Alfred Thayer Mahan The Influence Of Sea Power Upon History

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1. Alfred Thayer Mahan - Alfred Thayer Mahan was an author and strategist for the United States Navy. He graduated the Naval Academy in 1859 and would go on to head the Newport Naval Academy. As an author, he wrote many influential books, including The Influence of Sea Power Upon History 1660-1783. In this book, Mahan explained that if a nation held “Sea Power”, or naval dominance, it would also have global dominance. In his analysis, Mahan theorized that growing industrial development would create excess goods for which new markets needed to be found. These markets would undoubtedly be in distant ports across large bodies of water and to ensure the safety of merchant ships a strong naval guardian and escort would be paramount (Divine 610). …show more content…

Nevertheless, he secured $50 million for defense appropriations and prepared a declaration of war after Spain was unwilling to agree to terms that would give Cuba its independence. On April 25th, 1898 Congress passed a declaration of war and the President signed it, beginning the “Splendid Little War” (Divine 613). The start of the Spanish-American War would begin the expansion of the American Empire. After getting Cuba’s independence, the U.S. would claim Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines among other …show more content…

Spearheaded by the efforts of President Teddy Roosevelt, the canal was built so travel time and distance between the opposing American coasts could be drastically shortened. Its construction was approved with the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty negotiated with Great Britain in 1901. Colombia, which controlled the area, was given an offer of $10 million plus an additional $250,000 annually for a 99-year lease but refused it, wanting more money and claiming it infringed on their sovereignty (Divine 691). Roosevelt, angered by Colombia’s defiance, backed Panamanian rebels who would quickly declare independence in late 1903 with the aid of the U.S. Navy (Divine 692). The same lease offer was now tendered to the newly found Republic of Panama and they accepted after the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty was signed in 1903; the treaty would give the U.S. control of a 10-mile wide canal zone across the Isthmus of Panama (Divine

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