protested (cf handout on Labor and Immigration).c. The Gentlemen's Agreement restricted future Japanese immigration

to the US.d. The problem illustrated the fear of the "Yellow Peril" in the US.

D. Hawaii1. American missionaries advertised Hawaii's economic potential 2. Their descendants became involved in sugar cane

a. They came to dominate the economy and through that, the Hawaiianmonarchy.

3. The Reciprocity Treaty of 1875 allowed Hawaiian sugar into the US dutyfree.a. Hawaii promised to cede no territory to a foreign power.b. In effect, we guaranteed Hawaii's independence and make them a

protectorate.4. The treaty was renewed in 1887 and we receive Pearl Harbor as a naval

base.5. This is in the same time period that we obtained Midway and Samoa,

therefore established bases from which to trade with China and Japan.6. McKinley Tariff 1890

a. Gave a bounty to US sugar producers and discontinues the duty sugarb. This destroyed Hawaii's privileged position in the US sugar market.c. The growers, largely of US ancestry, saw annexation as the only

salvation.7. Queen Liliuokalani ascends the throne in 1891. She was

a. A nationalistb. Advocated Hawaii for Hawaiiansc. Tried to eliminate US influenced. Tried to run an absolute monarchy

8. The coup d'etat of 1893a. US Minister John L. Stevens connived to land 150 Marines to depose

Queen Liliuokalanib. A provisional government, dominated by US planters, was formed,c. Stevens then immediately recognized themd. The Provisional Government then petitioned for annexation.e. President Benjamin Harrison was very receptive, but he was leaving

office, and deferred to the new President.


9. President Grover Cleveland a. disapproved of the use of US troopsb. withdrew the treaty of annexationc. sent James H. Blount to investigate the situation.d. Blount reported that the Hawaiians favored Liliuokalanie. Cleveland then denies recognition of the Provisional Governmentf. The Provisional Government, however, refuses to give up their powerg. Cleveland refused to use US troops to depose the Provisional

Government (who were, after all, of US ancestry; he is alsoconsistent: he disapproves the use of US troops to depose foreigngovernments)

10. Annexation in 1898a. The Spanish-American War caused a wave of patriotic, expansionist

sentiment to sweep the USb. The President now is also William McKinley, who is sympathetic to

expanding trade in China.c. Hawaii was annexed in the general expansion of this period.

E. Samoa1. Dominated the sea lanes of the South Pacific2. We acquired the use of the harbor at Pago Pago by treaty in 1878.3. There was a three way scramble with Germany and Great Britain for control

of Samoa, culminating in a near-three way naval battle, which was avoidedonly by a hurricane, which kept everyone busy.

4. In 1899, the US and Germany divided Samoa up, with Great Britain beingcompensated elsewhere.

F. The Philippines1. I will postpone my discussion of the Philippines until after the Spanish-

American WarIII. US Foreign Policy in Central and South America to the Spanish American War

A. A theme that one wants to note in the following sections is the way in which theMonroe Doctrine becomes a cornerstone of our diplomacy, the way in which itsmeaning is expanded, and the reasons for that.

B. Clayton-Bulwer Treaty in 1850 prepared the diplomatic ground for a joint US-British trans-isthmian canal. Such a canal had been dreamed of for a long time.More on this later.

C. Ferdinand de Lesseps, the man who dug the Suez Canal, obtained a concession in1880 to build a trans-isthmian canal. President Hayes immediately announced thatthe US would not allow any European power to control such a canal, which is alogical extension of the Monroe Doctrine.

D. The Pan American Conference in 1899 achieved little other than create the PanAmerican Union. However, it marks the beginning of a US attempt to asserthemispheric leadership. Then Secretary of State James G. Blaine was actively


seeking new markets for US goods, and was trying to open up Latin America. TheLatin Americans, however, found the Europeans cheaper, and refused.

E. US-Latin American relations were worsened over the Baltimore Incident in 1891.Anti-US feeling led to a riot in Valparaiso where 2 US sailors, on shore leave, werekilled and a dozen injured. When the Chilean government was slow to apologize andpay damages, President Benjamin Harrison invited Congress to declare war.

F. Of much greater significance is the Venezuelan Border Dispute in 1895 with BritishGuiana.1. The border had long been disputed (as indeed, many borders in Latin

America are). The terrain was mostly jungle, but the discovery of goldsuddenly made it relevant.

2. The British saw no reason either to agree to the Venezuelan demands nor tosubmit the issue to arbitration. After all, Venezuela did not have the powerto force Britain to do anything.

3. President Grover Cleveland decided to intervenea. Cleveland was under attack from expansionists for his refusal to

annex Hawaiib. Taking a stand against Britain was always popular with many voters,

especially the Irish.c. Protecting the weak against the strong appealed to American

sentimentality.d. Cleveland is in deep trouble politically over the Panic of 1893 and

the silver issue. He is looking for an issue that will secure his re-election. A foreign crisis usually causes the nation to rally around theflag, and the president who happens to be holding it.

e. He really did believe that the Venezuelans were in the right.4. Secretary of State Richard Olney sent a very stiff letter to the British,

informing them that they were violating the Monroe Doctrine by seeking toextend their territory, that they must submit to arbitration or face unspecifiedUS actions.a. Olney told the British "Today the United States to practically

sovereign on this continent, and its fiat is law upon the subjects towhich it confines its interposition. Why? . . . . It is because inaddition to all other grounds its infinite resources combined with itsisolated position render it master of the situation and practicallyinvulnerable as against any or all other powers." (Tindall & Shi 905)

5. British Foreign Minister Lord Salisbury pointedly ignored the letter formonths, finally answering icily that the Monroe Doctrine was notinternational law, and that Britain refused to arbitrate.

6. Cleveland was furious, asked for and got the money for a US boundarycommission to provide a report, and appeared ready to fight over the issue.Congress appeared willing.


7. The British were startled at the seriousness with which Cleveland took theissue. They have many other fish to fry, such as rising German economic andnaval power, and the Boer War, which was already straining the Imperialforces. Furthermore, Canada would be very vulnerable. In general, it wasstupid to antagonize a nation as potentially powerful as the US over an issueso minor. (Good thinking; too often people think with their pride, and bloodis shed). They agree to arbitration and the issue dies down.

8. One consequence of the issue was a period of greater Anglo-US cooperation,which Britain, as it turned out, needed desperately.

9. The US has asserted the Monroe Doctrine against a European power indefense of a Latin American nation.

IV. The Spanish-American WarA. Spanish misrule in Cuba had led to a revolt in 1868-1878, the Ten Years' War.

1. Americans had been sympathetic to the Cubans.B. The Wilson-Gorman Tariff of 1894 placed high duties (40%)on raw sugar, and

ruined the Cuban economy (similar to what the McKinley Tariff did to Hawaii).1. In consequence of the added economic misery, a new rebellion broke out in

Cuba in 1895.C. The rebellion was bitterly fought. The rebels deliberately laid waste to fields. The

Spanish resorted to brutal repression.1. General Valeriano Weyler, dubbed the "Butcher" by US newspapers, created

"reconcentration camps" to intern the rural population for their protectionagainst the guerrillas. This is in effect, what the US did at one time in VietNam, with equally poor results. The Spanish lost control of the countryside.

2. The fighting disrupted food supplies, and led to even more serious sufferingin the population.

D. US investors, who had about $50,000,000 invested in Cuban sugar, favored USintervention. This is in accord with Marxist-Leninist theory.

E. Wall Street, however, was adamantly opposed to intervention. The country was justrecovering from the depression, and Wall Street did not want anything asdestabilizing as war. This is emphatically the opposite of Marxist-Leninist theory.McKinley is a stooge of Big Business, but here he will act against their wishes andin accordance with popular demand.

F. The American public was intensely sympathetic to the Cubans.1. William Randolph Hearst's New York Journal was locked in a bitter

circulation war with Joseph Pulitzer's New York World.2. Lurid stories of atrocities fed circulation.3. If there were no recent atrocities, they would make them up.4. Think of this as the beginning of a process leading to the media feeding

frenzy over the OJ Simpson Trial.5. The phrase given for this sensationalistic, rumor mongering kind of press is

the "yellow press." Because it was also exaggeratedly and chauvinistically


patriotic, it is also called the "jingo press."G. McKinley was under very heavy popular pressure to intervene. He had been billed

as "the advance agent for prosperity" and followed the advice of Big Business, buthe was too weak to resist overwhelming popular pressure.1. His hesitancy led to jokes: "Why is McKinley's mind like an unmade bed?

Because someone has to make it up for him every time he has to use it."H. The DeLome Letter

1. Riots in Havana led to the arrival of the USS Maine in the harbor on January25, 1898 to protect US citizens.

2. In February, a Cuban agent stole a letter from Enrique De Lome, the Spanishambassador to Washington, to a friend in Havana. He turned it over toHearst, who promptly published it on February 9.

3. In the letter, De Lome called McKinley "a small time politician" (which wasuntrue) and a "bidder for the admiration of the crowd" (which was).

4. Public opinion was outraged at this insult to their beloved leader.5. Still, McKinley vacillated.6. Theodore Roosevelt, in disgust, exclaimed, "McKinley has no more

backbone than a chocolate eclair!"I. "Remember the Maine!"

1. On February 15, 1898, a mysterious explosion tore the Maine apart, and sankit, with a loss of 260 lives.

2. Public opinion eagerly blamed Spain (the least likely culprit, actually).3. We will likely never know the cause of the explosion for sure, but it was most

likely an internal explosion due to poor discipline around the powdermagazine.

4. The Navy, however, concluded that the explosion was caused by an "externalsubmarine mine."

5. War hysteria sweeps the country. McKinley's resistance weakened.a. Theodore Roosevelt wrote "We will have this war for the freedom

of Cuba in spite of the timidity of the commercial interests."(Tindall & Shi 910)

J. The US ultimatum1. McKinley finally makes the following demands of Spain:

a. An immediate armisticeb. Revocation of the reconcentration camps.c. cooperation with the US to provide humanitarian relief.

2. The Cuban rebels sensed that their cooperation might avert US entry into theconflict. Accordingly, they had every reason to refuse to cooperate in theslightest

3. On April 10, the Spanish government reluctantly agreed to the US ultimatum.4. On April 11, McKinley, bowing to public pressure, sent Congress a war

message anyway.


5. The Teller Resolution was attached to the declaration of war: the USdisclaimed any intention of adding Cuban territory to the US. Our purposein going to war as solely to liberate Cuba from Spanish rule.

6. William Leuchtenberg has this judgement about the Spanish-American War:"We entered a war in which no vital American interests was involved, andwithout any concept of its consequences. Although McKinley declaredthat to enter such a war for high purposes and then annex territory wouldbe 'criminal aggression,' we acquired as a result of the war the Philippinesand other parts of an overseas empire we had not intended to get, andhad no idea how to defend. Although we roundly attacked Spain for notrecognizing the rebel government, we, in our turn, refused to recognize therebels. Although we were shocked by Weyler's policies in Cuba, we weresoon in the unhappy position of using savage methods to put down arebel uprising in the Philippines, employing violence in a measure thateasily matched what Weyler had done." (Leuchtenberg 210)

K. War in the Philippines1. Assistant Secretary of the Navy Theodore Roosevelt was left in charge of the

Navy Department one day. Roosevelt promptly ordered Commodore GeorgeDewey at Hong Kong to move against Manila if war came. The Secretary ofthe Navy did not countermand that order, which was taken entirely on TR'sinitiative.

2. Dewey sailed for Manila and destroyed the Spanish fleet there.3. Dewey then makes contact with Philippine rebels under the leadership of

Emilio Aguinaldo.a. Aguinaldo asked for US troops to assist in occupying Manila.

McKinley sent 11,000 men to take Manila.4. The US has occupied the Philippines.

L. War in Cuba1. US preparedness and organization were miserable. Tampa was the main

troop concentration center.2. Theodore Roosevelt resigned as Assistant Secretary of the Navy to form the

Rough Riders, a volunteer cavalry unit.3. Spanish Admiral Pascual Cervera ran the US naval blockade to reach

Santiago, but found himself bottled up.4. US land forces attack Santiago.5. The capture of San Juan Hill (which made Theodore Roosevelt a national

hero forced Cervera to try to break out.6. Admiral William T. Sampson and Commodore Winfield Scott Schley ran

them down and destroyed Cervera's entire force.7. The obsolescent Spanish Navy was simply no match for the more modern US

warships.M. US losses for the entire war were 400 combat deaths and 4,600 dead to disease.


V. The Treaty of Paris of 1898A. Spain agreed to give up CubaB. The US annexed Puerto Rico and Guam from SpainC. The US occupied the Philippines pending final resolution; by the end of the

negotiations, McKinley came out in favor of annexation of the Philippines as well.1. There had been no sentiment in favor of annexing the Philippines prior to the

war.2. Pro-annexationists included:

a. Expansionists like Theodore Roosevelt and Henry Cabot Lodge, allinfluenced by Alfred Thayer Mahan.

b. Business interests, which had now done a flip flop on the idea ofempire. The Philippines were not valuable in themselves so much asthey were valuable as a stepping stone to China. They dreamed ofentering the enormous Chinese market: a chimera that will plagueUS foreign policy for 50 years.

c. Missionaries wanted the Philippines to Christianize our "little brownbrothers" and also for access to China (our "little yellow brothers")The fact that the Philippines were Catholic seems to have beenmissed altogether.

3. McKinley finally told a Methodist group: "The truth is, I didn't want thePhilippines, and when they came to us . . . I did not know what to dowith them. . . . And late at night it came to me this way . . . (1) That wecould not give them back to Spain--that would be cowardly anddishonorable; (2) that we could not turn them over to France or Germany--our commercial rivals in the orient--that would be bad business anddiscreditable; (3) that we could not leave them to themselves--they wereunfit for self-government--and they would soon have anarchy and misruleover there worse than Spain's was; and (4) that there was nothing left forus to do but take them all, and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift andcivilize and Christianize them, and by God's grace do the very best wecould by them, as our fellow men for whom Christ also died." (Larrabee224)

D. Arguments for Imperialism1. Note how McKinley's statement above blends various strands of thought.2. Rudyard Kipling, English poet then living in the United States, a serious and

thoughtful Imperialist (he gave us Kim, Gunga Din, and the Jungle Book)wrote the poem that has come to symbolize the entire racial defense of theImperialism of the late 19th century (most people missed the irony of thepoem; one should also read his "Recessional," which contains a warningagainst hubris):

"The White Man's Burden"1899


(The United States and the Philippine Islands)

Take up the White Man's burden-- Take up the White Man's burden--Send forth the best ye breed-- In patience to abide,

Go bind your sons to exile To veil the threat of terrorTo serve your captives' need; And check the show of pride;

To wait in heavy harness By open speech and simple,On fluttered folk and wild-- An hundred times made plain,

Your new-caught, sullen peoples To seek another's profit,Half-devil and half-child. And work another's gain.

Take up the White Man's burden-- Take up the White Man's burden--The savage wars of peace-- No tawdry rule of kings,

Fill full the mouth of Famine But toil of serf and sweeper--And bid the sickness cease; The tale of common things.

And when your goal is nearest The ports ye shall not enter,The end for others sought, The roads ye shall not tread,

Watch Sloth and heathen Folly Go make them with your living,Bring all your hope to nought. And mark them with your dead!

Take up the White Man's burden-- Take up the White Man's burden--And reap his old reward: You dare not stoop to less--

The blame of those ye better, Nor call too loud on FreedomThe hate of those ye guard. To cloak your weariness;

The cry of hosts ye humor By all ye cry or whisper,(Ah, slowly!) toward the light:-- By all ye leave or do,

"Why brought ye us from bondage, The silent, sullen peoples"Our loved Egyptian night?" Shall weigh your Gods and you.

Take up the White Man's burden--Have done with childish days--

The lightly proffered laurel,The easy, ungrudged praise.

Comes now, to search your manhoodThrough all the thankless years,

Cold, edged with dear bought wisdom,The judgment of your peers!

3. Josiah Strong (1885) "It is not necessary to argue . . . that the two greatneeds of mankind, that all men may be lifted into the light of the highestChristian civilization, are, first, a pure, spiritual Christianity, and,second, civil liberty. Without controversy, these are the forces, which in


the past have contributed most to the elevation of the human race, andthey must continue to be, in the future, the most efficient ministers to itsprogress. It follows, then, that the Anglo-Saxon, as the greatrepresentative of these two ideas, the depositary of these two greatblessings, sustains peculiar relations to the world's future, is divinelycommissioned to able, in a peculiar sense, his brother's keeper. Add tothis the fact of his rapidly increasing strength in modern times, and wehave well nigh a demonstration of his destiny. . . . It seems to me thatGod, with infinite wisdom and skill, is training the Anglo-Saxon race foran hour sure to come in the world's future." (Blum 526) (emphasis added)

4. Alfred Thayer Mahan (1897) ""To affirm the importance of distantmarkets, and the relation to them of our own immense powers ofproduction, implies logically the recognition of the link that joins theproducts and the markets--that is, the carrying trade; the three togetherconstituting that chain of maritime power to which Great Britain owes herwealth and greatness. Further is it too much to say that, as two of theselinks, the shipping and the markets, are exterior to our own borders, theacknowledgement of them carries with it a view of the relations of theUnited States to the world radically distinct from the simple idea of self-sufficingness? We shall not follow far this line of thought before there willdawn the realization of America's unique position, facing the older worldsof the East and West, her shores washed by the oceans which touch theone or the other, but are common to her alone." (Blum 527) (emphasisadded)

5. Senator Albert J. Beveridge (1900) "The Philippines are ours forever,'territory belonging to the United States,' as the Constitution calls them.And just beyond the Philippines are China's illimitable markets. We willnot retreat from either. We will not repudiate our duty in the archipelago.We will not abandon our opportunity in the Orient. We will not renounceour part in the mission of our race, trustee, under God, of the civilizationof the world. . . . . . . Mr. president, this question is deeper than anyquestion of party politics; deeper than any question of the isolated policyof our country even; deeper even than any question of constitutionalpower. It is elemental. It is racial. God has not been preparing theEnglish-speaking and Teutonic peoples for a thousand years for nothingbut vain and idle self-contemplation and self-admiration. No! He hasmade us the master organizers of the world to establish system wherechaos reigns. He has given us the spirit of progress to overwhelm theforces of reaction throughout the earth. He has made us adepts ingovernment that we may administer government among savage and senilepeoples. Were it not for such a force as this the world would relapse into


barbarism and night. And of all our race he has marked the Americanpeople as His chosen nation to finally lead in the regeneration of theworld. This is the divine mission of America, and it holds for us all theprofit, all the glory, all the happiness possible to man We are trustees ofthe world's progress, guardians of its righteous peace." (Beveridge "InSupport of an American Empire" 336, 343) (emphasis added)

6. Brooks Adams (1902) "The West Indies drift toward us, the Republic ofMexico hardly longer has an independent life, and the city of Mexico is anAmerican town. With the completion of the Panama Canal all CentralAmerica will become part of our system. We have expanded into Asia, wehave attracted the fragment of the Spanish dominions, and reaching outinto China we have checked the advance of Russia and Germany. . . Weare penetrating into Europe, and Great Britain especially is assuming theposition of a dependency . . . The United States will outweigh any singleempire, if not all empires combined. The whole world will pay her tribute.Commerce will flow to her from both east and west, and the order whichhas existed from the dawn of time will be reversed." (Blum 537) (emphasisadded)

E. Opposition to Imperialism1. Such a dramatic departure from our governmental ideals did not go

unchallenged.2. The Anti-Imperialism League was formed in 1899, and was composed of

persons from both parties.a. The list of members was impressive, and included some strange

partners:(1) William Jennings Bryan (Dem)(2) Grover Cleveland (Dem)(3) Sen. George F. Hoar (Rep)(4) Speaker Thomas Reed (Rep)(5) Sen. John Sherman (Rep)(6) Samuel Gompers (7) Andrew Carnegie(8) Carl Schurz (Rep)(9) Charles Francis Adams(10) William James(11) William Dean Howells(12) William Graham Sumner(13) Mark Twain(14) Pres. Charles Eliot (Harvard)(15) Jane Addams(16) Lincoln Steffens(17) Pitchfork Ben Tillman


3. When the Filipinos learned of US intention to annex them, they began arebellion against us. Aguinaldo wanted Philippine independence, and he waswilling to fight either Spain or the US to get it.a. The war raged 3 yearsb. The US eventually used the same sort of techniques Spain had used

in Cuba.c. 70,000 troops were ultimately committed.d. The war cost 4,300 lives and cost $170,000,000.e. In the end, the good management of William Howard Taft, who was

sent in 1901 as governor, helped end the Philippine Insurrection(1) He won support from the civilian population by building

roads, hospitals and schools, and by encouraging Filipinoparticipation in self government.

4. Examples of anti-imperialist rhetoric:a. Anti-Imperialism League (1899) "We hold that the policy known

as imperialism is hostile to liberty and tends toward militarism, anevil from which it has been our glory to be free. We regret that ithas become necessary in the land of Washington and Lincoln toreaffirm that all men, of whatever race or color, are entitled to life,liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We maintain thatgovernments derive their just powers from the consent of thegoverned. We insist that the subjugation of any people is 'criminalaggression' and open disloyalty to the distinctive principles of ourGovernment. We hold, with Abraham Lincoln, that 'no man isgood enough to govern another man without that man's consent.When the white man governs himself, that is self-government, butwhen he governs himself and also governs another man, that ismore than self-government--that is despotism. . . . Our reliance isin the love of liberty which God has planted in us. Our defense isin the spirit which prizes liberty as the heritage of all men in alllands. Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not forthemselves, and under a just God cannot long retain it." (Current611)

b. Sen. George Hoar (1899): "Have we the right, as doubtless wehave the physical power, to enter upon the government of ten ortwelve million subject people without constitutional restraint? . . .. [T]he question . . . .is whether Congress may conquer and maygovern without their consent and against their will, a foreignnation, a separate, distinct, and numerous people, a territory nothereafter to be populated by Americans to be formed intoAmerican states . . . ,whether it may conquer control, and governthis people, not for the general welfare, common defense, more


perfect union, more blessed liberty of the people of the UnitedStates, but for some real or fancied benefit to be conferred againsttheir desire upon the people so governed or in discharge of somefancied obligation to them, and not to the people of the UnitedStates. . . . The government of foreign people against their will isnot a constitutional purpose but a purpose expressly forbidden bythe Constitution. Therefore I deny the right to acquire thisterritory and to hold it by the government for that purpose." (Hoar248-252)

c. William Jennings Bryan (1900): "If it is right for the UnitedStates to hold the Philippine Islands permanently and imitateEuropean empires in the government of colonies, the RepublicanParty ought to state its position and defend it, but it must expectthe subject races to protest against such a policy and to resist tothe extent of their ability." . . . The Filipinos do not need anyencouragement . . . Our whole history has been an encouragement. . . to make the Filipinos hate foreign domination. Let themcondemn . . . Patrick Henry, . . . Let them censure ThomasJefferson . . . , George Washington . . . , Lincoln. . . . For it wasGod Himself who place din every human heart the love of liberty.He never made a race of people so low in the scale of civilizationor intelligence that it would welcome a foreign master. . . . Wecannot repudiate the principle of self-government in thePhilippines without weakening that principle here. . . . Is thesunlight of full citizenship to be enjoyed by the people of theUnited States and the twilight of semi-citizenship endured by thepeople of Puerto Rico, while the thick darkness of perpetualvassalage cover the Philippines? . . .If government derive their justpowers from the consent of the governed, it is impossible to securetitle to people, either by force or by purchase. . . . But a war ofconquest is as unwise and it is unrighteous. A harbor and coalingstation in the Philippines would answer every trade and militarynecessity and such a concession could have been secured at anytime without difficulty. It is not necessary to own people in orderto trade with them. . . . Trade cannot be permanently profitableunless it is voluntary. When trade is secured by force, the cost ofsecuring it and retaining it must be taken out of the profits andthe profits are never large enough to co er the expense. Such asystem would never be defended but for the fact that the expenseis borne by all the people while the profits by a few. . . . When ouropponents are unable to defend their position by argument, they


fall back upon the assertion that it is destiny and insist that wemust submit to it . . . . This is a complacent philosophy. Itobliterates the distinction between right and wrong and makesindividuals and nations the helpless victims of circumstances.Destiny is the subterfuge of the invertebrate, who, lacking thecourage to oppose error, seeks some plausible excuse forsupporting it." (Bryan, 345-349)

5. Ratification of the Treatya. The anti-annexationists probably had enough votes to block the

treaty. However, Bryan made a political misjudgment. He was apacifist; defeat of the treaty would leave the United States and Spaintechnically still at war, which troubled him. He decided that weshould ratify the treaty, take the Philippines, and then liberate themby unilateral action. This shifted just enough votes to winratification. Of course, the US did not then liberate the Philippines--there weren't enough votes for it and the anti-annexationists no longerhad any leverage. Bryan's defeat in the presidential election of 1900sealed the decision.

VI. Imperial OrganizationA. Puerto Rico

1. The Foraker Act (1900) provided for a civil government in Puerto Rico.a. Tariff provisions were challenged in court, resulting in the

(1) Insular Cases, including Downes v. Bidwell (1901) whichruled that the "Constitution does not follow the flag."

B. Cuba1. Some form of aid seemed necessary until order was restored.2. The Cuban economy had collapsed, hunger was widespread.3. Gen. Leonard Wood headed a military government in 1898.4. There was now an influx of American business investors5. The US withdrew following the establishment of a civil government, with

one very important string attached:a. The Platt Amendment was required as part of the Cuban constitution.

It authorized US intervention in Cuba "for the preservation of Cubanindependence" and "the maintenance of a government adequate forthe protection of life, property, and individual liberty."

b. In addition, Cuba could not make treaties with foreign powerswithout our agreement, and must grant the US a naval base on its soil(Guantanamo).

c. The Platt Amendment converted Cuba into a US protectorate.d. The US used the Platt Amendment on several occasions.e. The Platt Amendment was a logical step if we had gone to war to free

Cuba


VII. The Panama CanalA. The focus of our Caribbean policy was to build a canal across the Isthmus of Panama.

1. Once we became a transcontinental power, such a canal became necessary forstrategic reasons:a. The USS Oregon took two months to enter Caribbean waters from the

Pacific. When it arrived, the war was over.2. The canal was also obviously important for reasons of trade.3. Theodore Roosevelt made a canal a top priority of his foreign policy when he

became president after McKinley's death.B. The Hay-Pauncefote Treaty (1901)

1. Cleared the way for unilateral US control by abrogating the Clayton-BulwerTreaty

2. The US would have the right to build and fortify a trans-isthmian canal3. Such a canal must be open to all nations.

C. Possible routes1. Panama (then a province of Colombia)

a. The route would take only 50 milesb. The terrain however was very rugged indeedc. The terrain was more than unhealthy as a result of malaria and yellow

fever. Disease had ended all previous attempts to dig a canal overthis route.

2. Nicaraguaa. This route was 200 milesb. However, the route was sea-level, and several lakes were on the way

that could be used.3. Roosevelt was advised that the Panama route was technically superior

a. The New Panama Canal Company, headed by Philippe Bunau-Varilla had acquired the rights from Ferdinand de Lesseps. Hewanted $109,000,000 for the concession and its assets.

b. At that price, Roosevelt began to investigate the Nicaraguan route.c. Bunau-Varilla then dropped his asking price to $40,000,000 and

convinces TR to take the Panama route.D. Negotiations with Colombia

1. The Hay-Herran Treaty (1903)a. 99 year lease across Panama, 6 miles wide, for $10,000,000 and

$250,000 rent per annum.b. The Colombian Senate rejected the treaty, believing that the canal

was worth more money. They asked for $25,000,000.c. TR was furious at the rejection. "You could no more make an

agreement with the Colombian rulers than you could nail currantjelly to a wall!"(1) one wonders if there is some deep significance to TR's


frequent use of food in his images.2. Panamanian interests, led by Bunau-Varilla, feared that they would lose the

canal after all, which would deny them the economic benefits.a. Bunau-Varilla and his supporters foment rebellionb. They receive open encouragement from TRc. It seems obvious that they received covert aid as well.

3. There was a revolution in Panama in 1903.a. By sheerest coincidence, TR had despatched the gunboat, USS

Nashville offshore.b. The Nashville blocked the movement of Colombian reenforcement

to regain control of their own province, an egregious interference inthe sovereignty of another nation if there ever was one.

c. By another sheer coincidence, TR was informed immediately of therebellion, and he as promptly recognized the new government

E. The Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty 1. The same terms as the Hay-Herran Treaty, except that the lease was

perpetual, and the strip of land was 10 miles wide.F. Reaction in Latin America

1. This high-handedness angered Latin Americans, understandably2. TR bragged that "I took Panama."3. Hay told TR, "You were accused of seduction and you have conclusively

proved that you were guilty of rape."4. The US eventually paid Colombia $25,000,000 in 1921. Too bad we weren't

willing to negotiate further in 1903--we could have achieved the sameobjective with fewer hard feelings.

5. Theodore Roosevelt was certainly correct to place the canal so high on hispriorities. The canal was indeed a strategic necessity. It would have beendifficult to fight World War I without it, and perhaps impossible to fightWorld War II without it.

6. Roosevelt is certainly to blame for his impatience. The treaty could havebeen negotiated, and $25,000,000 was not an excessive price, considering thepotential value of the canal. His Big Stick here helps poison US-LatinAmerican relations.

G. Work began on the canal soon afterwards. It was completed in 1914, just a fewweeks before the outbreak of World War I.

VIII. The Big Stick PolicyA. TR often used the African proverb "Speak softly and carry a big stick and you will

go far." The US will begin wielding a Big Stick in the Caribbean under TR andcontinue under other presidents.

B. The dominant strategic concern of the US is the protection of the PanamaCanal. The US has been extraordinarily sensitive to any threat, real or imagined, tothe Canal. Instability in the region was viewed (not unreasonably, in my opinion) as


a threat.C. The second interest was US investment. After 1900, the US begins to replace

Great Britain as the chief investor in Latin America, especially in the Caribbeanbasin.1. The US made very heavy investments in Mexico, especially in mineral

resources.2. The US invested about $500,000,000 in Cuba at this time.3. United Fruit Company acquired such large holdings in Central America as

to dominate the economies and the government of countries such asGuatemala and Honduras.

D. There is an underlying reality to TR's Big Stick that provides a justification, howeverunpalatable it may be to Latin Americans. The key lies in the imperialistic practicesof the European nations of the day.

E. Many Latin American governments were, in fact, weak, poor, unstable, and corrupt.F. Europeans repeatedly used the technique of loans or investment in small countries

to obtain a wedge for colonial control. A brief survey of late 19th centuryimperialism will prove that TR's fears were not idle.1. First, the loan would be made.2. Then, if the nation defaulted on payment, or if political instability threatened

European property or prospects for repayment, the Europeans would despatchtroops to protect their interests. This is precisely what the US did with"gunboat diplomacy." We learned it from the Europeans.

3. The use of national power, backed ultimately by military power, to encourageand then protect investments abroad is called Dollar Diplomacy. This is apolicy most correctly associated with the presidency of William HowardTaft. However, it has been used by IB on an examination to refer to USCaribbean policy from 1900 to 1934, a much broader definition. The broaddefinition is the one which is most often used, though.a. Dollar Diplomacy is made much of by Marxists, since it fits nicely

into Lenin's formulation of the evolution of capitalist societies,whereby the exploitation of distant oppressed colonial peoplesrelieves sufficient pressure on the oppressed domestic proletariat todelay the inevitable revolution.

b. Dollar Diplomacy is essentially the same kind of diplomacy practicedby European states in the late 19th century towards the non-Europeanworld.

c. Dollar Diplomacy, in the case of the US, did not necessarily meanmilitary occupation. The US preferred to wield indirect influencethrough investment and loans. The chief influence might be UScorporations, like United Fruit, rather than the US government itself.Europeans tended to prefer direct military control. To that degree,Dollar Diplomacy was more benign that outright colonial control.


Many Latin Americans failed to see much difference. They argue thatGreat Britain in the late 19th century and the US in the early 20thcentury, practiced a neo-colonial policy, which reduced LatinAmerican nations to the status of virtual colonies by virtue of thetrade and investment relationships. Mexico and Argentina are usefulexamples. Railroads were at least as essential to the economicdevelopment of these nations as to the US (more so, considering thegeography); they were financed and controlled by British investors.

d. You will please note in the Roosevelt Corollary speech quoted below,that TR addresses some of these issues directly. He takes the standthat the US would not enforce a contract by the use of arms (not allAmericans agreed with him, but it is significant that TR, as eager anexpansionist as we have ever had, took the position that he did).Europeans, as TR noted, had few qualms.

e. It is a mistake to think, as the Marxists think, that Dollar Diplomacyis an unmitigated evil. (1) There are certainly issues of national sovereignty involved,

which causes much of the resentment. (2) However, these nations desperately needed capital in order to

develop the economy, create jobs, and improve standards ofliving. They did not possess that capital.

(3) For the most part, their economies depended on theproduction of raw materials (mineral or agricultural products),which then had to be exchanged for manufactured goods.Such an exchange always favors the manufacturer, whether itis Great Britain in 1880 vis a vis Argentina or New Englandin 1850 vis a vis the South.

(4) The only source of capital was Europe or the US. Prior to1900, US capital was fully involved in exploiting thedomestic economy (we needed to borrow from Europe tofinance our growth). After 1900, US capital sought out otherinvestments.

(5) Without that capital, economic progress simply cannot bemade in an undeveloped or underdeveloped nation, short ofdictatorial rule and brutal oppression, a la Josef Stalin.(a) Stalin was (obviously) unable and unwilling to attract

capital from abroad to finance the industrialization ofthe Soviet Union. His only recourse was to pay forindustrialization by lowering the already miserablestandard of living of the Soviet peoples, particularlyby forcing the peasants to pay the costs. This entailedthe deaths of millions, and required one of the most


brutal regimes in history.4. European "police" forces frequently turned into full-scale colonial rule.5. Such a development would be a violation of the Monroe Doctrine, and a clear

threat to US trade and strategic interests in the region..G. The Venezuela Incident (1902) illustrates the potential for trouble.

1. Venezuela's ruler, Cipriano Castro, refused to pay debts owed Great Britainand Germany.

2. Great Britain and Germany blockade Caracas to make them pay.3. The US, acting on the Monroe Doctrine, arbitrated the issue.4. The willingness of the Europeans to arbitrate indicated their

acknowledgement of special US interest in the region: a US "sphere ofinfluence."

H. The Roosevelt Corollary (1905)1. In 1904, the Dominican Republic defaulted on loans, creating a similar

situation to that of Venezuela.2. Roosevelt told Congress: "That our rights and interests are deeply

concerned in the maintenance of the [Monroe] doctrine is so clear ashardly to need argument. This is especially true in view of theconstruction of the Panama Canal. As a mere matter of self-defense wemust exercise a close watch over the approaches to this canal, and thismeans that we must be thoroughly alive in our interests in the CaribbeanSea. . . . .It must be understood that under no circumstances will theUnited States use the Monroe Doctrine as a cloak for territorialaggression. We desire peace with all the world, . . . There are, of course,limits to the wrongs which any self-respecting nation can endure. It isalways possible that wrong actions toward this nation or toward citizensof this nation in some state unable to keep order among its own people,unable to secure justice to those outsiders who treat it well, may result inour having to take action to protect our rights; but such action will not betaken with a view to territorial aggression, and it will be taken at all onlywith extreme reluctance . . . . Moreover, we must make it evident that wedo not intend to permit the Monroe Doctrine to be used by any nation onthis continent as a shield to protect it from the consequences of its ownmisdeeds against foreign nations. If a republic to the south of uscommits a tort against a foreign nation, such as an outrage against acitizen of that nation, then the Monroe Doctrine does not force us tointerfere to prevent punishment of the tort, save to see that thepunishment does not assume the form of territorial occupation in anyshape. The case is more difficult when it refers to a contractualobligation. Our own government has always refused to enforce suchcontractual obligation on behalf of its citizens by an appeal to arms. It ismuch to be wished that all foreign governments would take the same view.


But they do not; and in consequence we are liable at any time to bebrought face to face with disagreeable alternatives. On the one hand, thiscountry would certainly decline to go to war to prevent a foreigngovernment from collecting a just debt; on the other hand, it is veryinadvisable to permit any foreign power to take possession, eventemporarily, of the custom-houses of an American republic in order toenforce the payment of its obligations, for such temporary occupationmight turn into a permanent occupation. The only escape from thesealternatives may at any time be that we must ourselves undertake to bringabout some arrangement by which so much as possible of a just obligationshall be paid. . . . It is of benefit to our people; it is of benefit to foreignpeoples; and most of all, it is really of benefit to the people of the countryconcerned." (Roosevelt "Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine" 1-3)

3. At the invitation of the Dominican Republic, the US took over their customshouses in 1905. We distributed 45% of their customs to the Dominicans, and55% to creditors in Italy and France.

4. Such a policy was intensely unpopular among Latin Americans. Americaappears to be the "Hemispheric Policeman." Their anger is to be expected.But the fact remains that the threat of European take over was real. Rooseveltmight be arrogant, high-handed, chauvinistic, and condescending, but in theend, he was right.

I. US Protectorates1. The full extent of US concern for the stability of the region can be seen by

looking at our interventions and protectorates:2. Cuba

a. Occupied: 1898-1902, 1906-1909, 1912, 1917, 1922b. Protectorate: 1898-1934

3. Dominican Republica. Occupied: 1916-1924b. Protectorate: 1905-1941

4. Haitia. Occupied: 1915-1934b. Protectorate: 1915-1936

5. Panama:a. Protectorate: 1903-1939

6. Nicaraguaa. Occupied: 1912-1925, 1926-1933

J. Not included in this list is the acquisition of the Virgin Islands from Denmark in1916, the annexation of Puerto Rica in 1898, or the occupation of Vera Cruz in 1914

K. All of these nations and/or possessions bear a direct relationship to the security of thePanama Canal, as a glance at the map will show (except for Vera Cruz, they form aline across the Atlantic approaches to the Canal.


Works Cited

Beveridge, Albert J. "In Support of an American Empire." Annals of America. Vol. 12. Chicago:Encyclopeadia Britannica, 1976. 336-345.

Beveridge, Albert J. "The Taste of Empire." Annals of America. Vol. 12. Chicago: EncyclopeadiaBritannica, 1976. 198-202.

Blum, John M., Morgan, Edmund S., Rose, Willie Lee, Schlesinger, Jr., Arthur M., Stampp, KennethM., and Woodward, C. Vann. The National Experience: A History of the United States. 5th ed.New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1981.

Bryan, William Jennings. "The Paralyzing Influence of Imperialism." Annals of America. Vol.12. Chicago: Encyclopeadia Britannica, 1976. 345-352.

Current, Richard N., Williams, T. Harry, Freidel Frank, Brinkley, Alan. American History: ASurvey. 6th Ed. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1979.

Garraty, John. The American Nation. 5th Ed. New York: Harper & Row, 1983.

Hoar, George. "The Lust for Empire." Annals of America. Vol. 12. Chicago: EncyclopeadiaBritannica, 1976. 248-253.

Larrabee, Harold A. Historical Viewpoints. Garraty, John, Ed. 3rd Ed. Vol. 2. New York: Harper& Row, 1979. 216-229.

Leuchtenberg, William. Historical Viewpoints. Garraty, John, Ed. 3rd Ed. Vol. 2. New York:Harper & Row, 1979. 204-215.

Lodge, Henry Cabot. "Overseas Expansion and the National Future." Annals of America. Vol. 12.Chicago: Encyclopeadia Britannica, 1976. 2-2-4.

Roosevelt, Theodore. "Obstacles to Immediate Expansion." Annals of America. Vol. 12. Chicago:Encyclopeadia Britannica, 1976. 150-152.

Roosevelt, Theodore. "Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine." Annals of America. Vol. 13. Chicago:Encyclopeadia Britannica, 1976. 1-3.

Tindall, George Brown and Shi, David E. America: A Narrative History. 3rd Ed. New York:W.W. Norton, 1992.

ap/ib american history mr. blackmon u.s....

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