Lynn Lisk
The US Since 1876
Jillian Hartley
Essay #2
The United States was originally way smaller than it was today. The government preceded in the interest in expanding into the international regions.
American imperialism is the economic, military and cultural philosophy that the United States, either directly or indirectly, affects and controls other countries or their policies. Such influence is often closely associated with expansion into foreign territories. A variety of factors may have coincided during the "Age of Imperialism" in the late 19th century, when the United States and the other major powers rapidly expanded their territorial possessions. Some of these are explained, or used as examples for the various perceived forms of American
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McKinley’s party was interested in the acquisition of Hawaii and the purchase of the Danish West Indies, but for Cuba, he professed only to see peace re-established there. The American diplomat in Havana, Fitzhugh Lee, called for US naval ships to protect US lives and property. However, by January of 1898, he changed his mind and urged the President to keep US forces away since there were riots in the city. Against the wishes of Lee, McKinley decided to send a vessel to demonstrate what he called good will between Spain and the US. This proved to be a crucial mistake. On February 15, 1898, the U.S.S. Maine blew sky high in the Havana harbor. The incredible explosion instantly killed all 260 US sailors on board. On March 17, 1898, Senator Proctor, a moderate republican, returned from a trip to Cuba where he investigated the conditions of the civilian population. He reported that 400,000 Cuban civilians were in Spanish concentration camps. He urged the US to intervene in the war to help alleviate the atrocities being committed against the Cuban people. War fever swept congress and by April 19, 1898, a joint resolution passed both houses of congress that authorized the president to use force to eject Spain from Cuba. On the April 25, congress declared that a state of war existed between the two countries. It was in the words of John Hay "A splendid little war.” Admiral Alfred Mahan had predicted that it would last short three months. As for the US navy, it was in superb shape due to a modernization program that began in the 1890’s. There were two theaters of the war, the Caribbean and the Pacific. On April 24, Admiral George Dewey, commanding the Asiatic squadron, set sail from Hong Kong to the Spanish owned Philippines Islands to destroy the Spanish fleet there. On May 1, he carried out his instructions by sinking every Spanish war ship in Manila Bay and McKinley then dispatched