Dbq Spanish American Independence

679 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Effects of spanish american war

In 1923, President James Monroe gave a routine speech to congress. But hidden within the flowery words was an important declaration to the world. Less than 50 years after the Unites States declared itself a independent country, the world was not a safe place for a fledgling democracy. The imperial powers of Europe including Prussia, Austria, and Russia had formed an alliance to protect monarchism. The monarchy of Spain was being restored, and our greatest ally in our fight for independence had just suffered the rise of Napoleon and been defeated in the Napoleonic wars. Even more so was the threat of colonial expansion by these powers. Knowing that the safety of the US depended greatly on our distance from such powerful potential adversaries, it was apparent that if they were allowed to gain a foothold in the western hemisphere it would allow them to threaten the US directly. The …show more content…

Ironically, it was the naval might of our former adversary and now ally, Great Britain that gave it weight. Very little came from this policy until it was used by President Tyler in 1842 to justify our own imperial colonialism with the annexation of Hawaii, and then again in 1870 when President Grant attempted the same with the Dominican Republic. The biggest use, however, was the 1898 Spanish-American war over Cuba. Not only was it used as justification for involvement, but it led to further expansionism when the US demanded ownership of Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines in addition to temporary control of Cuba as part of the peace treaty with Spain. The Platt amendment of 1901 expanded this Doctrine, making Cuba a protectorate and dictating that they could not incur large debt or enter any treaties that may threaten their independence. The US had the right to send troops if these terms were violated, and were also given a lease for a naval base at Guantanamo

Show More
Related

  • Mexican Revolution Dbq

    637 Words  | 2 Pages

    Diaz offered foreign investors to start business in Mexico and encouraged utilization of the country’s natural resources through the investment of foreign capital (284).

    Read More

  • American Foreign Policy Dbq

    941 Words  | 2 Pages

    This period of expansionism clearly demonstrates just how power hungry the United States was at this point in its history. One could say that this thirst for international power, and perceived need to exercise such power, directly led to World War One in the

    Read More

  • Americans and Cubans Approaches to the Platt Amendment

    1533 Words  | 4 Pages

    The U.S. had to have some sort of control and a permanent existence after withdrawing their military from Cuba. The Cubans feel that this amendment has made it possible for the U.S. to cause trouble or intervene anytime they want.

    Read More

  • test I

    1446 Words  | 3 Pages

    Americans wanted to project their power to the entire hemisphere and the only way to exercise it is by acquiring a republic. Citizens of three countries did not fully acquire the independence they thought they were entitled to. Cuba got nominal independence because of the Platt Amendment, Puerto Rico became a territory but was not called as citizens of America, and instead they were called Puerto Ricans, while the Philippines were denied statehood.

    Read More

  • Development of Colonies

    937 Words  | 2 Pages

    With the widespread of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense, American independence gained extensive support. As Paine insisted, “membership in the British empire was a burden to the colonies, not a gift.” Finally, on July 2, 1776, the Congress declared the United States as an independent nation, and America soon gained international recognition.

    Read More

  • US Foreign Policy During the 20th Century

    791 Words  | 2 Pages

    It is the intention of this essay to explain the United States foreign policy behind specific doctrines. In order to realize current objectives, this paper will proceed as follows: Part 1 will define the Monroe Doctrine, Sections 2, 3, 4, and 5 will concurrently explicate the Roosevelt Corollary, Good Neighbor Policy, and the Nixon Doctrine, discuss how each policy resulted in U.S. involvement in Latin American countries, describe how it was justified by the U.S. government, respectively, and finally, will bring this paper to a summation and conclusion.

    Read More

  • Manifest Destiny

    542 Words  | 2 Pages

    From western expansion to foreign imperialism the United States has always been an expansionist country. Early America’s focus was to conquer the natives and obtain western land within North America, but in the latter of America’s history, specifically in the nineteenth and twentieth century, foreign imperialism became the new focus. America’s activity in foreign imperialism was a continuation and departure of the United States’ early expansionism. It was a continuation in terms of manifest destiny, the spread of Christianity, and by the concept of “the city on a hill” and a departure in terms of foreign involvement.

    Read More

  • Patriotism In The Spanish American War

    1189 Words  | 3 Pages

    In American History, one must always be a good patriotic man or woman. In order to be that ideal good American, one must love their land and god over everything. Time came around and introduced the Progressive era into America, a time of greater change. However, change is portrayed different between the people and the government, different ideas, approaches, and battles to fight. To prove that one loves its home he or she must be willing to give up anything for their land, meaning their lives or even their children 's lives too. On a daily basis, we are being fed fictional stories that our government create for their own beneficial interest. The press lets these fictional stories hit the headlines, and therefore should believe what they say for being our only reliable source. With the government and the press being a tag-team duo, we are simply left handicapped and have only but to listen and get fooled by their desired decision

    Read More

  • Manifest Destiny

    1130 Words  | 3 Pages

    The United States of America has never been content with stagnation. The landmass of the Thirteen Colonies was enough to rival that of the Mother country from which they separated. The forefathers believed that it was the manifest destiny of this nation to eventually claim the expansion from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. By 1890, nearly a hundred years following the original claim of Manifest Destiny, the land that was once open, was now under American control. But no sooner was the Great American Frontier closed, than was the door to East Asian expansion opened with the great gold key of American diplomacy. In a world where imperialism was contagious, and cartographers had to work around the clock to keep up with an ever-changing geopolitical landscape, the United States seized the opportunity to establish herself as a significant world power. With great expansionist minds at her helm, such as Theodore Roosevelt and Howard Taft the United States began to grow beyond her border to claim stake in this wide-open world. This new expansionism of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century was a different institution than its early to mid nineteenth century counterpart. Still, the drive to exercise the sovereignty of the United State and to propel itself over the world’s stage was the same then as it was in the time of Thomas Jefferson. In order to understand this assertion, attention must be given to three levels of analysis. First, the similarities that exist between the drive and purpose of old and new expansion must be taken into account. Second, the differences in the global political scene must be considered. Finally, there exits differences in the means by which expansion occurred.

    Read More

  • The 'New' Expansionism Ideas of the United States (1880-1914)

    1262 Words  | 3 Pages

    As the United States grew in power, so did her ideas of expansion. The foreign powers were beginning to move out of their continents and seek land in other countries. The United States soon followed. They followed in their founder’s footsteps and tried to occupy lands in the far seas. However, in the beginning, this need for more land was called Manifest Destiny. This idea claimed that God was forcing them to occupy the new western lands. The expansionism that occurred in the late 1800’s was not a result of Manifest Destiny, and thus this "new" idea of expansionism was different from the expansionism ideas of early America. For the most part, the United States’ need for more land was primarily to keep other nations (mainly European powers) out of the western hemisphere. However the United States began to see reason behind change towards the "new" expansionistic ideas.

    Read More

  • Latin American Independence

    506 Words  | 2 Pages

    Latin American Independence was the drive for independence from Spain and France by the Latin American people. There were many contributing factors that ultimately led to the uprising of Latin American colonies. Europe's strong hold on the economic and political life of Latin America, was creating friction between the Latin Colonies and the European nations. Eventually, this would become enough for the Latin American people and the drive for independence from France and Spain would begin.

    Read More

  • Latin American Independence Essay

    1482 Words  | 3 Pages

    Latin America’s independence kicked of with the independence of Haiti. Before the the independence movement that overtook Latin America, Haiti had gained independence twenty years before the movement. The Spanish Empire had been in decline for a period of time after the rise of the English empire and many failed battles on the Spanish (class notes). The French Revolution and the American Revolution had inspired many of the Latin American countries to fight for independence (Chapter 3). They were inspired by the Enlightenment that washed over Europe. Of the inspired, one man stood out and took the movement by heart.

    Read More

  • American Imperialism Dbq

    1241 Words  | 3 Pages

    For many year, the American boundaries expanded as people moved, at the governments urging, westward for new economic opportunities and later imperialist expansion was no different. While many factors contributed, economic possibility was a driving factor in the expansionist aspirations. The U.S., along with countries like Britain

    Read More

  • The Era of Good Feelings

    910 Words  | 2 Pages

    After the war of 1812, the United States saw a nationalist spark begin to ignite. The emergence of nationalism was largely due to the Hartford Convention and the federalists’ call for secession from the union. With the end of the war, the Federalist Party diminished and the Republican Party emerged with no opposition. Feelings of pride, national unity, and patriotism were evoked, as seen in a picture depicting Fourth of July festivités in Philadelphia in 1819 (Doc C). Just as the Fourth of July celebration illustrates nationalism, the diary of secretary of state John Quincy Adams did as well. He implored and suggested that the United States take a firm stand against Britain and Spain, Russia and Prussia (Doc H). President Monroe was concerned that the United States not appear subordinate to Britain. In 1823 the Monroe Doctrine was proclaimed, and asserted the authority of the United States. As well as having fears that the United States not appear subordinat...

    Read More

  • Spanish American Imperialism Essay

    2526 Words  | 6 Pages

    Immediately following the war with Spain, the United States had both the political will to pursue imperial policies and the geopolitical circumstances conducive to doing so. But the way in which these policies would manifest was an open question; was the impulse to actively remake the world in America’s Anglo-Saxon image justified? Hence, there were several models of American imperialism at the turn of the twentieth century. In the Philippines, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Samoa, the United States asserted unwavering political control. In Cuba, and later throughout most of the Caribbean basin, the economic and political domination of customarily sovereign governments became the policy. Ultimately, the United States was able to expand its territory

    Read More

More about Dbq Spanish American Independence

Open Document