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The Barbary Wars
The Barbary Wars was a series of conflicts fought between the US and Sweden and the Barbary States of North Africa. The US fought with Sweden against the states of North Africa because the states supported the actions of pirates against American shipping vessels, and it resulted in an American victory. -
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War of 1812
The War of 1812 was fought because of British infringements of American naval rights during the time that Britain was fighting with France. The war also involved the Native Americans and Canada, but the result of the war is controversial as to who won. -
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Spanish East Florida
When the First Seminole War started, it was a war between the United States, Spain, and the Native Americans to gain possession of the land in Spanish colonized areas of Florida. On April 7, 1818, San Marcos was captured by Andrew Jackson and his men, and John Adams used this military action to control East Florida from Spain. The tensions and war ended with the Transcontinental Treaty, with Spain agreeing to giving up land in Florida. -
Monroe Doctrine
The Monroe Doctrine opposed European colonization in the Americas, outlining principles of non-intervention among already freed countries. It stated that any actions taken against countries and their governments would be considered a threat to US peace and safety. -
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Mexican-American War
Following the US annexation of Texas, several disputes broke out about where Texas ended between the Mexican and American claims, eventually leading to the Mexican-American War in which the US was victorious. -
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The Opening of Japan
American Commodore Matthew Perry led four boats into the harbor of Tokyo Bay, and fought with islands off of Japan to gain support in reestablishing open trade between Japan and the western world. With foreign trade permitted, Japan was able to rapidly industrialize and expand education and the economy. -
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Building the Panama Canal
The US built the Panama Canal as a result of needing to move ships and goods from east to west quickly in the 1800s. If the US did this, it would mean that they controlled the oceans, helping to make them the most powerful nation in the world. -
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Spanish American War
The conflict fought between America and Spain was caused because of Spanish colonial rule in the Americas and the explosion of the USS Maine in a Cuban harbor. It resulted in an end to Spanish rule in Cuba and the Philippines and the US gain of territories in the Western Pacific and Latin America. -
Annexation of Hawaii
Leading up to 1898, the US had developed strong relationships with Hawaii, benefitting from sugar cane production and other natural resources. In 1898, when the Queen of Hawaii tried to develop a stronger monarchy, American Samuel Dole led a group and overthrew the government. Dole became the first governor of Hawaii and Hawaii became a state in 1959. -
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Open Door Policy
The Open Door Policy was created by Secretary of State John Hay and involved a policy between China, Japan, the US, and several other European nations. It was a series of principles that allowed each country that was a part of the policy equal and open trade with China. -
Roosevelt Corollary
The Roosevelt Corollary was essentially an addition to the Monroe Doctrine that gave the right to the US to intervene in the stabilization of economic dealings of small states of the Caribbean and Central America if they were unable to pay international debts. This was in addition to the policy that Europe was not allowed to colonize those countries and that the US’s responsibility was to restore order and protect the life and peace. -
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Dollar Diplomacy
The Dollar Diplomacy, created by President Taft, was created to promote US economic power by guaranteeing loans to strategic foreign countries. Not only would it improve financial opportunities for US bankers, but it would also further economic power of the United States and promote trade with Latin America, West Africa, East Asia, and the Caribbean. -
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US Invasion of Nicaragua
The US invasion and occupation of Nicaragua was a part of the Banana Wars, a time when the US invaded various countries in Latin America. The US military was sent to Nicaragua to stabilize the pro-US government that was about to be overthrown, and also because there were threats in Nicaragua to American business interests. -
Invasion of Haiti
Haiti had close ties with both France and Germany in the times leading up to the US invasion. Worried that Haiti would come under the power of these foreign nations and with Haiti having a weakened government, the US sent military forces to Haiti and took control of the bank, giving them financial control. The invasion ended with the Haitian-American Treaty but US occupation lasted until August 1, 1934. -
American Entry into WWI
Although Woodrow Wilson had originally called neutrality in WWI, they were forced to enter when Germany altered their submarine policy and started sinking neutral American merchant ships. This frayed the neutrality and endangered American safety, forcing the US into WWI. -
Good Neighbor Policy
The Good Neighbor Policy was created under the administration of President Franklin Roosevelt to improve foreign relations with Latin America. It encouraged friendly relations and considered the US and Latin America as equals. -
Formation of the United Nations
Developed after WWII, the United Nations was created as an organization to maintain peaceful relations among countries. It was the idea that every country had the right to exist, and even communist and militarized nations like Japan and Germany joined and changed their views on invading other countries. -
Creation of NATO
NATO was the first ever military alliance that the US had been involved in, and included twelve countries in providing security against the Soviet Union and the spread of communism. -
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Korean War
The Korean War involved conflict between North and South Korea, with the north invading the south. North Korea was a communist nation whom China and the Soviet Union came to the aid of. The US supported South Korea, and almost 2.5 million lives were lost until fighting ended with the two nations still separated. -
Overthrow of Iranian Government
Organized by the CIA, the Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh was overthrown in a coup because he supported monarchical power and he had audited documents of a British oil company to limit the company’s control over the country’s reserves. -
Creation of SEATO
SEATO, standing for Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, was an international collective defense in Southeast Asia, including the US, Britain, France, Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Thailand. The main purpose of SEATO was to stop communism from spreading in that region. -
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Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a war between North and South Vietnam. Communist North Vietnam, and their allies in the South Vietnam called the Viet Cong, fought against the democratic South Vietnam and the United States. It was caused after tensions grew from the US providing military aid to South Vietnam, and ended with Nixon signing the Paris Peace Accords and North Vietnam agreeing to stop fighting. -
Eisenhower Doctrine
The Eisenhower Doctrine was policy created by Dwight D Eisenhower outlining the idea that countries in the Middle East could request American aid economically and militarily should they come under threats of armed aggression. -
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US Intervention in the Congo
Formerly as a part of Belgium, Congo gained its independence on June 30 of 1900, and the US had hopes that Congo would remain a peaceful nation. However, the citizens of Congo mutinied against their former authorities, and violence soon spread. After Belgium sent their military to Congo without permission, the US supported the United Nations in sending support to Congo. -
US Invasion of Cuba
In 1961, Cuba had a Communist government led by Fidel Castro, who was a concern to the US. The Bay of Pigs invasion was a group of Cuban exiles led by the CIA that attempted to overthrow the government, but the invasion was a failure. -
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Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a 19-day confrontation between the Soviet Union and the United States over the Soviet installation of nuclear missiles in Cuba. It was perhaps the closest the Cold War got to a nuclear war, and ended in an agreement for the Soviet Union to dismantle their missiles and ship them back to Russia. -
US Intervention in Chile
There was a lot of action in Chile with the US between 1963 and 1973. The US had made a lot of investments in Chile, but during the Allende presidency, the US feared that Chile would become “another Cuba” and become socialist. They stopped foreign trade with Chile, and supported a coup to overthrow Allende. -
Camp David Accords
Camp David Accords was a peace treaty signed at Camp David in Maryland by the US, Israel, and Egypt to establish a framework for peace among the Middle East. This treaty formalized Israel’s right to exist and was the first treaty between Israel and any of its neighboring Arab countries. -
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Iran Contra Affair
The Iran Contra Affair was a political scandal that took place in President Reagan’s second term. It took place when the head of the National Security Council (NSC) illegally dealt with Iran in selling and trading missiles, in hopes that selling such products would release some American hostages to terrorists in Iran. This came to light in 1986, and the Reagan administration was forced to admit that they had taken part in such illegal actions. -
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Balkan Crisis
After the Cold War, a civil war tore through Bosnia, breaking up Yugoslavia. The US sent military forces to Bosnia to rescue people from “crimes against humanity” and Bosnia, along with Slovenia and Croatia, were granted independence soon after the war’s end. -
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US Invasion of Panama
The Invasion of Panama took place under President Bush’s administration, and he gave four reasons for the invasion: to provide safety for US citizens living in Panama, defending democracy and human rights, combating drug trafficking, and protecting the integrity of previous treaties signed by Panama and the US. Its outcome resulted in a US victory and Manuel Noriega was removed from power. -
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First Gulf War
Leading up to the First Gulf War known as Operation Desert Storm, Iraqi president Saddam Hussein had invaded Iraq’s neighboring country of Kuwait. Kuwait was an oil rich country and an ideal landing spot for US troops, and after Hussein resisted the United Nation’s Security Council demands to withdraw from Kuwait, President Bush sent troops to Kuwait to take it back over, resulting in an American victory. -
Invasion of Afghanistan
After September 11, 2001, the US began attacks on Afghanistan to dismantle al-Qaeda and remove the terrorist group Taliban from power at their base. The result ended in an American victory, and the Taliban was effectively removed from power. -
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Second Gulf War
The 2nd Gulf War was when the United States and Great Britain invaded Iraq to overthrow the government led by Saddam Hussein, who had strong terrorism ties and was in the process of developing weapons of mass destruction. In only 3 weeks, the US took Baghdad and killed Saddam Hussein, however, didn’t withdraw from the area until 2011.