US

Imperialism
& The
Spanish-
American
War
Lesson Objectives
4.1. Assess causes of the Spanish-American War (including yellow
journalism, the sinking of the USS Maine, and economic interest in Cuba).
4.2. Explain the role of the Rough Riders on the iconic status of President
Theodore Roosevelt.
4.3. Analyze consequences of the Spanish-American War (including
territorial expansion in the Pacific and the Caribbean (Treaty of Paris
1898), insurgency in the Philippines, and establishment of the Anti-
Imperialist League).
4.4 Trace the involvement of the United States in the Hawaiian Islands for
economic and imperialistic interests
 Imperialism
• Imperialism: The policy by which strong
nations extend their political, military, and
economic control over weaker territories.
• US Motivations for Imperialism:
• Extractive Economies – When an
imperial country extracted or removed
raw materials (ex. Tea rubber, iron,
petroleum, etc.) from their colony or
territory and shipped them back to the
home country.
• Surplus of goods led to the US
needing more foreign trade partners.
Social Darwinism
• Social Darwinism: the belief that life
consists of competitive struggles in which
only the fittest survive. (Survival of the
fittest)
• The US justified its imperialism with social
Darwinism ideas.
• To pursue their imperialist ideas, the US
needed to strengthen its military. They
strengthened the navy by expanding the
fleet and building steel-plated steam
powered battleships.
Examples of US Imperialism
• In 1853, Matthew Perry sailed a fleet of US
warships to Japan. He won favor with the
Emperor and signed a treaty with Japan
which opened the country up to trade with
the US.
• In 1867 the US took possession of the
Midway Islands.
• In 1875 the US signed treaties to increased
trade with the Hawaiian islands and in 1887
they were granted permission to build a
navy base at Pearl Harbor.
State Test Practice Question
 Hawaii
• By the 1890s, The US had been linked
economically to the Hawaiian islands.
• The US had used the Hawaiian Islands as a pit
stop for merchant ships headed to Asia, to
establish Christian missionaries, and they
established sugar cane plantations there.
• In 1887, the US convinced the Hawaiian
king Kalakaua to amend Hawaii's
constitution to limit voting rights to only
wealthy landowners, which mostly consisted of
white planters.
 The U.S. Annexes Hawaii
• Most native Hawaiians did not like the US involvement
or favoritism shown to them by Kalakaua. When he
died in 1891, his sister, Queen Liluokalani took over and
abolished the favorable constitution that gave political
power to whites.
• This led to the US supporting
Hawaiian rebels overthrow Queen Liluokalani. After
she was overthrown, the U.S. was able to annex
(meaning to attach, append, or add) Hawaii and make
it an official territory of the U.S.
• President William McKinley's administration completed
the annexation of Hawaii in 1898 and appointed
Sanford B. Dole as the first governor.
 Cuban Rebels Against
Spain
• Towards the end of the 19th century,
Spain had one of the last remaining
European colonies in the Western
Hemisphere in Cuba.
• The US also had valuable sugar
plantations and other ventures in Cuba at
the time, but America was worried about
the stability of Cuba as the
natives repeatedly rebelled against
Spain in hope of gaining their
independence.
• In 1895, Jose Marti launched a war for
 The U.S. Gets involved
• America's position on the rebellion was divided. On
one hand, many Americans were sympathetic to
the Cubans cause because it reminded them of the
U.S. fight for Independence during the American
Revolution.
• Other Americans, mostly business men, wanted
Spain to quickly squash the rebellion to protect US
economic interest.
• US. Sympathy for Cuban rebels, combined with the
influence of mass media, and the explosion of a
U.S. ship led to the U.S. getting involved and the
start of the Spanish-American War.
 Yellow Journalism
• The media's use of yellow journalism played a role in the
U.S. going to war.
• Yellow Journalism(Yellow Press): a style of newspaper
reporting that emphasized sensationalism over facts
• Newspapers pasted sensational headlines and pictures on
their front pages and printed stories which
exaggerated Spanish atrocities and garnered sympathy
for the Cuban rebels.
• The yellow journalism from the media fueled jingoism
in America.
• Jingoism: Aggressive nationalism or extreme
patriotism which manifests in the form of warlike
foreign policy.
 The USS Maine
• While the fighting between Cuban rebels and
Spain was going on, President McKinley
ordered the battleship USS Maine to the
Havana Harbor to protect US citizens in Cuba.
• In 1898 an ambassador from Spain wrote a
private letter insulting President McKinley that
was leaked by the New York Journal.
• In the letter the Spanish ambassador called
McKinley a weak and stupid politician and the
Journal wrote a story with the headline "Worst
insult to the US in its History."
The Explosion of the Maine
• Soon after the Journal published the letter, the USS
Maine exploded in the Havana Harbor and 266 of the
350 people on board died.
• The Yellow Press quickly accused Spain of blowing up
the battleship and started printing headlines calling for
war, even though there was no proof of Spain's
involvement.
• Despite an investigation into the explosion proving
Spain had nothing to do with it, many Americans were
skeptical of those findings and most people blamed
Spain.
State Test Practice Question
The Spanish-
American War
Begins

• The combination of sympathy for Cuban rebels, the

American public being amped up by the yellow press, and
the perceived involvement of Spain in the blowing up of
the US Maine had Americans thirsty for war.
• On April 11, 1898, McKinley asked congress for authority
to use force against Spain to end the rebellion in Cuba and
on April 21 the US officially declared war against Spain and
the Spanish-American War had begun.
• One of the most notable victories for the US in the war
was on May 1, 1898 when George Dewey took a fleet of
ships into Manila Bay and easily defeated the Spanish
Navy in a battle that saw nearly 400 Spanish sailors die
while no Americans died in the battle.
 The Rough Riders
• Perhaps the most famous hero of the Spanish-
American War was President to be, Theodore
Roosevelt. He organized and commanded a
volunteer calvary unit called the Rough Riders which
consisted of rugged westerners and upper-class
easterners.
• The Rough Riders gained fame for their roles in the
battle of Las Guasimas, battle of San Juan Hill, and
the Siege of Santiago
• In the battle of San Juan Hill, Roosevelt famously led his
rough riders up Kettle Hill taking out Spanish soldiers
and forcing others to retreat in a move that led
to victory in the battle.
 The Treaty of Paris
• Secretary of State John Hay went on to refer to
the Spanish-American War as a "splendid little
war" because of the ease in which the US won the
war. Very few US soldiers died from the battle. In
fact diseases such as malaria and yellow fever
killed more US troops than the Spanish did.
• In December of 1898, the Treaty of Paris officially
ended the war. Spain gave up control of Cuba,
Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines.
• Cuba became an independent nation while the
other three became territories of the US.
Anti-Imperialist League
• The end of the war led to debate about what the US should
do with Spain's former possessions. Pro imperialists used
arguments such as "it is our duty to take them all, and to
educate, uplift, and civilize them." To justify controlling these
territories.
• Other pro imperialist wanted to maintain control of these
territories because of the economic benefits such as trade
and natural resources to the US.
• However, Anti-imperialist, like William Jennings Bryan and
Mark Twain, rejected those arguments. In 1899, they formed
the Anti-Imperialist League which condemned imperialist
practices as criminal and disloyal to the US government.
Insurrection in the Philippines
• America's decision to keep the Philippines reflected its
desire to expand its influence and assert Imperialism.
• However, this decision was not well received by the
native Filipinos. During the Spanish-American war,
Filipino nationalist Emilio Aguinaldo fought as an
American ally against the Spanish.
• When the US decided to keep possession of the
Philippines, Emilio helped organize an insurrection, or
rebellion, against US rule.
 Guerilla Warfare in the
Philippines
• The Filipino's knew they were outgunned by the US
troops so they resorted to guerrilla warfare, which
was a form of nontraditional warfare behind enemy
lines in which small groups of irregular military, such
as rebels or armed civilians use ambushes, sabotage,
raids, or hit-and-run tactics.
• The US responded by putting Filipino citizens
in concentration camps and aggressively retaliating
against rebels with orders to "take no prisoners."
• In the spring of 1901, Aguinaldo was captured and the
insurrection ended.
Limited Self-Rule

• In 1900, Congress passed the Foraker Act, which

established a government in Puerto Rico but authorized
the U.S. President to appoint a governor and part of the
Puerto Rican legislature. The Puerto Ricans were allowed
to fill the rest of the legislature in general elections.
• In 1916, congress passed the Jones Act, which pledged
that the Philippines would eventually gain their
independence. In 1946 after WWII the
Philippines officially became an independent nation.
• In 1902, the U.S. army withdrew from Cuba but not
before adding the Platt Amendment to the Cuban
constitution which prevented Cuba from signing treaties
with other nations without U.S. approval, required Cuba
to lease naval stations to the U.S., and granted the U.S.
the right to intervene in Cuba to preserve order.
State Test Practice Question