Unit 7 : 1898 - 1945 Flashcards
What is imperialism?
the expansion of one country’s political, economic, and military influence over another country
What happened around the purchase of Alaska? Who competed with the US for this land? What did people think of Alaska?
Purchase of Alaska in 1867:
- Russia and Britain lay competing claims to this territory
- William Seward, who is Lincoln, and then Johnson’s secretary of state proposed a purchase of the territory for 7.2 million
- act named “Seward’s Folly” because the territory was viewed as a polar icebox with no particular value, until gold was discovered in 1898
What occurred as a result of sudden interest in Alaska after gold was discovered?
- imperial expansion seemed more desirable
- two opposing sides emerged
Who were Imperialists? What ideologies emerged from them? Who were the people who represented these emerging ideologies?
- ideology: if there were valuable raw materials in Alaska, they might be in other places as well, so they could take them
- new markets for American-made goods, both manufactured and agricultural
- SOCIAL DARWINISM: if they did not join the race for influence, they might be seen as a second class nation
- Racial Motivations:
– JOSIAH STRONG: wrote book (Our Country: It’s Possible Future and Present Crisis, published in 1885)
– strongly argued that the white Anglo Saxon race was the pinnacle of human evolution, and therefore was the fittest to survive
– Christian Duty: bring the glories of Christianity and Western Civilization to the “dark and backward” lands of the world
– ALFRED THAYER MOHAN: another book writer (Influence of Sea Power on History)
– argued the world stage get that way because of robust navy
– only way to secure foreign markets
– Congress approved the construction of a massive new steel fleet of ships
– race began to secure Pacific and Caribbean territories that could facilitate American naval dominance
Who were Anti - Imperialists? What ideologies emerged from them? Who were the people who represented these emerging ideologies?
- ideology: self determination for nations
– nations should decide for themselves who ruled it and what laws were passed
– what colonial Americans used to reject British rule - America had a long history of isolationism from foreign affairs and Washington had warned against foreign entanglements
- would have consequences beyond their control (wars, economic disputes)
- Racial Arguments: did the constitution follow the flag? do the countries they colonize and the people living there become American Citizens with right?
- Anti-Imperialists BELIEVED it SHOULD be like this
- BUT this was a ruse to hide the true intentions to prevent expansion and giving rights to other nations, so might as well not expand at all
What is the context of Cuba during this period? How was the US involved in any of this? What emerged in Journalism?
- Industrialists and Imperialists wanted to expand
- one of the nations being Cuba
- Cuba at this time was a Spanish Imperial Colony
- in 1895 Cuba nationalism fought against Spain BUT Spanish crushed the rebellion
- YELLOW JOURNALISM: group of journalists competing to get greater readership under competing leadership
Who were Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst?
- contributed significantly to Yellow Journalism
- got peoples attention through stories that were on the edge of truth
- began publishing stories with exaggerated atrocities committed by the Spanish against the Cubans
– “America MUST intervene in Cuba because it is the only Humanitarian thing to do”
What happened after the US got involved in Cuba, before war?
- US established naval presence on the island
– in 1898, one of the American Battleships (the USS Maine) exploded in Havana Harbor, killing over 200 Americans - Yellow Journalist claimed it was ignited by Spanish
– found to be accidental, but did not matter to Yellow Journalist - McKinley issued an ultimatum to Spain: back off or we go to war
– Spain AGREED
– America still declared war
– US WON SPANISH AMERICAN WAR
What happened to US after the Spanish American War?
What about Cuba?
- launched US into imperial game
- Cuba gained independence as a result, but severely qualified by the PLATT AMENDMENT
– America insisted it to be included in the Cuban constitution
– allowed America to intervene militarily in Cuba if economy was threatened - made it hard for Cubans to establish own foreign policy
What happened with annexation of the Philippines? When did the US become interested and took action to take it? What did this interest result?
- also taken from Spain
- before the Spanish America war was even over, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, Theodore Roosevelt sent Navy to Philippines and began attack on Spanish fleets there
- Allied Filipino nationalists for land invasion
- overthrew Spain with the treaty that ended the Spanish American War at the same time
– Philippines ceded to US for $20 million
What did the Filipinos think about the US throughout the annexation process? How did it change? What did this result in?
- Filipinos believed US was helping them achieve independence BUT soon realized US true intentions of colonizing them
- EMILIO AGUINALDO: leader of the war against US rule
- war lasted 3 years, with smaller conflicts stretching out to 10 years
- BUT US held Philippines until after WWII
What was the problem with colonizing Philippines? What solution did the US find?
- only problem: Philippines was really far away from US
- BUT halfway between was Hawaii (this became the solution… eventual annexation of Hawaii in 1898)
What was a significant foreign policy the US had achieved earlier in this period? Which nations were involved and in what ways?
OPEN DOOR POLICY:
- due to industrial strength of Europeans, China was taken over economically and carved up into EUROPEAN SPHERES OF INFLUENCE
- John Hay (McKinleys secretary of state) saw economic opportunities in China disappearing, so he took action
- OPEN DOOR NOTE to European powers in China
– was ignored but not rejected
What were Progressive causes (problems they saw) to take action?
- growing power of big businesses
- uncertainties in the economy
- increasingly violent conflicts between labor groups and their employees
- political machine power
- Jim Crow segregation in the South
- Lack of Women’s suffrage
- alcohol
Who did the Progressives consist of? What was their ideal?
- diverse group of people
– protestant church leaders, feminists, labor union leaders, African Americans, etc
WHAT THEY AGREED ON DESPITE BEING PROGRESSIVES FOR DIVERSE REASON: - “society on some lever was deteriorating, and the only cure was significant gov. intervention”
- moving out of laissez faire capitalism
