Britain, France, Belgium, Italy, Germany, Portugal and Spain carved up Africa taking raw materials and markets (Diamonds, coal, ivory, rubber, metals, and agricultural Goods).

Ethiopia and Liberia were the only countries to maintain independence.

King Leopold of Belgium used it as his personal money making machine. He exploited the natives forcing them into slave labor. The slaves were forced to export rubber and ivory from the inner jungles of the Congo.

Controlled by Britain, They came in and pushed all of the local tribes out, and the ones they kept were forced to go into the diamond mines. They set up a racist atmosphere that would last in South Africa till present day.

Side Note: Asian Imperialism—Japan got into the action by taking parts of China.

Americans saw what these other countries were getting out of their colonies and they started to get hungry for a piece of the pie.

1. Economic Gains: People thirsted for new markets. America was producing far more than it could use. So, we needed more markets to get raw materials for our factories, and so we could have other places to sell our manufactured goods at.

2. Military Strength: Especially building a strong navy. Wanted to build up military strength around the world. Wanted to be seen as a world power.

--Needed to be able to defend shipping lanes important to American growth and wealth.

--Built 9 steel ships, became 3rd largest navy in the world.

3. Racial and Cultural Superiority: Many Americans believed in a combination of social Darwinism and the racial superiority of Anglo-Saxons.

--People argued that the US had the responsibility to spread Christianity and civilization to the world’s “inferior” people.

--The Hawaiian Islands had been economically important to the U.S. for nearly a century.

--America had control over ¾ of the Hawaiian industry.

--The McKinley tariff of 1890 provoked crises by eliminating the tax-free status of Hawaiian Sugar creating competition.

The U.S. had a big interest in Cuba and Puerto Rico. However, they were both controlled by Spain.

--Wanted to offer to buy Cuba.

Two major Rebellions.

Puerto Rico Flag

Drawing America In: Spain sent troops into Cuba to put down the rebellion Yellow Journalism—reporting that exaggerated the news to lure new readers (Pulitzer, Hearst).

Spain’s Minister’s letter was intercepted. He rips on President McKinley.

On February 15 1898 an explosion sent the ships ammunition up in flames and the Maine sank in the Cuban Harbor. More than 260 of the American officers and crew aboard lost their lives.

3 Theories on why it exploded:1. It hit a Spanish Mine

2. There was an internal explosion

3. It was sunken by the Cuban activists to draw America into the War.

--Needless to say it outraged America and drew us into the war with Spain.

--The first battle of the war was in the Philippines. George Dewey the American Naval Commander surprise attacked Manila.

--The war in Cuba started with a unit of soldiers that were not prepared to fight in Cuba.

--The Rough Riders led by Theodore Roosevelt won many battles, took San Juan Hill and won the war.

1) Cuba Would become independent.

2) Spain would give Puerto Rico and the Pacific Island of Guam to the United States.

3) The United States would pay Spain 20 million dollars for the Annexation of the Philippines.

--Many Puerto Rican’s wanted their independence after the Spanish-American War, however many others wanted to become a full American State.

--The US needed a strong Puerto Rico in order to have a strong presence in the Caribbean and to protect a canal they were planning on building in Panama.

--By 1917 Congress granted Puerto Rican’s United States citizenship and allowed them to vote for representatives to houses of their legislation.

--Cuba did not get the full independence that it had hoped for, at first. It took until 1900 for Cuba to write a constitution.

--The US made Cuba put an amendment called the Platte Amendment to its constitution. This Amendment basically allowed the US to intervene in Cuban affairs to protect its financial and political interests.

--After the Spanish-American War the Filipinos felt that they should have full independence, led by Emilio Aguinaldo they started guerilla warfare tactics on American occupying forces.

--Americans fought a war for 3 years in the Philippines at the cost of 4,000 lives and 400 million dollars.

--After the war the US set up a government similar to the one they had set up in Cuba.

--They brought teachers and aid to the Philippines.

Teddy Roosevelt: William McKinley was assassinated in 1901 forcing Roosevelt into the role of President.

--Roosevelt was a key factor in many different aspects of American foreign relations.

--In 1904 Japan and Russia went to war over the Japanese controlled area of Korea.

--Japan attacked and destroyed the entire Russian fleet.

--Roosevelt mediated the peace negotiations and because of his success he won the 1906 Nobel Peace Price.

--Roosevelt realized that building a canal through Panama that would connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans would be one of the final pieces to establishing American World Power.

--After negotiations and inciting a Panama Independence from Columbia rebellion the US got the chance to build and control the canal.

--50 miles, 400 million dollars, 5,6000 dead laborers, and 10 years.

--Wilson followed the Monroe Doctrine, which had said that the US had control over the entire Western Hemisphere.

--Wilson made up his own plan called the Missionary Plan In this plan the US had a moral responsibility to deny recognition to any Latin American government it saw as 1) Oppressive, 2) Undemocratic, 3) Hostile to American Interests.

Put Wilson’s Missionary Plan to the Test.

--U.S. Government had invested heavily in Mexican oil mines, mines, railroads, and ranches. When the leader of the Government was overthrown (violently) the U.S. searched for a reason to pick a fight with the new regime.

--This Opportunity came when the Mexican government accidentally arrested a small group of American Sailors.

--Mediation from Argentina, Chili, and Brazil stopped a full scale war.

--Villa led a revolt against the new government that took over (it was supported by the US).

--Villa killed a bunch of Americans to try to pay America back.

--The Mexican government allowed America to send in soldiers to try to hunt down Villa led by John J. Pershing.