American Imperialism Era 7
Overview from ABC-Clio
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the United States embarked on several imperialist campaigns in Asia, the Pacific, and the Americas. American expansionists had come to believe that it was their nation's manifest destiny not only to stretch from the Atlantic to the Pacific, but also to expand the United States' influence around the world and find new markets abroad. In order to carry out these goals as well as to ensure the continued success of America's growing economy, the United States adopted an aggressive policy of expansionism. During America's Age of Imperialism, the practice of extending power and dominion by gaining political and economic control over other areas established the United States as a world power.
Expanding Trade and Securing Supply Bases
After the Civil War, as pioneers settled the last western frontiers, expansionists began to look even farther west—toward Asia. The expansionists believed that future national security as well as greatness depended on a large navy supported by bases throughout the world and extensive trade routes to transport American goods to new markets. Access to islands in the Pacific was particularly critical for successful trade routes, as ships needed ports along the trade routes to resupply them with coal and other provisions and to provide them a place to make repairs.
The need for refueling stations throughout the Pacific was increased by a development with regard to American trade with Japan. In 1853, Comm. Matthew Perry sailed his fleet to Japan, which had embarked on a foreign policy of isolationism since 1640. Perry forced the "opening" of Japan to American trade through the signing of the Treaty of Kanagawa in 1854. With new trade routes in Asia, the United States began to acquire island bases in the late 19th century—some peacefully, some not peacefully.
In 1898, President William McKinley signed an annexation treaty with Hawaii that was passed by both houses of Congress, and the islands became American possessions. While it seemed a peaceful acquisition, in reality U.S. military power had supported the revolutionary efforts of the Annexation Club, which had overthrown the Hawaiian monarchy headed by Queen Liliuokalani only two years before. Perhaps not surprisingly, the Annexation Club was formed by American planters and businessmen who wanted to eliminate trade restrictions on sugar.
More acquisitions resulted from the treaty between Spain and the United States following the Spanish-American War. Spain ceded Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines to the United States. Defying the provisions of the treaty, some Filipinos organized a revolution to secure the right of self-government. They fought a brutal war for three years but were finally overwhelmed by the superior military power of the United States. The United States now had a number of footholds in the Pacific as well as in the Caribbean.
Trade with China
The United States' expanding colonialism in the Pacific prompted American imperialists to focus their attention on trade relations with China. Following the Sino-Japanese War that ended in 1895, China had been carved up into several "spheres of influence." Each sphere was controlled by a European power, including Germany, France, Russia, and Great Britain, and was confined to trading only with that particular nation.
Hoping to prevent formal colonialism by the European powers and to enter into trade with China, the United States proposed an "open door" policy in 1899. The open door policy stipulated that China maintain its territorial autonomy, staving off the creation of colonies by other international powers. Meanwhile, these other nations would receive equal trading privileges with China. However, the other colonialist nations did not accept these measures until after the Boxer Rebellion.
As these foreign nations debated the future of Chinese trade, an antiforeigner movement was gathering in China. Culminating in the Boxer Rebellion, an organization called the Righteous and Harmonious Fists (known in the West as Boxers) sought to rid China of Western influence and imperialism. The Boxers initiated violent attacks directed at foreign missionaries and Chinese converts to Christianity. They also stormed the foreign embassies and killed the German minister. The European nations, along with the United States and Japan, banded together to suppress the insurrection and protect their citizens abroad. In July 1900, the United States proposed the open door policy once again, with the European nations unenthusiastically assenting. Although informal colonialism continued in China, the open door policy significantly influenced American relations with China in the following decades.
The Panama Canal
The United States also began imperialist ventures in the Americas. The development of the Panama Canal represented the beginning of American intervention in South and Central America. With footholds in the Pacific in place and new trade routes in Asia, an old idea resurfaced—a canal across Central America to connect the two oceans. President Theodore Roosevelt offered Colombia $10 million for a 50-mile strip across the Isthmus of Panama. When Colombia refused the offer, Roosevelt aided Panamanian separatists in order to gain access to the territory.
Although the Bidlack-Mallarino Treaty of 1846, enabled the United States to intervene and suppress revolutions against the Colombian government, the United States refrained from taking action when the Panamanian rebels revolted against the Colombian regime. The rebels established a new, pro-American government. The United States provided military support for the new Panamanian government, which gladly accepted the $10 million offer, and work on the canal proceeded. Nine years later, a canal connected the trade routes of the Pacific with the trade routes of the Atlantic.
The Great White Fleet
Another aspect of American imperialism was the display of American naval prowess. In 1907, President Roosevelt sent 16 American battleships on a trip around the world. Painted white to signal that their mission was diplomatic in nature, the Great White Fleet traveled around the tip of South America to Oceana, through Southeast Asia up to Japan, and then through the Indian Ocean, past the Horn of Africa and through the Mediterranean. The fleet returned to Hampton Roads, Virginia, after 14 months of travel.
Although the fleet's mission was peaceful, the trip was intended to showcase American military power to other countries, particularly Japan. Japan, who had become a major international player with an effective navy, was of particular interest to Roosevelt because diplomatic relations with Japan had turned rocky after Japanese Americans had become the targets of anti-Asian sentiment on the West Coast. The fleet's presence also signaled the United States' new role as an international, imperial power.
Source: "Imperialism (Overview)." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2016. Web. 4 Feb. 2016.