Chapter 27 Reading Guide

The Path of Empire: 1890-1899

Terms: Josiah Strong, Alfred T. Mahan, Henry Cabot Lodge, Big Sister Policy, Samoan Crisis, Richard Olney, Great Rapprochement, Queen Liliuokalani, Butcher Weyler, Joseph Pulitzer, William Randolph Hearst, U.S.S. Maine, de Lome Letter, Teller Amendment, Jingoism, Emilio Aguinaldo, Platt Amendment, Insular Cases, White Man’s Burden, Walter Reed,

  1. Beginnings of American Imperialism
  1. Imperialist Stirrings
  2. What accounts for the indifference of Americans to the outside world for 20 years after the end of the Civil War?
  3. What caused this to change?
  4. Explain the role of the Yellow Press in influencing imperialism.
  5. How did Josiah Strong and Alfred T. Mahan influence American Imperialism?
  6. What was Blaine’s Big Sister Policy? What did it lead to?
  7. What diplomatic crisis occurred in the late 1880s and early 1890s? How were they resolved?

B.Monroe’s Doctrine and the Venezuelan Squall

  1. What was this disagreement about?
  2. Kennedy often uses the term “twist of the lion’s tail.” What does he mean?
  3. What was the U.S. position on the border crisis between British Guiana and Venezuela? Why?
  4. Why did the British back off?
  5. What were the results of this conflict?

C.Spurning the Hawaiian Pear

  1. Explain the origins of American involvement in Hawaii.
  2. Why did Americans in Hawaii try to force annexation of Hawaii?
  3. How did the Hawaiians respond?
  4. Why was annexation postponed?
  5. When and why did it finally occur?

II.Trouble in Cuba

  1. Cubans Rise in Revolt
  2. What caused the Cubans to rebel against Spain?
  3. How did Weyler attempt to combat the Cuban guerillas? How did his policies affect the civilian population of Cuba?
  4. What was the U.S. interest in Cuba?
  5. What was Cleveland’s position on the Cuban crisis?
  1. The Mystery of the Maine Explosion
  2. Explain the role of the press in increasing tensions between Spain and the U.S.
  3. What were the effects of the De Lome Letter?
  4. Who blew up the Maine? Who was blamed for it?
  5. What did the Maine Explosion result in?

III.War with Spain

  1. McKinley Unleashes the Dogs of War
  2. Explain McKinley’s position regarding War with Spain.
  3. Why did he change his mind and ultimately call for war?
  4. Why was the Teller amendment passed?

B.Dewey’s May Day Victory at Manilla

  1. How prepared was the U.S. to go to war?
  2. Why was Spain’s apparent superiority illusory?
  3. What part did Theodore Roosevelt play in the first blows of the war?
  4. How successful was Dewey?

C.Unexpected Imperialistic Plums

  1. What was Dewey’s dilemma?
  2. How did American possession of the Philippines lead to the annexation of Hawaii?

D.The Confused Invasion of Cuba

  1. What was T. Roosevelt’s role in the war?
  2. Why does the preparation for invasion seem like a comedy of errors?
  3. Who was “Mr. Dooley”? (Research it)

E.Curtains for Spain in America

  1. How were the Spanish defeated?
  2. What was the “worst scandal” of the war?

IV.The Treaty and its Impact

  1. McKinley Heeds Duty, Destiny, and Dollars
  2. What lands did the U.S. gain in the War with Spain?
  3. Why was possession of the Philippines problematic?
  4. Why did McKinley ultimately decide to keep the Philippines?

B.America’s Course (Curse?) of Empire

  1. Why was this decision so controversial?
  2. Who opposed imperialism? On what varied grounds?
  3. What role did Bryan play in the Senate ratifying the Treaty of Paris?

C.Perplexities in Puerto Rico and Cuba

  1. What was the Foraker Act?
  2. According to the Insular Cases does the constitution follow the flag?
  3. How did the Platt amendment restrict Cuban sovereignty?

D.New Horizons in Two Hemispheres

  1. Why does Kennedy argue that the Philippines became the U.S. Achilles heel?
  2. What were the lessons learned by the U.S. in the War with Spain? What were the results?