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Alaska had been the subject of dispute between Great Britain and Russia. Russia began seeking buyers and in 1867, Congress agreed to purchase Alaska for $7.2 million. It would take many years for the U.S to see the value in Alaska, however.
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Mahan was an advocate of imperialism. In this book, he claimed that countries with sea power were the great nations of history. He also believed that America should acquire defensive bases in the Caribbean and Pacific, and take possession of the Pacific islands like Hawaii.
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American settlers aided in the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarch, Queen Liliuokalani.
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Cuban nationalists adopted the strategy of sabotaging and laying waste Cuban plantations in order to either force Spain's withdrawal or involve the U.S in their revolution.
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The outbreak of war and fight for the Philippines gave Congress and President McKinley the pretext to complete annexation in 1898.
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A letter written by the Spanish minister to the U.S that was highly critical to President McKinley. Many considered it an official Spanish insult against the U.S national honor.
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U.S battleship, the Maine, exploded in Havana, Cuba.
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This war message included four reasons for the U.S to intervene in the Cuban revolution on behalf of the rebels.
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Was apart of the joint resolution following Mckinley's war message. Declared that the U.S had no intention of taking political control of Cuba and that the Cuban people could control their own government once peace was restored.
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Commodore Dewey's fleet opened fire on Spanish ships in the Manila Bay.
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Roosevelt's regiment of volunteers, the Rough Riders, took charge of San Juan Hill in Cuba.
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Americans declared war on Spain after the ship Maine exploded in Havana's Harbor. The war was also caused by Americans' desire to expand as well as the harsh treatment that the Spanish had over the Cubans.
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The U.S brought Emilio Aguinaldo, a Filipino independence leader, back to the Philippines from exile to undermine Spanish rule and declare Filipino independence, leading to war.
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This war convinced American leaders of the need to prepare the island archipelago for eventual self-government.
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Hawaiian islands became a territory of the U.S.
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To protect American lives and property, U.S troops participated in an international force that marched into Beijing and quickly succeeded in crushing the rebellion of the Boxers. China was forced to pay a huge sum in indemnities, which further weakened the imperial regime.
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Theodore Roosevelt coined the phrase “Speak softly and carry a big stick.” The "big stick" symbolizes his power and readiness to use military force if necessary. It is a way of intimidating countries without actually harming them.
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Diplomatic agreement of 1901 that permitted the United states to build and fortify a Central American canal alone, without British involvement.
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Another application to Roosevelt's big-stick diplomacy involved Latin American nations that were in deep financial trouble and could not pay their debts to European creditors. An example of this happened in 1904 when Roosevelt declared that the U.S would intervene instead of the Europeans in Santo Domingo. Aka the Roosevelt Corollary.
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Agreement between the U.S and Japan. Exchanged notes pledging for mutual respect for each nation's Pacific possessions, and support for the Open Door policy in China.
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Taft tested his policy by investing in railroads in China. He believed that private American financial investment in China would lead to greater stability there while promoting U.S business interests at the same time.
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To protect American investments, the U.S intervened in Nicaragua's financial affairs and sent in marines.
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Finished being constructed in 1914, as a result of the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty.
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An arrest of American sailors by the Mexican government that spurred Woodrow Wilson to dispatch the American navy to seize the port of Veracruz.
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A Serbian terrorist assassinates Austrian Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife, which is one event that led to WWI.
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Torpedoing and sinking of a British passenger liner, most passengers drowned including 128 Americans, Wilson responded by sending "strict accountability" message to Germany, WBJ resigned as Secretary of State.
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GB, as an ally of France, declares war on Germany, which also led to WW1.
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As Austria's ally, the German gov't under Kaiser Wilhelm I declares war against Russia, an ally of Serbia. Also led to WW1.
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Germany declares war against France, an ally of Russia, and immediately begins an invasion of neutral Belgium bc it offers the fastest route to Paris. Also led to WW1.
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Two more Americans lost their lives at sea, another passenger ship, Wilson's note of protest prevailed when Germany pledged no other unarmed passenger ships would be sunk without warning
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President Wilson ordered General John J Pershing to pursue Pancho Villa into Mexico. This expeditionary force was in northern Mexico for months w/o being able to capture Villa.
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Germany broke its promise, a torpedo struck an unarmed merchant ship, Wilson threatened to cut off US diplomatic relations with Germany, Germany backed down again, promised not to sink merchant or passenger ships without due warning
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A nationwide fear of communists, socialists, anarchists, and other dissidents suddenly grabbed the American psyche in 1919 following a series of anarchist bombings. The nation was gripped in fear. Innocent people were jailed for expressing their views (Palmer raids), civil liberties were ignored, and many Americans feared that a Bolshevik-style revolution was at hand. Then, in the early 1920s, the fear seemed to dissipate just as quickly as it had begun, and the Red Scare was over.
