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In 1854, diplomats recommended to President Franklin Pierce that the United States buy Cuba from Spain -
In 1867, Seward arranged for the U.S. to buy Alaska from the Russians for $7.2 million. -
Between 1883 and 1890. The construction of modern battleships such as the Maine and Oregon transformed the country into the world’s third-largest naval power
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The Cuban revolt against Spain was not successful, but in 1886 the Cuban people did force Spain to abolish slavery
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In 1893 Queen Liliuokalani realized that her reign in Hawaii had ended, so she surrendered to America
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José Martí, a Cuban poet and journalist in exile in New York, launched a revolution in 1895
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American forces landed in Cuba in June 1898 and began to converge on the port city of Santiago
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On February 15, 1898, the U.S.S Maine blew up in the harbor of Havana. More than 260 men were killed. -
On April 30, the American fleet in the Pacific steamed to the Philippines. The next morning, Commodore George Dewey gave the command to open fire on the Spanish fleet at Manila, the Philippine capital -
In 1897, William McKinley, who favored annexation, succeeded Cleveland as president. On August 12, 1898, Congress proclaimed Hawaii an American territory -
In 1897, William McKinley, who favored annexation, succeeded Cleveland as president. On August 12, 1898, Congress proclaimed Hawaii an American territory
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After the Spanish's defeat in the Mexican-American war, the USA annexed the Philippines, Guam, Puerto Rico -
In February 1899, the Filipinos, led by Aguinaldo, rose in revolt
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The Philippines were annexed, but not granted independence. As a result, there was an expensive 3-year war as the Philippines fought for independence.
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The US declares China to allow free trade by any nation in any port.
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An uprising occurs in China, where Chinese citizens attack foreigners in order to rebel against foreign influence. Eventually, international forces must come to put the rebellion down.
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In 1900, Congress passed the Foraker Act, which ended military rule and set up a civil government in Puerto Rico -
In 1901, in the Insular Cases, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution did not automatically apply to people in acquired territories
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The assassination of William McKinley in 1901 thrust Vice-President Theodore Roosevelt into the role of a world leader
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In 1904, Russia and Japan, Russia’s neighbor in East Asia, were both imperialist powers, and they were competing for control of Korea -
Teddy Roosevelt adds to the Monroe Doctrine, which gives the United States “police powers” to protect Latin America from European imperialism.
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During the next decade, the United States exercised its police power on several occasions.
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Wilson adopted a plan of “watchful waiting,” looking for an opportunity to act against Huerta. The opportunity came in April 1914, when one of Huerta’s officers arrested a small group of American sailors in Tampico, on Mexico’s eastern shore. The Mexicans quickly released them and apologized, but Wilson used the incident as an excuse to intervene in Mexico and ordered U.S. Marines to occupy Veracruz, an important Mexican port. Eighteen Americans and at least 200 Mexicans died during the invasion
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On August 15, 1914, the canal opened for business, and more than 1,000 merchant ships passed through during its first year -
Congress, however, retained the right to extend U.S. citizenship, and it granted that right to Puerto Ricans in 1917
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Time showed how wrong they were. In 1959, Alaska became a state. For about two cents an acre, the United States had acquired a land rich in timber, minerals, and, as it turned out, oil