1. US Expansion

2. Purchase of Alaska “Seward’s Folly”
Purchased from Russia by Sec. of State William Seward for $7.2 million in 1867
US wanted Russian competition out of North America
Turned out, Alaska was loaded with gold & oil!

3. Americans in Hawaii
First Americans arrived in 1819 (Christian missionaries)
Thousands of Americans soon flooded the islands to create sugar plantations, coming to dominate the islands’ economy and present a threat to the native monarchy
Americans forced the “Bayonet Constitution” on Hawaiian king in 1887 which gave whites the vote & limited the monarch’s power

4. Queen Liliuokalani 1838 – 1917 Queen 1891 – 1893
Lydia Kamaka’eha Kaola Mali’i Lili’uokalani
Attempted to throw out the Bayonet Constitution and extend suffrage to native Hawaiians and Asians
This angered Americans in Hawaii, and they began to plot an overthrow of the queen

5. Economic Pressure
American sugar planters in Hawaii were also upset that the McKinley Tariff had placed a high tariff on Hawaiian sugar; if they could convince US to annex Hawaii, they would be part of the US and not subject to the tariff

6. Overthrow of the Queen
1893: Americans staged a coup, then reported to the American consulate that American lives and property were in danger due to the coup!
US consulate called Marines ashore from the US naval base at Pearl Harbor
Hawaiians interpreted this as US support for the coup and surrendered

7. Annexation of Hawaii
American sugar planters established a temporary government, believing that the US would annex Hawaii immediately
Pres. Cleveland was furious with the way the sugar planters had manipulated the coup to look like it was US backed and blocked attempts to annex Hawaii
The independent Republic of Hawaii existed from
US finally annexed Hawaii in 1898 under Pres. McKinley

8. Rebellion in Cuba
Cuba was a Spanish colony, but wanted to become independent and rebelled from , , &
Jose Marti was the symbolic leader of the revolutionary movement, but he was killed in battle in 1895
Spanish put down rebellions cruelly and with little regard to human rights

9. Spanish Atrocities in Cuba
Spanish governor General Valeriano “El Carnicero” Weyler began to relocate rebellious Cuban natives to “reconcentration camps” where they could be monitored by the military; thousands died of disease or starvation

10. Yellow Journalism
US newspapers began to carry sensationalized stories about the actions of the Spanish in Cuba, causing many Americans to sympathize with the Cuban desire for independence
The term “yellow journalism” describes the use of eye-catching headlines (but usually with little factual support, and sometimes simply made-up stories) to sell newspapers; the “yellow” part comes from a newspaper comic-strip called The Yellow Kid which was popular at the time

11. Joseph Pulitzer 1847 – 1911 Publisher of New York World newspaper
Sold his papers cheap: $0.02/issue
Filled papers with crime stories, sensationalized news, but also with some serious news and calls for social reform
Later established the Pulitzer Prizes for journalism

12. William Randolph Hearst
1863 – 1951
Publisher of New York Journal newspaper
Sold his paper even cheaper – just $0.01/issue; offset his costs by being one of the first publishers to sell large amounts of advertising to department stores
Hearst and Pulitzer became bitter rivals, each trying to best the other

13. McKinley Tries Negotiations
US business interests in Cuba were threatened by the unrest
McKinley threatened to recognize Cuba as an independent state if Spain did not establish some stability there; Spain agreed to give Cuba autonomy (but not independence)
This led Spanish loyalists to riot in Havana, forcing McKinley to dispatch the USS Maine to protect US interests in Cuba and to evacuate Americans if things got too violent

14. The Enrique Dupuy de Lôme Letter
February, 1898
A private letter written by Spanish Ambassador to the US Enrique Dupuy de Lôme was stolen and published in Pulitzer’s papers
The letter described Pres. McKinley as “weak and a bidder for the admiration of the crowd” and as someone unwilling to go to war over Cuba
Americans were enraged

15. The USS Maine
Feb. 15, 1898
USS Maine exploded in Havana Harbor, killing 266 sailors
US investigation concluded that the ship had been deliberately blown up by a Spanish mine
Angry US citizens began calling for war with Spain

16. Jingoism McKinley was reluctant to go to war and hoped for peace
Many Republicans (including a young Theodore Roosevelt) grew angry with McKinley’s reluctance for war; they believed in a form of nationalism called “jingoism” – a blind willingness to use force against other nations to protect the best interests of the US
McKinley caved to the pressure in April 1898 and asked Congress to authorize the use of force against Spain

17. The Spanish-American War
April 1898: US demanded that Spain withdraw from Cuba or face US force; Spain responded by declaring war on US
The war would be short and one-sided, ended in August

18. The Philippines & Guam
US Asiatic fleet attacked Spanish colony of the Philippines, crushing Spain’s navy in a matter of hours with only nine wounded US sailors
US soldiers on their way to occupy the Philippines also seized the Spanish colony of Guam in the Central Pacific

19. War in Cuba
US Navy blockaded Cuban ports and destroyed the Spanish fleet sent to protect Cuba
17,000 US ground forces fought in Cuba between June 14 and August 12, winning several major battles, such as the Battle of San Juan Hill before the Spanish agreed to a cease-fire

20. Puerto Rico
Also saw fighting between US and Spanish forces during the war
1900: Foraker Act made Puerto Rico a territory of the US under the direct control of Congress, but did not make Puerto Ricans US citizens or give them constitutional rights
Today, Puerto Rico remains part of the US

21. US Soldiers
The “Rough Riders”: volunteer regiment of which Theodore Roosevelt was 2nd in command
Buffalo Soldiers: about 25% of US soldiers who fought in the war were black
345 Americans died in the war (mostly from disease) although hundreds more died from disease epidemics in training camps in the US

22. Treaty of Paris (1898) Dec. 10, 1898 Ended the war
Cuba became independent
US gains control of Guam and Puerto Rico
US purchases Philippines from Spain for $20 million

23. The Teller Amendment
Passed prior to the war, the Amendment stated that the US would not attempt to annex Cuba; instead, the US vowed to support Cuban independence

24. The Platt Amendment
US military occupied Cuba until a new, US-approved constitution could be written
Platt Amendment was forced on Cuba by the US:
Cuba could not enter into alliances that might threaten its independence
Could not allow foreign powers (except the US, who gained control of a naval base at Guantanamo Bay) to control territory in Cuba
Could not go into debt to foreign nations
US would have the right to intervene at any time to protect Cuban independence or to maintain order