The Race for Empire

Imperialism

Great Britain and France already had empires through imperialistic measures. The political cartoon demonstrates this. How does this cartoon illustrate imperialism?

Expansionism

Manifest Destiny

• the 19th-century doctrine that the United States had the right and duty to expand throughout the

North American

continent. A policy

of imperialism

rationalized as

inevitable

(as if granted by God).

Why build an empire?

• Panic of 1873 and 1893 were a result of over-production (We had a surplus)

• We needed new markets for the goods we produced

• Eurocentric -- focusing on Europe or its people, institutions, and cultures, often in a way that is arrogantly dismissive of others

How did the U.S. gain Hawaii

1875 Trade agreement

Sugarcane

U.S. planters in Hawaii = no tariffsForeign planters = tariffs

Which one is going to get rich?And money is…..?

POWER – he who has the money makes the rules

• Bayonet Constitution of 1887 -- gave power to legislature (majority held by U.S. planters)

• Lorrin Thurston was one of

the writers of the new

constitution.

• Does he look Hawaiian?

• The 1887 constitution stripped King David Kalākaua of much of his authority, imposed significant income and property requirements for voting, and completely disenfranchised all Asians from voting

• Asians are inferior right?

King David Kalākaua

• King David Kalākaua died in 1891 and was succeeded by his sister Queen Liliuokalani

• She tried to regain control

by drafting a new constitution

that restored the power of the

monarchy

• In response to Liliuokalani's suspected actions, a group of European and American residents formed a Committee of Safety on January 14, 1893. After a meeting of supporters, the Committee (only 13 members) committed itself to removing the Queen and annexation to the United States

• The Committee of Safety had claimed an "imminent threat to American lives and property”

• United States Government Minister John L. Stevens summoned a company of uniformed US Marines from the USS Boston and two companies of US sailors to land and take up positions at the US Legation, Consulate, and Arion Hall on the afternoon of January 16, 1893.

• The Provisional Government of Hawaii was established to manage the Hawaiian islands between the overthrow and expected annexation

Annexation

I Liliuokalani, by the Grace of God and under the Constitution of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Queen, do hereby solemnly protest against any and all acts done against myself and the Constitutional Government of the Hawaiian Kingdom by certain persons claiming to have established a Provisional Government of and for this Kingdom.

That I yield to the superior force of the United States of America whose Minister Plenipotentiary, His Excellency John L. Stevens, has caused United States troops to be landed at Honolulu and declared that he would support the Provisional Government.

Now to avoid any collision of armed forces, and perhaps the loss of life, I do this under protest and impelled by said force yield my authority until such time as the Government of the United States shall, upon facts being presented to it, undo the action of its representatives and reinstate me in the authority which I claim as the Constitutional Sovereign of the Hawaiian Islands.

Liliuokalani abdicated her throne. The Queen's statement yielding authority, on January 17,

1893, also pleaded for justice:

• The Provisional Government stayed in place until annexation in 1898 by President McKinley

• Why wasn’t Hawaii annexed by President Cleveland?

Why did the U.S. build up its naval power?

• Need to be able to defend the new markets

U.S. first battleship…the USS Texas 1895

USS Maine commissioned shortly after the USS Texas

Great White Fleet

• In 1907, T. Roosevelt ordered a world tour of our Navy. Ships were painted white.

• The Great White Fleet was an attempt to show the rest of the world that we were a military power

Great White Fleet

• Commodore Matthew Perry commanded the Great White Fleet

• Japan was an isolationist country…but was quickly persuaded to open their doors to American interests…almost got the best of us in the 1980’s