“The Splendid Little War” The Spanish American War

May - December 1898 Chapter 10, Section 2

Causes 1. The Cubans

rebel against

their Spanish

colonial

masters

2. Jingoism

• Displays of Power • Vs. Chilean Government

• Vs. Brazilian Rebels

• Vs. Great Britain

• All of these actions reaffirmed the Monroe

Doctrine

The Cuban Rebellion

• Cuban peasants vs.

The Spanish Empire

• “Re-concentration

Camps” – 200k

Cubans Dead

• US didn’t get involved

until Rebels

destroyed our sugar

plantations

Jingoism • “We’ve got the men

and guns…”

• Many Americans are

pro-war (many aren’t)

• Yellow journalism

whips up anti-Spanish

Sentiments

Yellow Journalism and the Spanish

American War.

The De Lome Letter

• Called McKinley weak

• Angers the American

Public

Explosion of the USS Maine

• Stationed in Havana

Cuba

• Probably a coal fire or

ammunition explosion

• Killed 250 Americans

The Last Straws

• Roosevelt tells the US

Navy to prepare for

war (with out

permission)

• McKinley demands a

truce, and Cuban

independence.

• Spain refuses and

war begins

Naval Actions

• Simultaneous attacks

on Spanish ships in

Cuba and the

Philippines.

• The Spanish Pacific

fleet is wiped out in

less than 7 hours.

• The Gulf of Mexico

Fleet will be wiped out

on July 3rd.

Land Actions

Land Actions

• San Juan

Hill

• Only part of

a much

larger battle

• Made Teddy

Roosevelt

even more

famous

Casualties

• 2500 Americans

die, only 16% are

battlefield

casualties.

• MOST DIE FROM

DISEASE.

Treaty of Paris, 1898 • The US gets…

– Guam (unincorporated territory)

– The Philippines (unincorporated territory)

– Puerto Rico (unincorporated territory)

• Spain gets…

– $20 Million

Cuba gets… INDEPENDENCE!

(after the Platt Amendment)

Our new colonies…

• The Philippines (who

had aided us vs. the

Spanish) wanted

independence.

– Over 200k Filipinos

died fighting the US

• Puerto Rico was

given gradual self

control

Hawaii • Forced Annexation in 1898

• Used for A Naval Base

• Wanted access to their sugar cane

American Samoa

• Pago Pago

harbor was

used as a

refueling

station

• Set up

Midway

Island as a

refueling

station

China

• “Spheres of

Influence”

• Open Door

Policy (gives

us access to

China’s

millions of

consumers)