United States Foreign Policy,

1898 - 1919
Expansion into the Pacific, The Spanish-American
War, Latin American Policy, and World War I
Alfred Thayer Mahan, The Influence of
Sea Power Upon History
In 1890, Alfred Thayer Mahan, a
US Navy flag officer, wrote the
book The Influence of Sea Power
Upon History. This book
encouraged Americans to open
new ports abroad, to facilitate
trade, and to build up a Navy
which was capable of defending
American interests and protecting
American trade. In the process,
he changed the nature of
American foreign policy. The
Navy grew, and so did Americans
influence around the globe. One
of his most famous readers: TR.
 International Trade &
Global Economies,
1890 – World War I
The United States of America,
like many other nations, was
eager to expand it’s economy
by finding new places to trade.
In the 1860s, the United States
had acquired Alaska and the
Midway Islands. By
collecting colonies in the
Pacific and the Caribbean
during the Spanish-American
War – and other island nations
like Hawaii and Samoa – the
Uncle Sam looks over a menu of imperialistic
opportunities: Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and US expanded it’s global
Hawaii – which was once called The Sandwich Islands. influence and opened trade
with new markets. This, it was
believed, would lead to
prosperity and strength.
THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR
The United States intervened to assist Cuba, a right we continued
to assert until the Cuban Missile Crisis – and a right which still
maintains control over Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
 Causes of the Spanish-American War:
Remember the Maine!
The United States was
genuinely concerned
about Spanish misrule
in Cuba, but the yellow
journalism of the
period heightened
concerns over the
island. When the USS
Maine exploded in
Havana Harbor,
newspapers
immediately blamed it
upon the Spanish –
with or without The USS Maine blew up in Havana Harbor on
evidence. February 15th, 1898, killing over 260 American
sailors. Yellow Journalist blamed the Spanish!
Treaty of Paris of 1898
Secretary of State John Hay
called the Spanish American War
“A Splendid Little War!” It was
short – only about six weeks. It
was victorious, as the United
States won most of the battles,
and more soldier died of disease
and food poisoning than from
conflict. After the war ended, the
United States took possession of
Guam, Puerto Rico, and the
Philippines (for $20 Million),
and Cuba became an American
protectorate. NOTE: Filipinos
opposed US takeover of the
islands violently!
The US Purchases the Philippines
The United States purchased the
Philippines for $20 Million in the
Treaty of Paris of 1898. The
decision to take over the islands
came as a huge surprise to Filipinos
like Emilio Aguinaldo, who had
cooperated with Americans in
overthrowing the Spanish only
because he believed the Philippines
would have their independence. In
the years following the colonization
of the Philippines, a bloody war of
conquest was fought by the United
States. Conservative estimates of
the number of Filipinos killed
number in the hundreds of
thousands.
The US Overthrew Queen Liliuokalani
in 1893 and annexed Hawaii in 1898.
In 1893, Queen Liliuokalani was
overthrown by a group of
American planters, businessmen,
and Marines. Americans had been
in Hawaii for decades, taking over
the export industries there and
establishing a naval base – with
the permission of King Kalakaua
in the 1880s. Although President
Grover Cleveland refused to
annex Hawaii initially, William
McKinley would do so in 1898.
Hawaii was a territory of the
United States until 1959, when it
became a state.
THE OPEN DOOR POLICY IN CHINA
The Open Door Policy was proposed by Secretary of State John Hay. Essentially, it was a proposal that the United
States be allowed to trade in China on the same terms which already existed for other European Powers in the
nation. The Chinese hated the idea, and revolted against it in 1900 with the Boxer Rebellion.
THE OPEN DOOR POLICY IN CHINA
The Open Door Policy
might better have been
called the “Kick Your Door
Down Policy.” European
powers and Americans all
trade in China on terms
which favored themselves,
leaving China weak,
disorganized, and
economically exploited.
Meanwhile Europeans
fought with one another over
control in the most lucrative
regions for trade. Americans
(pictured over the right
shoulder of the Russian
bear!) were a little late to the
party.
Roosevelt Builds the Panama Canal
Panama Gained its Independence Due to
American Intervention
In 1903, Theodore Roosevelt
asked nicely for permission from
Columbia to build a canal across
the Isthmus of Panama.
Colombia, despite a lucrative
offer, refused. Undeterred,
Roosevelt proposed to a group of
Panamanians that they seek
independence. With American
support and the promise of future
monetary compensation, Panama
gained its independence and
allowed the United States to
purchase the Panama Canal Zone.
Work was soon under way!
THE TREATY TO BUILD PANAMA CANAL
Roosevelt’s Big Stick Diplomacy was never more obvious. “Speak Softly, But Carry A Big Stick!, “ he claimed. In
dealing with Colombia, he had asked nicely enough to build the canal. However, when they refused, Roosevelt
used the “Big Stick” to get his way. It took about 11 years to finish construction of the Panama Canal, and most of
the work was done by people of African descent from the Caribbean. But in 1914, just before World War I began,
the canal opened. Roosevelt, who had traveled to Panama himself, took credit for the projects completion.
William Howard Taft’s
“Dollar Diplomacy”
If Theodore Roosevelt was
famous for “Big Stick”
Diplomacy, then William Howard
Taft was known for “Dollar
Diplomacy.” His plan for
influencing affairs in Latin
America and the Caribbean was
to let American businessmen
show the people of Latin
American how to make money
from their resources – Dollar
“Bills.” Taft used the US
military to protect American
business interests in Central
America and the Caribbean.
Woodrow Wilson and WW I
Woodrow Wilson was President
of the United States during “The
Great War” from 1914 – 1918.
(They didn’t call it World War I,
for they had no idea that World
War II was to come.) Wilson
advocated for “Moral
Diplomacy” – and suggested it
was the role of the United States
to teach the virtues of
democracy, capitalism, and
individual rights to the world –
whether it be in Latin America
or in Europe.
 Alliances in Europe, World War I
The Allies:
England
France
Russia
(The United
States, 1917 –
1918)
The Central
Powers:
Germany
Austria-Hungary
American Neutrality: He Kept Us Out of
War!
When the war broke out in
Europe, Woodrow Wilson wanted
nothing to do with the conflict.
Many Americans wonder which
side our nation – a nation of
immigrants from throughout
Europe – should support in a
European conflict. Wilson
advised – at least until 1917 – that
Americans remain neutral in mind
as well as in action. But he
allowed trade with both sides to
take place, and thus opened
Americans to an incident which
may produce a declaration of war.
Unrestricted Submarine Warfare
• On May 7, 1915, the HMS
Lusitania, a British passenger
liner, was sunk on the open seas
by a Germany U-boat. Over
1000 passengers died, including
128 Americans.
• By 1917, over Allied ships had
been sunk by German U-boats, a
practice known as “unrestricted
submarine warfare.”
• After Germany violated the so-
called “Sussex Pledge” not to
sink US ships in 1917,
Americans began to mobilize for
war.
Historic Ties to England
The United States and England
had close relations between the
Civil War and World War I.
This, coupled with the shared
belief of the two nations in
capitalism, democracy, and
individual rights – and a
common language an history –
made most Americans
sympathize with England
during World War I. (Irish
Americans and Germany
Americans did not always
agree…)
 “Make the World Safe for Democracy!”
After the Zimmermann Telegram – a
clumsy attempt by Germany to get
Mexico to attack the US – was
discovered, war with Germany was
eminent. The formal declaration of
war took place in April of 1917.
Wilson claimed that the United
States must fight for “Freedom of
the Seas!” “To End All War!,” and
most importantly, “To Make The
World Safe For Democracy!” At the
time the US entered into World War
I, all of the Allied Powers –
England, France, and Russia – were
democracies… (The democracy
would not last long for Russia – the
Russian Revolution took place later
that year – bringing Lenin to power.)
American Resources and Materials
Helped to defeat Germany.

In war, sometimes, timing is

everything. The United States send
its enormous quantities of men and
materials to Europe at a point when
both sides were at their limits. For
the Allied Powers, the United States
represented welcome relief and
reinforcements. To the Germans,
American soldiers represented an
insurmountable foe with endless
supplies and reserves. Before a
year was out, Germany was seeking
surrender. An armistice was signed
at 11:00 AM on November 11,
1918. (11/11/11 – 1918).
 Woodrow Wilson’s 14 Point Plan
Before the war was even over,
President Woodrow Wilson was
working on a plan to bring peace
to Europe. His 14 Point Plan
was supposed to be a remedy for
Europe – not only to resolve the
present war, but also, to prevent
warfare in the future. In this
hope, Wilson was far too
optimistic. And yet, he would
yield great power during the
Paris Peace Conference of 1918
– 1919, and many of his ideas
were put into the Treaty of
Versailles, which ended the war.
14 Points: Freedom of the Seas
Wilson wanted to outlaw all
secret treaties, promote free
trade, reduce the size of
militaries throughout Europe.
But a bigger priority was
“Freedom of the Seas.”
Wilson wanted for all nations
to agree that trade could not
be disturbed by renegade
nations like Germany, who
had used submarines as
murderous weapons against
travel and trade.
14 Points: Self Determination of Nations
Wilson believed that
Serbia’s desire for self-rule
had been legitimate before
the war started, and claimed
that all people deserved
“self-determination” when it
came time to establish
proper governments. Most
After World War I, the Austro-
of Wilson’s 14 Point Plan
Hungarian nation was broken up,
concerned granting and land from both Russia and
independence and self- Germany was used to create nine
government to new nations new nations in Europe. This, to
Wilson, was “self-determination in
in Europe. action.
 14 Points: The League of
Nations
The last point in Woodrow
Wilson’s 14 Point Plan was the
creation of an international peace
keeping organization called the
League of Nations. Originally,
the idea was to create a
representative world government
which would resolve nations’
differences by negotiation and I think that the dove which carried
democratic methods. That task an olive branch back to Noah on
proved to be too difficult, the Arc must have taken a smaller
especially when large, powerful branch, right? Wilson’s “peace
offering” didn’t every fly straight.
nations were banished from – or
refused to join – the League of
Nations.
 14 Points: Mandate System
The Mandate System within
Wilson’s 14 Point Plan was
used to reshape the Middle East
in the years following World
War I, as well. When the
Ottoman Empire fell apart at the
end of the war, new nations like
Jordan, Syria, Palestine,
Lebanon, and Turkey were
formed in the Middle East.
Similarly, areas previously
controlled by European nations
were put on the road to
autonomy and self rule in
Africa.
14 Points: The League of
Nations
Russia’s Communist
government wasn’t allowed
in the organization, and
Germany didn’t have any
significant power. The
United States opted never to
join the organization, and
Japan quit it in protest.
Worse yet, the organization
proved completely
ineffective in preventing
aggression and enforcing
international law.
Treaty of Versailles
Not every aspect of Woodrow
Wilson’s 14 Point Plan was
agreed to. The French and the
English insist upon punishing
Germany for starting the war…to
the tune of $33 Billion in
reparations. Privately David
Lloyd George and George
Clemenceau despised Wilson and
After World War I, Germany and
his idealistic vision of the future.
Russia were locked out of the Paris
But in the end, they agreed to Peace Conference. From Left to
redraw the map of Europe and to Right:
create Wilson’s beloved League • David Lloyd George of England
of Nations, which would be • Vittorio Orlando of Italy
centered in Geneva, Switzerland. • George Clemenceau of France
• Woodrow Wilson of the United
States.
 Treaty of Versailles
The League of Nations was
created at the end of World
War I, but it proved to be a
feeble, weak institution. Not
only was it ignored by many of
the most powerful nations on
Earth, it was never joined by
the United States. Faced with
increasing aggression and
militaristic action during the
1920s and 1930s, the League
of Nations failed to correct the
behavior of dictators and
aggressors.
The Treaty of Versailles:
New Nations Created in Europe
Finland
Estonia
Latvia
Lithuania
Poland
Czechoslovakia
Austria
Hungary
Yugoslavia
Turkey
Soviet Union
The Treaty of Versailles Debate: Henry
Cabot Lodge says “NO!”
Many Republican
leaders feared that by
joining the League of
Nations the United
States would be giving
up its sovereignty – or,
it’s ability to determine
our own foreign policy
choices.
The Treaty of Versailles Failed
The United States Senate
never ratified the Treaty of
Versailles.
The United States never
joined the League of Nations.
The League of Nations never
worked to enforce
international laws – or the
Treaty of Versailles.
World War II started almost
twenty years to the day after
the Treaty of Versailles was
signed.