US Imperialism in Asia
US History/Napp Name: ______
“In the late 19th century,advances in technology enabled American farms and factoriesto produce far more than American citizens could consume. Now the United States needed raw materials for itsfactories and new markets for its agricultural and manufacturedgoods. Imperialistsviewed foreign trade as thesolution to American overproduction. Some Americans also combined the philosophy of Social Darwinism – abelief that free-market competition would lead to the survival of the fittest – witha belief in the racial superiority of Anglo-Saxons – to justify American imperialism.
An early supporter of American expansion was William Seward, Secretary ofState under presidents Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson. In 1867, Sewardarranged for the U.S. to buy Alaska from the Russians for $7.2 million. Some people thought it was silly to buy what they called ‘Seward’s Icebox’or ‘Seward’s folly.’ Time showed how wrong they were. In 1959, Alaskabecame a state. For about two cents an acre, the United States had acquired a landrich in timber, minerals, and, as it turned out, oil.
Many American business leadersbelieved that the United States would benefit fromtrade with Japan as well as with China. Japan’s rulers,however, believed that excessive contact with theWest would destroy their culture and only allowedthe Chinese and Dutch to trade with their nation. On July 8, 1853, four American warships underCommodore Matthew C. Perry’s command entered Yedo Bay (today known asTokyo Bay). The Japanese had never seen steamshipsbefore and were impressed by the display ofAmerican technology. Perry’s arrivalin Japan forced the Japanese to make changes internally. Realizing that they could not compete againstmodern Western technology, theJapanese signed a treaty opening the ports of Simodaand Hakodadi to American trade.
As trade with China and Japangrew in the 1800s, Americans desired ports inthe Pacific Ocean. Whaling ships andmerchant vessels crossing the Pacific stopped in Hawaii torest their crews and to take on supplies. In 1819 missionariesfrom New England settled in Hawaii. American settlers found that sugarcane grew well inHawaii’s climate and soil. Many of these planters backed an attempt to overthrowthe Hawaiian monarchy. Supported by the marines from theBoston, a group of planters forced the Hawaiian queen to giveup power and set up a new government. Over time, Hawaii was annexed by the U.S.
In China, France, Germany, Britain, Japan, and Russia had carved outspheres of influence, areas where each nation claimed special rights and economic privileges. The United States began to fear that Chinawould be carved into colonies and American traders would be shut out. To protectAmerican interests, U.S. Secretary of State John Hay issued, in 1899, a seriesof policy statements called the Open Door notes. The notes were lettersaddressed to the leaders of imperialist nations proposing that the nations sharetheir trading rights with the United States, thus creating an open door. Thismeant that no single nation would have a monopoly on trade with any part ofChina. The other imperialist powers reluctantly accepted this policy.”
~The Americans and The American Vision
The U.S. in China:-In China, European powers had established “spheres of influence,” threatening to cut off Americans from trade
-Secretary of State John Hay announced the “Open Door Policy,” favoring equal trading rights for all foreign nations in China
-In 1900, a rebellion was started by a group of Chinese nationalists, known as Boxers, who opposed the growing Western influence in China
-The Boxer Rebellion threatened foreigners living in China
-An international army, with U.S. participation, crushed the rebellion
-Afterwards the United States announced it opposed any attempt by other nations to use the rebellion as an excuse to dismember China / The U.S. and Japan:
-The United States opened an isolationist Japan to Western trade and influence when Commodore Matthew Perry landed there with American gunships in 1853
-By the 1890s, Japan had adopted many Western ways and had become an industrial power
-Japan even adopted imperialist policies
-In 1894-1895, Japanese forces drove China out of Korea and Taiwan, and incorporated Taiwan into the Japanese empire
-In 1905, Japan surprised the West by defeating Russia in the Russo-Japanese War
-Americans feared seeing either Japan or Russia becoming dominant in the Far East
-President Theodore Roosevelt brought both sides to a peace settlement in the Treaty of Portsmouth (1905), winning the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts
1-Define imperialism. ______
2-Identify two reasons for imperialism: ______
3-Identify two effects of imperialism: ______
4-What did the Europeans establish in China? ______
5-Why were Americans concerned about European spheres of influence? ______
6-What did Secretary of State John Hay announce? ______
7-Explain the U.S. “Open Door Policy”. ______
8-What started in China in 1900? ______
9-Identify two facts about the Boxer Rebellion in China [previous knowledge]: ______
10-What did the Boxer Rebellion threaten? ______
11-How did the Europeans and the Americans react to the Boxer Rebellion? ______
12-What did the United States announce after the Boxer Rebellion was crushed? ______
13-Identify two facts about the Tokugawa Shogunate in Japan [previous knowledge]: ______
14-Who was Commodore Perry and what did he do? ______
15-What happened in Japan after Commodore Perry’s arrival? ______
16-What did the Japanese do in 1894 – 1895? ______
17-What happened in 1905? ______
18-Why was the outcome of the event in 1905 surprising to the Europeans and Americans? ______
19-What was the Treaty of Portsmouth? ______
20-Why did Theodore Roosevelt win the Nobel Peace Prize? ______
- Why did the United States formulate the Open Door policy toward China?
(2)to prevent a European and Japanese monopoly of Chinese trade and markets
(3)to establish a military presence on the Chinese mainland
(4)to support Japanese efforts to industrialize China
- The main reason the United States developed the Open Door policy was to
(2)demonstrate the positive features of democracy to Chinese leaders
(3)aid the Chinese Nationalists in their struggle with the Chinese Communists
(4)encourage Chinese workers to come to the United States
- Involvement in the Spanish-American War, acquisition of Hawaii, and introduction of the Open Door policy in China were actions taken by the United States Government to
(2)gain overseas markets and sources of raw materials
(3)begin the policy of manifest destiny
(4)support isolationist forces in Congress
- In the early 1900s, the United States proposed the Open Door policy to
(2) win support for building the Panama Canal
(3) improve relations with Europe
(4) secure access to markets in China
- The United States promoted its economic interest in China by
(2) passing the Chinese Exclusion Act
(3) encouraging the Boxer Rebellion
(4) adopting the Open Door policy /
- Which argument was used to support United States acquisition of overseas possessions in the late 1800’s?
(2)The spread of Marxist ideas had to be stopped because they threatened world peace.
(3)The United States should be the first world power to build a colonial empire.
(4)The doctrine of Manifest Destiny had become obsolete.
7. “But today we are raising more than we can consume. Today we are making more than we can use. Today our industrial society is congested; there are more workers than there is work; there is more capital than there is investment. We do not need more money—we need more circulation, more employment. Therefore, we must find new markets for our produce, new occupation for our capital, new work for our labor. . . .”
~ Senator Albert J. Beveridge, 1898
This statement provides a reason why political leaders of the late 1800s adopted the policy of
(1)imperialism
(2)isolationism
(3)protectionism
(4)collective security
8. The main reason the United States implemented the Open Door policy in China was to
(1)promote immigration
(2)expand democratic reforms
(3)encourage religious freedom
(4)guarantee access to markets
9. “Hawaiian Planters Urge American Annexation”
“U.S. and Germany Negotiate for Control of the Samoan Islands”
“U.S. Gains Control of Wake Island and Guam”
Which conclusion can best be drawn from these headlines?
(1) The Anti-Imperialist League strongly influenced Congress.
(2) Respect for native cultures motivated United States foreign policy.
(3) United States territorial expansion increased in the Pacific Ocean.
(4) Construction of a railroad to Alaska was a major policy goal.