American Imperialism

Manifest Destiny and Beyond

1844-1902

Manifest DestinyJohn L. O’Sullivan coined the phrase (1844),

arguing that it was America’s “manifest destiny to overspread and possess the whole of the continent which Providence has given us…”

Within four years, President James K. Polk (Democrat) made the dream a reality by:1. annexing the Republic of Texas (1845),2. negotiating with the British for control of Oregon south of the 49th parallel (1846)3. provoking a war with Mexico (1846-48) that ended in U.S. victory and the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848), which ceded one third of Mexico to U.S.

By 1849, the U.S. extended from the Atlantic to the Pacific

Eyeing Mexico and the Caribbean• Democratic Party elements were disappointed that

the U.S. didn’t annex all of Mexico in order to expand slave territory; the Gadsden Purchase (1853) added southern Arizona and New Mexico to make way for a railroad

• Southern slaveholders planned an expedition to seize Cuba in 1854 - called off when anti-slavery Northerners protested; Ostend Manifesto (1854) still called upon the U.S. to seize control of Cuba using any means available

• Between 1853-60, William Walker, a Southern adventurer, led several military expeditions attempting to take over several Central American countries

• U.S. quietly supported the Mexican government in the Franco-Mexican War (1861-67); rejected French occupation of Mexico and provided money and arms after the end of the Civil War

Reaching Out in the Pacific1853-54: Commodore Perry forced the

opening of Japan to trade with the U.S.; helped contribute to the Meiji Restoration and Japan’s modernization

1867: Secretary of State Seward purchased Alaska from the Russians for $7.2 million (derided as “Seward’s Ice Box”)

1887: American planters (the Hawaiian League) forced King Kalakaua to accept a new constitution; U.S. Navy obtained basing rights at Pearl Harbor

1893: Hawaiian League toppled Kalakaua’s sister, Queen Liliuokalani, and established the Republic of Hawaii

Mahan and Sea Power• Alfred Thayer Mahan’s The Influence of Sea

Power Upon History (1890) influenced the views of expansionists, who argued that America must build a large ocean-going naval fleet in order to effectively promote its international commercial interests and assert its newfound power

• Central thesis: Great Powers require a strong industrial economy matched with commensurate sea power; he who masters the sea, masters the situation

• Mahan praised the British as an excellent example of how to combine military and economic strength

• America’s navy was woefully inadequate in the early 1890s (smaller than Chile’s navy); Mahan’s work prompted a warship building program and calls for annexation of Hawaii

Motives of Imperialism• Proponents of American expansion in the

1890s offered several reasons for doing so:1. promotion of U.S. commercial interests2. “survival of the fittest” – U.S. must join the race for territory or lose out to other aggressive powers, such as Britain, Japan, and Germany3. U.S. need for naval bases in the Caribbean and the Pacific and a canal through Central America4. expansion of American ideals – “the white man’s burden” (as best expressed by Senator Albert Beveridge); a logical extension of Manifest Destiny and exceptionalism

The War Drums of Empire• By early 1898, war fever in the

U.S. erupted after the mysterious explosion of the U.S.S. Maine in Havana harbor (February 15)

• The major New York newspapers (Pulitzer’s World and Hearst’s Journal) beat the drums of war against Spain and sold newspapers recounting horrific stories of Spanish oppression against Cuban nationalists

• Despite the efforts of Speaker Thomas B. Reed (R-ME) and others, Congress declared war against Spain (April 25)

The Spanish-American War (1898)

• Assistant Secretary of the Navy Theodore Roosevelt, a disciple of Mahan, had already issued orders to the U.S. Asiatic Squadron, under the command of Commodore George Dewey to sail for Manila Bay

• Dewey steamed into Manila Bay and destroyed the Spanish fleet within a day (April 30)

• U.S. naval forces also blockaded Cuba, stranding the Spanish army

• American forces, including TR’s “Rough Riders,” finally defeated the Spanish and forced their surrender

The Anti-Imperialist League• Many Americans resisted the imperialist

urge and fought to stop expansion, based on a range of reasons, including:1. fear of abandoning American ideals2. unproductive foreign wars3. fear of an American empire becoming “un-American” in cultural make-up due to large numbers of prospective non-white citizens

• The Anti-Imperialist League (founded in 1898) became active in opposing annexation of Hawaii and the Philippines; included such national figures as Grover Cleveland, Jane Addams, Andrew Carnegie, and Samuel Gompers

War in the PhilippinesAmerica’s empire expanded to include

Puerto Rico, Guam, Hawaii, Samoa, a protectorate over Cuba, and the Philippines (which was annexed over anti-imperialist protests)

Emilio Aguinaldo’s Filipino nationalist movement felt betrayed and went to war against the U.S. occupation

The Filipino-American War (1899-1902) resulted in the loss of thousands of lives, and the commitment of 125,000 U.S. troops

Aguinaldo eventually surrendered and called on his followers to declare loyalty to the U.S.

An “Open Door” to China

By 1899, most major European powers had obtained trading concessions in China, prompting Secretary of State John Hay to issue the “Open Door” note, requesting open access for U.S. trade in China

Hay’s focus was to secure American trading interests (a realist goal) by invoking free trade (an idealistic principle)

America later joined with other major powers in crushing the anti-Western Boxer Rebellion in 1900 but also asserted U.S. determination to protect China’s territorial integrity against foreign encroachment