Was the Spanish-American War Justified free essay sample

To that extent, many feared Spain would be detrimental to imports and exports because of their presence in the Caribbean Sea, which served as the main trade link between the U. S. and Latin America. Finally, widely circulated, factually overblown newspaper articles intended to increase sales brought the public eye to the violence unfolding in Cuba, leaving many clamoring for war. A significant number of Americans wanted to end European colonization in the West so that America could finally shine as a world power, even if it meant a potentially bloody, costly conflict (albeit it was ultimately neither) followed by ruling over or controlling the foreign populations left standing in its wake. A wave of jingoism swept the U. S. in the 1890’s, and many people around the country, including President McKinley himself, wanted Spain removed from the Caribbean so that the U. S. ould become the sole global power in the Western Hemisphere and exert even greater political dominance over Latin America. We will write a custom essay sample on Was the Spanish-American War Justified? or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This principle also extended to the Philippines, another Spanish territory, as well; the U. S. viewed the islands as a clear gateway to relations with the Far East. The intention to expand the American sphere of influence appealed primarily to U. S. demands and showed little concern for the welfare of the less developed nations, especially in the case of the Philippines. Nonetheless, the acquisition of territory and consequent extension of power would follow the ability to compete with the rising empires of Europe, causing the spoils of the war to overshadow its inherent selfishness. There were also many possible economic benefits to removing Spain, such as maintaining trade ties formed during the Pan-American Conference of 1889 with Latin American and South American nations as well as reviving the Cuban sugar trade disrupted by the Cuban Revolt in 1895. U. S. nvestors and businessman nonetheless feared they might interfere with precious sources of commerce if they remained in the Caribbean, preventing them from competing on the global market. Additionally, even McKinley considered both the ongoing and potential harm as grounds for declaring war, evidenced by the third point made in his War Message. Much like with its intended political gains, the U. S. was chiefly concerned with its own economic interests in the war, even though Spain was not a thre at to them at all. Once the Cuban Revolt began, yellow journalists, particularly William Randolph Hearst, printed wildly exaggerated stories about the events surrounding it, making the Spanish â€Å"atrocities† appear far worse than they actually were, drawing large numbers of readers’ attention towards the conflict and selling far greater quantities of newspapers. Adding fuel to the fire, a letter written by Spanish diplomat Dupey de Lome which criticized President McKinley, something many people perceived as an insult to national honor because of the way it was presented, was printed in Hearst’s newspaper Journal. The major public outcry, however, emerged from the stories printed about the sinking of the U. S. S. Maine in early 1898, an accident which many newspapers wrongly blamed on Spain. The warped versions of these respective events caused a vast majority of citizens to urge Congress and McKinley to push even harder for war because they finally had proper reasoning to declare war and push Spain out. Ironically, these three accusations were made despite the strong efforts to maintain diplomatic relations between the U. S. and Spain. The falsified pieces of â€Å"evidence† of Spain’s belligerence towards America served as the central basis and, in many cases an excuse, for starting the war, which debases the call to arms even further. Many historians argue that the U. S. took the moral high ground during the war because they set out to end the suffering of the Cuban people at the hands of Spain, citing the crux of McKinley’s War Message. Although this may be true to some extent, the worst of the rebellion had ended by 1898 as the result of a ceasefire agreement and the departure of General Valeriano Weyler; therefore, American interference was needlessly invasive. Some also point to the Teller Amendment as counter-evidence against the imperialistic nature of the war, but, following the war, the Platt Amendment to the Cuban Constitution transformed Cuba from a truly independent nation into a puppet of the U. S. for enforcing the Monroe Doctrine on Europe’s empires. Moreover, the motive to free an oppressed Cuba fails to explain why the U. S. also took action to remove Spain from the Philippines, where no major rebellion was taking place. Although morality may have played some role, its motivational effect was far outweighed by the imperialism and hysteria factors. The major underlying reasons behind the Spanish-American War were simply extensions of the jingoism and slandering journalism trends in the U. S. during the late 19th century. Although the Spanish Empire had no ill will towards America, both the desire to compete internationally and the impulse to intervene in a conflict that was not fully understood were far too powerful. Sources: Resnick, Eugene. Barron’s AP United States History. Hauppauge, New York: Barron’s Education Series, 2012.