Why the United States Went to War with Spain in 1898 - Essay Example

Why the United s Went to War with Spain in 1898 and What Subsequent Foreign Policy Changes Resulted Written by: Laura A. Neff Fortunately or unfortunately there are many reasons to go to war. The Spanish-American War in 1898 was an unwanted war for the administration here in the United States, but the press and the public were the rallying cry that set the possibilities in motion. This after the start of what is termed as Yellow Journalism brought on by Joseph Pulitzer and William Hearst, both very powerful newspaper publishing magnates. The precedents for this war included the Spanish treatment of the men, and especially the women, of Cuba and the surrounding islands of the Philippines. President McKinley finally had no choices in the matter as a result of the sinking of the USS Maine. Foreign policy changed dramatically as a result of the consequences of this very short, very significant war that is often forgotten in view of the Civil War. The Spanish-American War, one where Theodore Roosevelt and his Rough Riders earned their place in history, brought about a great deal of change to the perception of the United States by others in the world. This war would cause major changes in the realm of American foreign policy in its wake. The war was brought on by these many factors and soon after the declaration for war was made, soldiers were headed for Havana and Santiago. The Yellow Journalism that began with Hearst and Pulitzer caused a great deal of grief as is relayed in several pieces. One very significant accounting would be an eyewitness description by H. H. Kolsaat as he held in his hand a telegram from the forces in Manila Bay when the USS Maine had been lost. Eyewitness to History's website states that H. H. Kolsaat's recollection of the meeting with President McKinley included a conversation that ended with McKinley in tears saying, "Congress is trying to drive us into war with Spain. The Spanish fleet is in Cuban waters, and we haven't enough ammunition on the Atlantic seacoast to fire a salute." (1) H. H. Kolsaat continues on to say that he spent nearly half the night speaking with the President after the evening's activities. Only the first of many agonizing conversations that the President suffered through in the declaration of war, one he was quite reluctant to consider until there appeared to be no choices in the matter. The deciding factor for President McKinley came in a private letter written by Enrique Dupuy de Lme, the Spanish Minister in Washington, to a Spanish editor then traveling in the United States. It was this letter, described as part of the text from American Military History: Army Historical Series; Chapter 15 Emergence to World Power 1898-1902 and stating the following as the letter "expressed de Lme's adverse personal reaction to McKinley's message to Congress in December 1897. The President was, he thought, "weak and a bidder for admiration of the crowd . . . a would-be politician who tries to leave a door open behind himself while keeping on good terms with the jingoes in his party."" (2) This outraged most Americans when it was published after a man stole it from the office where it had been sent. The outraged outcry from the United States caused what President McKinley considered to be the hardest decision of his career. This decision was to go to war with inadequate forces, inadequate supplies and terrible conditions to work within. All of this had been sparked in the fervor of what has been termed Yellow Journalism, created by Joseph Pulitzer and John Hearst in their work to take the country to war using public opinion as the impetus of the action. Their tactics, no matter how underhanded, managed the objective. The results were felt worldwide. The Spanish-American War of 1898 was one of the shortest wars America ever fought. Four months into the war, it was over. But, the consequences of that war were broad spectrum and felt worldwide. The Spanish-American War of 1898 did the one thing nothing else had managed. It proved that the United States was worthy of the world power moniker. This change in stature for the United States brought on a new era of Imperialism for the country, one that was easily felt and well considered by many Americans. We see the results of this Imperialism in Geoffrey Barraclough's accounting of "The Rise of the United States to World Power 1867 to 1917", an excerpt from the text The Times Atlas of World History (3) as located on the Global Policy . org website where it says, "the new imperialism vented itself in the war against Spain in 1898, a watershed year when the United States plunged into world politics; meanwhile, it had been strengthening its navy and occupying strategic outposts before claiming supremacy in the Caribbean and the Pacific." This statement alone creates an image of how Americans were mustering their considerations for transitioning toward the stature of a world power. The War of 1898 ensured that stature indubitably. Foreign policy changes instituted as a result of the War of 1898 included military protection of all offshore protectorates held by the United States. Treaties that have been created since that time included policies that protected the assets of those areas, and would be considered effective even now in the freedom of areas like the Philippines, now considered a separate country from the United States. The emergence of the United States as a formidable world power resulted from the Spanish-American War in that even with our few resources and our lack of organization and determination by the government in this endeavor, we managed to fight and win more than one battle with the Spanish. The resulting freedom from tyranny and oppression for the areas of the Philippines, Cuba, Puerto Rico and other small islands surrounding that area caused upheaval in the ranks of those countries considered world powers, and gave the United States a place in that group that has only managed to gain strength over the years since the Spanish-American War of 1898. Another intriguing consideration to come out of this war included how the presidency would work with the different governments as it set policy to work with those other governments. This required the creation of policies that were facilitated at the beginning with President McKinley and then with President Theodore Roosevelt upon McKinley's death. We tend not to realize that President McKinley started the process with the policies that provided the framework for our first becoming a world power and then acting upon that stature. Most of the time it is the work Theodore Roosevelt managed that we remember in the creation of national and international foreign policies that have endured for many years at this point in time. The reason for this would be in fact that Theodore Roosevelt quite literally had first hand experience in the development of the foreign policy as he was there on the front lines with his United States Army Rough Riders at San Juan and many other places along with Admiral Dewey and the rest of the United States Navy. Subsequent foreign policy adaptation and adoption could be seen after the last of the battles of the Spanish-American War, though by this time it was considered the Philippine Uprising in 1899. This was noticed in the first ever open-door policy created when President McKinley, the United States government and the government of China agreed that this would be the best method for preventing partition between Britain and the United States in relation to trade with China's Manchu empire. Foreign policy was continuously changed from that point in the fact that with Guam and the Philippines now out of the hands of the Spanish and the treaty that ended the war in 1898, there were still contentions to be held between the dominant world powers and the United States in its emergence as a world power. The United States, intent only on securing its interests in the area, sought to secure the remaining portions of the Caribbean, including the Gulf of Mexico and Mexican interests before Spain or any other country could attempt to thwart that effort. The United States was successful in its efforts and as a result, many treaties and pacts were created between the various countries. It was from this very brief war with the Spanish in 1898 and the events that first created the possibility and then followed through to lead us to war with Spain that caused such a great many things to occur in the lives of Americans. Policies were irrevocably changed; security, prosperity, and possession again became the focus of the American government. During this time, and recently prior to the War of 1898, acquisition of Alaska had also been afforded. As a result of these acquisitions in places so far from the continental United States, our advancement as a formidable world power was first inevitable and second, as a result of the Spanish-American War of 1898 undeniably a fact. Others had to realize at the end of the war as the United States claimed victory upon the signing of the treaty in 1899 that without doubt the United States would soon be, if not already had been, a formidable force to contend with. Now, with our work subsequent to the war, the United States developed long standing and interesting policies that created political, business and trade ties with the rest of the world powers and many smaller countries as well. All of this change occurred as a result of coercive Yellow Journalism, barbaric Spanish treatment and a very short series of battles halfway around the world. Bibliography 1 "The United States Declares War on Spain, 1898," EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (2005) 2 Chapter 15: EMERGENCE TO WORLD POWER, 1898-1902 Extracted from AMERICAN MILITARY HISTORYARMY HISTORICAL SERIES; OFFICE OF THE CHIEF OF MILITARY HISTORY UNITED STATES ARMY CHAPTER 15; Emergence to World Power 1898-1902 page 322 http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/books/AMH/AMH-15.htm 3 "The Rise of the United States to World Power 1867 to 1917"; By Geoffrey Barraclough (ed.) http://www.globalpolicy.org/empire/history/1979/79riseworldpower.htm Excerpt from The Times Atlas of World History (London: Times Books, 1978) pp246-247. Geoffrey Barraclough is one of the UK's most distinguished historians. He held the Chichele Professorship of Modern History at the University of Oxford. Texts used for Reference Heller, Charles E. and Stofft, William A.: America's First Battles 1776-1965; University Press of Kansas; Lawrence, KS; 1986; pages 120-123, 131, 339-340, assessment of; pages 147-148; preparation for; pages 109-116 Jackson, Judy and Moore, Dan: The Volume Library; Southwestern/Great American Inc.; Nashville, TN; 2001; pages 19:36c, 20:55c, 20:62b, 27:49b-c-27:50b, 27:212a, 13:150c; 26:99b, 27:49b Reeder, Colonel Red: The Story of the Spanish American War; Duell, Sloan and Pearce, New York; 1966; pages 3-7; pages 15-30; pages 147-167 Whitney, David C.: The American Presidents: Biographies of the Chief Executives from George Washington through George W. Bush; Reader's Digest Association, Inc. 2001; 1967,1969,1975,1978,1982,1985 by Nelson Doubleday, Inc. ; pages 200-203 and pages 208-210 Williams, T. Harry: The History of American Wars From Colonial Times to World War I; Published by Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. New York; 1981 Chapter 13 The War with Spain pages 317-342 Articles used for Reference "The United States Declares War on Spain, 1898," EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (2005) Chapter 15: EMERGENCE TO WORLD POWER, 1898-1902 Extracted from AMERICAN MILITARY HISTORYARMY HISTORICAL SERIES; OFFICE OF THE CHIEF OF MILITARY HISTORY UNITED STATES ARMY CHAPTER 15; Emergence to World Power 1898-1902 page 322 http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/books/AMH/AMH-15.htm "The Rise of the United States to World Power 1867 to 1917"; By Geoffrey Barraclough (ed.) http://www.globalpolicy.org/empire/history/1979/79riseworldpower.htm Excerpt from The Times Atlas of World History (London: Times Books, 1978) pp246-247. Geoffrey Barraclough is one of the UK's most distinguished historians. He held the Chichele Professorship of Modern History at the University of Oxford. "The Conquest of the United States by Spain (1898)"; The Future of Freedom Foundation: Freedom Daily http://www.fff.org/freedom/1101i.asp; by William Graham Sumner, November 2001; 2001-2005 The Future of Freedom Foundation. All rights reserved. "American Foreign Policy - The Turning Point, 1898-1919 Part 5" The Future of Freedom Foundation: Freedom Daily http://www.fff.org/freedom/0695c.asp ; By: Ralph Raico, June 1995 Read More