COURSEBOOK
Tiffany West with Digital access
SAMPLE
1.1
2.1
3.1
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How to use this series
This suite of resources supports learners and teachers following the Cambridge International AS Level US History since 1877 syllabus (8102). The components in the series are designed to work together and help learners develop the necessary knowledge and skills for studying History.
The Coursebook is designed for learners to use in class with guidance from the teacher. It offers coverage of the AS Level US History since 1877 syllabus. Each chapter contains explanations, definitions and a variety of activities and questions to engage learners and develop their historical skills.
The Teacher’s Resource is the foundation of this series. It offers inspiring ideas about how to teach this course including teaching notes, how to avoid common misconceptions, suggestions for differentiation, formative assessment and language support, answers and extra materials such as worksheets and historical sources.
How to use this book
This book contains a number of features to help you in your study.
KEY QUESTIONS
Each chapter begins with Key questions that briefly set out the topics you should understand once you have completed the chapter.
Timeline
The timeline at the start of each chapter provides a visual guide to the key events which happened during the years covered by the topic.
GETTING STARTED
Getting started activities will help you think what you already know about the topic of the chapter.
ACTIVITY
Activities are a mixture of individual, pair and group tasks to help you develop your skills and practise applying your understanding of a topic. Some activities use sources to help you practise your skills in analysis.
KEY TERM
Key terms are important terms in the topic you are learning. They are highlighted in bold where they first appear in the text, and definitions are given in the Key terms boxes. All of the key terms are included in the glossary at the end of the book.
KEY CONCEPT
Key concept boxes contain questions that help you develop a conceptual understanding of History, start to make judgements based on your knowledge and understanding, and think about how the different topics you study are connected.
KEY FIGURE
Key figure boxes highlight important historical figures that you need to remember, and briefly explain what makes them a key figure.
Reflection
Reflection boxes give you the opportunity to think about how you approach certain activities, and how you might improve this in the future.
Practice questions
These questions, written by the authors, help you prepare for assessment by writing longer answers.
Improve this answer
These sample answers to some of the practice questions are, accompanied by notes on what works well and how they could be improved. After reading the comments, you are challenged to write a better answer to the question.
The answers and the commentary are written by the authors.
SAMPLE
Tips are included in the Preparing for assessment chapter. These give advice on important things to remember and what to avoid doing when revising.
SELF-EVALUATION CHECKLIST
Each chapter ends with a checklist of the main points covered in that topic, and gives you space to think about how confident you are with these points.
You should be able to:
Needs more workAlmost thereReady to move on
TIP
SAMPLE
Chapter 2 American Imperialism, the First World War, and the 1920s
KEY QUESTIONS
This chapter will help you to answer these questions:
• What were the causes and consequences of US territorial expansion in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries?
• Why did the US enter the First World War and how did the war impact Americans?
• What were the causes and impacts of economic and cultural changes in the 1920s?
Jan 1893 Overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom
Jul 1845 The term “Manifest Destiny” is first used
Jun 1890 The US census concludes that the western frontier has been settled
Dec 1904 Roosevelt Corollary
Sep 1901 Theodore Roosevelt becomes president
Mar 1904–Aug 1914
The construction of the Panama Canal
Apr–Dec 1898
Spanish–American War
GETTING STARTED
Jan 1917 Zimmermann Telegram
Mar 1913 Woodrow Wilson becomes president
Jul 1914 First World War begins
Apr 1917 US enters the First World War
May 1918 Sedition Act
Mar 1919
Mar 1909
William Howard Taft becomes president
Jun 1917 Espionage Act
Mar 1917 Jones Act
Mar 1921 Warren
G. Harding becomes president
Decision in Schenck v. United States
Jul–Aug 1919 “Red Summer” race riots
Jan 1919–Jan 1920 Paris Peace Conference
Aug 1923
Jun 1924 Snyder Act
SAMPLE
Jul 1925 Scopes trial
Calvin Coolidge becomes president
1 Working in pairs, think about the possible reasons that a nation might get involved in other parts of the world. Make a list of the possible reasons.
2 Next, pair up with the pair next to you and choose the most important reason from your combined lists.
3 Individually, answer the following question: Do you agree or disagree with your group’s decision? Why?
Introduction
In the period from around 1890 to 1929, the US continued to undergo widespread changes, as it had during the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. Beginning in the middle of the nineteenth century, the US had first expanded rapidly across the continent, and then grown both its territorial and global influence by acquiring control over areas in the Caribbean and the Pacific. The US also become increasingly more involved in the affairs of nearby nations. Its participation in the First World War forced the country to transform its economy and society to meet the needs of the war efforts, with both positive and negative outcomes. The US also underwent economic and social transformations that reshaped it into a “modern” nation during the 1920s, while facing serious cultural challenges such as racism, nativism, and organized crime.
KEY TERMS
Racism: a belief that one race is superior to others; prejudice based on race that leads to discrimination.
Nativism: the promotion of the interests of a people born in a country (the “native-born”) over the interests of immigrants; this may also include anti-immigrant attitudes.
2.1 What were the causes and consequences of US territorial expansion in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries?
The US has a history of rapid territorial growth. Soon after the end of the American Revolution in 1783, the US expanded its territorial borders to stretch across the Ohio River valley and beyond. In 1803, the nation doubled its territory, through the “Louisiana Purchase” of roughly 530 00 000 acres of land from France for $15 million. The 1836 rebellion of Texas from Mexico also gave the US more western land when Texas became a state in 1845. In turn, this helped contribute to the outbreak of the Mexican–American War, which lasted from 1846 to 1848. As a result, the US gained nearly 55% of Mexico’s holdings, including areas in present-day California, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, and Colorado. The war also resulted in the setting of the Rio Grande as the southern border of the US. Other areas were either purchased from other nations or, as in the case of the Red River basin and the Oregon territory, claimed through treaty with Britain.
Economic, cultural, and nationalist motivations for territorial acquisitions
There were many different factors that caused the US to expand its territory. Some were economic, like the desire to trade. Others were driven by cultural trends and ideas, including pride in the American lifestyle and its system of government.
Manifest Destiny, the closing of the frontier, and the impact of the idea of the “white man’s burden”
In the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries, the level of global influence that the US possessed continued to grow due to territorial expansion beyond its continental borders. This trend of territorial expansion and increased influence is sometimes called American imperialism. This was a shift away from the
isolationist foreign policy followed by the US for much of its history up to that point.
KEY TERMS
American imperialism: the economic, military, and cultural influence of the US on other parts of the world.
Isolationist: remaining apart from the affairs of other nations.
SAMPLE
Multiple ideas helped to drive US territorial expansion. One was the idea of Manifest Destiny, which had helped drive much of the early territorial expansion of the US. This was the widespread belief that the US was destined to control the lands stretching from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, that this expansion was inevitable, and
Figure 2.1: A map of US westward expansion, 1789–1898
that the US had a duty to spread its Christian values and democratic culture. American settlers quickly moved into newly acquired areas. Then, the 1890 census (a detailed survey administered by the US government) revealed that the US had settled much of the land stretching from the east coast to the Pacific Ocean. This led historian Frederick Jackson Turner to argue that the frontier was closed, and that there was very little undeveloped land left in the continental US.
This was another idea that helped fuel expansion. Turner’s 1892 essay “The Significance of the Frontier in American History” (also called the “frontier thesis”) maintained that the process of settling the west had greatly influenced American culture and success. He credited the taming of the frontier with shaping individualism, strength, and ambition, and also thought that it served as a way to unite people across class lines and prevent the sorts of class conflicts seen in Europe. When combined with Manifest Destiny, the idea that the frontier was closed created the need to seek expansion opportunities abroad in order to find a replacement for the now-closed western frontier.
KEY TERMS
Manifest Destiny: the idea that the US was destined by a divine power to spread democracy and capitalism across the entire North American continent.
Frontier: unsettled land; in US history, it is typically viewed as the western areas before settlement.
KEY TERMS
Nationalism: loyalty and devotion to one’s nation; support for the political independence of a nation or people.
SAMPLE
As a result of these ideas, an aggressive nationalism developed, and many Americans believed that the country had a responsibility to spread its Christian values and democratic form of government to other places. This was part of a larger idea shared by other imperial nations, such as Britain and France, called the “white man’s burden” or the “civilizing mission.” This was the idea that white, Christian, industrialized nations had a responsibility to share democratic values, establish a trade-based economy, and teach Christianity to places around the world that lacked these characteristics. Nations acquiring new territories often argued that the acquired population needed to go through the process of becoming a democracy in order to protect the people from harm and to improve their quality of life.
"White man’s burden": belief that white races had a responsibility to impose their civilization, including industry, commerce, and Christianity, on non-white peoples across the world.
Civilizing mission: the idea that colonization was part of a mission to ‘civilize’ native peoples in other parts of the world.
In 1900, President William McKinley gave a speech explaining why the US had decided to annex the Philippines. In it, you can see the ideas of the white man’s burden or the civilizing mission at work.
When I realized that the Philippines had dropped into our lap, I confess I did not know what to do with them … and late one night it came to me …:
1 That we could not give them back to Spain— that would be cowardly and dishonorable.
2 That we could not turn them over to France or Germany, our commercial rivals … that would be bad business and discreditable.
3 That we could not leave them to themselves— they were unfit for self-government, and they would soon have anarchy and misrule worse than Spain’s was, and
4 That there was nothing left for us to do but to take them all, and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and civilize them …
“Interview with President McKinley,” The Christian Advocate, 1903
Need for new markets and resources
The US economy experienced a period of rapid growth in the late-nineteenth century (see Chapter 1) that led it to produce more coal, steel, and cotton than many of its European rivals by 1900. Despite this success, the US economy faced challenges from being over-reliant on a domestic market. Since American businesses sold their products mostly within the US, it made them vulnerable to instability caused by irresponsible borrowing of
money from banks and speculation. Business owners would take out large loans, and then the businesses would be unsuccessful, leading them to be unable to pay their loans, which led to the destruction of the banks they borrowed from.
Business failures and bank failures led to widespread unemployment, which restricted the ability of American people to buy goods. Therefore, some American businesses felt they needed to look for new markets abroad to sell their goods. The markets in Europe, however, were limited for American businesses. European countries practiced protectionism, which made it very difficult for American manufacturers to sell to European markets. The US also faced increased European competition for trade in South American countries. These obstacles led US investors and businesses to believe that their best option would be expansion into regions like Asia, and island areas in the Pacific Ocean and in the Latin America Caribbean. This would allow them to access markets and resources that they currently lacked.
KEY TERMS
Domestic market: the number of customers that may buy a given product within a single country.
Protectionism: government policies that restrict certain parts of international trade in order to help industries within their own country.
The Hawaiian government experienced instability in the 1880s, with a rebellion in 1887. This rebellion, led by a group of non-Hawaiians, overthrew the government and drafted a new constitution that altered voting rights by disenfranchising much of the native population while benefitting foreign landowners. When the king of Hawaii died in 1891, his sister Lili’uokalani took control. At the time, Hawaii was in the middle of an economic crisis. All taxes on sugar imports into the US had been removed, which eliminated any benefits of the Reciprocity Treaty. Queen Lili’uokalani tried to alter the constitution to reduce the power of foreign landowners and increase the power of the monarchy. This led to the 1893 overthrow of her leadership by a group of 13 businessmen that called themselves the Committee of Safety. With the support of the US navy, but not the support of the US president, who was largely unaware of their plans, this overthrow succeeded, forcing the surrender of the Queen. The businessmen then appointed a government that would eventually be called the Republic of Hawaii. Upon hearing of the overthrow of the Queen, President Grover Cleveland ordered an investigation into the surrender. The investigation concluded that the Hawaiian people had only submitted to the overthrow because they feared a war with the US, and that their surrender had only been temporary. President Cleveland announced that the US had committed acts of war again Hawaii. Their ultimate goal was to make Hawaii a part of the US. Hawaii was officially annexed by the US in 1898, and in 1900, its residents were granted American citizenship.
KEY TERMS
SAMPLE
The US’s relationship and eventual control of the Kingdom of Hawaii demonstrates the importance of the economic and military motivations driving American expansion. The Kingdom of Hawaii was a series of islands in the Pacific Ocean. The US had recognized Hawaiian independence in 1846, and sugar quickly became one of the primary products the US acquired there. The Kingdom of Hawaii and the US often argued about taxes on sugar produced there. Hawaii wanted to pay a lower tariff on its sugar exports into the US, or to at least have a similar tariff placed on US imports to Hawaii. The two nations eventually agreed to a Reciprocity Treaty in 1875 that allowed tariffs to be equal between Hawaii and the US for seven years in exchange for the US acquisition of Ford Island, which was located in Pearl Harbor. The US wanted to build a naval base at Pearl Harbor, which many Hawaiians opposed.
Tariff: a tax on a product brought into a country to sell (imports) or sent out to other countries to sell (exports).
Disenfranchising: denying a person or a group the right to vote.
American citizenship: legal status that grants a person with specific rights, protections, duties, and benefits in the US; this can be obtained through birth in the US or through the process of naturalization.
KEY FIGURE
Queen Lili’uokalani (1838–1917)
Lili’uokalani was the first and only Hawaiian queen and the last Hawaiian monarch to govern the islands. Her birth name was Lydia Kamakaeha. She was from Hawaiian nobility and received a modern education. She toured other countries during her youth. Her brother was chosen king in 1874. She was named the heir to the throne in 1877, after a second brother had passed away. From then on, she was known by her royal name, Lili’uokalani. She became queen in 1891 after the death of the king, becoming the first ever women to sit on the Hawaiian throne. Her attempts to lessen the influence of foreign powers in Hawaii ultimately resulted in the overthrow of her government.
Another factor driving expansion was fear that other powerful countries might exert control over certain areas before the US could, preventing the US from being able to expand its trade. This led the US to negotiate new agreements with other powers and even cooperate with them when needed. In particular, the “spheres of influence” in China held by European powers worried the US. To attempt to gain some trading opportunities in China without upsetting any of the existing European claims, the US put forward the Open Door Policy in 1899. This policy created rules for the involvement of other nations in China that would give all nations operating in China equal access to trade, and perhaps prevent any single country from gaining complete dominance within China. Most nations, including Britain, Germany, France, Italy, and Russia, agreed to this policy, though Japan rejected it. The Open Door Policy permitted the US to gain access to trade in China without fear of reprisal from other nations operating in the area.
from Japan, Russia, Britain, France, Austria-Hungary, and Italy to defeat the Boxers and restore order in China. They were successful, and the government of China was forced to pay a huge amount of reparations to the foreign powers that had saved them from the Boxers.
KEY TERMS
SAMPLE
The level of foreign influence in China also caused the US to intervene with the military to protect its economic interests. Beginning in October 1899, an anti-imperialist group in China called the “Boxers” began attacking troops from the Chinese military (since the Chinese government had cooperated with foreign powers), churches, and missionaries. Their goal was to remove excessive amounts of foreign influence in China. The US joined an international force along with troops
Spheres of influence: an area in which another country has political and/or economic power, though it does not have formal authority.
Reparations: compensation for war damage; paying money to someone that has been wronged.
ACTIVITY 2.1
a Think about the different factors that encouraged US expansionism. Make a list of them.
b Now, compare your list with another learner’s list, and rank these factors in order of importance, with the most important at the top and the least important at the bottom.
c Look for any connections between the factors on your lists. Can you see any?
The Spanish–American War
Cuba is an island in the Caribbean that is very near the state of Florida. In 1898, it was part of the Spanish empire. Many Cubans desired independence from Spain and had fought two unsuccessful wars against Spanish rule. Beginning in 1895, a third war for Cuban Independence began. In April 1898, the US became involved in this third war, known in the US as the Spanish–American War. There are various reasons for US involvement in the Spanish–American War:
• The importance of Cuba to the US economy as well as the potential trade opportunities offered by an independent Cuba were key reasons. Many American investors held financial interests in sugar, tobacco, and mineral industries in Cuba. The war between the Cuban independence movement and Spain created threats to US investments. Furthermore, an independent Cuba would mean that the US could have more influence regarding trade terms since Spain would no longer be involved in negotiations.
• Another factor that drove the US to declare war on Spain was outrage at Spain’s treatment of Cubans, especially those that supported independence. For example, Spanish general Valeriano Weyler attempted to separate the rebelling fighters from the rural population by forcing people into camps through his “reconcentration” policy. The deplorable conditions in these camps led to starvation and the spread of disease. Roughly onethird of the Cuban population had been forced into these camps, and it is estimated that up to 10% of Cuban civilians died inside them.
• In early February 1898, the De Lôme letter helped fuel support for the US to intervene in favor of Cuban independence. Written by the Spanish Ambassador to the US, Enrique Dupuy de Lôme, to the Foreign Minister of Spain, the letter criticized President William McKinley by calling him weak and claiming that a desire for political popularity lay behind his reluctance to intervene in the conflict despite his support for Cuban independence. Cuban revolutionaries intercepted the letter and gave it to a US newspaper. The letter’s publication helped drive increased hatred toward Spain and support for the US to declare war in support of Cuba.
• The sinking of the battleship USS Maine also drove further public support for the US to intervene in favor of Cuban independence. The Maine had been sent to Cuba to protect American interests and American citizens in Cuba as the conflict between Cuba and Spain progressed. On the night of 15 February 1898, it exploded, killing 268 American sailors. This caused outrage amongst the American public and signaled to some US leaders that a war was imminent. American ships were sent to key Spanish ports, such as Manila Bay in the Philippines, with the aim of denying Spanish ships access to safety and supplies. President McKinley, however, was cautious and ordered an investigation into the explosion. It was inconclusive. It was never proven that the Spanish played a role in the sinking of the Maine. Most historians today think it was an internal explosion caused by a problem in the ship itself, rather than a Spanish torpedo or bomb.
founding ideals as independence movements against an imperial power. Newspapers also covered the sinking of the Maine in detail, often blaming Spain for the explosion and criticizing the US government’s response to it. Newspapers helped fuel increasing jingoism that further increased popular demands for the US to support Cuban independence.
On 11 April 1898, President McKinley asked Congress for authorization to intervene in the fighting between Cuba and Spain in order to create a stable government, ensure the security of Cubans as well as Americans in Cuba, and protect American interests. This was after he sent an ultimatum to Spain asking for an armistice with Cuba and an end to Weyler’s reconcentration policy.
Spain refused to respond.
Later that month, on 20 April, Congress passed a resolution that recognized Cuban independence, promised that the US had no intentions of taking over Cuba, and expanded McKinley’s authority to allow him to use any measures deemed necessary to guarantee Cuba’s independence. The US demanded that Spain give up control of Cuba and withdraw its military from the island. In response, Spain declared war upon the US on 24 April. The US declared war on Spain on 25 April, but made the declaration active from four days earlier.
KEY TERMS
Rural: an area with a smaller population; the countryside.
Yellow journalism: reporting that is based on sensationalism or exaggeration.
Jingoism: extreme patriotism that favors aggressive foreign policy.
SAMPLE
• The rise of yellow journalism brought the atrocities in Cuba to light in newspapers across the US, convincing many Americans that Spain was a brutal, anti-democratic, tyrannical ruler over Cuba. Many Americans believed that Cuba and the US shared
President McKinley discussed the reasons for US intervention in favor of Cuban independence in his 11 April 1898 message to Congress requesting a declaration of war with Spain.
First. In the cause of humanity and to put an end to the barbarities, bloodshed, starvation, and horrible miseries now existing there … It is no answer to say this is all in another country, belonging to another nation, and is therefore none of our business. It is specially our duty, for it is right at our door.
(Continued)
Second. We owe it to our citizens in Cuba to afford them that protection and indemnity for life and property which no government there can or will afford, and to that end to terminate the conditions that deprive them of legal protection.
Third. The right to intervene may be justified by the very serious injury to the commerce, trade, and business of our people and by the wanton destruction of property and devastation of the island.
Fourth, and which is of the utmost importance. The present condition of affairs in Cuba is a constant menace to our peace and entails upon this Government an enormous expense …
William McKinley, Message to Congress Requesting a Declaration of War With Spain, 11 April 1898
ACTIVITY 2.2
MAINE EXPLOSION CAUSED BY BOMB OR TORPEDO?
Capt. Sigsbee and Consul-General Lee Are in Doubt---The World Has Sent a Special Tug, With Submarine Divers, to Havana to Find Out---Lee Asks for an Immediate Court of Inquiry---Capt. Sigsbee's Suspicions.
CA I. SIGSBEE, IN A SUPPRESSED DESPATCH TO THE STATE DEPARTMENT, SAYS THE ACCOUNT WAS MADE POSSIBLE BY AN ENEMY.
Dr. E. C. Pendleton, Just Arrived from Havana, Says He Overheard Talk There of a Plot to Blow Up the Ship---Capt Zalinski, the Dynamite Expert, and Other Experts Report to The World that the Wreck Was Not Accidental--Washington Officials Ready for Vigorous Action if Spanish Responsibility Can Be Shown---Divers to Be Sent Down to Make Careful Examinations.
CONTINUED
SAMPLE
An article from The World, a New York newspaper, discussing the explosion of the Maine. February 17, 1898.
Read the article above.
a What does this article suggest about who or what might be responsible for the sinking of the Maine?
b What could its publication date tell us about its perspective?
c The World was considered a yellow newspaper. Why would this be considered an example of yellow journalism?
Spain was at a disadvantage in the war with the US. Its army and navy were largely unprepared for war, and the Spanish public would be unhappy with the potential loss of Cuba. Even though representatives from Germany, Austria, France, Britain, Italy, and Russia had previously asked McKinley not to embark on an armed intervention in Cuba before events escalated into war, other European powers had refused to provide Spain with military support in a conflict with the US. Therefore, when the war began, Spain was largely alone in its efforts to defeat the US. Naval power mattered greatly in the Spanish–American War. The US had protected cruisers as well as four new battleships in its fleet, which were superior to
Figure 2.2: Front page of The World, a New York newspaper, discussing the explosion of the Maine, 17 February 1898
the outdated ships of the Spanish navy. Fighting broke out in the waters surrounding Cuba as well as those surrounding Spanish holdings in the Philippines. Spain was dealt a blow when American Commodore George Dewey defeated the Spanish at Manila Bay and then went on to take control of the capital of the Philippines. Meanwhile, the US navy near Cuba trapped another fleet in the Santiago harbor, and an army landed on the coast nearby. The Spanish were eventually defeated at Santiago. The US victory was a quick one, with the war only lasting from April to December 1898.
The Spanish–American War lasted only a few months, but it marks a turning point in American expansionism since the US had defeated an old imperial power. In the process, it had helped Cuba gain its independence, and gained territories. The war officially ended with the Paris Peace Treaty of 1898, which guaranteed Cuba’s independence, forced Spain to give the islands of Guam and Puerto Rico to the US, and allowed the US to purchase the Philippines from Spain for $20 million. The Spanish–American War granted the US lands in the Caribbean and in the Pacific that would help it meet its goals of territorial and economic expansion. Furthermore, the close relationship between the US and Cuba would also be legalized in the Platt Amendment, a US-backed addition to the Cuban constitution that allowed the US to intervene in Cuban affairs under certain conditions, barred Cuba from going into debt, and permitted the US to lease or buy lands for the purpose of establishing naval bases and coaling stations.
ACTIVITY 2.3
Prepare a response to the following prompt: “1898 should be considered the year that the US became a global power.” How far do you agree?
Follow the steps below:
a Research the characteristics of global powers in 1898.
b List the ways that the US was similar to other global powers by the end of 1898.
c List the ways that the US was different from other global powers by the end of 1898.
CONTINUED
Reflection
Compare your response to one of your peers. Did their approach to this prompt differ from yours? How did you each determine what it meant to be a global power? After reading their response, would you alter your own argument or keep it the same? Why?
SAMPLE
d Using your list and the knowledge from this chapter, think about whether or not the US was a global power by the end of 1898. Then, construct a response to the question.
The role of Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt had played a significant role in the Spanish–American War as the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and went on to be William McKinley’s vice president in McKinley’s second term. When McKinley was assassinated in 1901, Theodore Roosevelt became the president. Roosevelt was very supportive of US expansionism and known for his jingoism. He had been influenced by the ideas of Alfred T. Mahan’s 1890 book, The Influence of Sea Power upon History, which argued that a nation’s power was crucially linked to its naval power. According to Mahan’s work, there were three things the US needed to do in order to ensure its status as a powerful nation: expand and strengthen its navy, establish naval bases throughout the major oceans, and construct a canal through Central America. The annexation of Hawaii and the Spanish–American War had created opportunities for the US to establish naval bases, meeting one of Mahan’s recommendations. Under Theodore Roosevelt’s leadership, the US would continue to take major steps toward achieving increased power and influence abroad, using Mahan as one of his guides. Roosevelt’s “Big Stick” approach to foreign policy, named after the proverb “Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far,” was key to this expansion. “Big Stick diplomacy” relied on careful negotiations that were backed by potential military force in order to protect American interests. In addition to being a progressive president who attacked monopolies, Roosevelt helped increase the US’s global influence.
KEY TERM
Big Stick diplomacy: careful negotiations that are backed by the threat of a powerful military.
KEY FIGURE
Alfred T. Mahan (1840–1914)
Alfred T. Mahan was a US naval officer and an historian. His father was a professor at the United States Military Academy. Mahan also went into a military career. He attended the US Naval Academy, graduating in 1859. He went on to become a lecturer in naval history and tactics at the Naval War College, eventually becoming the school’s president. There, he met future president Theodore Roosevelt. Based on his lectures, he published a series of studies on sea power. The most important, The Influence of Sea Power upon History, helped shape US foreign policy and naval strategy for decades.
The Roosevelt Corollary
In 1904, President Theodore Roosevelt sought to increase American influence over Latin America and the Caribbean through the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine. The Monroe Doctrine had been established in 1823 and was designed to discourage European colonialism in the western hemisphere. It maintained that any intervention in political affairs in Latin America and the Caribbean by a foreign power could be considered by the US to be a hostile act. Theodore Roosevelt modified this doctrine in his corollary. A corollary is a proposal that results from a previous policy. The Roosevelt Corollary built on the Monroe Doctrine by reaffirming that Latin America and the Caribbean were not open to colonization by European nations. It also sanctioned armed intervention by the US if any country in Latin America or the Caribbean was threatened by international or external factors. It stated that the US had the responsibility to preserve order as well as protect life and property in the area. This would make the US an “international police power,” and establish its influence over the region. The Roosevelt Corollary is one example of Big Stick Diplomacy, which became a key part of Theodore Roosevelt’s foreign policy approach. This stance also allowed the US to protect its investments in foreign nations from any conflicts that might arise.
The US used this new policy in the Dominican Republic, where the US had economic interests. The Dominican Republic had been undergoing some political instability, which prevented it from being able to pay its debts to multiple European countries, and the US was concerned that these nations may try to take their payment by force. This potential violence threatened US interests in the area. In December 1904, Roosevelt used the corollary of the Monroe Doctrine to justify intervention in the Dominican Republic. In January 1905, the US signed an agreement with the Dominican Republic that permitted the US to protect the Dominican Republic’s territory and its agencies that controlled trade into and out of the ports, control the Dominican Republic’s finances, and settle its foreign debts. The US supervised the Dominican Republic’s repayment of debts to France, Germany, and Italy. Years later, in 1916, the US sent troops to the Dominican Republic to settle political disturbances, and, ultimately, occupied the region until 1924.
The US navy controlled the country with a navy captain acting as president.
The construction of the Panama Canal
The construction of a canal in Central America was also a priority for Theodore Roosevelt. Like Alfred T. Mahan, many nations also saw the potential benefit of a canal in the region—its construction would drastically reduce travel time between the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean, by avoiding the long sea journey around the tip of South America. In 1902, Congress passed the Spooner Act that permitted the US to purchase the equipment of a French company that had unsuccessfully tried to build a canal in Panama, which, at the time, was not an independent nation but was under the control of Colombia. Colombia refused to allow the US to build a canal in its territory, so the US decided to support a Panamanian independence movement in order to gain control over the area needed to build a canal. The US encouraged Panama to declare its independence in 1903 and then placed ships on both the Atlantic and Pacific sides of the region. Colombia was not in a position to retaliate against the US navy, and as a result a newly independent Panama granted the US control of a 10-mile-wide area to build a canal. Construction began in 1904 and lasted ten years. Its completion allowed the US to further increase its trade and military power in the Pacific.
2 American Imperialism, the First World War, and the 1920s
The Panama Canal
Shortest route before
Shortest route after
Expansion of the navy and the Great White Fleet
Theodore Roosevelt also believed in Mahan’s emphasis on a strong navy. If the US was going to protect its interests abroad, a modernized navy was essential. He ordered the construction of sixteen new battleships. They were divided into two squadrons and were accompanied by smaller escort ships. This “Great White Fleet” was sent on a worldwide tour from 1907 to 1909 to highlight American naval power to its competitors, create patriotic support within the US, and test the newly constructed ships on a long-term voyage. The trip also familiarized American sailors with the processes of running a ship while far from home. On Theodore Roosevelt’s recommendation, the navy’s budget was also increased to continue expanding the American fleet.
Figure 2.4: US military ships of the Great White Fleet on their way to the Pacific, December 1907
Figure 2.3: Map of the route from New York to Shanghai before and after the construction of the Panama Canal Shanghai
Figure 2.5: An American political cartoon from 1904. The cartoon shows a figure striding across the “Caribbean Sea” surrounded by boats called “Debt Collector,” “The Sheriff,” and “The Receiver.” The countries Santo Domingo, Cuba, Mexico, Panama, and Venezuela are labelled.
Study the cartoon above.
a Who is portrayed in this cartoon, and what is he doing?
b Think about when this cartoon was published. What happened in 1904 that was significant for US foreign policy?
c Why do you think the artist chose the words on the ships?
d Why do you think the artist chose the nations that surround the cartoon?
e What do you think the main message is of this cartoon?
e What do you think the main message is of this cartoon?
Direction of US Foreign Policy, 1909–21
US foreign policy approaches shifted under the next two presidents, William Howard Taft and Woodrow Wilson. Each had a different foundation for their foreign policy.
SAMPLE
Dollar Diplomacy under President Taft
William Howard Taft became president in 1909 and was committed to the continuing expansion of foreign trade. His foreign policy, known as “Dollar Diplomacy,” heavily emphasized trade priorities by encouraging American investments in Latin America, the Caribbean, and Asia.
He hoped that by promoting American commercial interest globally he would help create stability in other countries by “substituting dollars for bullets.” Taft used government officials to sell American products to foreign governments and businesses, especially industrial goods and military supplies. He also encouraged US banks to provide loans and grants to debt-ridden nations in order to establish a trade relationship. Taft also built on Roosevelt’s “Big Stick” approach by using the US military to help reach its economic goals. For instance, he supported a coup in Nicaragua to establish a pro-US government. This, however, led to resentment amongst
many Nicaraguan people, and Taft was forced to send the US Marines to prevent another coup and keep the pro-US government in place. In some ways, Taft’s Dollar Diplomacy furthered the frustrations of many Latin American and Caribbean nations that were growing tired of American involvement. It did not create the stability Taft hoped it would. Revolutions continued in Latin America. In China, Dollar Diplomacy created suspicion of the US by the other powers that had influence in the region and did not prevent revolution, which occurred in 1911.
Moral Diplomacy under President Wilson
Upon becoming President in 1913, Woodrow Wilson immediately rejected Taft’s Dollar Diplomacy. Instead, he adopted a form of foreign policy called Moral Diplomacy, in which the US would only support nations whose beliefs aligned with those of the US. Democratic nations would receive the support of the US, while non-democratic countries, seen as possible threats to the US, would be damaged through economic policy. This stemmed from Wilson’s belief that democracy was the most important factor in creating a stable and successful country. It also served to protect US interests in foreign nations. During Wilson’s administration, the US intervened in Latin America multiple times, including in the Mexican Revolution, in Haiti, beginning in 1915, in the Dominican Republic in 1916, in Cuba in 1917, and in Panama in 1918. The US military was key in maintaining order and making sure that pro-US leaders were placed in office.
US occupations and interventions in Latin America and the Caribbean
of Venustiano Carranza with arms and intervened in multiple instances until 1917, when the US withdrew from Mexico to fight in the First World War. The US was also supporting the Allied Powers in the First World War in order to “Make the World Safe for Democracy” (more on this later in this chapter).
SAMPLE
Wilson’s actions in Mexico demonstrate his diplomatic approach well. Before Wilson’s presidency, Mexico had experienced some political upheaval in the form of a new government. The US had responded by warning the Mexican military that the US would respond with force if the lives or property of Americans were threatened. The US even sent troops to the border. In 1911, Mexico elected Francisco Madero as president, which the US did not support. The US ambassador to Mexico at the time worked with a general named Victoriano Huerta to overthrow Madero. This overthrow took place in February 1913. Shortly after, Wilson became president. Wilson refused to recognize the leadership of Victoriano Huerta since he was not democratically elected. He sent troops to occupy Veracruz, and Huerta was forced to resign by competing forces that were fighting over who should control Mexico. These competing factions erupted into a civil war. The US supplied the supporters
Woodrow Wilson criticized parts of Dollar Diplomacy while emphasizing the need for the US to protect the rights of people overseas. These ideas formed a key part of his Moral Diplomacy and, later on, his approach to the First World War.
The Department of State at Washington is constantly called upon to back up the commercial enterprises and the industrial enterprises of the United States in foreign countries, and it at one time went so far in that direction that all its diplomacy came to be designated as “dollar diplomacy.” It was called upon to support every man who wanted to earn anything anywhere if he was an American. But there ought to be a limit to that … We set this Nation up, at any rate we professed to set it up, to vindicate the rights of men. If American enterprise in foreign countries, particularly in those foreign countries which are not strong enough to resist us, takes the shape of imposing upon and exploiting the mass of the people of that country it ought to be checked and not encouraged. I am willing to get anything for an American that money and enterprise can obtain except the suppression of the rights of other men. I will not help any man buy a power which he ought not to exercise over his fellow-beings.
Excerpt from Woodrow Wilson’s Address, “The Meaning of Liberty,” at Independence Hall, Philadelphia, 4 July 1914
KEY CONCEPT
Change and continuity
Historians study the ways that trends in history change, but they also study the ways that trends stay the same.
In small groups, discuss the ways that US foreign policy stayed the same as well as the ways that foreign policy changed under Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson.
Debates over imperialism
Many supporters of American expansion and involvement overseas justified their arguments through a variety of reasons. Some argued that expansion was beneficial for both the US and the areas that the US was expanding into since the US made money and many of the overseas lands also saw financial benefits. Others argued that it was necessary and maybe even the responsibility of the US to help spread democracy and Christianity. Still others argued that the US needed to expand in order to compete with other powerful nations such as Britain, France, and Germany. However, not all Americans supported expansionism. The debate over America’s role in other parts of the world was widespread, filling newspapers, journals, and political campaigns.
Anti-imperialist movement
Anti-imperialists criticized US involvement overseas for many reasons. Some argued that the US should retain its isolationist principles and not be concerned with affairs abroad. To them, the US should primarily focus on improving its domestic situation. The many problems of the Progressive Era (see Chapter 1) were still common in the US. Anti-imperialists argued that governing overseas territories was too costly and complicated, and that this took away funds that could be used to fix the problems that existed in the states. Some anti-imperialists argued that expansion did not align with America’s founding values. For instance, if the US founders believed that governments gained their power through the consent of the governed, then other places should be left to rule themselves rather than be controlled by the US. They argued that earlier forms of expansion, such as westward expansion, were different from overseas actions because these territories would eventually become states. Since it seemed like the US had no real intention of making many overseas regions into states, anti-imperialists argued that this was against America’s founding ideals.
The idea of American exceptionalism was also present among anti-imperialist arguments. Anti-imperialists who adopted this line of thinking maintained that the US was morally superior to European imperial nations, and its isolationism was key to that exceptionalism. Other arguments against imperialism included that it inflicted brutality upon the native peoples of an area.
Racism was also at work in the arguments of some anti-imperialists, who feared that annexation of
territories could permit increased numbers of non-white, non-Protestant immigrants into the US, or cheapen domestic labor by offering American businesses another option. On the other side of this debate, people that supported imperialism argued that expansion offered the US economic benefits such as new resources and new markets. They also discussed the presumed benefits to places where the US extended its influence, such as the spread of commerce, industry, democracy, and Christianity. Furthermore, they maintained that the US needed to expand in order to compete with other nations.
The Philippine–American War (1899–1902) provides one example that anti-imperialists often cited. After purchasing the Philippines from Spain in 1898, a movement supporting the independence of the Philippines emerged, led by Emilio Aguinaldo. The Filipinos had already been struggling against Spain because they desired independence. The US also refused to grant them their independence, resulting in a brutal conflict. Some anti-imperialists viewed this as hypocritical, given that the US had fought to achieve Cuban independence from Spain and then refused to grant the Philippines that same sovereignty.
The American Anti-Imperialist League was formed in 1899. Its goal was to gain independence for all the former Spanish colonies granted to the US after the Spanish–American War. The Anti-Imperialist League included very prominent members of US society, such as industrialist Andrew Carnegie, author Mark Twain, and labor leader Samuel Gompers. It criticized the war against Filipino independence as hypocritical and running against US founding ideals. Many members of the American Anti-Imperialist League also found the violent methods used against Filipinos to be unnecessary. Local organizations with ties to the American Anti-Imperialist League appeared all over the nation in places like New York City, Philadelphia, Portland, and Los Angeles. After the war’s end, the League continued to be critical of US expansion, until it stopped operating in 1920.
KEY TERMS
American exceptionalism: the belief that the US is a unique nation and possibly morally superior to other countries.
Sovereignty: the ability of a country to govern itself.
ACTIVITY 2.5
To stay in the Philippines by right of conquest is … to adopt a policy that will cast us into the whirlpool of European jealousies and entanglements for an indefinite future. It will necessitate a great naval and military establishment and destroy the best American ideals. The principles for which we have stood will be largely destroyed by adopting any such policy, and the force and attention of the nation would be largely diverted from work on those internal problems and purposes which belong to a peaceful democracy.
Excerpt from a leaflet of the Anti-Imperialist League, 1899
The Philippines are ours forever … and just beyond the Philippines are China’s unlimited markets. We will not abandon this opportunity. We will not repudiate our duty or abandon this opportunity. We will not renounce our part in the mission of our race to civilize the world … The Pacific is the ocean of the commerce of the future and most future wars will be conflicts for commerce. The power that rules the Pacific, therefore, is the power that rules the world. And, with the Philippines, that power will forever be the USA.
Excerpt from a speech given by Senator Albert Beveridge on the Philippine Question, 1900
Read the above excerpts.
a What reasons does the Anti-Imperialist League offer for opposing US intervention in the Philippines?
b What are the “American ideals” that you think the Anti-Imperialist League is referring to?
c What reasons does the senator offer for supporting US intervention in the Philippines?
d What is the “duty” that the senator is referring to?
Discussion of citizenship and status of the territories
The legal status of the newly gained territories and of the people in those territories was also up for debate. Would these territories eventually become states? Would the people in these territories be granted American citizenship? In a series of Supreme Court cases known as the Insular Cases (1901–03), the court ultimately decided that US control of an area did not automatically make the people in that area American citizens, nor did it make that area a legal equal of the states. For example, the case Downes v. Bidwell (1901) created a distinction between incorporated and unincorporated territories, which meant that certain areas under US control could be made to pay tariffs, while others could not. Territories that were incorporated were assumed to eventually becomes states, while those that were unincorporated were not on a path to statehood. The US Constitution did not fully apply in unincorporated territories. Puerto Rico was the subject of several of the Insular Cases, as they had been declared an “unorganized territory” of the US by the Foraker Act (1900), which limited the economic and political rights of Puerto Ricans. Puerto Ricans were granted American citizenship in 1917, through the Jones Act. Certain rights were still limited, however, since Puerto Rico’s status was now “organized but unincorporated.” Key officials were still to be appointed by the US president. Furthermore, the US president or the governor of Puerto Rico could veto any law passed by the Puerto Rican legislature, giving the US the last say in political decisions regarding the island. Puerto Rico lived under the terms of the Jones Act until 1948, when they were permitted to elect their own governor, and 1952, when a new constitution removed the power of the US to appoint government officials and weakened the veto powers of the governor.
SAMPLE
e Which arguments do you find more convincing and why—those of the supporters of imperialism or those of the antiimperialists?
This chapter has been cut part way through for sampling purposes
Practice question
Essay-based question
Answer both parts of the question below.
a Explain why the US declared war against Spain in 1898. [10 marks]
b “Life improved for most Americans in the 1920s.” How far do you agree with this statement? [20 marks]
Improve this answer
a Explain why the US declared war against Spain in 1898. [10 marks]
The US declared war on Spain in 1898 for several reasons. One reason was US support for Cuban independence from Spain. The US had always disliked European powers having influence in the Western hemisphere and had tried to control this since the Monroe Doctrine of 1823. The US had a lot of trade interests in Cuba, which was geographically close to the US. Spain had controlled Cuba for a long time, and the US felt that it could increase its economic benefits, especially in trade and businesses operating in Cuba, if Cuba were independent. Spain refused to grant Cuba independence.
This first paragraph is focused on the question and offers some analysis, though it could offer additional detail and analysis. For instance, it does not explain why the US thought an independent Cuba would be economically beneficial to the US. The penultimate sentence would need to be modified to include a short explanation of the specific reasons as to why the US believed this would be the case.
The most important reason that the US supported Cuban independence and eventually declared war on Spain was their perception of Spain as a cruel imperial power. Spain treated its own people poorly, for example, through Weyler’s reconcentration policy. Spain was also accused of sinking the Maine, which killed 128 American sailors, and insulting the American president in the De Lôme letter. The US believed that Spain was abusing Cuba as it was denying Cuba independence. All of these factors helped increase American support for war against Spain.
The second paragraph focuses on the reasons why the US viewed Spain as a brutal imperial nation and how this helped lead to war. It could have further explained the details of reconcentration policy and the De Lôme letter, which would have helped strengthen its point.
The American public was well informed about the cruel actions of Spain because of the yellow press. Pro-war newspapers across the US published stories of what was happening in Cuba and encouraged Americans to support armed intervention to make Cuba independent.
The last paragraph demonstrates a connection between perceptions of Spain and the role that the yellow press played in publicizing and perpetuating this perception. It lacks significant analysis about what sorts of information were included in these newspaper articles, and how they eventually led to formal political action against Spain. There needs to be more details and a stronger link back to the prompt.
Now, write your own response to this question.
SELF-EVALUATION CHECKLIST
After working through this chapter, complete the table.
You should be able to:
identify the ideas of Manifest Destiny
explain the role that the closing of the frontier played in driving US expansionism
explain the concepts of the “white man’s burden” and the “civilizing mission”
discuss the economic motivations for US expansionism
explain the causes and consequences of the Spanish–American War
discuss the foreign policy approaches of Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson
analyze the debates over imperialism
analyze the early responses of the US to the outbreak of the First World War
explain the reasons for US entry into the First World War
assess the ways that the US mobilized for the First World War
discuss the ways that the First World War caused debates about civil liberties
explain the ways that women contributed to the American war effort during the First World War
compare the experiences of American soldiers from different backgrounds
explain why the First World War increased African American migration out of the southern states
analyze the ways that the First World War impacted the labor movement
explain the causes and effects of the economic boom of the 1920s
discuss the impacts of prohibition and the rise of organized crime
analyze the changes in American society during the 1920s and identify debates about those changes
explain the reasons for continuing xenophobia and racial violence in the 1920s
Needs more work Almost there Ready to move on
SAMPLE
discuss the ideas and impacts of the Harlem Renaissance
explain the ways that Native Americans reacted to their conditions in the 1920s.