Text and graphic research by Lincoln Cushing. This is a work in progress dedicated to better understanding a crucial period in United States history.
Background
The virtual annihilation of indigenous peoples within the continental United States by the early 1900's allowed national attention to turn outward. Interest in developing markets in China and plans for a canal through Central America set the stage for a new level of expansionist strategizing. The Caribbean was a region with a strong economic relationship to the U.S., and had long been regarded by many as a natural extension of our republic. By the late 1890's American citizens owned about 50 million dollars' worth of Cuban property, primarily in the sugar, tobacco, and iron industries.Spanish rule in Cuba had become progressively harsh
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Two events in early 1898 helped justify U.S. involvement, the publication of a stolen private letter from Se�or Dupuy de Lome (the Spanish Minister to the United States) to a friend
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The War
On April 19 Congress passed a joint resolution proclaiming Cuba "free and independent", and when signed by McKinley the next day amounted to a declaration of war.The first military action of the war was the battle for Manila in the Phillipines. At the eve of the war, a squadron of six vessels under the command of Commodore George Dewey were in Hong Kong, and they immediately departed for the Spanish possession of the Phillipines. The Spanish fleet and the batteries surrounding Manila were destroyed May 1 without a single U.S. casualty. However, the conquest of Manila itself became as much a political as a military one; the U.S did not want the Filipinos to gain control, and was negotiating a separate surrender with the Spanish. Meanwhile, the U.S. braced for war in the caribbean. Despite the gradual buildup of hostilities, the U.S. armed forces were ill-equipped and untrained for war, especially one involving highly coordinated land-sea operations. It was enormously fortuitous for the U.S. that the Spanish forces were even less prepared. The Spanish fleet, after successfully crossing the Atlantic, managed to trap itself in Santiago Bay, and was decimated by the U.S. navy a few days before U.S. ground troops captured Santiago
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Back in the Phillipines, 11,000 ground troops were sent in,
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The war resulted in other conquests as well. One was the annexation of the Hawaiian Islands July 7, 1898. Although U.S. interests had long coveted formal control of the islands, it was not until the government declared Hawaii necessary as a navy base that it was formally annexed. It was also during the December 12, 1898 peace treaty signing that the U.S. added Guam to the list of controlled territories.
Aftermath
In the end, U.S. goals were overwhelmingly achieved. The caribbean was "secured", allowing for construction of the Panama canal. In Asia, shipping routes and military facilities were established. The U.S. finally became an international player. It was characteristic of the U.S. role in the conflict that the efforts of Cuban patriots before and during the war were belittled. Cuban forces were prohibited from attending the surrender ceremonies, and Cuban representatives were not invited to the peace treaty signing in Paris. The army of occupation
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On the domestic front, Theodore ("Teddy") Roosevelt, enjoying a rush of popularity from his exploits as a volunteer officer in the Rough Rider cavalry attacks on Kettle Hill near Santiago, became vice-president with McKinley's re-election in 1900. On September 5, 1901 he became president after McKinley was assassinated.
Notes to the Images:
Under General Valeriano Weyeler, the Spanish adopted a
novel military tactic to deal with attacks by the insurgent Cuban forces
- they partitioned up the island with barbed wire fences and blockhouses,
and they impounded suspected sympathetic civilians in "reconcentration"
camps. They perished miserably by the thousands. Sound familiar? The British
later did this during the Boer War in South Africa, and United States
used it in Viet Nam, calling them "strategic hamlets". (artist not credited,
from Cuba's Great Struggle for Freedom)
Major-General Joseph Wheeler, Confederate war hero and
a commander in the Cuba campaign (photo by A. Dupont, from Our Islands
and Their People)
United States troops leaving San Francisco for Manila (by
Dodge, from Cuba's Great Struggle for Freedom)
The army of occupation in Havana - "Showing a detachment
of the Tenth United States Infantry. This regiment is noted for the height
of its men, the average being six feet". (photographer not credited, from
Our Islands and Their People)
The observant viewer will note that some of these graphics are illustrations and some are photographs. This war occurred during a fascinating period of technological change during which photographs could first be easily duplicated by offset reproduction. For an excellent account of this change and its consequences for journalism during the preceding national event (and with many of the same players, including Frederic Remington), see "Pullman Strike Pictures", by Larry Peterson, in Labor's Heritage, Spring 1997.
