1854-1898

  • USA tries to buy Cuba

    The Ostend Manifesto, also known as the Ostend Circular, was a document written in 1854 that described the rationale for the United States to purchase Cuba from Spain while implying that the U.S. should declare war if Spain refused. Cuba's annexation had long been a goal of U.S. slaveholding expansionists
  • Cubans fight for freedom

    On October 10, 1868, Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, an educated, wealthy lawyer, sugar mill and slave owner, called for an uprising against Spanish colonial rule, the “Grito de Yara” (Cry of Yara), otherwise known as the “declaration of rebellion."
  • Jose Marti lead the second war

    In 1895 the Cuban patriot and revolutionary, José Martí, resumed the Cuban struggle for freedom that had failed during the Ten Years' War (1868-1878). Cuban juntas provided leadership and funds for the military operations conducted in Cuba.
  • Valeriano Weyler sent to the US

    As a result, Cuban Nationalists, who wanted to end Spanish rule, fought the Ten Years' War against the Spaniards from 1868-1878. In 1896, the Spanish sent the infamous General Weyler, known as "The Butcher," to Cuba to put down the insurrection. Weyler lived up to his name.
  • De Lome letter

    The de Lôme letter, a note written by Señor Don Enrigue Dupuy de Lôme, the Spanish Ambassador to the United States, to Don José Canelejas, the Foreign Minister of Spain, reveals de Lôme's opinion about the Spanish involvement in Cuba and President McKinley's diplomacy
  • Uss Maine Explosion

    USS Maine was a United States Navy ship that sank in Havana Harbor in February 1898, contributing to the outbreak of the Spanish–American War in April. American newspapers, engaging in yellow journalism to boost circulation, claimed that the Spanish were responsible for the ship's destruction.
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    U.S.A. invades Cuba

    Hostilities began in the aftermath of the internal explosion of USS Maine in Havana Harbor in Cuba, leading to U.S. intervention in the Cuban War of Independence.
  • U.S.A. Attack on Manila Bay

    The Battle of Manila Bay, also known as the Battle of Cavite, took place on 1 May 1898, during the Spanish–American War. The American Asiatic Squadron under Commodore George Dewey engaged and destroyed the Spanish Pacific Squadron under Contraalmirante Patricio Montojo
  • Navel Blockade of Cuba

    As early as March 23, 1898, Secretary of the Navy John D. Long produced a plan to close the ports along the western half of Cuba's northern coast. Sampson's squadron began the process of implementing the blockade on April 22 when his ships sailed from Key Est, Florida for Cuba.
  • U.S.A. Declaring war on Spain

    On April 25, 1898 the United States declared war on Spain following the sinking of the Battleship Maine in Havana harbor on February 15, 1898. The war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898.
  • Battle of San Juan Hill

    The Battle of San Juan Hill, also known as the Battle for the San Juan Heights, was a major battle of the Spanish–American War fought between an American force under the command of William Rufus Shafter and Joseph Wheeler against a Spanish force led by Arsenio Linares y Pombo.
  • Destruction of the Spanish Fleet in Cuba

    Superior naval gunnery and seamanship prevailed, and the entire Spanish fleet was sunk with minimal casualties for the Americans, who suffered only two men killed or wounded. The Americans pulled a total of 1889 Spanish sailors from the water, among them Cervera.
  • Spanish surrender the Philippines

    After isolating and defeating the Spanish Army garrisons in Cuba, the U.S. Navy destroyed the Spanish Caribbean squadron on July 3 as it attempted to escape the U.S. naval blockade of Santiago. ... Spain also agreed to sell the Philippines to the United States for the sum of $20 million.
  • Armistice is Signed between U.S and Spain

    The United States declared war on April 25. ... In Puerto Rico, Spanish forces likewise crumbled in the face of superior U.S. forces, and on August 12 an armistice was signed between Spain and the United States. On December 10, the Treaty of Paris officially ended the Spanish-American War
  • Treaty of Paris

    The Treaty of Paris of 1898 was a treaty signed by Spain and the United States on December 10, 1898, that ended the Spanish–American War. Under it, Spain relinquished all claim of sovereignty over and title to Cuba and also ceded Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines to the United States.
  • Yellow Press

    Yellow journalism and yellow press are American terms for journalism and associated newspapers that present little or no legitimate, well-researched news while instead using eye-catching headlines for increased sales. Techniques may include exaggerations of news events, scandal-mongering, or sensationalism.
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    Capture of Puerto Rico

    They reached their goal in 1897; however, a year later, Spain ceded the island to the United States under the provisions of the 1898 Treaty of Paris, which ended the Spanish-American War. In 1917, Puerto Rico became a U.S. territory and its people became U.S. citizens.