1. American Foreign Policy 1789-1920
A Brief Overview
Clickers to Ch. 48!

2. Lecture Goals:
Understand and analyze major themes and events of U.S. foreign policy 1789 to 1920.
Compare and contrast U.S. foreign policy during various periods
Evaluate the most effective foreign policy goals and actions for the U.S.

3. What is Foreign Policy? A country’s relationship with other countries
USS Chesapeake
Naval Act of 1794
Captured War of 1812 

4. What determines U.S. Foreign Policy?
National interest
Democratic ideals
Defense Department (originally War Dept) vs. State Department
Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of State 1789

5. • How active should America be in world affairs?
Isolationism
Focus on domestic rather than international affairs
Internationalism
Assume an active role in international affairs

6. Isolationist or Internationalist?
Isolationist: Our National Interest (for Trade?)
Internationalist: Universalist – Interests/rights of others vs. What’s best for USA
A girl performs domestic labour in a rural Mauritanian encampment. The International Labour Organization estimates there are at least 10 million working children in Africa alone.

7. YOUR VIEW: What path should the U. S. follow in foreign affairs today
YOUR VIEW: What path should the U.S. follow in foreign affairs today ? Why?
1. Totally isolationist
2. Mostly isolationist
3. Mostly internationalist
4. Totally internationalist

8. An Endless Argument:
Should American policy be based on our own national interests (protecting our independence, borders, security, power and interests in peace) or should we take the “high road” and base our policies on moral principles (human rights, democracy, freedom) that could serve as a model for others?

9. Foreign Policy Goals Preserve independence and integrity
Security for nation and citizens
Prosperity for nation and citizens
Revenge or prestige?
Protection/expansion of ideals or ideas?

10. YOUR VIEW: Which goal should have been the focus of the U. S
YOUR VIEW: Which goal should have been the focus of the U.S. in the early years of our country? Why?
1. Preserve independence
2. Maintain security for the nation
3. Seek prosperity for the nation
4. Seek revenge or prestige
5. Spread ideals or ideas

11. Factors that influence Foreign Policy
Geography
Military needs/power
Economic needs/power
Ethnic/cultural ties
History
DISCUSS:
How do these impact the USA?
Factors change over time – WHY?

12. PHASES OF U.S. FOREIGN POLICY
1. ISOLATIONISM (1789 – 1890s)
Nonentanglement
2. CONTINENTAL EXPANSION (1830 – 1890)
Manifest Destiny
3. IMPERIALISM (1890s to ….)
Expanding U.S. Power, Land, Values
around the world

13. French Alliance of 1778
Two treaties- commercial agreement and a political/military alliance
We needed France to win our independence
1789 French Revolution
Aggressive & radical policies
England goes to war with France
Should USA defend France?
Jefferson (good faith), Hamilton (no obligation), and Washington’s (neutral) positions

14. Washington’s Farewell Address
Established concept of isolation (dominant US foreign policy until 20th C):
“Good faith and justice toward all nations”
“Steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world”

15. YOUR VIEW: In 1796, would you have agreed with Washington
YOUR VIEW: In 1796, would you have agreed with Washington? Why or why not?
1. Completely disagree
2. Mostly disagree
3. Mostly agree
4. Completely agree

16. Jefferson’s First Inaugural Address
“kindly separated by nature and a wide ocean from the exterminating havoc of one quarter of the globe”
Jefferson expanded upon Washington’s warning against “permanent alliances” to include “entangling alliances” and reinforced the principle of non-involvement in European wars.
Thomas Jefferson

17. Some Key Early Decisions
Jay’s Treaty (1794)
Pinckney Treaty (1795)
XYZ Affair (1797)
Louisiana Purchase (1803)
Embargo & Non-Intercourse Acts (1807)

18. War of 1812
Illustrated the nation’s willingness to violate the policy of neutrality when it became advantageous to do so.
Demonstrated the difficulty of non-involvement when trade and neighbors bring us into contact with European powers.

19. After the War of 1812 Treaty of Ghent (1815) Rush-Bagot Treaty (1817)
Ends War with Britain
Rush-Bagot Treaty (1817)
US-Britain Naval compromise on Great Lakes
Adams-Onis Treaty (1819)
Agreement with Spain expands US to Pacific

20. John Quincy Adams: Secretary of State to James Monroe 1817-1825
Very successful
Clear vision of U.S. policy
Philosophy: National interests should determine foreign policy

21. John Quincy Adams: Accomplishments
Adams-Onis Treaty gives Florida (strategic importance) to US, eliminated Spain from contention for Oregon Territory
Architect of Monroe Doctrine
Adams’ Vision: expansion of US to the Pacific, pursuit of good relations with newly independent nations in Latin America

23. The Monroe Doctrine (1823)
Stressed America’s special interests in the Western Hemisphere and remains, with some modifications, viable today.
In response to fears that European powers including Britain might expand its influence into the Western Hemisphere.

24. KEY GUIDING STRATEGY OF ISOLATIONISM:
No permanent friends, only permanent objectives

25. Trends Over Time 1789-1824 Tendency toward isolation
Creation of more secure borders, & push West
Navigation of waterways (Mississippi and later seas)
Increased respect from foreign nations
Increased boldness of some American policy-makers
Links with newly established Latin American nations

26. YOUR VIEW: From 1789-1824, which goal did the U.S. put first?
1. Preserve independence
2. Maintain security for the nation
3. Seek prosperity for the nation
4. Seek revenge or prestige
5. Spread ideals or ideas

27. Westward Expansion evolves into Manifest Destiny
Movement of the “frontier line” from the Fall line in the Piedmont, to the Appalacians (Proclamation of 1763), to the Mississippi River is followed by the call for Continental Expansion as our Manifest Destiny

28. Manifest Destiny
“And that claim is by right of our manifest destiny to overspread and possess the whole of the continent which providence has given us for the development of the great experiment of liberty and federated self-government entrusted to us… The God of nature and of nations has marked it for our own…”
John L. Sullivan, Dec. 1845
John L. Sullivan

29. Discuss: What feelings & values are conveyed?
American Progress by Jonathan Gast, 1872

30. Westward Expansion & Foreign Policy 1783-1853
Original U.S. + Northwest Territory (1783 GB)
Louisiana Purchase (1803, FR)
British Cession (1818 Rush-Bagot Treaty)
Spanish Cession (1819, FL- from SP)
Texas Annexation (1845)
Oregon Country (1846 BR)
Mexican Cession (1848 Mex War)
Gadsden Purchase (1853 Mex)

31. American Indian Policy
Expansion has implications for American Indians
Resist, co-exist, migrate
Treaty of Greenville (1795) NW Terr.
Jefferson- Trans-Mississippi “reserve”
Jackson- Indian Removal Act 1830

32. Major Indian Wars 1810s-1830s
Old Northwest Territory (Tecumseh, The Prophet, the Fox, etc)
The Creeks (Alabama, Florida, Western Tennessee
Seminole- in Florida

33. Mexican American War (1846-1848)
James K. Polk and Manifest Destiny
Was this war consistent with previous US foreign policy?
Who supported War with Mexico?
Henry Thoreau and Civil Disobedience (jailed because he refused to pay a federal taxes which he believed paid for an unjust war)

34. Aftermath of the Mexican American War for Indians
Continual Warfare on Great Plains & West
1870’s movement to Reservations
Battle of Little Big Horn (1876) - one of the few Indian “victories”
The Massacre at Wounded Knee one of the last of many brutal defeats
Dawes Severalty Act, 1887

35. Northern Boundary Extends:
Warhawks in 1812
Rush-Bagot Treaty 1817
Convention of 1818
Caroline Affair
Aroostook War 1839
Webster-Ashburton Treaty, 1842
Buchanan-Pakenham Treaty, 1846
Alaska Purchase and Seward, 1867

36. YOUR VIEW: From 1830 to 1890 (Manifest Destiny), which goal did the U
YOUR VIEW: From 1830 to 1890 (Manifest Destiny), which goal did the U.S. put first? Explain.
1. Preserve independence
2. Maintain security for the nation
3. Seek prosperity for the nation
4. Seek revenge or prestige
5. Spread ideals or ideas

37. Late 19th Century Imperialism: The USA Enters the World Stage
Economic motivations: new markets, new resources
Ideas about racial supremacy driven by Social Darwinism
Manifest Destiny-extended (Frontier over 1890)
Military considerations (strategic, defensive)
Alfred Mahan & “The New Navy”
US exceptionalism (1st “crusade” for the U.S.)

38. Early Non-Contiguous Expansion
Offer to purchase Cuba from Spain in 1848 and 1854
Alaska 1867
Pago-Pago, Samoa 1878
Pearl Harbor 1884
Hawaii 1898

39. 1896 Republican Party Platform
Strong imperialist platform
Economic expansion guides position
Overseas expansion good for US industry
“sympathy for Cuba”
Nicaraguan Canal and purchase of Danish West Indies
Annexation of Hawaii
Queen Liliuokalani

40. Spanish American War 1898-1900 Cuba (for “freedom”?)
“Maine” incident, yellow journalism, jingoism & war fever
Rough Riders & Theodore Roosevelt
US acquires Philippines, Puerto Rico, Guam

41. McKinley, T. Roosevelt & Taft
McKinley: Open Door Policy, S-A War
Roosevelt: Panama Canal, Roosevelt Corollary to Monroe Doctrine, “Walk Softly and Carry a Big Stick”
Taft: Dollar Diplomacy (private funds to pursue diplomatic goals)

42. Pre-WWI Imperialism Focal Points
Philippine Revolution
Cuba (Platt Amend)
Latin American interventions (numerous)
Balancing Japan’s growing dominance in Asia with US-Japanese economic ties
Panama Canal
Open Door: getting a toehold in China trade

43. WWI: From Neutrality to Versailles
Traditional neutrality
Challenges to neutrality:
u-boats, US business loans,
munitions trade, propaganda,
some pro-war advocates (ex: TR)
Wilson’s 1916 Pledge: To keep us out of war
Wilson’s 1917 statement to “make the world safe for democracy”. (2nd “crusade” for the US)
RMS Lusitania

44. Wilson’s 14 Points & Versailles Treaty & the “Lessons of War”
14 Points largely disregarded
Fight for Ratification of the Treaty
Henry Cabot Lodge and American Isolationists prevail-reject League of Nations
US returns to its “isolationist” position vis a vis Europe
“Lessons” of WWI, Red Scare & Peace Movement

45. YOUR VIEW: From 1890 to 1920, which goal did the U.S. put first?
1. Preserve independence
2. Maintain security for the nation
3. Seek prosperity for the nation
4. Seek revenge or prestige
5. Spread ideals or ideas

46. DISCUSS: Can our national interest be in doing what is right for others?
Peacekeepers from the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) load the injured onto a helicopter after the Jan 2010 devastating earthquake in Haiti. (UN Photo/Logan Abassi)

47. Always consider: What are our motives? What are our goals?
What are the likely outcomes?
*Short and Long Term*

48. YOUR VIEW: Which goal should be most important today? Why?
1. Preserve independence
2. Maintain security for the nation
3. Seek prosperity for the nation
4. Seek revenge or prestige
5. Spread ideals or ideas

49. Sources: American Foreign Policy by Leonard James
American Foreign Policy by Thomas Fitzgerald
American Foreign Policy.ppt by Joyce Williams & Justin Hill, RCPS (h t t p://sp.rpcs.org/faculty/HillJ/ AP US History/
American Foreign Foreign Policy.pdf