The cause of the Spanish-American War relates directly to Cuba, and the sinking of the U.S.S. Maine. In 1895, Cuba was extremely governmentally disorganized, and was beginning to rise against Spain. The Cuban’s soon adopted a conception that the more damage that they did to the Cuban mainland, the faster the Spaniards would leave Cuba, and the Americans would help the Cubans to win their independence.
The Americans soon came to Cuba, in an attempt to assist the Cubans in their fight for freedom. The Spanish intervention with Cuba threatened the trade routes that America had near, and with Cuba. By helping Cuba, America would be vastly saving itself economically because these routes were highly valuable. During this time you must remember that the United States had a new, powerful Navy, and they were anxious to show their power off to the rest of the world. Cuba served as the perfect stage to put on a show.
When Spanish General Weyler arrived, he controlled the rebellion in Cuba by herding the Cuban citizens into enclosed concentration camps. They were detained under very unsanitary and inhumane conditions. Many of them died. This treatment of the Cuban people by the Spanish angered the American public, and they demanded that war be declared against Spain. The American people were clearly disgusted by the way the Spaniards treated the Cubans. Why wouldn’t they be? The Spaniards treated them like scum. They were livid; the Americans wanted the government to take action against the Spaniards for the actions they took against the Cubans.
Both Presidents Cleveland and McKinley tried to keep America out of war. In 1896, Congress overwhelmingly passed a resolution that called for President Cleveland to review the impending situation in Cuba. The anti-imperialist Cleveland refused to do anything. But, on February 15, 1898, the American battleship U.S.S. Maine anchored in Havana Harbor exploded. Two hundred and sixty of the American crewmen were killed. On April 11, 1898 President McKinley went to Congress and asked for American troops to stop the war. Congress agreed and on April 25 the U. S. declared war on Spain.
In McKinley’s declaration of war against Spain, he stated "For the recognition of the independence of the people of Cuba, demanding that the Government of Spain relinquish its authority and Government in the island of Cuba, and to withdraw its land and naval forces from Cuba and Cuban waters, and directing the President of the United States to use the land and naval forces of the United States to carry these resolutions into effect.
The Spanish American war had a complex beginning. By the 1890’s, Cuba had unsuccessfully battled Spain for its independence for many years. Due to the US’s economic interests in Cuba, the US government sought to stabilize the situation. The United States and Cuba negotiated an agreement that Cuba would become self-governing on January 1, 1898. But
In the late 1800’s the American people and their government became more willing to risk war in defense of American interests overseas, support for building a large modern navy began to grow. Supporters argued that if the United States did not build up its navy and acquire bases overseas, it would be shut out of foreign markets by Europeans. Captain Alfred T. Mahan observed that building a modern navy meant that the U.S. had to acquire territory for naval bases overseas. This would enable them to operate a navy far from home. A country needed bases and coaling stations in distant regions, which was exactly what they did by having Havana, Cuba be one of its ports. Another factor that was part of the Navy’s modernization was the USS Maine, which was probably the most famous ship of its era. The USS Maine was one of the Navy’s first armored battle ships. It was one of the first U.S. naval vessels with electrical lighting. It had a top speed of 17 knots and a crew of 392 officers and enlisted men. On the evening of February 15, 1898 the USS Maine exploded. Of the 345 officers and sailors aboard the Maine, 266 died. There were many ideas of how this explosion occurred, namely: the ship’s ammunition supplies blew up, a fire accidentally ignited the ammunition, and that a mine detonated near the ship set off the ammunition. At the time Cuba was a Spanish colony, but it was in the midst of a revolution. The Cuban people were fighting for independence from Spain. During this Cuban revolt against Spain and the American battleship Maine dropped anchor in the Havana harbor to protect American interests in Cuba. Many Americans regarded the Spanish as tyrants and supported the Cubans in their struggle. This immediately made Americans jump to the Conclusion that Spain blew up the Maine. American’s felt that since they were allies with Cuba that Spain was trying to harm America, as to not interfere with Cuba’s revolt against them. Within a matter of weeks, Spain and the U.
As Americans, we’ve taken far greater than just tacos, burritos, and nachos from the culture of Mexico. Through America’s past relations with Mexico, America has taken large amounts of land, and a sense of power from country south of the United States, Mexico. In 1846, James Polk, a former president of the United States, declared war on Mexico. There was confusion between Mexico and America. Land was being traded, new borders were being formed, but disorientation was aroused causing conflict. Differences in culture, beliefs, and even national law led to dispute among these two countries, making it even more difficult to reach a treaty of peace, or a deal. The Mexican-American War was not justified because it was an excuse for gaining land,
The American’s kept a watchful eye on the war between Spain and the Cuban revolutionaries during the Ten Year War. News of atrocities committed by the Spanish Army caused Americans to sympathize with the Cuban revolutionaries thanks to the coverage in the American press.3
In June of 1895, President Grover Cleveland took a stance of neutrality toward the Cuban conflict, though many American citizens grew concerned that the fight was too close to home. (Spanish-American) By December of the next year, Cleveland declared that the U.S. might be forced to take action if Spain was unable to solve the Cuban crisis alone. (Library of Congress) Spain granted Cuba limited autonomy in January of 1897, but the natives were not satisfied. As the Spanish resorted to ruthless tactics to keep the Cubans in line, their brutality created much sympathy in the United States. Tensions rose between America and Spain. The other shoe dropp...
The U.S.’s relationship with Cuba has been arduous and stained with mutual suspicion and obstinateness, and the repeated U.S. interventions. The Platt agreement and Castro’s rise to power, served to introduce the years of difficulty to come, while, the embargo the U.S. placed on Cuba, enforced the harsh feelings. The two major events that caused the most problems were the Bays of Pigs and Cuban Missile Crisis.
However, publishing stories against the atrocities of Spain did not convince President Cleveland to support the intervention with Spain. When President McKinley held the office in 1897, he wanted to end the revolt peacefully, and he tried to avoid the involvement of America in the conflict between Cuba and Spain. McKinley sent Stewart Woodford to Spain to negotiate for peaceful Cuban autonomy and it all went smoothly and the independence of Cuba was supposed to be awarded after the negotiation.... ... middle of paper ...
towards Spain on April 25, 1898. On the day war was declared, Spain issued that the United States add the Teller Amendment, which declared, "the right to intervene for the preservation of Cuban independence, the maintenance of a government adequate for the protection of life, property, and individual liberty..." (Teller Amendment). The actual fighting began on May 1, in the Philippines Islands at the Battle of Manila Bay where Commodore George Dewey reportedly said, "You may fire when ready, Gridley," and the Spanish fleet under Rear Admiral Patricio Montojo was
Declaration of war At the time of the sinking of the Maine U.S. President William Mckinley was in office. Pres. Mckinley had hoped to avoid going to war with Spain but along with thousands of other Americans was swept up in the feeling to support war. In 1898 Pres. mckinley asked to declare war on Spain.
The scene is set; America is the great power in the western hemisphere. Post Spanish-American War, America is faced with a dilemma of annexing the Philippines. In the winter of 1899 following the annexation of the Philippines, America had a problem. Filipinos had been fighting for independence from Spain and did not want to be seceded (83). Despite the Filipino objection, the United States displayed their assertion on the land. In conflict, both the Filipinos and American had many meetings with death. There were consequences and repercussions from invoking the American power on this foreign land. The American victory in the Spanish-American War helped propel the nation. Thesis: Although met with conflict from the natives, the
Spain was conquering territories all around the world. Although one made the United States more nervous than the rest; Cuba. The United States feared spain controlling a territory so close to home. It was clear it was not the best idea that a Eastern country controlled something so close, so they kept a close eye on it. Once they realize their differences United States discharged a battleship from the Great White Fleet to Cuba, the U.S.S. Maine. Once the maine arrived there was a few more conflicts between the two countries. After 2 weeks of arriving in Havana Harbor in Cuba, The Maine was mysteriously destroyed by an explosion. As soon as the Yellow press was informed they forced the thought of the explosion being an act of terrorism. This is supported in “Document A: New York Journal”. The New York Journa...
History is not a collection of unrelated events, but it is instead an account of various causes and their effects. World War II was not an isolated event. It was a product of numerous events in Europe which included the Spanish Civil War. Spain prior to World War II was an area of crucial political and strategic importance. By analyzing the events of the Spanish Civil War, the events of World War II can be understood in greater detail. Hitler’s confident foreign policy, the quick surrender of France, the forging of unlikely alliances, and the diverse ideological state present in Europe can be understood more comprehensively by looking at the Spanish Civil War. The events of the Spanish Civil War changed the political atmosphere of Europe; these events influenced the beginning of World War II.
For 113 days during the summer of 1898, the United States was at war with Spain. Neither the president of the United States, nor his cabinet, nor the the queen of Spain, nor her ministers wanted the war wanted the war. It happened eventhough they made their best efforts to prevent it. It happened because of ambition, miscalculation, and stupidity; and it happened because of kindness, wit, and resourcefulness. It also happened because some were indifferent to the suffering of the world’s wretched and others were not (O’Toole 17). By winning the war the United States proved the the rest of the world and to itself that it could and would fight against foreign nations. For many years, world power had been concentrated in the countries in Europe. Nations such as Great Britain, France, Germany, and Spain had the most influence in global affairs. But a shift in power was gradually taking place as the United States matured. The young nation gained wealth and strength. Its population grew immensely, and many people believed it would become a major world power (Bachrach, 11) Spain was one of the many European countries that had territory in the United States. Spain controlled mostly some islands off the coast of Central America. The most important of these were Cuba and Puerto Rico. The United States was led to believe that the Spanish mosgoverned and abused the people of these islands. In fact, Spain did overtax and mistreat the Cubans, who rebelled in 1868 and again in 1895. Thus, the American people felt sympathetic toward the Cuban independence movement. In addition, Spain had frequently interfered with trade between its colonies and the United States. Even though the United States had been a trading partner with Cuba since the seventeenth century, Spain sometimes tried to completely stop their trade with Cuba. In Spain doing so, this sometimes caused damage to U.S. commercial interests. The United States highly disagreed with Spain’s right to interfere with this trade relationship. (Bachrach, 12) The United States was also concerned that other trading and commercial interests were threatened by the number of ships and soldiers Spain kept in the area. If the United States had to fight a war with Canada or Mexico, these Spanish forces could quickly mobilize against the United States.
The Mexican-American war determined the destiny of the United States of America, it determined whether or not it would become a world power and it established the size of the United States of America. Perhaps the war was inevitable due to the idea of Manifest Destiny - Americans thought they had the divine right to extend their territory. The Mexican-American War started mainly because of the annexation of the Republic of Texas (established in 1836 after breaking away from Mexico). The United States and Mexico still had conflicts on what the borders of Texas was, the United States claimed that the Texas border with Mexico was the Rio Grande, but the Mexicans said that it was the Nueces River, so the land in between were disputed and claimed by both the United States and Mexico.
The first reason for the Spanish American War was public opinion. In 1895, American citizens took notice of a Cuban revolt against their corrupt Spanish oppressor. The Cuban insurgents reasoned that if they did enough damage , the US might move in and help the Cubans win their independence. Not only did Americans sympathize with the Cubans upon seeing tragic reports in the newspaper, but they also empathized in that the US once fought for their own independence from Britain. If France didn’t intervene, the Americans probably would not have won their freedom. As if this did not rally enough hate for the Spanish among the American Public, fuel was added to the flame by the Spanish General (“Butcher”) Weyler. He attempted to crush the rebellion by herding Cubans into barbed-wire concentration camps. In turn, the American public was outraged.