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Spanish American War
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Naval Blockade of Cuba
Hostilities involving America began with a naval blockade of Cuba. Admiral William T. Sampson sealed up the Spanish fleet in Santiago de Cuba. Dewey’s victory at Manila had shown the strength of the US forces. 125,00 Americans volunteered to fight. The new soldiers were sent to training camps that didn’t have good supplies or leaders. There were not enough modern weapons for soldiers to use. They had to wear woolen suits, not good for Cuba’s climate. The newer fighters were not trained very well -
Cuba’s first war for independence
America had interest in Cuba. In 1854, diplomats suggested that the United States buy Cuba from Spain. The Spanish thought that was a bad idea. Cuban rebels burned a town but Americans were stilled interested. Amrica felt sympathy for Cubans against Spain. Cuba was unsuccessful but did force Spain to end slavery. After the ending slavery in Cuba, American capitalists invested millions of dollars into sugar plantations in Cuba. -
Jose Marti led Cuba’s second war for independence
Jose was a Cuban poet and journalist in New York. He organized Cuban resistance against Spain using a campaign and destroying property such as American-owned sugar mills and plantations. He wanted to help the rebels achieve a free Cuba. He was important because he was a main leader in the Spanish American war who did his best to do what he was set out to do, rebel against America. -
Valeriano Weyler sent to Cuba by Spain
Valeriano Weyler was a general who was sent to Cuba from Spain to “restore order” but eventually started to crush the rebellion. He herded the entire rural population of Cuba into concentration camps surrounded by barbed wire. Thousands died in the camps. His actions sparked a lot of tension in American newspapers. Some Americans felt sympathy for the rebels. Valeriano Weyler was important because he tried to get rid of the rebels, though he did not complete his task in a humane way. -
Publication of the Delone letter
The New York Journal published a private letter written by Enrique Dupuy de Lôme, the Spanish minister to the United States. A Cuban rebel stole the letter and leaked it. The de Lôme letter talked bad about President McKinley, calling him weak. The Spanish government apologized, the minister later resigned. American opinion did not change. This was important because it lead to the huge phantom of the yellow press throughout the war. -
The yellow press began to shape American public opinion with respect to Cuba’s Civil war (February 10 1898)
Yellow journalism was a style of writing that exaggerates stories among the public to enrage readers about their opinion in a situation. The yellow press was the group who exploited the De Lome letter to the public to cause outrage through the public. This was important because it would spread the word to the public about events throughout the war, sometimes being exaggerated. -
Explosion of the USS Maine
President Mckinley sent the USS Maine to bring home Americans from Cuba who were in danger from fighting. More than 260 men were killed. The ship blew up in the harbor of Havana and American newspapers claimed the Spanish did this. This was an important event because it was one of the main events that caused conflict between the Spanish and Americans. -
U.S. invades Cuba
After the explosion of the USS Maine, the US began intervention in Cuba. There was no holding back. Americans cried in a rally saying “Remember the Maine!” as they invaded Cuba. -
U.S. Declares war on Spain
The people of the public began to favor the idea of war. President Mckinley asked Congress for permission to use force against Spain. About a week later Congress agreed to allow this to happen. In that moment, war was declared by the United States. -
Destruction of the Spanish fleet in Cuba
After an outbreak of hostilities between Spain and the U.S., Commodore Dewey entered the Spanish fleet and attacked at daybreak. The U.S. soldiers sank the entire fleet without any American casualties. This was important because it gave the U.S. an advantage during their attack on Manila Bay. -
U.S. attack on Manila Bay
The U.S. Asiatic Squadron was ordered to Hong Kong to “capture or destroy the Spanish fleet”. The Spanish fleet was outgunned, out-armored, and much more out of date than the U.S. fleet. This was important because it was the first major battle of the Spanish-American war and helped the U.S. to capture the city of Manila later on in the war. -
Battle for San Juan Hill
General William Shafter ordered an attack on El Caney and San Juan Hill on July 1st. The 500 Spanish soldiers tried to stop the 8,000 Americans, but they weren’t able to for very long. Hundreds were killed by the Spanish before reaching the base of the heights. This was important because after they gained San Juan Hill, they were overlooking Santiago and began a siege of the city. -
Capture of Puerto Rico
One year after Spain allowed Puerto Rico to be self-ruled, the U.S. troops launched an attack on them. Since there was little resistance, the U.S. troops were able to capture the island with only seven American deaths. This was important because Puerto Rico was one of Spain’s two principal possessions in the Caribbean. -
Spanish surrender the Philippines
The Spanish unofficially surrendered the Philippines to the U.S. before the armistice was signed. The Spanish knew that they weren’t going to be able to win the war. This is important because it was one of the indicators that the Spanish-American War was coming to a close. -
Armistice is signed between the U.S. and Spain
The armistice was a peace protocol that Spain agreed to on U.S. terms. It included the cession of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Manilla in the Philippines. It also said that there would be a peace conference held in Paris by October. This was important because it was the beginning of the end of the Spanish-American War. -
Treaty of Paris of 1898
The treaty was a result of a peace conference in Paris between the U.S. and Spain. The U.S. demanded that we have control of the Philippines, and it was accepted by Spain, but only if the U.S. paid Spain $20 million for public works in the Philippines. It also forced Spain to give up Cuba completely. This was important because it officially ended the Spanish-American War and gave America its first overseas empire. -
U.S. attempt to purchase Cuba
In the Treaty of Paris of 1898, it states that Spain will “relinquish all claim of sovereignty over the title to Cuba”. This means that the U.S. forced Spain to give up Cuba in order to agree to ending the Spanish-American War. This is important because it helped in giving American its first overseas empire.
