America Becomes a World Power

America Becomes a World Power Imperialism The policy of extending a nation’s power by gaining political and economic control over other countries

Life in the United States • Recovered from the Civil War • Industrial and Agricultural leaders • Expansion of the country from coast to coast • West was more settled • Life was good!

Expansionists • People who wanted to extend the nation’s power within the Western Hemisphere and around the world • To keep economy growing, business leaders wanted oversea markets • US leaders watched European leaders take control of foreign lands, and they (US) did not want to be left out

Alaska • 1867- Secretary of State William Seward arranged for the United States to buy Alaska from Russia • President Andrew Johnson • Price- $0.02 per acre or $7, 200,000. • People thought it was a terrible deal • “Seward’s Folly”- people complained that it was an “arctic wasteland”

Alaska • Thick forests • Plentiful fish and wildlife • Mild coastal climates • Discovered gold, copper, coal and other minerals • With these treasures, expansionists felt that the USA should gain control over other places in the world

Debate Over Expansionism • Some Americans believed that expansionism went against American values • Others feared that it would lead to revolutions in other countries • Others felt that nonwhites in other countries could never learn American values • Some felt that the USA could be powerful without taking over other lands

Imperialism • American business leaders were eager to start businesses in other countries • Others wanted to sell their finished products in new places • America was interested in taking control of the governments and economies of other countries

Expansion in Asia and the Pacific • America declared that US companies could trade anywhere within China • USA established trade treaties with Japan • To reach this ports, the ships crossing the Pacific Ocean needed to stop at islands for food and fuel • USA occupied the Midway Islands, located between California and Asia • USA did not want European countries from claiming all of the islands

Midway Islands http://www.stopwatchhut.com/places/286.jpg

Hawaii • Located in the Pacific Ocean closer to the United States then the Midway Islands • Consists of 8 main islands • Word “Hawaii” is based on a native Hawaiian word that means homeland

Hawaii http://www.air-travel-hotels.com/worldfacts/maps/us-map.gif

Hawaii • Hawaiians’ ancestors had come from the South Pacific • Hawaiians had lived on the islands for more than a 1,000 years • Ruled by their own kings and queens • Missionaries were the first Americans to go to Hawaii in 1820; they wanted to convert the Hawaiian people to christianity

Annexing Hawaii • Annex- to add a territory to a country • 1835- Boston merchant established a sugar plantation on the island • Many more sugar and pineapple plantations were started by American business people • Planters brought laborers from China and Japan to work in the fields

Sugar Plantation http://apwhod2010.pbworks.com/f/sugar%20cane.jpg

Pineapple Plantation http://whygo-amr.s3.amazonaws.com/www.hawaiilogue.com/files/2008/03/pineapple_4.jpg

Hawaii • Planters pressured the Hawaiians to allow the United States to create a naval base on the island of Oahu. (1887) • Pearl Harbor • Planters persuaded Congress to allow Hawaiian sugar to be imported to US without paying an import tax • U.S. sugar growers protested and felt that the law favored the Hawaiian growers over the US growers • U.S. growers convinced Congress to give them a bonus and the Hawaiian growers wanted the bonus too • Hawaiian growers wanted U.S. to annex Hawaii, so they could get the bonus

Hawaii • Native Hawaiians resented being pushed around by Americans • Queen Liliuokalani took the throne in 1891 • She declared “Hawaii for Hawaiians” and her people rallied around her • Americans feared they would lose their land in Hawaii, so with the help of the U.S. marines, planters forced the queen to give up her throne and a new government was established in Hawaii

Queen Liliuokalani http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSNbJacGTcsrtKURdu8XkvJhLNJpmu5S8r1YpLCzoeRb0EJ6AdpFg

Hawaii • President Grover Cleveland did not support the annexation of Hawaii • He opposed imperialism and thought that Hawaii should be ruled by Hawaiians • President McKinley did annex Hawaii in 1898

Cuba • Caribbean island located 90 miles from Florida • Cuba and Puerto Rico were Spanish colonies • Americans established sugar plantations on the islands of Cuba and Puerto Rico • During the 1890s expansionists wanted to annex these countries

Cuba and Puerto Rico http://www.afropop.org/img/world_music/african_music/webreadypix/Puerto_Rico_MapSquare.jpg

Sugarcane http://www.google.com/imgres?q=sugarcane&hl=en&safe=active&biw=1280&bih=681&tbm=isch&tbnid=ub-oltt54hYpRM:&imgrefurl=http://

Sugarcane http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/29/Cut_sugarcane.jpg

Expansionists • Americans want to annex these islands • Argued that it was time for the U.S. to enforce the Monroe Doctrine • No European country should control territory in the Western Hemisphere

Cuba and Spain • 1868- Cuba staged an unsuccessful revolt against Spain • 1895- Cuba tried to win independence from Spain under the leadership of Jose Marti • Spanish crushed this movement by herding men, women, and children into “reconcentration” camps • Cubans were forced to live without beds, toilets, medical care, and food • Tens of thousands of people died

U.S. Comes to the Rescue • American newspapers wrote stories about the plight of the Cubans • Newspapers were in competition with one another for readers • Some newspapers resorted to yellow journalism: thepractice of publishing sensational and often exaggerated news stories in order to attract readers

Yellow Journalism • Some of the stories were based on untruths and rumors • One untruth was that a Spanish general was “feeding prisoners to sharks.” • Sympathy grew for the Cubans and Americans were willing to go to war for Cuba • President McKinley sent the new battleship Maine to Havana, Cuba’s capital to help Americans in case of trouble

The Spanish-American War • February 15, 1898-explosion shook the Maine and sank it killing 260 American sailors • Cause of the explosion was not known- accident or bomb (?) • Many Americans were quick to blame Spain • Teddy Roosevelt- “The Maine was sunk by an act of dirty treachery on the part of the Spaniards!”

Remember the Maine • Men rushed to join the army shouting the battle cry “Remember the Maine” • Senators yelled, “Free Cuba.” • President McKinley tried to work out a solution between the Cubans and the Spanish, but the Spanish did not respond • Congress and newspapers were unhappy with McKinley calling him a coward • McKinley asked Congress to declare war

U.S.A. Goes to War • April 19, 1898- Congress voted to go to war with Spain to free Cuba • Congress approved a resolution that stated that the U.S. intended “to leave the government and control of the Island (Cuba) to its people.” • American army grew from 30,000 men to over 274,000 men

Rough Riders • Teddy Roosevelt left his position as assistant secretary of the navy • Roosevelt formed his own regiment known as the “Rough Riders” • The Rough Riders were comprised of seasoned ranch hands and powerful wealthy men

Rough Riders http://etc.usf.edu/clipart/58000/58006/58006_roosevelt_rr_lg.gif

Spanish-American War • Lasted four months • 345 Americans died in combat • 5,500 Americans died from disease (yellow fever and malaria) • Cubans lacked the strength and weapons to force the Spanish out of harbors and cities • Rough Riders and other troops decided to capture the city of Santiago, but first they had to capture San Juan Hill, the location where the Spanish were defending the city • Americans captured San Juan Hill • The Spanish tried to save their ships, but the Americans sank or captured all of them

Results of the Spanish-American War • Secretary of State John Hay- it had been “a splendid little war” • Peace treaty with Spain: Cuba gained independence, Puerto Rico came under American rule, U.S. agreed to remove all of its troops from Cuba, but troops could return to preserve law, order and to preserve Cuba’s independence, and U.S. was allowed to keep naval bases in Cuba • (naval bases remain today)

The Philippines • Philippines are islands located in the Pacific Ocean

Battle at Manila Bay • Philippine’s provided Spain’s main base in the Pacific • The Filipino people tried many times to throw off Spanish rule • 1898- tried again, and US became involved • Assistant Naval Secretary Teddy Roosevelt told Admiral George Dewey to “begin offensive operations In Philippine Islands” in the event that war was declared

Battle at Manila Bay • Dewey’s fleet arrived in Manila, the capital of the Philippines just 5 days after they declared war with Spain • Battle began at dawn and by 11am the entire Spanish fleet was burning or sunk • Spain’s old wooden ships were no match for the steel American ships with well-trained sailors • Only one American died in battle

Defeating the Spanish • Filipino fighters and Dewey’s men surrounded Manila • Filipinos believed that the Americans would help them gain their independence • General Aguinaldo, a Filipino general, issued the Declaration of Independence, formed a national government, and designed a national flag

Fighting the Filipinos • Spanish agreed to “lose” a fake battle in order to surrender to the Americans- they did not want to give themselves up to the Filipinos • Treaty-the United States “bought” the Philippines from Spain for $20 million • 1899- Congress voted to annex the Philippines • Aguinaldo’s government felt betrayed • For 3 years, 80,000 Filipino fighters fought off the better trained American troops • 20,000 Filipinos died • 4,000 Americans died

Results of War • Some Americans protested and wanted the United States to grant freedom to the Filipinos • Expansionists won out • President McKinley- “a land of plenty” • Senator Henry Cabot Lodge- “Manila with its magnificent bay…will keep us open to markets of China.”

American Control of the Philippines • After the revolution, Americans set up a nonmilitary government to help the Filipinos prepare for independence • Americans built roads, hospitals, and schools • United States did not grant the Philippines independence until 1947

Panama and the Canal http://travel.state.gov/_res/images/countries/maps/large/panama.gif

Theodore Roosevelt • 1901- Teddy Roosevelt was vice president • “We stand on the threshold of a new century. Is America a weakling, to shrink from the work of the great powers? No. The young giant of the West stands on a continent and clasps the crest of an ocean in either hand.” • What does this quote mean?

Dreaming of a Canal • Roosevelt wanted to join the two oceans with a canal. • Canal would allow ships to move between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans quickly. • The navy would be better able to defend America’s new territories. • Businesses would gain from lower shipping costs.

Roosevelt becomes President • September 1901- President McKinley was assassinated and Roosevelt becomes president. • During President Roosevelt’s first speech to Congress he argued for the canal. • “No single great material work which remains to be undertaken on this continent is of such consequence to the American people.”

Theodore Roosevelt26th President http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQD2mHq3W4q2Hp9ENz9hzskXn3xOjeijlziCaQL1XQus8FznI3MNA

Where Should the Canal be Built? • Congress approved funding for the canal • 1903, Roosevelt offered Columbia $10 million for their land in the province of Panama, the narrowest part of Central America • Columbia senate refused- felt that the U.S. was trying to take advantage of a weaker country’s resources

Fighting for the Land • Roosevelt sent an American warship to Panama • He knew that Panama wanted their independence from Columbia • Revolution started in Panama • Marines prevented the Columbian soldiers from reaching Panama’s borders • Rebels (Panama) won battle

The Deal • New country of Panama agreed to accept $10 million in exchange for giving the U.S. control over a “canal zone” ten miles wide • Some senators disagreed with America’s “gunboat diplomacy” • Most Americans supported the policy • Roosevelt’s personal motto- “Speak softly and carry a big stick”

Building the Canal • 1904- construction begins • Isthmus- a narrow strip of land, border on both sides by water, connecting two larger bodies of land • Workers faced terrible conditions • Used water from river for bathing, cooking, and drinking • One year later, ¾ of American workers had quit the project

America Becomes a World Power