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6 - American Empire, 1897–1913

from Part I - From Backwater to Great Power

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 January 2024

Donald Stoker
Affiliation:
National Defense University, Washington, DC
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Summary

Domestic political pressure drove William McKinley to launch the Spanish-American War after an internal explosion sank the battleship Maine in Havana Harbor. As usual, the US wasn’t prepared for the war, but Spain proved no match for American military power. The US fought for Cuban independence but also joined the imperial powers by securing colonial possessions such as Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines. The US also annexed Hawaii. The US soon faced an unexpected war in the Philippines for which it was also unprepared, and eventually won. Theodore Roosevelt succeeded the assassinated McKinley, secured land for the Panama Canal, and launched the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine. William Howard Taft followed Roosevelt to the White House and launched a failed “Dollar Diplomacy” grand strategy. American involvement in Latin America and the Caribbean intensified, particularly in Cuba and the Dominican Republic.

Keywords

Type
Chapter
Information
Purpose and Power
US Grand Strategy from the Revolutionary Era to the Present
, pp. 191 - 224
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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