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Wanted to avoid Europe.

Manifest Destiny
- US Blessed by god and destined to expand westward
- Justified imperialism
    - Spread christianity, capitalist/dem ideals, greed
    - Create colonies without turning into states

Americans embraced expansionism
- 1898: America, in one-sided war with Spain becomes ruler of colonies

"Winning of the West" by Teddy Roosevelt
    America needs to rule the "backwards peoples of the world"
        Like Amerindians, new subjects

What factors motivated America's new imperialism during the late
nineteenth century?

Pre-age of empires
Washington's outgoing address to public:
    - Avoid factionalism and war (entanglement with European powers)
        - Isolationism
[James] Munroe Doctrine:
    - Non-interference in East and control of West
    - View interference with US as hostile

1867-1899:
Imperialism starts
    - Expanding a nation's power through colonialism, annexation
James G Blaine (of Garfield cabinet) + other "foreign policy elites"
    - Believed in aggressive expansion of the US to compete w/ GB, FR
    - Economic argument: farmers, manufacturers need new markets
    - Want China as mkt
    - Believed that expansion would solve domestic problems.
Frederick Jackson Turner authored a book
    "The Frontier" builds American character (darwinism, self, manhood)
    - Battle between native-born white americans and "Indian savages"
    - The literal frontier is "closed," so develop a "new frontier"
Alfred Thayer Mahan, military strategist
    - "The Influence of Sea Power Upon History"
    - What makes a nation great?
        Wealth through foreign trade and
        Protection of distant ports with a powerful navy
    - Build an isthmus canal protected by US navy
    - Stepping stones and refueling stations in Pacific (Hawaii, Guam,
      Wake Island, Philippines)
Racial/Civilization argument
    - Spread Christianity, civilization(materialism,property), democracy
    - Josiath Strong: expansionist minister
    - "Our Country: Its Possible Future and Its Present Crisis" (1885)
        - US is in a race with other nations to conquer the world
Rudyard Kipling
    - Poem: "The White Man's Burden" (1899)
    - White Anglo-sax (am,gb) need to govern dark-skinned people
      ("inferior races") by imposing Christian, American principles
    - Their duty to establish success and stability of their nations

What were the causes of the Spanish-American War (1898)?

Cuba is a Spanish colony.
    But it trades more with US than with Spain.
    US moguls who set up mining, sugar concerned about sec of investment
Jose Marti, journalist and poet who started revolution
    Scorched earth policy (burning trains, exploding bridges)
    Burned American plantations to provoke American involvement
    Spanish Gen. Valeriano Weyler moves villages of people to other
        parts of country (concentration camps)
    During the revolution, Americans worried they wouldn't get the
    chance to colonise/control Amer. interests
        McKinley considered buying Cuba and ending conflict

"Penny Press" and Yellow Journalism
- William Randolph Hearst: NY Journal
- Joseph Pulitzer: NY World
- Competing for readership with sensational headlines about possibly
  invented Spanish atrocities
    Hearst: newspapers have the duty to shape public opinion, legis.
        "Have the power to declare war"
- Yellow Journalism shapes public opinion with false stories
    - Portray Cubans as light-skinned civilized freedom lovers and
      Spaniards as dark-skinned brutes

Enrique DuPuy De Lome: Spanish ambassador to US
    - Called McKinley "weak and bitter for the admiration of the crowd"
    - USS Maine exploded, killing 260/354. Years later ruled an
      accident, but warmongerers (like T. Roosevelt, navyman) declared
      this an act of war
    - Public liked Spain less and less
    - "Remember The Maine, and to hell with Spain!"
    - At first, Spain agreed to every American demand
    - Apr 20: Congress demanded withdrawal of Spain, and US begins to
      blockade Cuban ports.
    - Before war is declared, navy declares victory over Philippines
        - Dewey, with American navy, easily beats outdated Cuban forces
        - German and Brit. forces cruised around, waiting to takeover if
          the US doesn't (it does months later, with backup)
Roosevelt and the Rough Riders
    - Roosevelt is pro-imperialism, believing it to make a nation
      powerful
    - Rough Riders cavalry become weary walkers
    - Roosevelt wanted to defeat Spain
    - Believed that fighting in war was the ultimate test of manhood

What were the consequences of the Spanish-American war for the United
States?

- Spain surrenders after 4 months
Dec 10, 1898: US and Spain sign Treaty of Paris
- Cuba -> independent
- US annexes PR and Guam as territories
- US annexes Manila, expecting to take over in US
- Reinforces Manifest Destiny
- Europe respects America as an international power

Business and missionaries support annexation to bring commerce and
Christianity to "the little brown brother" (and penetrate China)

Emilio Aguinaldo -- Filipino General and Independence Leader
- It came to McKinley that he wanted to annex after many days of
  decisionmaking: don't give power to Spain/Fr/Germany and don't free
  because they "cannot self-govern"
- Locals support independence movements
    - 1899: Filipinos declare independence
    - 1899-1902 Filipino-American War
    - Aguinaldo is president
    - US fires on "Insurrectos"
    - Jun 2, Filipino Insurrectos declare war
    - 4x as many troops, $600M, >200K Filipinos (many civilians), >4K am
    - 1902: Filipinos were unorganized territory (ineligible for state)

China
- Japan wins first Sino-Japanese were in 1844-45 and Eur. nations
  establish spheres of influence
- Open Door Notes by Sec. of St. John Hay
    - Nations shouldn't take control of China because market should be
      available to the world
    - GB accepts policy, but only GB.
    - Hay announces all accept policy, but they just didn't disagree
- Boxers Rebellion (1900) rejects foreign power and destroys foreign
  embassies
    - Organization to recover ambassadors