Download The Spanish – American War Webquest

Name: ___________________________________ Period: _______
The Spanish – American War Webquest
Setting the Stage for War
•By demanding that a dispute between Venezuela and Great Britain be sent to arbitration, the United
States defended the validity of the Monroe Doctrine. (Arbitration is the settlement of a dispute by a person
or panel chosen to listen to both sides and come to a decision.) The British government backed down because
it needed to stay on friendly terms with the United States.
1. What did the Monroe Doctrine proclaim regarding America’s position during unrest in Europe and
during European colonization? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monroe_Doctrine)
•The
United States became involved in the Cuban rebellion against Spain, to protect American business
interests.
2. How did Spain deal with the rebels in Cuba? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish-American_War)
•In
competition for readership, two New York newspapers wrote exaggerated stories about the Cuban
rebellion. This yellow journalism sold a lot of papers but had other effects as well:
–It whipped up American public opinion in favor of the Cuban rebels.
–It led to a burst of national pride and the desire for an aggressive foreign policy, which became known as
jingoism.
3. What was the experience of most journalists covering the Cuban Rebellion? What did they do in their
news articles? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Propaganda_of_the_Spanish%E2%80%93American_War )
4. Explore the headlines and write one down. How might this have inflamed American passions for war?
(http://www.pbs.org/crucible/headlines.html)
5. What did William Randolph Hearst allegedly say to Frederick Remington about the rebellion?
(http://academic2.american.edu/~wjc/notlikely.htm )
6. What effect did yellow journalism have on the American public’s view of the rebellion in Cuba?
(http://www.pbs.org/crucible/frames/_journalism.html)
7. What is jingoism? (http://www.answers.com/jingoism)
Slowly, the demand for US intervention in Cuba began to build:
 Steps to War:
-The USS Maine was stationed in Havana harbor.
-Spanish Ambassador de Lôme insulted President McKinley. The press used this letter to intensify anti-Spanish
sentiments.
8. What did de Lôme say about McKinley? What headline did the New York Journal give the scandal?
(http://www.pbs.org/crucible/tl9.html)
-The USS Maine exploded, and the American public blamed Spain.
9. How did the Maine sink and how many were killed?
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Maine_(ACR-1) )
-Congress recognized Cuban independence and authorized force against Spain.
10. What concessions did Spain make in order to avoid war? What did McKinley ask Congress to do?
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish%E2%80%93American_War look up making peace)
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_McKinley look up peace and territorial gain)
“A Splendid Little War”
-May 1, 1898: The United States launched a surprise attack in Manila Bay and destroyed Spain’s entire Pacific
fleet in seven hours.
-July 1: Roosevelt led the Rough Riders up San Juan Hill.
11. Examine the painting by Frederick Remington of the Rough Riders. Do they look like an army?
Why or why not? (http://www.bartleby.com/51/35.gif)

-July 3: The United States Navy sank the remaining Spanish ships after a surprise attack on Spain’s fleet in
Manila Bay (Philippines) and at Santiago (Cuba). This set off jubilous Independence Day celebrations in the
US.
12. Examine the political cartoon. What does it suggest about the Philippines? What are McKinley’s
options and the implications? Who is watching?
(http://en.wikipilipinas.org/images/thumb/a/a4/McKinleyPhilippinesCartoon.jpg/300pxMcKinleyPhilippinesCartoon.jpg)
The Treaty of Paris
-The Spanish government recognized Cuba’s independence.
-Spain gave up the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico in return for $20 million. The island nations then
became unincorporated territories of the United States.
13. What were the results and effects of the Treaty of Paris? **Be sure to review “Treaty Provisions”
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Paris_%281898%29)

14. Examine the political cartoon from 1898. What territories had been added to the United States
since 1798? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:10kMiles.JPG)
New Challenges After the War
The Philippines
•President McKinley’s arguments for annexation:
– Filipinos were unfit for self-government.
– Independence would bring anarchy from the Filipinos.
– European powers would try to seize the islands and new conflicts could result.
•The Filipinos fought a three-year war for independence.
15. When the United States refused to give the Philippines their independence, who led the Filipino
forces in opposition to the U.S.? What kind of war was it?
(http://www.historyguy.com/PhilipineAmericanwar.html)
•The
Philippines did not gain complete independence until 1946.
Cuba
•President McKinley installed a military government in Cuba to protect American business interests.
•Cuba drafted a constitution in 1900 that did not allow for U.S. involvement.
•The U.S. government only agreed to remove its troops if Cuba included the Platt Amendment.
•The Platt Amendment remained in place until 1934. It allowed for U.S. naval bases on the island and
intervention whenever necessary. Under the Platt Agreement, Cuba could not have any foreign agreements.
16. What were the Teller and Platt Amendments? (http://www.loc.gov/rr/hispanic/1898/teller.html)
The United States and Puerto Rico
-The United States received military control of Puerto Rico from Spain in the Treaty of Paris.
-In 1900 the US removes military control and establishes a civil government, still under US control
17. The United States passed the Jones Act in 1917 to attempt to stop a movement for Puerto Rican
independence. What did the Jones Act do in Puerto Rico?
(http://welcome.topuertorico.org/history5.shtml)
United States Acquisitions and Annexations
18. Examine the map of US acquisitions and
annexations. Why were so many new possessions
located in the Pacific Ocean?
1857-1904 - Other Gains in the Pacific
•The United States government intervened in other parts of
the Pacific at the same time that events played out in the Spanish-American War. This intervention
eventually brought about changes in the relationships of the United States with Hawaii, Samoa, and China.
•Hawaii became increasingly important to United States business interests. Hawaii also leased Pearl Harbor
to the United States as a fueling and repair station for naval vessels. In 1898, Congress approved the
annexation of Hawaii.
19. What happened to Hawaii and Queen Liliuokalani in the 1890s?
(http://www.uic.edu/depts/owa/history/liliuokalani.html)
•The
Polynesian islands of Samoa and their harbor at Pago Pago were also important to the United States.
A year after the annexation of Hawaii, the United States acquired the harbor at Pago Pago as well.
20. Why is Pago Pago a good harbor? (see Geography Note on the web site)
(http://www.ncbuy.com/reference/country/intro_aq.html)
•China’s
huge population and its vast markets became very important to American trade. President
McKinley’s Secretary of State, John Hay, wrote notes to the major European powers trying to persuade them
to keep an “open door” to China. He wanted to ensure through his Open Door Policy that the United States
would have equal access to China’s millions of consumers. After European powers put down the Boxer
Rebellion by the Chinese, the US again made statements about their intent to preserve the open door to
Chinese markets).
21. How did foreign “spheres of influence” threaten American business interests in China?
(http://www.smplanet.com/imperialism/fists.html)
22. What did Hay recommend in his second Open Door note to European powers? (see the last
paragraph of text) (http://www.smplanet.com/imperialism/fists.html)
Bonus Question: What disease caused more American casualties in Cuba than the Spanish bullets? Who led
the battle against it, and what were the symptoms? How did the doctor discover the cause of the disease?
(http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/fever/peopleevents/index.html)
ANSWER: Given what you have read on the web sites provided, do you think that American foreign policy
changed between 1898 and 1903? If so, how? And what events contributed to this shift? If not, explain
consistency between the Teller and Platt amendments.