The United States And The American Spanish War

“The United States had emerged as a modern capitalist nation, and the spirit of nationalism in the country was strong and growing” (Henderson 71). As tensions grew between the Unites States and Mexico, there was a thirst for war. The Unites States declared war with Mexico, because they owned land that Americans desired, resulting in America’s fulfillment of achieving their philosophy of “Manifest Destiny”. The blood boil of both countries caused a lot of bloodshed. The dispute lasted for a long two year battle which was for huge amounts of land. The Americans were victorious and claimed new territories from the conflict.

The Spanish American war started in 1898 and was a fight for Cuba’s independence which resulted in 379 American casualties in combat. The Spanish American War was justified because of the Monroe Doctrine, Correspondence between the United States and Spain, and the Platt Amendment, which were all created to protect American morals and freedom.

On April 19th, 1898, The United States impulsively waged a war with imperialist Spain that would forever change our country for better and for worse. There are many different factors that led to the war, but in my opinion, one key cause is of much greater importance than the others. As a result of the war, American became known as an imperialistic nation and a world power. How could such a “little” war have such a large impact on American society at the turn of the 20th century?

War of 1812 and industrialization- The british blockade forced the united states to develop its own industries

During the twentieth century the United States of America became involved with three major conflicts that resulted in the nation shifting from a regional power into a global power. Through these conflicts the United States grew territorially, economically and industrially. Foreign policies were altered to allow the United States to gain ground on the world stage and to make their mark on the world. Through careful analysis of primary sources and scholarly document s it is clear to see that the United States involvement in the Spanish American war was the first step for the United States to grow on the world stage. The American victory in the war led to the acquisition of island territories and expanded economic and military capabilities in the both the western and eastern hemisphere as well as an increased involvement in Asia. World War I ended with American democratic ideals to be spread all across Europe. Led by President Woodrow Wilson, the United States led a one sided foreign policy that used intervention, peace treaties and military intervention to endorse international order. Despite a limited role in the war President Wilson was able to outline the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations and both of their presences can be found today.

Analyze the responses to TWO of the following to Secretary of State John Hay’s view that the Spanish American War was “a splendid little war”; William Jennings Bryan, Theodore Roosevelt, Alfred Thayer Mahan, Emilio Aguinaldo

The immediate causes for the declaration of the Spanish-American War are much more important than the underlying causes of the War. The immediate cause of the Spanish-American war was the sinking of the U.S.S. Maine in Havana Harbor. The long-term cause of the Spanish American War is the Yellow Journalism, Cuban economics, and the political roles made by President William Mckinley. All of the roles made by him went back to the reason the war started. The Yellow Journalism helped to create a conducive outbreak of conflict and expansion of U.S. influence overseas, but it did not cause the war. The main immediate cause of the Spanish American War was On February 15, 1898 the U.S S. Maine exploded in Havana Harbor which left many dead. The U.S. S. Maine was not a monumental war, but President McKinley wanted to declare war against spain. Therefore, they invaded Cuba. The Americans, Cubans, and Spaniards were all involved. The Americans wanted to help take the Cubans out of Concentration Camps.

Victory in the Spanish-American War transformed the United States, a former colony, to an imperial power. Many Americans saw this development as a natural part of the nation’s “Manifest Destiny”--the belief that expansion of the United States was both right and inevitable.

The quote "A Splendid little war" by Secretary of State John Hay summarizes the Spanish American War in 1898. While this war could be seen as an act of aggression by the 20th century standards this war was beneficial to the United States of America while being deviating to the Kingdom of Spain for many reasons.

In the summer of 1898, America showed the world their capability by defeating Spain in The Spanish-American War. The outcome of the war was that several Spanish colonies fell into America’s hands and these two were The Philippines and Cuba.They made it clear that they are not going to annex Cuba so they chose The Philippines instead. Many Americans Believed annexing the Philippines was unfair and others thought it was an excellent idea because the Philippines did not know how to work for their own government. The Philippines should have been annexed by The United States because the Philippines did not have a stable government, they were weak which means that other countries like Germany and Japan would easily take The Philippines. Albert

“They became engaged with a large body of these Mexican troops, and after a short affair, in which some sixteen Americans were killed and wounded, appear to have been surrounded and compelled to surrender,”1 said by United States President James K. Polk during the Mexican-American War. James K. Polk meaning behind this quote was the description of the event itself. The war caused tension within the United States over the newly acquired territory and fulfilled Manifest Destiny through the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The Mexican-American War impacted the United States and Mexico’s relationship and influenced internal developments in the United States.

When addressing the Spanish-American War, and the changes that it ushered in for America, it’s important to look at more than just the war itself. The people involved in the war, weather individuals or groups of people, were the real force of change. From people who fought in the war itself, mindsets that emerged from the victory, or the economic advantages gained; all point to one important thing. America became a larger world power in the aftermath of the Spanish-American War.

In 1846 to 1848, the United States and Mexico fought against each other in the Mexican-American War. Some of the major causes for the war was Mexico’s resentment over the loss of Texas, Americans belief of manifest destiny and conflict over slavery. The reason Americans desired westward expansion was because of manifest destiny. Manifest destiny was the belief that westward expansion which was supposedly part of God’s plan to extend the U.S. territory to the pacific (The Mexican War). The U.S. also annexed Texas without the agreement of Mexico. By the annexation of Texas it brought about the issue of slavery. Since the new conquered land they gained from the Mexican-American war, they had to decide whether they would be free or slave state. Both the north and south were trying to make sure neither side gained more political power than the other (The Mexican War). The war was fought in Mexico, which should have given the Mexican army an advantage, yet the Americans were the ones who won the war. The reasons why U.S. won the war against Mexico was because the U.S. army was better prepared. The U.S. generals were better educated in strategies and tactics. Also, during the war Mexico also had to fight against the Indians. The war was caused by the resentment over the loss of Texas, manifest destiny and conflict over slavery, though America won the war because they were well-prepared, had well-educated generals, and Mexico was also preoccupied with fighting indians.

The United States believed that it was their God given right to spread from coast to coast. The people of the young nation set out to do just that on a journey unofficially called the Manifest Destiny. President James. K. Polk offered Mexico twenty-five million dollars for the area of Texas and told Mexican leaders to name their price on California. The United States needed the land to fulfill their destiny to spread across the continent. Although the offer was a very generous Mexico declined. Thereby, American troops were sent down past the Nueces River to “poke” or cause enough tension for Mexicans to fire upon American troops to start the first battle. The Mexicans believed the Nueces River was the border of America and Mexico, but

There are many reasons for this event leading up to the Spanish-American War, and there was a cry for Cuban independence, Spain stopping trade with America. Although, the most common thing that tipped this conflict over the edge or set it on fire was the destruction of the USS Maine.