To Be or not to Be (a World Power?) That is the question..

By the late 1800’s Industrialists, inventors and workers of the U.S. had built a powerful industrial economy. But the overproduction of food and goods led to financial panic and depression. So, what are we to do?

Growth of U.S. Imperialism What is imperialism? It is creating empires by dominating weaker nations or colonies. And yes we were doing it. We want to go from …

Reasons for the growth of U.S. imperialism Economic- We need more natural resources and markets to sell our goods in. Nationalism- devotion to ones nation. Lets make our country greater. Military- we need military bases around the world to make us stronger. Humanitarian- spread the news of democracy and religion.

So what are we doing? We try to annex or add foreign lands. This means that we want to join a new territory to an existing country, in our case the USA.

Let’s take a look at other countries who are building empires. Great Britain has the largest empire.

We are expanding 1867 Alaska Bought from Russia Most people felt it was a waste of money. But it is very rich in natural resources.

Where else? Midway Islands- we need refueling stations for our navy. And Hawaii

We are flexing our muscles We want to prove that we are a strong country. Unafraid of other countries.

Economic growth or ‘SHOW ME THE MONEY” Our industries are producing so much stuff that we cannot consume everything that we are making. We must go outside our borders and sell, sell, sell.

Social Darwinism Expanding is our nations destiny and a noble pursuit.- Henry Cabot Lodge A strong country should spread its wings.

Or is it like this? Are we like a turkey gobbling up natural resources and other peoples money? We just care that it is good for us as a nation. We do not care about the people from the colony we are taking over.

Regardless if you think we are an eagle or a turkey (refer to the last 2 slides) Where is the U.S. thinking of expanding to? (obviously we are eagles) Latin America Islands of the Pacific China

Let’s do a review What is Imperialism?- It is creating empires by dominating weaker nations. Our first act of imperialism came in 1867 with the buying of ______ from Russia.

The Good the Bad and the Ugly of Imperialism The Good- we have good relations with other countries that we are trading with. The Bad- dealing with other countries can get you into political and military problems. The Ugly- Wars

And speaking of wars… There are many brewing in Latin America. That would be South America and Central America combined.

Unrest Chile- A mob attacks and kills U.S. sailors Rebellion in Brazil Boundary dispute between Great Britain and Venezuela

Cuba, Cuba, Cuba or Havana Nights Cuban rebellion with Spain in 1895, because the Cuban economy had collapsed. This would lead the United States into the Spanish-American war. A small but important war is about to begin.

What is Spain going to do? ¿qué España va a hacer? They see Cubans rebelling Spain sends in troops and puts almost 500,000 people into guarded camps. Very little food and sanitation 200,000 dead in 2 years

What is the U.S. to do? Cuban exile and journalist Jose Marti wants the U.S. to intervene. The U.S. refuses It is to expensive

Cubans do not want to take no for an answer. So they destroy some sugar plantations owned by U.S. investors. So now American businessmen are pressuring the government to act.

These two men enter the picture William Randolph Hearst Joseph Pulitzer

Yellow Journalism Hearst and Pulitzer are newspaper rivals. They both begin to write exaggerated stories about what was happening in Cuba. Newspaper circulation goes up, and their profits do too.

So now all these newspaper readers want the U.S. to take action- and the businessmen want action too. What will the White House do?

The U.S. sides with Cuba Our goal- to free Cuba from Spain

Let’s review again How did newspapers play a role in U.S. involvement in the Spanish-American War? What is Imperialism? What is the good, the bad and the ugly of imperialism? What is our goal in the Spanish-American War? To free Cuba from ________.

The Spanish-American War begins President McKinley moves battleships in to protect U.S. citizens and property.

An unfortunate accident occurs U.S. battleship “Maine” has an explosion and sinks. 250 American sailors are dead. We blame Spain and call for war. (We know today that it was caused by an on ship fire- Spain had nothing to do with it.)

On the other side of the Pacific The people of the Philippine Islands are also rebelling against Spain. The U.S. thinks that this could be a key base to protect its Asian trade. So now we will fight for Cuba and the Philippine Islands.

The war begins First action is taken in the Philippines. The U.S. defeats the Spanish fleet in 7 short hours. Admiral Dewey in charge.

Onward to Cuba Teddy Roosevelt (a future President) and the “Rough Riders” This group is very diverse. Known for their charge up San Juan Hill. 400 die in battle, 2100 from disease.

After all wars there is a treaty U.S. pays $20 million for the Philippines Puerto Rico and Guam become territories of the U.S. Cuba gets independence from Spain but goes under U.S. control for 3 years.

Review What is Imperialism? What future President is known for his charge up San Juan Hill? What country was this charge in? What 2 countries were we fighting for in the Spanish-American War? Who were we fighting against?

After all treaties… there are PROBLEMS!

Problem 1 Philippines wanted their independence from Spain. The Spanish-American war gave them their independence from Spain, but not from the U.S. Now they want their independence from the U.S. U.S. ignores their wishes 3 year war begins 216,000 Filipino rebels and civilians die. They do not get their independence until 1946.

Problem 2 Cuba Under U.S. rule for 3 years Begins to write its own constitution U.S. insists on the Platt Amendment, which gives the U.S. the right to intervene in Cuban affairs. This remained in force until 1934

Problem 3 What to do with Puerto Rico? In an attempt to stem a growing independence movement, the U.S. grants Puerto Ricans U.S. citizenship in Problem averted. But we still want more, and to the Pacific we go.

Gains in the Pacific Hawaii- we need a refueling and repair station- Pearl Harbor would be great. But the queen wants us out of Hawaii. Dole (a pineapple planter) and the marines remove the queen from power. Dole proclaims a republic and requests that Hawaii be annexed by the U.S this is approved. We also gain the harbor at Pago Pago on the island of Samoa.

What else do we want? U.S. wants access to the Chinese population. We want an Open Door Policy- an arrangement for equal access to a nations consumers.

Last review Who did we give U.S. citizenship to in 1917? Why did we want Hawaii? What is the Open Door Policy? Is it good or bad?

Wow, are we greedy, helpful, good or bad? The call is yours. Does this compare with anything we are doing today? Take a breath, its quiz time.

Question 1 What is imperialism?

Question 2 What land did we buy from Russia in 1867 that was rich in natural resources?

Question 3, 4 and 5 What is a good thing about imperialism? What is a bad thing about imperialism? What is the ugly?

Question 6 How did newspapers influence our participation in the Spanish- American War?

Question 7, 8 and 9 What 2 countries were we fighting for in the Spanish- American War? Who were we fighting against?

Question 10 What future President is known for his charge up San Juan Hill with the “Rough Riders”?

Question 11 What was our reason for wanting Hawaii?

Question 12 What is the Open Door Policy?

Part 1 over Don’t forget this stuff You will be retested next time