-
purchase of Alaska
expanded the territory of the country at a reasonable price. -
Blaine and the Pan-American Conference
Representatives from various nations of the Western Hemisphere decided to create a permanent organization for international cooperation on trade and other issues. -
The Influence of Sea Power published
a revolutionary analysis of the importance of naval power as a factor in the rise of the British Empire. -
Cuban Revolt
Cuban nationalists fighting to overthrow
Spanish colonial rule -
De Lome Letter
a Spanish diplomat's letter that was leaked to the press and printed on the front page of Hearst's Journal -
Sinking of the Maine
the U.S. battleship Maine was at anchor in the harbor of Havana, Cuba, when it suddenly exploded, killing 260 Americans on board. -
McKinley's War Message
President McKinley issued an ultimatum to Spain demanding that it agree to a ceasefire in Cuba. -
Teller Amendment
declared that the United States had no intention of taking political control of Cuba and that, once peace was restored to the island, the Cuban people would control their own government. -
Commodore Dewey's fleet fired on Spanish ships in Manila Bay
The Spanish fleet was soon pounded into sub-
mission by U.S. naval guns. -
U.S. troops captured the city of Manila
while America was allied with Filipino rebels -
overthrow of the Hawaiian monarch
Expansionists coveted the islands and American settlers aided in the overthrow -
The Hawaiian islands became a territory of the United States
under Congress and President McKinley; final territory annexed for the US -
Election of 1900
With growing national economic prosperity, the electorate gave McKinley a larger margin of victory than in 1896. -
Boxer Rebellion
To protect American lives and property, U.S. troops participated in an international force that marched into Peking (Beijing) and quickly crushed the rebellion of the Boxers. The countries forced China to pay a huge sum in indemnities, which further weakened the imperial regime. -
Hay's Second Round of Notes
to the imperialistic powers stating U.S. commitment to (1) preserve China's territorial integrity as well as (2) safeguard "equal and impartial trade with all parts of the Chinese empire." -
Cuba and the Platt Amendment
In effect, the Platt Amendment made Cuba a U.S. protectorate. As a result, Cuba's foreign policy would, for many years, be subject to U.S. oversight and control. -
Revolution in Panama
With the support of the U.S. Navy, the rebellion succeeded immediately and almost without bloodshed. -
Start of building the Panama Canal
Hundreds of laborers lost their lives in the effort. The work was completed thanks in great measure to the skills of two Army colonels. George Goethals, the chief engineer of the canal, and Dr. William Gorgas, whose efforts eliminated the mosquitoes that spread deadly yellow fever. -
Russo-Japanese War
Imperialist rivalry between Russia and Japan led to
war in 1904, a war Japan was winning. -
Dollar Diplomacy
From 1909 to 1913, President William Howard Taft and Secretary of State Philander C. Knox followed a foreign policy characterized as “dollar diplomacy.” -
Panama Canal was completed
Hundreds of laborers lost their lives in the effort. -
Lusitania Crisis
The first major crisis challenging U.S. neutrality -
Arabic Sinking
a German submarine attack on another passenger ship -
Pancho Villa raids
assaults on American citizens and territory provoked a US expedition into Mexico -
Sussex Sinking
a German torpedo struck an unarmed merchant ship, injuring several American passengers. Wilson threatened to cut off U.S. diplomatic relations with Germany -
U.S. declaration of war
President Woodrow Wilson went before a joint session of Congress to request a declaration of war against Germany -
Zimmermann Telegram
a secret diplomatic communication issued from the German Foreign Office that proposed a military alliance between Germany and Mexico. -
Russian Revolution
Russian revolutionaries overthrew the czar's government and proclaimed a republic. -
Schenck v. United States
a landmark United States Supreme Court case concerning enforcement of the Espionage Act of 1917 during World War I. -
The Red Scare
the country suffered from a volatile combination of unhappiness with the peace process, fears of communism fueled by the Communist takeover in Russia, and worries about labor unrest at home. -
Congress voted to pay Colombia an indemnity
To compensate for their loss of Panama -
The Hawaiian islands became a state
became the fiftieth and final state in the Union -
invasion of Cuba
Without a navy, Spain realized that it could not continue fighting, and in early August 1898 asked for U.S. terms of peace.
