Us expansionism and imperialism was being manifested in the wedding cake buildings of the new District of Columbia as early as 1831 in regard to the Empire of the Spanish crown. The US kept looking for a reason to go to war with Spain after having imposed the Monroe Doctrine. When the boiler blew up in the USS Maine in Havana Harbor in 1898, the US claimed that Spain attempted to blow up the ship. The charge was taken then to go to war. The Spanish empire was well into its decline, so war with Spain could be conducted with minimal loss and much to gain. At the end of the war, the US government secured its military dominance over the former Spanish colonies in Central and South America. The US also took possession of the isle of Puerto Rico and surrounding islands, Cuba and the Philippine Islands. In going over to the PI, the US strengthened its control over the Hawaiian Islands and began to venture into the Mariannas. Steps were put in place for the US to take over the construction of the Panama Canal. The US was directly involved in the breakup of Bolivia and the establishment of the Republic of Panama, not necessarily with the intent of the people of the Isthmus of Panama. Puerto Rico remains a colonial territory of the US. The US returned Cuba to its ruling classes and sustained a long period of intense corruption which gave reason for the revolution in 1959. The US has retained control over Guantanamo Harbor. The Panama Canal Zone has been returned to Panama. The PI have secured their independence from the US and have instituted the American dialect as their national language and adopted a US style of government. The Mariannas began to play a much larger role for the US during WWII. The colonial territory of Hawaii became a state in 1960.
Posted on: Sat, 09 Nov 2013 17:49:47 +0000
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