AP/IB American History
Mr. Blackmon
U.S. Imperialism
I.
Background to Imperialism
A.
America held Europe in disdain
1.
There was a belief in the superiority of American civilization, especially our
democracy
2.
Deep suspicion of European monarchies and their decadent society
3.
The US was invulnerable to European attack.
4.
The US was equally unable to attack Europe
5.
Willingness to press whatever claims we had very hard
a.
The Alabama claims of $15.5 million against Great Britain, settled
in 1872
b.
The pork inspection controversy with Germany (they wouldn't accept
our pork; very wise of them; the meat was not safe.)
c.
The large Irish population was intensely anti-British, and politicians
could always gain votes by "twisting the lion's tail."
B.
Mexico and Maximilian
1.
A protectorate was established by France over Mexico, utilizing conservative
elements in Mexican society and using the Austrian prince Maximilian as a
puppet king.
2.
Maximilian was held up by French bayonets.
3.
The United States was much too occupied during the Civil War to do
anything other than protest this violation of the Monroe Doctrine.
4.
In 1866, with the war over, Secretary of State William H. Seward protested
once again.
a.
This time, 200,000 veterans under Philip Sheridan were mobilized in
Texas.
5.
Wisely, the French comply and withdraw their forces from 1866-7.
6.
Without French support, Maximilian is doomed. He is defeated and executed
by Mexican nationalist forces.
7.
The Mexicans do not like us, but here the US certainly acted to defend
Mexican sovereignty.
C.
The Aggressive Foreign Policy of William H. Seward
1.
The US purchases Alaska from Russia in 1867 for $7,200,000.
a.
It was called Seward's Icebox and Seward's Folly.
2.
Midway Island in the Pacific is annexed in 1867. Its location made it an
important stop for trans-Pacific voyagers. Otherwise, why bother? The only
inhabitants were gooney birds.
3.
Seward also recommended the annexation of the Dominican Republic.
a.
The proposal was defeated owing to the Dominican Republic's
distance from the US and its racially mixed population.
D.
US exports grow steadily, especially n the 1880s
1.
Increase in volume in 1880s
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We begin to export our manufactured goods as well as agricultural surpluses.
a.
In 1900, Carnegie enraged British steel manufacturers by winning the
bid to provide steel for the Uganda railroad.
3.
Exports are now seen as important if domestic consumption falters due to a
recession.
a.
Sen. Albert J. Beveridge provided an excellent formulation of the
ideology of expansion in 1898, "But today, we are raising more
than we can consume. Today we are making more than we can
use. Today our industrial society is congested: there are more
workers than there is work; there is more capital than there is
investment. . . . Therefore, we must find new markets for our
produce, new occupation for our capital, new work for our labor."
(Beveridge "The Taste of Empire" 201) More of this speech is quoted
below under Social Darwinism
Darwinism in Foreign Policy
1.
Increasingly, I am becoming convinced that Social Darwinism, especially as
applied to foreign relations, is a truly evil philosophy, having provided a
rationale for untold human suffering.
2.
Darwinism gave a new plausibility to Manifest Destiny:
3.
"Among nations or 'races' as well as among biological species, there was a
struggle for existence, and only the fittest could survive. If the strong
dominated the weak, that was in accordance with the law of nature. It was an
application to world affairs of the same . . . Darwinism that industrialists had
long been applying to domestic economic affairs." (Current 599)
4.
John Fiske, 1885, predicted that "the English-speaking peoples would
eventually control every land that was not already the seat of an established
civilization." (Current 599)
5.
Josiah Strong, a Congregationalist minister, wrote Our Country in 1885. He
believed that the Anglo-Saxon race, now centered in the US, possessed an
'instinct or genius for colonization,' (this is the same idea as the 'germ theory
of democracy' which Frederick Jackson Turner attacked with his Frontier
Thesis) and represented the great ideas of civil liberty and pure Christianity
[a Hegelian concept--liberty and Christianity are ideas/ideals with material
representations] and was 'divinely commissioned to spread its institutions
over the earth. He saw the US as 'moving down upon' Mexico and all Latin
America and 'out upon the island os the sea, over Africa and beyond.' 'Can
anyone doubt, Strong asked, 'that the result of this . . . will abe the survival
of the fittest?'" (Garraty 542)
6.
John W. Burgess, the prominent professor at Columbia University, wrote
Political Science and Comparative Law in 1890: "The Anglo-Saxons and
Teutonic nations possessed the highest political talents. It as the duty of these
nations, he said, to uplift less fortunate peoples even to force superior
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institutions on them if necessary. 'There is no human right to the status of
barbarism.'" (Current 599)
a.
I am reminded of a comment by an American soldier in the
Philippines, referring to the model rifle issued US soldiers, that we
would "civilize them with a Krag."
b.
These men are not simply ignorant bigots. They are well respected,
highly educated racialist bigots.
Frederick Jackson Turner, who attacked the racialist 'germ theory' described
by Burgess, also contributed to the imperialist drive in a very significant way.
This is ironic. By pointing to the frontier as the determinant force in the
development of American political, social, and economic democracy, and by
pointing out that the frontier was officially closed, he also pointed to the need
to find new, overseas markets, to sustain out democracy and economy.
Alfred Thayer Mahan is the ablest and most effective apostle of imperialism.
He is also the most important historian and theorist of naval warfare. His
importance transcends US history.
a.
His seminal work was The Influence of Sea Power Upon History
1660-1783, (1890), which traced the rise of the British Empire.
b.
He followed this with The Influence of Sea Power Upon the French
Revolution and Empire 1793-1812 (1892) and The Interest of
America in Sea Power (1897)
c.
Mahan's writings have deeply influenced US naval operations and
theory. World War I and II seem to illustrate the enduring validity of
his ideas on naval grand strategy.
d.
He believed that the great nations of history were sea-faring nations.
e.
The US was really a huge island, and therefore had to build our
greatness upon sea power.
f.
The essential components in sea power were:
(1)
A productive domestic economy, which provides goods which
others want
(2)
Foreign commerce to engage in international trade
(3)
A large merchant marine to monopolize your trade
(4)
A powerful navy whose task was to defend the trade routes
and other national interests
(5)
Colonies to provide raw materials and to serve as bases for
the navy (especially important in an era of coal fired ships,
which required frequent replenishment)
(a)
Please note that the cornerstone of today's US Navy
strategy is to protect the SLOCs, the Sea-Lines-ofCommunication with Europe and our other allies.
This was true when we fought the Kaiser, true when
we fought Hitler and Japan, it would have been true
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had we fought Russia.
g.
Applying his ideas to the situation of his day, Mahan recommended
(1)
the construction of a modern fleet (the navy at the beginning
of his writing career was a bad joke)
(2)
That we obtain a string of coaling stations and bases in the
Caribbean
(3)
That we annex Hawaii as the central piece in our Pacific
trade.
(4)
That we dig and control a canal across the Isthmus of Panama.
(Current 600)
h.
He numbered among his friends such policy makers as
(1)
Sen. Henry Cabot Lodge, Chairman of the Naval Affairs
Committee, later Foreign Relations Chair
(a)
Lodge brought in a bill in 1883 to begin constructing
a fleet of modern steel warships.
(2)
Benjamin Harrison's Secretary of the Navy Benjamin F. Tracy
(3)
Above all, then Assistant Secretary of the Navy and himself
a naval historian, Theodore Roosevelt
i.
From Garfield to McKinley, naval appropriations increased.
(1)
In 1898, the US possessed the 5th largest navy in the world
(2)
In 1900, the US possessed the 3rd largest navy in the world
Sen. Henry Cabot Lodge (1895) "It is not the policy of the United States
to enter, as England has done, upon the general acquisition of distant
possession in all parts of the world. . . . while in the United States
themselves we hold the citadel of our power and greatness as a nation,
there are outworks essential to the defense of that citadel which must
neither be neglected nor abandoned. . . . In the interests of our commerce
and of our fullest development, we should build the Nicaragua Canal, and
for the protection of that canal and for the sake of our commercial
supremacy in the Pacific we should control the Hawaiian Islands and
maintain our influence in Samoa. . . . [W]hen the Nicaragua Canal is
built, the island of Cuba . . . will become to us a necessity. Commerce
follows the flag, and we should build up a navy strong enough to give
protection to Americans in every quarter of the globe and sufficiently
powerful to put our coasts beyond the possibility of successful attack."
(Lodge 3-4)
Theodore Roosevelt (in a letter to Alfred Thayer Mahan) (1897) "If I had
my way we would annex those islands [Hawaii] tomorrow. If that is
impossible I would establish a protectorate over them. I believe we should
build the Nicaraguan canal at once, and in the meantime, that we should
build a dozen new battleships . . . I am fully alive to the danger from
Japan. . . .But there are big problems in the West Indies also. Until we
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definitely turn Spain out of these islands (and if I had my way that would
be done tomorrow), we will always be menaced by trouble there. We
should acquire the Danish Islands [Virgin Islands]" (Roosevelt "Obstacles
to Immediate Expansion" 150-151)
11.
Senator Albert J. Beveridge (1898) (Speaking in support of annexation of the
Philippines) "The commercial supremacy of the republic means that this
nation is to be the sovereign factor in the peace of the world. For the
conflicts of the future are to be conflicts of trade--struggles for markets-commercial wars for existence. And the golden rule of peace is the
impregnability of position and invincibility of preparation. . . . As our
commerce spreads, the flag of liberty will circle the globe an the highways
of the ocean--carrying trade to all mankind--be guarded by the guns of the
republic. And as their thunders salute the flag, benighted peoples will
know that the voice of liberty is speaking, at last, for them: that
civilization is dawning, at last, for them--liberty and civilization, those
children of Christ's gospel, who follow and never precede the preparing
march of commerce. (Beveridge "The Taste of Empire" 201-202)
US Foreign Policy in Asia
A.
I am going to organize this section by country. The problem with this approach is
that one can easily lose sight of simultaneous events, and see how policies toward
China, Japan, Philippines, Hawaii, etc. fit together. The strength of this approach is
that one can see how our policy toward any one country fits together. I believe that
you must understand the latter before you can understand the former.
B.
China
1.
The key to our Pacific diplomacy right up to the end of World War II was our
desire to trade with China.
2.
We opened commercial relations by the Treaty of Wanghia in 1844.
a.
The treaty allowed trade and missionaries to enter.
b.
Among the families involved with trade with China were the Delanos
of New York--from whom Franklin Delano Roosevelt descended.
This fact is probably not irrelevant to his decidedly pro-China
attitudes.
3.
In 1894-5, the Sino-Japanese War broke out, as the emerging Japan began
flexing its muscles.
a.
Japan ended the war by seizing Korea.
b.
Other European powers moved to extend their spheres of influence.
c.
Secretary of State John Hay tried to protect US business interests.
(1)
Anti-imperialist feeling in the US precluded any seizure of
Chinese territory by the US. In this respect, the US was
clearly less predatory toward China than other nations. We
wished trade without military control.
(2)
Hay issued the Open Door Notes in 1899, urging the
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European powers to agree to respect the trading rights of all
countries and to impose no discriminatory duties; Chinese
officials were to continue to collect duties, not European
officials.
(3)
Russia rejected the notes; the others ignored them.
(4)
Hays then blandly announced that everyone had adopted his
Open Door Policy!!
(5)
The policy appears to work only because the other powers
distrusted each other so much.
(a)
The US wanted the benefits of trade with China but
was unwilling to face the costs of a sufficient
military presence i n the region to protect our long
term interests. Upon this bedrock of unrealistic
thinking, the seeds of Pearl Harbor are planted.
(6)
The Open Door Policy is the key to our Pacific foreign policy
throughout the first half of the twentieth century. Do not
forget that the crucial issue in our collision with Japan in
World War II is the territorial sovereignty of China.
The Boxer Rebellion in 1900
a.
The Boxer Rebellion was a genuinely grass-roots nationalist rebellion
aimed at driving the 'foreign devils' off of Chinese soil.
b.
The European powers, including the US and Japan, sent troops to
break the rebellion, which began with attacks on the diplomatic
compounds in Beijing.
c.
After the defeat of the Boxers, Hay acted to protect Chinese territorial
integrity--there was a real chance that permanent annexations could
have been made.
(1)
He reasserted the principle of impartial trade.
(2)
His call for Chinese territorial integrity implied a US
commitment to Chinese independence.
Japan
1.
Our stormy relationship with Japan began when Commodore Matthew Perry
sailed into Nagasaki Harbor and opened Japan up to the West after their long
hibernation during the Tokugawa Shogunate. We signed a commercial treaty
with them in 1858.
2.
The Tokugawa Shogunate was ended in 1868, and the Meiji Restoration
began. The Meiji marks the beginning of modern Japan.
3.
The Japanese realized clearly that they had only two choices: modernize or
be exploited. The example of China acted as a constant reminder.
4.
Modernization meant industrialization.
5.
Japan's position is very similar to Great Britain's except it has fewer
advantages. They are an island nation, with a large population
(industrialization brought dramatic population growth). They could feed
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6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
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themselves (on a starvation diet) but had no natural resources for industry.
Modern Japan must trade to survive.
The example of the Europeans taught the Japanese that colonies were
essential both as sources of needed raw materials and also as markets.
Japanese expansion into Korea, Manchuria, and China is predicated upon this
need. Their expansion to the southwest was predicated upon a need for other
resources that China could not provide, such as rubber, tin, and above all, oil.
The example of the European powers taught the Japanese to achieve their
national objectives by force and exploitation.
Japan has a long, militarist tradition. Imperialism blended easily with it, or
militarism with imperialism.
To the Japanese, the condemnation leveled at them
by Great Britain and the US in the 1920s and 1930s
was sheerest hypocrisy. They felt that they were
only doing what the Europeans had already done.
They believed that they were fighting for national
survival.
They believed that weakness invited
attack, whereas strength meant respect.
They
suspected (probably correctly) that racism lay
behind much of European opposition to their
expansion.
They knew that the Europeans already
had what they wanted and were content to end the
game as winners. The Japanese did not have what
they wanted, and did not want to quit the game just
yet.
I do not wish to excuse Japanese aggression in World War II--it was brutal
and itself racist (racism is not confined to Europeans). However, US
foreign policy in the Pacific was extremely
unrealistic, and, in my view, inept. We failed to
recognize the legitimate interests of Japan, failed
to recognize the realities of Japanese power,
failed to even attempt to provide a means by which
Japan could obtain needed resources by some other
means than open war. Perhaps a different foreign
policy would have failed anyway (indeed, I rather
think, considering Japanese militarism, that it
would have), but the effort would have been worth
it.
The first stage in Japan's expansion was the Sino-Japanese War in 1894. As
a result of this, Japan seized Korea.
The Russo-Japanese War 1905
a.
This brought them into conflict with the Russians, who were sabering
their way across Asia. The Russians have been pursuing an
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c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
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exceptionally aggressive policy, with the Caucasus, Turkey, Persia,
and Afghanistan as well as Manchuria as flashpoints.
The prize between them is Manchuria, which is rich in natural
resources.
The completion of the Trans-Siberian Railway signalled the opening
of hostilities.
The war opened with a surprise attack by torpedo boats on the
Russian Pacific fleet at their base in Port Arthur. The Japanese sent
the Russian fleet to the bottom.
Land fighting then opens as the Japanese lay siege to Port Arthur.
Fighting is bitter and foreshadows World War I. The Japanese are
better organized and better led, and eventually will take the fortress.
In the meantime, the Russian Baltic fleet sailed all the way around
Europe and Africa (the British refused transit through the Suez) to
break the siege.
The Japanese met them in ambush at Tsushima Straits. The
Russians were massacred. The Japanese fleet was more modern,
more powerful, better trained, and far better led.
At this point, Germany (or, really, the Kaiser) began to make loud,
aggressive noises that they would enter the war on Russia's side.
(1)
Kaiser Wilhelm has several motivations
(a)
Tsar Nicholas is his cousin
(b)
Russia was a European nation being humiliated by an
Asian nation. The Kaiser was the first to proclaim the
"Yellow Peril" from the East. He seems to have
really believed it. The defeat of Russia by
a non-white nation is in fact an
important milestone in the end of
Europe's era of world domination.
(c)
He also hoped to obtain greater concessions in China
for Germany.
With the war threatening to widen (and thus threaten everyone's
trading interests), President Theodore Roosevelt offers his services
to mediate peace treaty.
(1)
The Japanese agree, for although they are winning, they are
unprepared for a long war.
(2)
The Russians were facing an internal revolution, triggered by
the war, and need to end the war quickly as well.
(3)
The Treaty of Portsmouth gave Japan important concessions
in Manchuria, as well as half of Sakhalin Island.
(a)
Some of the provisions were unpopular in Japan, but
the treaty was very advantageous to Japan.
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(b)
15.
D.
Theodore Roosevelt received the Nobel Peace Prize
for his efforts
The Gentlemen's Agreement 1907
a.
Roosevelt faced one other problem with Japan, although one not of
his own making.
b.
In 1906 the San Francisco school district segregated Japanese
students. Japan protested (cf handout on Labor and Immigration).
c.
The Gentlemen's Agreement restricted future Japanese immigration
to the US.
d.
The problem illustrated the fear of the "Yellow Peril" in the US.
Hawaii
1.
American missionaries advertised Hawaii's economic potential
2.
Their descendants became involved in sugar cane
a.
They came to dominate the economy and through that, the Hawaiian
monarchy.
3.
The Reciprocity Treaty of 1875 allowed Hawaiian sugar into the US duty
free.
a.
Hawaii promised to cede no territory to a foreign power.
b.
In effect, we guaranteed Hawaii's independence and make them a
protectorate.
4.
The treaty was renewed in 1887 and we receive Pearl Harbor as a naval
base.
5.
This is in the same time period that we obtained Midway and Samoa,
therefore established bases from which to trade with China and Japan.
6.
McKinley Tariff 1890
a.
Gave a bounty to US sugar producers and discontinues the duty sugar
b.
This destroyed Hawaii's privileged position in the US sugar market.
c.
The growers, largely of US ancestry, saw annexation as the only
salvation.
7.
Queen Liliuokalani ascends the throne in 1891. She was
a.
A nationalist
b.
Advocated Hawaii for Hawaiians
c.
Tried to eliminate US influence
d.
Tried to run an absolute monarchy
8.
The coup d'etat of 1893
a.
US Minister John L. Stevens connived to land 150 Marines to depose
Queen Liliuokalani
b.
A provisional government, dominated by US planters, was formed,
c.
Stevens then immediately recognized them
d.
The Provisional Government then petitioned for annexation.
e.
President Benjamin Harrison was very receptive, but he was leaving
office, and deferred to the new President.
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10.
E.
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President Grover Cleveland
a.
disapproved of the use of US troops
b.
withdrew the treaty of annexation
c.
sent James H. Blount to investigate the situation.
d.
Blount reported that the Hawaiians favored Liliuokalani
e.
Cleveland then denies recognition of the Provisional Government
f.
The Provisional Government, however, refuses to give up their power
g.
Cleveland refused to use US troops to depose the Provisional
Government (who were, after all, of US ancestry; he is also
consistent: he disapproves the use of US troops to depose foreign
governments)
Annexation in 1898
a.
The Spanish-American War caused a wave of patriotic, expansionist
sentiment to sweep the US
b.
The President now is also William McKinley, who is sympathetic to
expanding trade in China.
c.
Hawaii was annexed in the general expansion of this period.
Samoa
1.
Dominated the sea lanes of the South Pacific
2.
We acquired the use of the harbor at Pago Pago by treaty in 1878.
3.
There was a three way scramble with Germany and Great Britain for control
of Samoa, culminating in a near-three way naval battle, which was avoided
only by a hurricane, which kept everyone busy.
4.
In 1899, the US and Germany divided Samoa up, with Great Britain being
compensated elsewhere.
F.
The Philippines
1.
I will postpone my discussion of the Philippines until after the SpanishAmerican War
US Foreign Policy in Central and South America to the Spanish American War
A.
A theme that one wants to note in the following sections is the way in which the
Monroe Doctrine becomes a cornerstone of our diplomacy, the way in which its
meaning is expanded, and the reasons for that.
B.
Clayton-Bulwer Treaty in 1850 prepared the diplomatic ground for a joint USBritish trans-isthmian canal. Such a canal had been dreamed of for a long time.
More on this later.
C.
Ferdinand de Lesseps, the man who dug the Suez Canal, obtained a concession in
1880 to build a trans-isthmian canal. President Hayes immediately announced that
the US would not allow any European power to control such a canal, which is a
logical extension of the Monroe Doctrine.
D.
The Pan American Conference in 1899 achieved little other than create the Pan
American Union. However, it marks the beginning of a US attempt to assert
hemispheric leadership. Then Secretary of State James G. Blaine was actively
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seeking new markets for US goods, and was trying to open up Latin America. The
Latin Americans, however, found the Europeans cheaper, and refused.
US-Latin American relations were worsened over the Baltimore Incident in 1891.
Anti-US feeling led to a riot in Valparaiso where 2 US sailors, on shore leave, were
killed and a dozen injured. When the Chilean government was slow to apologize and
pay damages, President Benjamin Harrison invited Congress to declare war.
Of much greater significance is the Venezuelan Border Dispute in 1895 with British
Guiana.
1.
The border had long been disputed (as indeed, many borders in Latin
America are). The terrain was mostly jungle, but the discovery of gold
suddenly made it relevant.
2.
The British saw no reason either to agree to the Venezuelan demands nor to
submit the issue to arbitration. After all, Venezuela did not have the power
to force Britain to do anything.
3.
President Grover Cleveland decided to intervene
a.
Cleveland was under attack from expansionists for his refusal to
annex Hawaii
b.
Taking a stand against Britain was always popular with many voters,
especially the Irish.
c.
Protecting the weak against the strong appealed to American
sentimentality.
d.
Cleveland is in deep trouble politically over the Panic of 1893 and
the silver issue. He is looking for an issue that will secure his reelection. A foreign crisis usually causes the nation to rally around the
flag, and the president who happens to be holding it.
e.
He really did believe that the Venezuelans were in the right.
4.
Secretary of State Richard Olney sent a very stiff letter to the British,
informing them that they were violating the Monroe Doctrine by seeking to
extend their territory, that they must submit to arbitration or face unspecified
US actions.
a.
Olney told the British "Today the United States to practically
sovereign on this continent, and its fiat is law upon the subjects to
which it confines its interposition. Why? . . . . It is because in
addition to all other grounds its infinite resources combined with its
isolated position render it master of the situation and practically
invulnerable as against any or all other powers." (Tindall & Shi 905)
5.
British Foreign Minister Lord Salisbury pointedly ignored the letter for
months, finally answering icily that the Monroe Doctrine was not
international law, and that Britain refused to arbitrate.
6.
Cleveland was furious, asked for and got the money for a US boundary
commission to provide a report, and appeared ready to fight over the issue.
Congress appeared willing.
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The British were startled at the seriousness with which Cleveland took the
issue. They have many other fish to fry, such as rising German economic and
naval power, and the Boer War, which was already straining the Imperial
forces. Furthermore, Canada would be very vulnerable. In general, it was
stupid to antagonize a nation as potentially powerful as the US over an issue
so minor. (Good thinking; too often people think with their pride, and blood
is shed). They agree to arbitration and the issue dies down.
8.
One consequence of the issue was a period of greater Anglo-US cooperation,
which Britain, as it turned out, needed desperately.
9.
The US has asserted the Monroe Doctrine against a European power in
defense of a Latin American nation.
The Spanish-American War
A.
Spanish misrule in Cuba had led to a revolt in 1868-1878, the Ten Years' War.
1.
Americans had been sympathetic to the Cubans.
B.
The Wilson-Gorman Tariff of 1894 placed high duties (40%)on raw sugar, and
ruined the Cuban economy (similar to what the McKinley Tariff did to Hawaii).
1.
In consequence of the added economic misery, a new rebellion broke out in
Cuba in 1895.
C.
The rebellion was bitterly fought. The rebels deliberately laid waste to fields. The
Spanish resorted to brutal repression.
1.
General Valeriano Weyler, dubbed the "Butcher" by US newspapers, created
"reconcentration camps" to intern the rural population for their protection
against the guerrillas. This is in effect, what the US did at one time in Viet
Nam, with equally poor results. The Spanish lost control of the countryside.
2.
The fighting disrupted food supplies, and led to even more serious suffering
in the population.
D.
US investors, who had about $50,000,000 invested in Cuban sugar, favored US
intervention. This is in accord with Marxist-Leninist theory.
E.
Wall Street, however, was adamantly opposed to intervention. The country was just
recovering from the depression, and Wall Street did not want anything as
destabilizing as war. This is emphatically the opposite of Marxist-Leninist theory.
McKinley is a stooge of Big Business, but here he will act against their wishes and
in accordance with popular demand.
F.
The American public was intensely sympathetic to the Cubans.
1.
William Randolph Hearst's New York Journal was locked in a bitter
circulation war with Joseph Pulitzer's New York World.
2.
Lurid stories of atrocities fed circulation.
3.
If there were no recent atrocities, they would make them up.
4.
Think of this as the beginning of a process leading to the media feeding
frenzy over the OJ Simpson Trial.
5.
The phrase given for this sensationalistic, rumor mongering kind of press is
the "yellow press." Because it was also exaggeratedly and chauvinistically
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H.
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patriotic, it is also called the "jingo press."
McKinley was under very heavy popular pressure to intervene. He had been billed
as "the advance agent for prosperity" and followed the advice of Big Business, but
he was too weak to resist overwhelming popular pressure.
1.
His hesitancy led to jokes: "Why is McKinley's mind like an unmade bed?
Because someone has to make it up for him every time he has to use it."
The DeLome Letter
1.
Riots in Havana led to the arrival of the USS Maine in the harbor on January
25, 1898 to protect US citizens.
2.
In February, a Cuban agent stole a letter from Enrique De Lome, the Spanish
ambassador to Washington, to a friend in Havana. He turned it over to
Hearst, who promptly published it on February 9.
3.
In the letter, De Lome called McKinley "a small time politician" (which was
untrue) and a "bidder for the admiration of the crowd" (which was).
4.
Public opinion was outraged at this insult to their beloved leader.
5.
Still, McKinley vacillated.
6.
Theodore Roosevelt, in disgust, exclaimed, "McKinley has no more
backbone than a chocolate eclair!"
"Remember the Maine!"
1.
On February 15, 1898, a mysterious explosion tore the Maine apart, and sank
it, with a loss of 260 lives.
2.
Public opinion eagerly blamed Spain (the least likely culprit, actually).
3.
We will likely never know the cause of the explosion for sure, but it was most
likely an internal explosion due to poor discipline around the powder
magazine.
4.
The Navy, however, concluded that the explosion was caused by an "external
submarine mine."
5.
War hysteria sweeps the country. McKinley's resistance weakened.
a.
Theodore Roosevelt wrote "We will have this war for the freedom
of Cuba in spite of the timidity of the commercial interests."
(Tindall & Shi 910)
The US ultimatum
1.
McKinley finally makes the following demands of Spain:
a.
An immediate armistice
b.
Revocation of the reconcentration camps.
c.
cooperation with the US to provide humanitarian relief.
2.
The Cuban rebels sensed that their cooperation might avert US entry into the
conflict. Accordingly, they had every reason to refuse to cooperate in the
slightest
3.
On April 10, the Spanish government reluctantly agreed to the US ultimatum.
4.
On April 11, McKinley, bowing to public pressure, sent Congress a war
message anyway.
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5.
K.
L.
M.
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Page 14
The Teller Resolution was attached to the declaration of war: the US
disclaimed any intention of adding Cuban territory to the US. Our purpose
in going to war as solely to liberate Cuba from Spanish rule.
6.
William Leuchtenberg has this judgement about the Spanish-American War:
"We entered a war in which no vital American interests was involved, and
without any concept of its consequences. Although McKinley declared
that to enter such a war for high purposes and then annex territory would
be 'criminal aggression,' we acquired as a result of the war the Philippines
and other parts of an overseas empire we had not intended to get, and
had no idea how to defend. Although we roundly attacked Spain for not
recognizing the rebel government, we, in our turn, refused to recognize the
rebels. Although we were shocked by Weyler's policies in Cuba, we were
soon in the unhappy position of using savage methods to put down a
rebel uprising in the Philippines, employing violence in a measure that
easily matched what Weyler had done." (Leuchtenberg 210)
War in the Philippines
1.
Assistant Secretary of the Navy Theodore Roosevelt was left in charge of the
Navy Department one day. Roosevelt promptly ordered Commodore George
Dewey at Hong Kong to move against Manila if war came. The Secretary of
the Navy did not countermand that order, which was taken entirely on TR's
initiative.
2.
Dewey sailed for Manila and destroyed the Spanish fleet there.
3.
Dewey then makes contact with Philippine rebels under the leadership of
Emilio Aguinaldo.
a.
Aguinaldo asked for US troops to assist in occupying Manila.
McKinley sent 11,000 men to take Manila.
4.
The US has occupied the Philippines.
War in Cuba
1.
US preparedness and organization were miserable. Tampa was the main
troop concentration center.
2.
Theodore Roosevelt resigned as Assistant Secretary of the Navy to form the
Rough Riders, a volunteer cavalry unit.
3.
Spanish Admiral Pascual Cervera ran the US naval blockade to reach
Santiago, but found himself bottled up.
4.
US land forces attack Santiago.
5.
The capture of San Juan Hill (which made Theodore Roosevelt a national
hero forced Cervera to try to break out.
6.
Admiral William T. Sampson and Commodore Winfield Scott Schley ran
them down and destroyed Cervera's entire force.
7.
The obsolescent Spanish Navy was simply no match for the more modern US
warships.
US losses for the entire war were 400 combat deaths and 4,600 dead to disease.
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The Treaty of Paris of 1898
A.
Spain agreed to give up Cuba
B.
The US annexed Puerto Rico and Guam from Spain
C.
The US occupied the Philippines pending final resolution; by the end of the
negotiations, McKinley came out in favor of annexation of the Philippines as well.
1.
There had been no sentiment in favor of annexing the Philippines prior to the
war.
2.
Pro-annexationists included:
a.
Expansionists like Theodore Roosevelt and Henry Cabot Lodge, all
influenced by Alfred Thayer Mahan.
b.
Business interests, which had now done a flip flop on the idea of
empire. The Philippines were not valuable in themselves so much as
they were valuable as a stepping stone to China. They dreamed of
entering the enormous Chinese market: a chimera that will plague
US foreign policy for 50 years.
c.
Missionaries wanted the Philippines to Christianize our "little brown
brothers" and also for access to China (our "little yellow brothers")
The fact that the Philippines were Catholic seems to have been
missed altogether.
3.
McKinley finally told a Methodist group: "The truth is, I didn't want the
Philippines, and when they came to us . . . I did not know what to do
with them. . . . And late at night it came to me this way . . . (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 in the orient--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
over there worse than Spain's was; and (4) that there was nothing left for
us to do but take them all, and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and
civilize and Christianize them, and by God's grace do the very best we
could by them, as our fellow men for whom Christ also died." (Larrabee
224)
D.
Arguments for Imperialism
1.
Note how McKinley's statement above blends various strands of thought.
2.
Rudyard Kipling, English poet then living in the United States, a serious and
thoughtful Imperialist (he gave us Kim, Gunga Din, and the Jungle Book)
wrote the poem that has come to symbolize the entire racial defense of the
Imperialism of the late 19th century (most people missed the irony of the
poem; one should also read his "Recessional," which contains a warning
against hubris):
"The White Man's Burden"
1899
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(The United States and the Philippine Islands)
Take up the White Man's burden-Send forth the best ye breed-Go bind your sons to exile
To serve your captives' need;
To wait in heavy harness
On fluttered folk and wild-Your new-caught, sullen peoples
Half-devil and half-child.
Take up the White Man's burden-In patience to abide,
To veil the threat of terror
And check the show of pride;
By open speech and simple,
An hundred times made plain,
To seek another's profit,
And work another's gain.
Take up the White Man's burden-The savage wars of peace-Fill full the mouth of Famine
And bid the sickness cease;
And when your goal is nearest
The end for others sought,
Watch Sloth and heathen Folly
Bring all your hope to nought.
Take up the White Man's burden-No tawdry rule of kings,
But toil of serf and sweeper-The tale of common things.
The ports ye shall not enter,
The roads ye shall not tread,
Go make them with your living,
And mark them with your dead!
Take up the White Man's burden-And reap his old reward:
The blame of those ye better,
The hate of those ye guard.
The cry of hosts ye humor
(Ah, slowly!) toward the light:-"Why brought ye us from bondage,
"Our loved Egyptian night?"
Take up the White Man's burden-You dare not stoop to less-Nor call too loud on Freedom
To cloak your weariness;
By all ye cry or whisper,
By all ye leave or do,
The silent, sullen peoples
Shall weigh your Gods and you.
Take up the White Man's burden-Have done with childish days-The lightly proffered laurel,
The easy, ungrudged praise.
Comes now, to search your manhood
Through all the thankless years,
Cold, edged with dear bought wisdom,
The judgment of your peers!
3.
Josiah Strong (1885) "It is not necessary to argue . . . that the two great
needs of mankind, that all men may be lifted into the light of the highest
Christian civilization, are, first, a pure, spiritual Christianity, and,
second, civil liberty. Without controversy, these are the forces, which in
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4.
5.
Mr. Blackmon
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the past have contributed most to the elevation of the human race, and
they must continue to be, in the future, the most efficient ministers to its
progress. It follows, then, that the Anglo-Saxon, as the great
representative of these two ideas, the depositary of these two great
blessings, sustains peculiar relations to the world's future, is divinely
commissioned to able, in a peculiar sense, his brother's keeper. Add to
this the fact of his rapidly increasing strength in modern times, and we
have well nigh a demonstration of his destiny. . . . It seems to me that
God, with infinite wisdom and skill, is training the Anglo-Saxon race for
an hour sure to come in the world's future." (Blum 526) (emphasis added)
Alfred Thayer Mahan (1897) ""To affirm the importance of distant
markets, and the relation to them of our own immense powers of
production, implies logically the recognition of the link that joins the
products and the markets--that is, the carrying trade; the three together
constituting that chain of maritime power to which Great Britain owes her
wealth and greatness. Further is it too much to say that, as two of these
links, the shipping and the markets, are exterior to our own borders, the
acknowledgement of them carries with it a view of the relations of the
United States to the world radically distinct from the simple idea of selfsufficingness? We shall not follow far this line of thought before there will
dawn the realization of America's unique position, facing the older worlds
of the East and West, her shores washed by the oceans which touch the
one or the other, but are common to her alone." (Blum 527) (emphasis
added)
Senator Albert J. Beveridge (1900) "The Philippines are ours forever,
'territory belonging to the United States,' as the Constitution calls them.
And just beyond the Philippines are China's illimitable markets. We will
not retreat from either. We will not repudiate our duty in the archipelago.
We will not abandon our opportunity in the Orient. We will not renounce
our part in the mission of our race, trustee, under God, of the civilization
of the world. . . . . . . Mr. president, this question is deeper than any
question of party politics; deeper than any question of the isolated policy
of our country even; deeper even than any question of constitutional
power. It is elemental. It is racial. God has not been preparing the
English-speaking and Teutonic peoples for a thousand years for nothing
but vain and idle self-contemplation and self-admiration. No! He has
made us the master organizers of the world to establish system where
chaos reigns. He has given us the spirit of progress to overwhelm the
forces of reaction throughout the earth. He has made us adepts in
government that we may administer government among savage and senile
peoples. Were it not for such a force as this the world would relapse into
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E.
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barbarism and night. And of all our race he has marked the American
people as His chosen nation to finally lead in the regeneration of the
world. This is the divine mission of America, and it holds for us all the
profit, all the glory, all the happiness possible to man We are trustees of
the world's progress, guardians of its righteous peace." (Beveridge "In
Support of an American Empire" 336, 343) (emphasis added)
6.
Brooks Adams (1902) "The West Indies drift toward us, the Republic of
Mexico hardly longer has an independent life, and the city of Mexico is an
American town. With the completion of the Panama Canal all Central
America will become part of our system. We have expanded into Asia, we
have attracted the fragment of the Spanish dominions, and reaching out
into China we have checked the advance of Russia and Germany. . . We
are penetrating into Europe, and Great Britain especially is assuming the
position of a dependency . . . The United States will outweigh any single
empire, if not all empires combined. The whole world will pay her tribute.
Commerce will flow to her from both east and west, and the order which
has existed from the dawn of time will be reversed." (Blum 537) (emphasis
added)
Opposition to Imperialism
1.
Such a dramatic departure from our governmental ideals did not go
unchallenged.
2.
The Anti-Imperialism League was formed in 1899, and was composed of
persons from both parties.
a.
The list of members was impressive, and included some strange
partners:
(1)
William Jennings Bryan (Dem)
(2)
Grover Cleveland (Dem)
(3)
Sen. George F. Hoar (Rep)
(4)
Speaker Thomas Reed (Rep)
(5)
Sen. John Sherman (Rep)
(6)
Samuel Gompers
(7)
Andrew Carnegie
(8)
Carl Schurz (Rep)
(9)
Charles Francis Adams
(10) William James
(11) William Dean Howells
(12) William Graham Sumner
(13) Mark Twain
(14) Pres. Charles Eliot (Harvard)
(15) Jane Addams
(16) Lincoln Steffens
(17) Pitchfork Ben Tillman
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3.
4.
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When the Filipinos learned of US intention to annex them, they began a
rebellion against us. Aguinaldo wanted Philippine independence, and he was
willing to fight either Spain or the US to get it.
a.
The war raged 3 years
b.
The US eventually used the same sort of techniques Spain had used
in Cuba.
c.
70,000 troops were ultimately committed.
d.
The war cost 4,300 lives and cost $170,000,000.
e.
In the end, the good management of William Howard Taft, who was
sent in 1901 as governor, helped end the Philippine Insurrection
(1)
He won support from the civilian population by building
roads, hospitals and schools, and by encouraging Filipino
participation in self government.
Examples of anti-imperialist rhetoric:
a.
Anti-Imperialism League (1899) "We hold that the policy known
as imperialism is hostile to liberty and tends toward militarism, an
evil from which it has been our glory to be free. We regret that it
has become necessary in the land of Washington and Lincoln to
reaffirm that all men, of whatever race or color, are entitled to life,
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We maintain that
governments derive their just powers from the consent of the
governed. We insist that the subjugation of any people is 'criminal
aggression' and open disloyalty to the distinctive principles of our
Government. We hold, with Abraham Lincoln, that 'no man is
good enough to govern another man without that man's consent.
When the white man governs himself, that is self-government, but
when he governs himself and also governs another man, that is
more than self-government--that is despotism. . . . Our reliance is
in the love of liberty which God has planted in us. Our defense is
in the spirit which prizes liberty as the heritage of all men in all
lands. Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for
themselves, and under a just God cannot long retain it." (Current
611)
b.
Sen. George Hoar (1899): "Have we the right, as doubtless we
have the physical power, to enter upon the government of ten or
twelve million subject people without constitutional restraint? . . .
. [T]he question . . . .is whether Congress may conquer and may
govern without their consent and against their will, a foreign
nation, a separate, distinct, and numerous people, a territory not
hereafter to be populated by Americans to be formed into
American states . . . ,whether it may conquer control, and govern
this people, not for the general welfare, common defense, more
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Mr. Blackmon
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perfect union, more blessed liberty of the people of the United
States, but for some real or fancied benefit to be conferred against
their desire upon the people so governed or in discharge of some
fancied obligation to them, and not to the people of the United
States. . . . The government of foreign people against their will is
not a constitutional purpose but a purpose expressly forbidden by
the Constitution. Therefore I deny the right to acquire this
territory and to hold it by the government for that purpose." (Hoar
248-252)
William Jennings Bryan (1900): "If it is right for the United
States to hold the Philippine Islands permanently and imitate
European empires in the government of colonies, the Republican
Party ought to state its position and defend it, but it must expect
the subject races to protest against such a policy and to resist to
the extent of their ability." . . . The Filipinos do not need any
encouragement . . . Our whole history has been an encouragement
. . . to make the Filipinos hate foreign domination. Let them
condemn . . . Patrick Henry, . . . Let them censure Thomas
Jefferson . . . , George Washington . . . , Lincoln. . . . For it was
God Himself who place din every human heart the love of liberty.
He never made a race of people so low in the scale of civilization
or intelligence that it would welcome a foreign master. . . . We
cannot repudiate the principle of self-government in the
Philippines without weakening that principle here. . . . Is the
sunlight of full citizenship to be enjoyed by the people of the
United States and the twilight of semi-citizenship endured by the
people of Puerto Rico, while the thick darkness of perpetual
vassalage cover the Philippines? . . .If government derive their just
powers from the consent of the governed, it is impossible to secure
title to people, either by force or by purchase. . . . But a war of
conquest is as unwise and it is unrighteous. A harbor and coaling
station in the Philippines would answer every trade and military
necessity and such a concession could have been secured at any
time without difficulty. It is not necessary to own people in order
to trade with them. . . . Trade cannot be permanently profitable
unless it is voluntary. When trade is secured by force, the cost of
securing it and retaining it must be taken out of the profits and
the profits are never large enough to co er the expense. Such a
system would never be defended but for the fact that the expense
is borne by all the people while the profits by a few. . . . When our
opponents are unable to defend their position by argument, they
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Mr. Blackmon
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fall back upon the assertion that it is destiny and insist that we
must submit to it . . . . This is a complacent philosophy. It
obliterates the distinction between right and wrong and makes
individuals and nations the helpless victims of circumstances.
Destiny is the subterfuge of the invertebrate, who, lacking the
courage to oppose error, seeks some plausible excuse for
supporting it." (Bryan, 345-349)
5.
Ratification of the Treaty
a.
The anti-annexationists probably had enough votes to block the
treaty. However, Bryan made a political misjudgment. He was a
pacifist; defeat of the treaty would leave the United States and Spain
technically still at war, which troubled him. He decided that we
should ratify the treaty, take the Philippines, and then liberate them
by unilateral action. This shifted just enough votes to win
ratification. Of course, the US did not then liberate the Philippines-there weren't enough votes for it and the anti-annexationists no longer
had any leverage. Bryan's defeat in the presidential election of 1900
sealed the decision.
Imperial Organization
A.
Puerto Rico
1.
The Foraker Act (1900) provided for a civil government in Puerto Rico.
a.
Tariff provisions were challenged in court, resulting in the
(1)
Insular Cases, including Downes v. Bidwell (1901) which
ruled that the "Constitution does not follow the flag."
B.
Cuba
1.
Some form of aid seemed necessary until order was restored.
2.
The Cuban economy had collapsed, hunger was widespread.
3.
Gen. Leonard Wood headed a military government in 1898.
4.
There was now an influx of American business investors
5.
The US withdrew following the establishment of a civil government, with
one very important string attached:
a.
The Platt Amendment was required as part of the Cuban constitution.
It authorized US intervention in Cuba "for the preservation of Cuban
independence" and "the maintenance of a government adequate for
the protection of life, property, and individual liberty."
b.
In addition, Cuba could not make treaties with foreign powers
without our agreement, and must grant the US a naval base on its soil
(Guantanamo).
c.
The Platt Amendment converted Cuba into a US protectorate.
d.
The US used the Platt Amendment on several occasions.
e.
The Platt Amendment was a logical step if we had gone to war to free
Cuba
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The Panama Canal
A.
The focus of our Caribbean policy was to build a canal across the Isthmus of Panama.
1.
Once we became a transcontinental power, such a canal became necessary for
strategic reasons:
a.
The USS Oregon took two months to enter Caribbean waters from the
Pacific. When it arrived, the war was over.
2.
The canal was also obviously important for reasons of trade.
3.
Theodore Roosevelt made a canal a top priority of his foreign policy when he
became president after McKinley's death.
B.
The Hay-Pauncefote Treaty (1901)
1.
Cleared the way for unilateral US control by abrogating the Clayton-Bulwer
Treaty
2.
The US would have the right to build and fortify a trans-isthmian canal
3.
Such a canal must be open to all nations.
C.
Possible routes
1.
Panama (then a province of Colombia)
a.
The route would take only 50 miles
b.
The terrain however was very rugged indeed
c.
The terrain was more than unhealthy as a result of malaria and yellow
fever. Disease had ended all previous attempts to dig a canal over
this route.
2.
Nicaragua
a.
This route was 200 miles
b.
However, the route was sea-level, and several lakes were on the way
that could be used.
3.
Roosevelt was advised that the Panama route was technically superior
a.
The New Panama Canal Company, headed by Philippe BunauVarilla had acquired the rights from Ferdinand de Lesseps. He
wanted $109,000,000 for the concession and its assets.
b.
At that price, Roosevelt began to investigate the Nicaraguan route.
c.
Bunau-Varilla then dropped his asking price to $40,000,000 and
convinces TR to take the Panama route.
D.
Negotiations with Colombia
1.
The Hay-Herran Treaty (1903)
a.
99 year lease across Panama, 6 miles wide, for $10,000,000 and
$250,000 rent per annum.
b.
The Colombian Senate rejected the treaty, believing that the canal
was worth more money. They asked for $25,000,000.
c.
TR was furious at the rejection. "You could no more make an
agreement with the Colombian rulers than you could nail currant
jelly to a wall!"
(1)
one wonders if there is some deep significance to TR's
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frequent use of food in his images.
2.
Panamanian interests, led by Bunau-Varilla, feared that they would lose the
canal after all, which would deny them the economic benefits.
a.
Bunau-Varilla and his supporters foment rebellion
b.
They receive open encouragement from TR
c.
It seems obvious that they received covert aid as well.
3.
There was a revolution in Panama in 1903.
a.
By sheerest coincidence, TR had despatched the gunboat, USS
Nashville offshore.
b.
The Nashville blocked the movement of Colombian reenforcement
to regain control of their own province, an egregious interference in
the sovereignty of another nation if there ever was one.
c.
By another sheer coincidence, TR was informed immediately of the
rebellion, and he as promptly recognized the new government
E.
The Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty
1.
The same terms as the Hay-Herran Treaty, except that the lease was
perpetual, and the strip of land was 10 miles wide.
F.
Reaction in Latin America
1.
This high-handedness angered Latin Americans, understandably
2.
TR bragged that "I took Panama."
3.
Hay told TR, "You were accused of seduction and you have conclusively
proved that you were guilty of rape."
4.
The US eventually paid Colombia $25,000,000 in 1921. Too bad we weren't
willing to negotiate further in 1903--we could have achieved the same
objective with fewer hard feelings.
5.
Theodore Roosevelt was certainly correct to place the canal so high on his
priorities. The canal was indeed a strategic necessity. It would have been
difficult to fight World War I without it, and perhaps impossible to fight
World War II without it.
6.
Roosevelt is certainly to blame for his impatience. The treaty could have
been negotiated, and $25,000,000 was not an excessive price, considering the
potential value of the canal. His Big Stick here helps poison US-Latin
American relations.
G.
Work began on the canal soon afterwards. It was completed in 1914, just a few
weeks before the outbreak of World War I.
The Big Stick Policy
A.
TR often used the African proverb "Speak softly and carry a big stick and you will
go far." The US will begin wielding a Big Stick in the Caribbean under TR and
continue under other presidents.
B.
The dominant strategic concern of the US is the protection of the Panama
Canal. The US has been extraordinarily sensitive to any threat, real or imagined, to
the Canal. Instability in the region was viewed (not unreasonably, in my opinion) as
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C.
D.
E.
F.
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a threat.
The second interest was US investment. After 1900, the US begins to replace
Great Britain as the chief investor in Latin America, especially in the Caribbean
basin.
1.
The US made very heavy investments in Mexico, especially in mineral
resources.
2.
The US invested about $500,000,000 in Cuba at this time.
3.
United Fruit Company acquired such large holdings in Central America as
to dominate the economies and the government of countries such as
Guatemala and Honduras.
There is an underlying reality to TR's Big Stick that provides a justification, however
unpalatable it may be to Latin Americans. The key lies in the imperialistic practices
of the European nations of the day.
Many Latin American governments were, in fact, weak, poor, unstable, and corrupt.
Europeans repeatedly used the technique of loans or investment in small countries
to obtain a wedge for colonial control. A brief survey of late 19th century
imperialism will prove that TR's fears were not idle.
1.
First, the loan would be made.
2.
Then, if the nation defaulted on payment, or if political instability threatened
European property or prospects for repayment, the Europeans would despatch
troops to protect their interests. This is precisely what the US did with
"gunboat diplomacy." We learned it from the Europeans.
3.
The use of national power, backed ultimately by military power, to encourage
and then protect investments abroad is called Dollar Diplomacy. This is a
policy most correctly associated with the presidency of William Howard
Taft. However, it has been used by IB on an examination to refer to US
Caribbean policy from 1900 to 1934, a much broader definition. The broad
definition is the one which is most often used, though.
a.
Dollar Diplomacy is made much of by Marxists, since it fits nicely
into Lenin's formulation of the evolution of capitalist societies,
whereby the exploitation of distant oppressed colonial peoples
relieves sufficient pressure on the oppressed domestic proletariat to
delay the inevitable revolution.
b.
Dollar Diplomacy is essentially the same kind of diplomacy practiced
by European states in the late 19th century towards the non-European
world.
c.
Dollar Diplomacy, in the case of the US, did not necessarily mean
military occupation. The US preferred to wield indirect influence
through investment and loans. The chief influence might be US
corporations, like United Fruit, rather than the US government itself.
Europeans tended to prefer direct military control. To that degree,
Dollar Diplomacy was more benign that outright colonial control.
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d.
e.
Mr. Blackmon
Page 25
Many Latin Americans failed to see much difference. They argue that
Great Britain in the late 19th century and the US in the early 20th
century, practiced a neo-colonial policy, which reduced Latin
American nations to the status of virtual colonies by virtue of the
trade and investment relationships. Mexico and Argentina are useful
examples. Railroads were at least as essential to the economic
development of these nations as to the US (more so, considering the
geography); they were financed and controlled by British investors.
You will please note in the Roosevelt Corollary speech quoted below,
that TR addresses some of these issues directly. He takes the stand
that the US would not enforce a contract by the use of arms (not all
Americans agreed with him, but it is significant that TR, as eager an
expansionist as we have ever had, took the position that he did).
Europeans, as TR noted, had few qualms.
It is a mistake to think, as the Marxists think, that Dollar Diplomacy
is an unmitigated evil.
(1)
There are certainly issues of national sovereignty involved,
which causes much of the resentment.
(2)
However, these nations desperately needed capital in order to
develop the economy, create jobs, and improve standards of
living. They did not possess that capital.
(3)
For the most part, their economies depended on the
production of raw materials (mineral or agricultural products),
which then had to be exchanged for manufactured goods.
Such an exchange always favors the manufacturer, whether it
is Great Britain in 1880 vis a vis Argentina or New England
in 1850 vis a vis the South.
(4)
The only source of capital was Europe or the US. Prior to
1900, US capital was fully involved in exploiting the
domestic economy (we needed to borrow from Europe to
finance our growth). After 1900, US capital sought out other
investments.
(5)
Without that capital, economic progress simply cannot be
made in an undeveloped or underdeveloped nation, short of
dictatorial rule and brutal oppression, a la Josef Stalin.
(a)
Stalin was (obviously) unable and unwilling to attract
capital from abroad to finance the industrialization of
the Soviet Union. His only recourse was to pay for
industrialization by lowering the already miserable
standard of living of the Soviet peoples, particularly
by forcing the peasants to pay the costs. This entailed
the deaths of millions, and required one of the most
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brutal regimes in history.
4.
European "police" forces frequently turned into full-scale colonial rule.
5.
Such a development would be a violation of the Monroe Doctrine, and a clear
threat to US trade and strategic interests in the region..
The Venezuela Incident (1902) illustrates the potential for trouble.
1.
Venezuela's ruler, Cipriano Castro, refused to pay debts owed Great Britain
and Germany.
2.
Great Britain and Germany blockade Caracas to make them pay.
3.
The US, acting on the Monroe Doctrine, arbitrated the issue.
4.
The willingness of the Europeans to arbitrate indicated their
acknowledgement of special US interest in the region: a US "sphere of
influence."
The Roosevelt Corollary (1905)
1.
In 1904, the Dominican Republic defaulted on loans, creating a similar
situation to that of Venezuela.
2.
Roosevelt told Congress: "That our rights and interests are deeply
concerned in the maintenance of the [Monroe] doctrine is so clear as
hardly to need argument. This is especially true in view of the
construction of the Panama Canal. As a mere matter of self-defense we
must exercise a close watch over the approaches to this canal, and this
means that we must be thoroughly alive in our interests in the Caribbean
Sea. . . . .It must be understood that under no circumstances will the
United States use the Monroe Doctrine as a cloak for territorial
aggression. We desire peace with all the world, . . . There are, of course,
limits to the wrongs which any self-respecting nation can endure. It is
always possible that wrong actions toward this nation or toward citizens
of this nation in some state unable to keep order among its own people,
unable to secure justice to those outsiders who treat it well, may result in
our having to take action to protect our rights; but such action will not be
taken with a view to territorial aggression, and it will be taken at all only
with extreme reluctance . . . . Moreover, we must make it evident that we
do not intend to permit the Monroe Doctrine to be used by any nation on
this continent as a shield to protect it from the consequences of its own
misdeeds against foreign nations. If a republic to the south of us
commits a tort against a foreign nation, such as an outrage against a
citizen of that nation, then the Monroe Doctrine does not force us to
interfere to prevent punishment of the tort, save to see that the
punishment does not assume the form of territorial occupation in any
shape. The case is more difficult when it refers to a contractual
obligation. Our own government has always refused to enforce such
contractual obligation on behalf of its citizens by an appeal to arms. It is
much to be wished that all foreign governments would take the same view.
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But they do not; and in consequence we are liable at any time to be
brought face to face with disagreeable alternatives. On the one hand, this
country would certainly decline to go to war to prevent a foreign
government from collecting a just debt; on the other hand, it is very
inadvisable to permit any foreign power to take possession, even
temporarily, of the custom-houses of an American republic in order to
enforce the payment of its obligations, for such temporary occupation
might turn into a permanent occupation. The only escape from these
alternatives may at any time be that we must ourselves undertake to bring
about some arrangement by which so much as possible of a just obligation
shall be paid. . . . It is of benefit to our people; it is of benefit to foreign
peoples; and most of all, it is really of benefit to the people of the country
concerned." (Roosevelt "Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine" 1-3)
3.
At the invitation of the Dominican Republic, the US took over their customs
houses in 1905. We distributed 45% of their customs to the Dominicans, and
55% to creditors in Italy and France.
4.
Such a policy was intensely unpopular among Latin Americans. America
appears to be the "Hemispheric Policeman." Their anger is to be expected.
But the fact remains that the threat of European take over was real. Roosevelt
might be arrogant, high-handed, chauvinistic, and condescending, but in the
end, he was right.
US Protectorates
1.
The full extent of US concern for the stability of the region can be seen by
looking at our interventions and protectorates:
2.
Cuba
a.
Occupied: 1898-1902, 1906-1909, 1912, 1917, 1922
b.
Protectorate: 1898-1934
3.
Dominican Republic
a.
Occupied: 1916-1924
b.
Protectorate: 1905-1941
4.
Haiti
a.
Occupied: 1915-1934
b.
Protectorate: 1915-1936
5.
Panama:
a.
Protectorate: 1903-1939
6.
Nicaragua
a.
Occupied: 1912-1925, 1926-1933
Not included in this list is the acquisition of the Virgin Islands from Denmark in
1916, the annexation of Puerto Rica in 1898, or the occupation of Vera Cruz in 1914
All of these nations and/or possessions bear a direct relationship to the security of the
Panama Canal, as a glance at the map will show (except for Vera Cruz, they form a
line across the Atlantic approaches to the Canal.
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