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McKinley Tariff
The highest tariff in American history, to date, was passed. It called for a tariff of over 49.5% on most goods. The eastern industrialist interests, who were strong supporters of protectionism, were the prime movers behind the tariffs. The Democrats, under Cleveland, lowered the tariffs slightly. They were soon raised again. -
Teller Amendment
TELLER AMENDMENT, a disclaimer on the part of the United States in 1898 of any intention "to exercise sovereignty, jurisdiction or control" over the island of Cuba when it should have been freed from Spanish rule. It was proposed in the Senate by Henry M. Teller of Colorado and adopted, 19 April as an amendment to the joint resolution declaring Cuba independent and authorizing intervention. Spain declared war on the United States five days later. By August, the United States had expelled Spanish -
Annexation of Hawaii
During the 1800's it became clear to the United States that Hawaii was becoming more important as a commercial export resource and as a strategic location for defense in the Pacific region. The United States was also becoming concerned about the possibility that Hawaii might become part of a European nation's empire, possibly Great Britain or France. When Queen Liliuokalani proposed a new Hawaiian constitution 1893, that would restore the power of the Hawaiian monarchy, the United States became -
Spanish American War
Information about Cuba, Guam, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, Spain, and the United States is provided in chronologies, bibliographies, and a variety of pictorial and textual material from bilingual sources, supplemented by an overview essay about the war and the period. Among the participants and authors featured are such well-known figures as Presidents Grover Cleveland, William McKinley, and Theodore Roosevelt, as well as Admiral George Dewey and author Mark Twain (United States), together with -
The Boxer Rebellion
The Boxer RebellionThe Boxer Rebellion was an anti-foreign/Christian movement by the Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists in China. In response to imperialist expansion and missionary evangelism, local organizations began to emerge in Shandong in 1898. At first, they were suppressed by the Qing Dynasty but later, the Empress Dowager tried to expel western influence from China with aggressions aimed towards foreign missionaries. Boxers across North China attacked mission compounds killing foreign missionaries -
Annexation of the Philippines
The Philippine–American War, also known as the Philippine War of Independence or the Philippine Insurrection (1899–1902), was an armed conflict between a group of Filipino revolutionaries and the United States which arose from the struggle of the First Philippine Republic to gain independence following annexation by the United States. The war was part of a series of conflicts in the Philippine struggle for independence, preceded by the Philippine Revolution and the Spanish-American War -
Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty
agreement between the United States and Panama granting exclusive canal rights to the United States across the Isthmus of Panama in exchange for financial reimbursement and guarantees of protection to the newly established republic. The United States had offered similar terms to Colombia, which then controlled Panama, in the Hay–Herrán Treaty (Jan. 22, 1903), but they were rejected by the Colombian government as an infringement on its national sovereignty and because it considered the compensati -
Roosevelt Corollary
In 1904 the government of the Dominican Republic went bankrupt and Theodore Roosevelt feared that Germany and other nations might intervene forcibly to collect their debts. In response, Roosevelt issued the Roosevelt Corollary (to the Monroe Doctrine) as part of an 1904 message to Congress. Roosevelt and later U.S. presidents cited the corollary to justify U.S. intervention in the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Nicaragua, Mexico and Haiti. As you read, think about how this policy impacted American -
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Dollar Diplomacy
A policy aimed at furthering the interests of the United States abroad by encouraging the investment of U.S. capital in foreign countries. -
