America as a World Power

1. Roosevelt played the role of calming mediator between the two imperialist powers. With the help of Roosevelt, a fair deal was made betweeb Russia and Japan, resulting in peace.

2. America bought the project from the French for $40 million. The route allowed quick passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific through South America. America still had to deal with the Colombian government, who owned this land. The Colombian government denied access to the US, and the US organized a revolution, and then the canal was allowed to be built by the government of Panama.

3. The Roosevelt Corollary said that not only European powers should interfere with Latin America, but that America should therefore be the one to interfere.

4. Dollar Diplemency enforced the view that the US should hold influence over Latin American countries by giving America access to Nicaraguan banks and railroad systems in exchange for a loan to get them out of debt. This had angered the Nicaraguans, and the Roosevelt Corollary had sent in 2,000 marines to back Adolfo Diaz, the president of Nicaragua.

5. Wilson's philosophy of missionary diplomacy was a reason that Woodrow Wilson decided to invade Mexico, but there were also other reasons. He felt that he couldn't invade for only moral issues, so he waited for a legitimate reason to invade. Mexico had soon after arrested some US sailors, which is when Wilson decided to give imperialistic actions some thought. He decided later to invade Mexico, and the invasion began.

6. America had achieved multiple foreign policy goals around this time, and one of these was that the US achieved its responsibility to intervene with other powers. Roosevelt had showed this by the peace talks he had made to Russia and Japan. Another goal the US reached was that they were able to act as a world power, which they showed by adopting the ideas of a Roosevelt Corollary and mission diplomacy. A third goal America achieved was that the US was able to expand their power dramatically.

Imperialism's Bitter Fruit

1. a) After the Spanish were forced out of the Philippines, fighting broke out between the American and Filipinos. This had started when an American soldier fired on a Filipino patrol that had refused to halt, 2 days before the Senate vote on the Treaty of Paris. For months, tension had been building up, and within hours of the shooting, fighting had spread to much of the area around Manila. The Filipinos had believed they were fighting for their independence, but they were not.

b) This was a different kind of warfare to American forces. Instead of confronting an organized army, U.S. soldiers had faced a quick-striking guerrilla movement. Both sides tortured and executed prisoners and committed other atrocities. The U.S. forced imprisoned almost the entire population of the island of Samara after guerrillas had wiped out an American garrison. American soldiers had also killed Filipino prisoners at random whenever an American soldier was killed.

2. African-Americans were strong critics of the war against Filipino nationalists as two regiments of black volunteers were among the U.S. troops who fought in the conflict. Black officers were appointed to command the volunteers. At home, African-American leaders were at the forefront of the backlash against the war. Black soldiers were discriminated against during this war just as they had been in Cuba. Roughly 500 African-Americans living in the Philippines were killed during the fighting.

3. a) Scholars of this time warned that imperialism would increase war and conflict around the world.

b) Mark Twainm, America's most famous living writer at the time, used his biting irony and wit to ridicule the stance of the imperialists. He was among the most effective critics of imperialism.

4. Congress had made Puerto Rico a territory in 1917 and had granted its people U.S. citizenship. Under a formula crafted by the US State Department, Cuba was to receive independence only after accepting a number of limitations. Both of these were positive effects of American occupation in Puerto Rico and Cuba.

5. a) The Platt Amendment had given the United States the right to oversee the Cuban economy.

b) The United States was also given the right to exercise veto power over Cuban foreign policy.

c) The United States could intervene whenever necessary "for the protection of life, property, and individual liberty".

d) Last, the United States was also allowed to build a naval base on the southeastern tip of the island at Guantanamo Bay.

I don't think that America was justified in making these demands because the US is saying that they are giving Cuba their independence, but with all these limitations, I wouldn't even consider it independence.

6. Personally, I think that the United States was becoming imperialist, as they were continuing to gain power and extend their boundaries. The US had expanded overseas in the 1890s and beyond, acquiring Cuba, the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico. This provided US leaders with the opportunity they had been looking for to increase that power. The US had claimed to be bringing freedom and civilization to the islands, but they were rarely considering the interests and hopes of the inhabitants.

Imperialism: The Origins of a Global Power

1. American plantation owners and U.S. Marines had toppled Hawaii's Queen in 1893 because most of the American plantation owners who dominated most of Hawaii's economy had favored bringing the island officially under U.S. control, so they orchestrated a coup with the help of U.S. Marines, toppling Queen Liliuo'kalani in January, 1893. Hawaii was considered to be a valuable prize because the island's rich soil was ideal for growing profitable tropical crops such as sugar, pineapples, and coffee. Hawaii was a crucial stopping point for American ships en route to East Asia. President Cleveland's reaction to this treaty and the event with the queen of Hawaii did not please American plantation owners in Hawaii, as he believed that annexation would corrupt traditional American values of freedom and equality, therefore he withdrew the treaty which allowed the United States to annex Hawaii. I agree with Cleveland quote on Page 1, as he is basically saying that the U.S. must make any repairs necessary when an action is made that puts a friendly country's independence and sovereignty in danger. I agree with him because a treaty was made that allowed the U.S. to annex Hawaii, which would danger Hawaii's independence and sovereignty, and since Hawaii was friendly to the U.S., it was a mistake.

2. In the nineteenth century, there were many changes that transformed America. These changes include immigration, urban growth, manufacturing, new inventions, and an increase in trade as well as many other changes. Immigration was a huge deal in the 1800's, as immigrants were very helpful. Immigrants had helped to propel the economy by labor, signaling a change in American life and American values, but they were not values that the US wanted. Urban growth had been spurred by immigrants, as one-third of Americans had become city dwellers by the late 1800's. This change had cause many problems, such as overburdened transportation systems, inadequate sanitation, rising crime, substandard housing, and politicol corruption. Manufacturing had also become a huge thing that contributed to the transformation of America in the 1800's. Manufacturing had overtaken agriculture as the main source of agricultural wealth, and many immigrants had worked in manufacturing plants in urban areas. Another transformer of America was new inventions in the 19th century, including electricity, chemicals, and new machinery. These inventions made it possible for new industries in the US. The new machinery made rapid inroads in the countryside because farmers relied on railroads to receive supplies and ship their crops to market. Farm machinery also started to replace human and animal labor in the fields. Lastly, trade was another change that had transformed the United States in the 19th century. International trade gained importance in the US economy near the end of the century. During this time the advances in transportation and machine-assisted farming had been a beneficial factor for the US. Big businesses gained political power as small farmers were increasingly sidelined.

3. The economic depression which started in 1893 had deepened the divisions in American society, as city dwellers worried about insecurity, laborers worried about losing their jobs, plant owners had worried about losing profits, and the income of farmers had slumped more than before the depression. I think that farmers suffered the most during the depression, as a slump in income had started in 1888, and the depression of 1893 had just worsened the slump.

4. The values that many Americans had attached to the frontier included resourcefulness, bravery, pragmatism, ingenuity, individualism, egalitarianism, and patriotism. Many Americans feared that the closing of the frontier would harm American's national character because the identity they had attached to the frontier seemed to be in jeopardy.

5. Some businessmen and politicians believed that overseas expansion would fuel economic growth. They saw that there could be an outlet overseas for the surplus of American products. American leaders had feared that if the US didn't follow suit, that competing powers would prevent the US from accessing the Chinese market.

6. Expansionists urged that acquiring a few strategic ports to service American ships and to open doors to foreign markets was sufficient, while imperialists wanted the United States to build a sizeable overseas empire in which the United States would conquer and rule over strategic foreign territories and nations, which would enable the United States to secure export markets, raw materials, and cheap labor.

7. Social Darwinism had lent support to imperialism as Social Darwinists had claimed that the "success" of western Europeans was a result of their being more suited to positions of power than other races and cultures, which reflected from Darwin's theory of "survival of the fittest". Scientific racism had also lent support to imperialism with social Darwinism as they affirmed the view that the US and a handful of European nations were destined by nature to dominate the world. America's leaders accepted the conclusions of scientific racism, and most of Americans seldom questioned its basic principles. Social Darwinism and scientific racism have been used since the late 1800's and are still widely used today.

8. Many Protestant churches suggested that he role of Americans in the world should be to "lift up" the "downtrodden" of other nations.

9. The United States had become more involved in Latin American nations in the 19th century because military leaders had hoped that the US could stabilize any quarrelsome nations so American commerce and influence could travel safely across the seas. The US had become involved in Samoa by a treaty in 1878 which promised American assistance in case of foreign interference in Samoa, a group of tiny Pacific islands, in return for free access to Samoa's harbor. As Germany and Britain worked to take over parts of Samoa, the US sent weapons and warships. In the end, portions of Samoa became an American territory. Then, in 1897, the US government tried to restrict Japanese immigration in Hawaii. Japan sent a message telling the US not to, and, knowing those Japanese immigrants would gain power on the islands and begin to demand rights not too far in the future, President McKinley put forward a resolution to annex Hawaii. Along with these 2 interventions, the US also intervened in a revolution in Chile in 1891 and in the Brazilian revolution in 1894. From 1893 to 1895, the US also negotiated with many different groups in Nicaragua.

10. The US was concerned about British involvement in Venezuela because Britain was bullying Venezuela, which shared a border with the British colony of Guiana. American was concerned that if Britain was to carve up Latin America for colonies like they had recently done in Africa, that it would prevent the US from expanding its own commercial ties to Latin America. U.S. Secretary of State, Richard Olney, had invoked in response that "Today the Unites States is practically sovereign on this continent, and its fiat is law....".

Spanish-American War (1898)

Causes: How did each of the following help to cause the outbreak of the Spanish-American War?

1. American business owners- they had been sympathetic towards Cuba due to their ideas of rebellion, which caused Spain to become angry with America

2. José Martí- helped to cause the outbreak of the Spanish-American War by organizing Cuban resistance against Spain, and by deliberately destroying American property (mostly sugar mills and plantations)

3. Valeriano Weyler- went to Cuba to restore order, and had set up concentration camps where about 300,000 Cubans were held so they could no longer aid rebels, and many ended up dying from hunger and disease

4. Yellow journalism- by exaggerating the news in newpapers, yellow journalism had lured and enraged readers, had tightened hostility between the countries

5. De Lôme letter- a private letter which a Cuban rebel had leaked to the newspapers. This letter had criticized President McKinley, calling him weak and "a bidder for the admiration of the crowd". Although the Spanish government had apologized, Americans were still angry over the insult to their president

6. U.S.S. Maine- the USS Maine was a boat that was sent to Cuba to bring home American citizens in danger from the fighting and to protect American property. On Feb 15, 1898 the ship blew up in the harbor of Havana, and no one had know why it blew up, so they blamed it on the Spaniards, giving the US government a reason to declare war against the unprepared Spanish army.

Effects: What happened to each of the following territories as a result of the Spanish-American War?

7. Cuba- Cuba was freed by Spain in the Treaty of Paris (1898)

8. Puerto Rico- Puerto Rico was turned over to the Americans in the Treaty of Paris (1898)

9. Guam- Guam, too had been turned over to the Americans as a result of the Spanish-American War

10. Philippine Islands- The Philippine Islands had been sold by Spain to the United States for $20 million

TR's Square Deal

1. How did Roosevelt create the modern presidency?

Roosevelt's strong leadership skills and bold publicity campaigns were the main things that were helpful in creating the modern presidency, as he became a model to future presidents. Roosevelt, unlike previous presidents, used his personality and popularity to advance his programs.

2. How did Roosevelt's intervention in a coal strike set a precedent for federal arbitration?

In 1902, 140 thousand coal miners went on a strike. Roosevelt thought it necessary to intervene, and with that thought, he called both sides to a meeting to deal with the strike, and an agreement came to be, where the miners received a 10% pay increase and a shorter workday of 9 hours. This action of Roosevelt set a precedent for federal arbitration as it soon became that the federal government was expected to intervene when a strike began to threaten the public welfare.

3. What did Roosevelt do to the trusts and railroads?

During his presidency, Roosevelt affected both trusts and railroads significantly. In 1902, he ordered the Justice Department to sure the Northern Securities Company, which had established a monopoly over railroads. Roosevelt had sought to curb the actions of those that hurt the public interest. Then in 1903, Roosevelt had helped to create the Elkins Act which made it illegal for railroad officials to give, and shippers to receive, rebates for using particular railroads. In 1906, he had to compromise with conservative senators who opposed the Hepburn Act, which strictly limited the distribution of free railroad passes, but its passage boosted the government's power to regulate the railroads.

4. What did legislation pass during Roosevelt's presidency that protected citizens?

Both the Meat Inspection Act and The Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 protected citizens. The Meat Inspection Act protected citizens, as it gave the federal government the duty to inspect meat factories to insure quality meat every so often, which woul help to prevent citizens from getting sick from rancid meat. The Pure Food and Drug Act protected citizens, because it halted the sale of contaminate foods and medicines and called for the truth in labeling, which prevented people from getting sick or dying from food or medicines containing fatal ingredients.

5. What did Roosevelt do to protect the environment?

Advised by John Muir, Roosevelt set aside 148 million acres of land of forest reserves, and he also set aside 1.5 million acres of water-power sites and another 80 million acres of land that US Geological Survey would explore for mineral and water resources. He also established more than 50 wildlife sanctuaries and several national parks. He did all of this becayse he believed that America's resources were endless. All of this was very helpful in preserving and protecting the environment.