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U.S. Attempt to Purchase Cuba
The Ostend Manifesto was a document written in 1854 that described the logic for the United States to purchase Cuba from Spain. It also implied that the U.S. would declare war if Spain refused. The United States also had a long held an interest in
Cuba partly because it is very close to Florida. In 1854, diplomats told President Franklin Pierce that the United States should buy Cuba from Spain. This was an important event because when Spain said it's not for sale that just made us want it more. -
Cuba's First War on Independence
Cuba's first war on independence is also known as the Ten years war because it went from 1868 to 1878. On October 10, 1868 sugar mill owner Carlos Manuel de Céspedes and some of his workers declared independence, beginning the conflict. This event is important because it got Americans talking about Cuba's war for freedom. America thought that it was wrong for Spain to own Cuba and we thought they should be free, but really we just wanted to eventually take them over and expand our empire. -
Jose Marti Led Cuba's Second War for Independence
José Martí destroyed American sugar mills, so the U.S. would intervene. Spain sent General Weyler and he made concentration camps. Yellow Press issued exaggerated stories and angered the public, so Spain recalled General Weyler. The De Lôme Letter arose and called the President “weak” enraging the public. McKinley ordered the U.S.S. Maine to Cuba and it blew up for unknown reasons. Jose Marti was important because he got the independence movement up and running in full force again. -
Valeriano Weyler Was Sent By Cuba To Spain
In 1896, Spain responded to the Cuban revolt by sending
Gen. Valeriano Weyler to Cuba to restore leadership.
He tried to crush the rebellion by putting the entire
rural population of western and central Cuba into barbed wire concentration camps. In these camps, civilians could not give aid
to rebels. An estimated 300,000 Cubans filled these camps,
where thousands died from hunger and disease. He was important because he pushed us closer to war and we wanted to get rid of his concentration camps. -
The Yellow Press Began to Shape American Public Opinion
Yellow journalism was the "fake news" of the late 1800's. It used vivid colors and sensationalized news in newspaper publishing to attract readers and increase circulation. The phrase was used in the 1890's to describe the tactics employed in furious competition between two New York City newspapers, the World and the Journal. The Yellow press is important because they shaped the way America thoughts about Spain and ultimately got the U.S. involved in the matter. -
Publication of the De Lome letter
On February 1898, the New York Journal published a letter composed by Enrique Dupuy de Lôme, the Spanish minister to the United States. A Cuban rebel had taken the letter from a Havana post office and delivered it to the newspaper, which was eager for a scandal. The de Lôme letter criticized President McKinley, calling him “weak” and “a bidder for the admiration of the crowd.” This event is important because it was one of the first events that got the American people involved in the Sp/Am war. -
Explosion of the U.S.S. Maine
In early 1898, President McKinley had ordered the U.S.S. Maine to Cuba to bring home American citizens in danger from the fighting and to protect American property. But on February 15, 1898, the ship blew up in the harbor of Havana. More than 260 men were killed. No one really knew why the ship exploded. In 1898, though, American newspapers insisted the Spanish had blown up the ship. The explosion of the U.S.S Maine is important because it was the last straw before we got into the war. -
The U.S. Declares War on Spain
Despite the Spanish concessions, public opinion favored war. On April 11, McKinley asked Congress for authority to use force against Spain. After a week of debate, Congress agreed, and on April 20 the United States declared war. Declaring war also helped them justify their naval blockade of Cuba. This event is important because this is when the U.S. finally decided to step in and help Cuba win its independence while at the same time we could use this opportunity to start building our empire. -
Naval Blockade of Cuba
The hostilities, in the Caribean, began with a naval blockade of Cuba. Spain had many troops in Cuba, but its navy was poorly maintained and weaker than ours. The U.S. wanted a naval blockade of Cuba to control the sea and they wanted to stop Spanish naval reinforcements from coming to Cuba. So Admiral Sampson effectively sealed up the Spanish fleet in the harbor of Santiago de Cuba. This was important because it trapped the Spanish fleet, and they couldn't escape when the U.S. attacked them. -
U.S. Attack on Manila Bay
On May 1, Commodore George Dewey gave the command to open fire on the Spanish fleet at Manila Bay. Within hours, Dewey’s men destroyed every Spanish ship there. This let U.S. troops land in the Philippines. In two months, 11,000 Americans joined forces with Filipino rebels, and the Spanish troops in Manila surrendered to the U.S. in August. The attack on Manila Bay was important because it eventually led to the Spanish troops surrendering, and led to the U.S. gaining control of the Philippines. -
U.S. Invades Cuba
Volunteers and troops under Gen. William Shafter (also T.R. and the “Rough Riders”) landed on the coast of Santiago and advanced on the city trying to force Cervera’s fleet out of the harbor. He led his troops out of Santiago on July 3 and tried to escape westward. In the battle, all of his ships came under heavy fire from U.S. guns and were either burning or sinking. Santiago surrendered to Shafter on July 17. This is important because it's the first step the U.S. took to free Cuba from Spain. -
The Battle for San Juan Hill
This battle was near Santiago, and the beginning of the battle was on Kettle Hilland and there was uphill charge by the Rough Riders and two African-American regiments. They won and cleared the way for an attack on San Juan Hill. Roosevelt's troops played a small role in the second victory, but newspapers declared him the hero of San Juan Hill. The Battle for San Juan Hill was important because that gave the U.S. the high ground over Santiago which is where most of the Spanish troops were at. -
Destruction of the Spanish Fleet in Cuba
After the battle for San Juan Hill, the American's took over the hill behind the city of Santiago. They then had the perfect angle for cannons to shoot at the Spanish below them. They figured out we had the high ground so they tried to flee on ships. We then chased them and sunk every last one of their ships. This is an important event because it led to the Spanish to surrendering. The Americans blew up a majority of the Spanish ships and their troops so they had close to no power left. -
The Capture of Puerto Rico
After the battle on Kettle Hill and San Juan Hill, newspapers called TR and his Rough Riders the heroes of San Juan Hill. Two days later, the Spanish fleet tried to escape the American Naval blockade at the harbor at Santiago. Then the naval battle ended in the destruction of the Spanish fleet. After that, American troops invaded Puerto Rico quickly in order to get control of them before the war was over. This is important because it was another step that the U.S. took in building their empire. -
The Spanish Surrender The Philippines
The Victory at Manila Bay allowed Spanish troops to land in the Philippines. Over the next 2 months, 11,000 Americans joined forces with Filipino rebels led by Emilio Aguinaldo. In August, Spanish troops in Manila surrendered to the U.S.. This event was important because it let us show how powerful we were over other large countries. It was also important because we were building our empire at the same time because we bought the Philippines from Spain. -
Armistice is Signed Between the U.S. and Spain
The United States and Spain signed an armistice, a cease-fire agreement, on August 12, ending what Secretary of State John Hay called “a splendid little war.” The actual fighting in the war had lasted only 15 weeks. This event is very important because it officially ended the war between the United States and Spain. -
The Treaty of Paris
On December 10, 1898, the United States and Spain met in Paris to agree on a treaty. Spain ended up freeing Cuba and turning over the islands of Guam in the Pacific and Puerto Rico in the West Indies to the United States. Spain also accepted the right to sell the Philippines to the United States for $20 million. This is important because it helped the U.S. expand their empire by gaining some land from the Spanish and it helped free Cuba from Spain.
