...as time progressed, Spain lost most of their territory through wars and the struggle for independency in the colonies. They did manage however, to keep their main sources of power such as Puerto Rico and Cuba. During the 1890s, the United States became a world power itself. They sought out to deem nearby assets which included Cuba and Puerto Rico. The U.S had millions of dollars invested in business in Cuba. They had investments in the islands, sugar, tobacco and mining industries and public utilities. The U.S needed to maintain a strong political presence in Cuba in order to protect its economic interest. In 1895, Jose Marti and the Cuban Revolutionary Party lead a revolt against Spain. Sympathy rose high for the Cubans through the use of yellow journalism which documented what was occurring in Cuba. William Randolph Hearts, who dominated the newspaper in American, exploited and exaggerated the Spanish oppression of poor Cuba. The American public demanded that President McKinley do something about the situation, so he sent a naval fleet to Havana. A submarine mine exploded in Havana Harbor in Cuba, sinking the U.S. battleship Maine. Although it was never proven, America placed responsibility on Spain. “Remember the Maine!” became the war’s most famous slogan. Another incident that led to the increase of intensity between Spain and the U.S was the publication of a stolen letter in the New York Journal. The Spanish ambassador sent a letter which referred to President McKinley...
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...| The Spanish American War | | | Juan Jimenez | 12/1/2012 | Historia de Puerto Rico | The Spanish American War was fought in 1898 between the United States and Spain. Spain was a colonial power at the time, holding many territories in the Caribbean and Pacific. Revolts against Spanish rule were taking place in many of these territories. In Cuba and in the Philippines, the seeds of revolution were steadily growing. The United States found themselves in a position to assist these people with their fight for independence and to gain some land and power in both the Caribbean and the Pacific. It has long been thought that the sinking of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor was the catalyst that propelled the US into war with Cuba. I have found evidence that the US entered into war for a different reason. My research has led me to believe that the spread of disease, especially yellow fever, from Cuba into the US was the true reason for the American declaration of war against Spain. The sinking of the Maine has historically been accepted to be the cause of the US entering into war. It can be argued that it was, but, was the sinking really caused by the Spanish? There is no conclusive evidence that it was or was not. The Maine was sent to Havana Harbor in January of 1898. The ship, along with other US military vessels, was used to help blockade the port. This would keep the Spanish fleet from replenishing supplies and weapons to quell the...
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...SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR There were several long-term factors that contributed to the outbreak of hostilities in the Spanish-American War. One of these factors dealt with sugar production. Sugar production, the backbone of the island’s prosperity, was crippled when the American tariff of 1894 restored high duties on the toothsome product. (David M. Kennedy, Lizabeth Cohen, and Mel Piehl, The Brief American Pageant, 8th Edition, Wadsworth: Cengage Learning, 2012. 442) These sugar markets went sour in 1890 when the McKinley Tariff Act raised barriers against the Hawaiian product. White American planters’ mounting efforts to secure annexation by the United States were blocked by Queen Liliuokalani, who insisted that native Hawaiians should control the islands. Another long-term factor that contributed to the start of the Spanish-American War was the Explosion of the Maine in February 15, 1898. This explosion encouraged and amplified by the “yellow press” the outcry over the tragedy of the Maine, which helped to drive the country into an impulsive war against Spain. (David M. Kennedy, Lizabeth Cohen, and Mel Piehl, The Brief American Pageant, 8th Edition, Wadsworth: Cengage Learning, 2012. 442) Two-hundred and sixty sailors loss their lives when the Maine mysteriously blew up in Havana Harbor. There were two different open investigations inquiring about this explosion; one by U.S. naval officers and the other by Spanish officials. In 1976, the U.S. Navy Admiral H. G....
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...The Spanish Civil War was a war of tremendous impact both on Spain as well as the world. There is no doubt that the large propaganda effort by both the Republicans as well as the Nationalists affected the war effort on both sides. However, the different sides have drastically different ways of going about to promote their side in the war. The Republicans used “Spanish Earth” while the Nationalists used “Heroic Spain”. Each of these propaganda films had different and unique features that made them stand out differently from each other. “Spanish Earth” used a more calm and peaceful approach in order to bring popular support over their side. They had multiple images of various villagers hard at work. This promotes an image of a devoted and dedicated group of citizens for the Republican Spain that could be used in order to create a new Spain. I think this approach works well for convincing neutral members of society to come join the Republican side because everyone in Spain would have wanted a solid group of citizens as a foundation to rebuild Spain, but this approach would have never worked to convince any of the Nationalists to defect to the Republican side. Nationalists would have hated the idea of a “common person” having a role in the Spain’s society, which was the one of the primary reasons that they rebelled under Franco in the first place. “Spanish Earth” definitely has a more passive undertone than the Nationalist’s propaganda film with large crowds of soldiers saluting...
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...WAR IMMINENT: Spain and America to Fight After a recent publication in our sister publication, the New York Journal, a letter from the Spanish Minister de Lome to President McKinley, tensions rose to a point of combustion. Citizens all over the United States have complained about the insulting message contained within the letter from the Minister. This letter ridiculed McKinley, and lead to the eventual resignation of this Spanish Minister de Lome. Another catalyst that added to growing American distaste for the Spanish was the destruction of the battleship, the USS Maine. Although the source remains unknown for sure, we’re positive here at The Chronicle that the dastardly Spaniards committed this heinous crime. Many valuable American lives, as well as other less valuable foreign lives, were lost due to the explosion onboard the gunship. This blatant attack on an American Naval vessel is definite grounds for a war with the Spaniards. In response to the attack on the Maine, the United States Congress has raised an emergency fund of $50 million for President McKinley to do with as he pleases in order to fight the war that they declared also following the destruction of the Maine. Congress, through this declaration of war, desired to repay the indignation bestowed upon the US by Spain and to also help free the Spanish colonies of Guam, Cuba, the Philippines, and Puerto Rico. The main catalyst that escalated this war was very much to the “Yellow Journalism” produced by such newspapers...
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...Nationalist forces as being evenly balanced at the outbreak of Civil War in 1936? The outbreak of Civil War, in July 1936, was due to the murder of Sotelo by a PSOE supporter on the 13th of July. Sotelo was murdered in retribution of the armed action taken against the Asturias rising in which 3,000 miners were killed and another 35,000 were taken prisoner. At the outbreak of war both the Republicans and the Nationalists were fairly evenly balanced, however taking into consideration: Territory and population; industry; armed forces and organization I am going to evaluate which side was stronger in July 1936. The territory in Spain was split at about two-thirds to the Republicans against one-third to the Nationalist. The population was also split in favor of the Republicans with a difference of two million; the nationalist had a population of eleven million and the republicans had a population of thirteen million. However in spite of having control of the majority of the population and land the government could not simply overlook the fact that, in only a few days, they had lost one third of Spain to the rebels. Part of the reason for the Nationalist gain in the country was that a large portion population was in favor of the rebels. The Republicans had control of Madrid, Barcelona and Bilbao. By having the capital and also two other major cities put the Republicans in good stead as they occupied the heart of the Spanish economy. Where as the rebel Nationalists had Seville, Majorca...
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...Nazi Germany and the Spanish Civil War Continuity in Hitler’s Foreign Policy Tom Goldstein Professor Herf HIST441 May 15, 2001 The Spanish Civil War (1936-9) was a very important event during the tense1930s in Europe. Although it did not make World War II inevitable, it increased the likelihood of a general war a great deal. The war had a tremendous impact on Spain itself, leaving much of the state’s economic and social infrastructure in ruins and leaving thousands dead. But the war also saw involvement from other European states as both sides of the conflict – the Right-wing Nationalists and the Left-wing Republicans (a.k.a. Loyalists) – requested and received foreign aid not only in terms of financial assets, but also in terms of war material and troops. Adolf Hitler’s Germany was one of the foreign countries most involved in the conflict, contributing economic loans as well as several thousand troops to the Nationalist cause. Hitler’s involvement in the Spanish war was consistent with a larger Nazi foreign policy aimed at diverting British and French attention from Central and Eastern Europe so that he would be unhindered in his plans for eastern expansion. However, the ramifications of the Spanish war for the rest of Europe were great in other ways. The Spanish Civil War was a major contributor to the hardening of the division between the democracies (Britain and France) and the dictatorships (Italy and Germany). Germany also...
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...Webquest – The Spanish Civil War • When did the Spanish Civil War take place and why and how did it start? - 1936 to 1939 between the republicans supported by democrats and communists, and Francisco Franco who was supported by conservative and the catholic church to a certain extent. - Economically, the country had been deeply hit by the Great Depression after the wall street crash, in 1929 the military dictatorship that had ruled Spain since 1923 collapsed and in 1931 the republicans came to power. Which followed a period where the two political rivals both had periods where they had the power as the elected government. So the country was divided and unstable that in 1936 the army rebelled and forcibly removed the Republicans from power. so the civil war ensued. - The war began after a declaration of opposition by a group of generals of the Spanish R.A.F. (Republican Armed Forces) • How did the war end? What was the result? - The better organized and better equipped Nationalist forces won the war after Madrid was captured in March 1939. Hitler's position in Europe was now more powerful, since had another potential ally in the right-wing dictator of Spain, General Franco. - The participation and co-operation in the civil war strengthened the bond between Italy and Germany, as a result the Rome-Berlin Axis was formed. Italy and Germany were then firm allies. • What/whom was the POUM? - What/whom was the POUM? - The Workers' Party of Marxist aunification, was...
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...“Analyze the causes of either the Spanish Civil War or the Korean War.” The Spanish Civil War is a classical example of a country changing from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy to a republic. This process was done through many different phases and most importantly through corruption and appealing speeches. I will throughout this essay closely examine some of the most important causes of the Spanish Civil War. Write about the weaknesses of the government and the unstructured Spanish army: • Explain why the why the elections in Spain were corrupt o The rich had the power o The party leaders were easily manipulated by the wealthy. • The government was also weak because the king was allowed to interfere in the progress of electing a new prime minister o Builds on the corruption part above o King had a lot of power • No difference between the Conservatives and the Liberals o No difference means it was only a matter of the party leader to convince other to support them o Weakness is that Spain could only go in one direction with two parties with the same goals and ideology. • Explain how the army had lost support o Army known to be violent o Too many officers and people with power o They changed the system in Spain from a absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy The powerful Catholic Church linked to the weaknesses of the government • Explain the how the Catholic Church influenced the education o They were against modernization and...
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...The War of 1898, also known as the Spanish-American War, was sparked on April 25, 1898. Three causes of this war were the United States support for Cuba's independence, yellow journalism, to protect U.S. business interests in Cuba, and the sinking of the USS. Maine. These all helped spark the war that would give Cuba its independence when the war would conclude. The United States supported the fight with Cubans for their independence from the Spanish. Cuban revolts all started with the Wilson-Gorman Tariff of 1894. This American tariff put restrictions on sugar imports to the United States that severely hurt the economy of Cuba because they were based on producing and selling sugar. Spain sent in General "Butcher" Weyler to stabilize the situation...
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...The Spanish Civil War rose up out of heavy unrest that can be traced back centuries. After the conclusion of the First World War and a slowing of global immigration, workers all over Spain became increasingly militant because of deteriorating conditions. Strikes and uprisings could be found everywhere, and the Spanish government was having a hard time keeping the violence under control. In 1923, Miguel Primo de Rivera assumed power by means of overthrowing the state; he is considered the first modern dictator of Spain. As the unrest and violence continued, Primo de Rivera was forced to declare a state of war in an attempt to “halt any unrest or protests” (Beevor 136). Industrialists and the liberal middle class welcomed Primo de Rivera’s assumption to power because he had a conservative stance, a concern with improving Spain, and he came at a tense time for Spain (Beevor 137). However, the peace and welcoming did not last long. It began in Catalonia when the Catalans began to develop a dislike toward Primo de Rivera’s rule because he did not deal with union leaders to their liking. He, also, enjoyed attacking all aspects of Catalan nationalism (Beevor 140). But, the unrest did not stop there. It grew as Primo de Rivera stretched his influence...
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...Ben Hayward Propaganda Poster Analysis 11/05/13 Propaganda, by definition is an illustrated idea, fact, or allegation that is deliberately spread to further one’s cause or to damage an opposing cause. Throughout the Spanish Civil War the Republican, and Fascist parties created and distributed a plethora of propaganda. Spanish homes, institutions and buildings were covered in various parties’ propaganda that depicted both the heroes and villains of the Civil War. The emergence of these propaganda posters was a direct result of the fascist takeover the government. The posters served as a visual representation of party affiliation and their goals pertaining to the war. This poster that I present above on the first page represents the Anarchist’s party and their revolution in Spain. More specifically, the column de hierra, or otherwise known as the “Iron Column” was a militia column of the Anarchist ideology. This column was a subset of Militias Confederal and represented the Spanish Republicans. In my analysis of the poster, I will point out the symbolism of the color scheme and the figures represented in the poster as well as the text presented in the poster. The color scheme in any propaganda poster is vital in evoking the direction and intent of the artist’s poster. Also, colors can show viewers of the poster what party is affiliated with them. The red coloring in this poster exhibits the Anarchist party’s colors and distinguishes itself from the dark coloring of the...
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...Before the Spanish-American War the United States attempted to as neutral and isolated from the rest of the world as possible to avoid unnecessary conflict. This has been the United States foreign policy as much as possible since the days of George Washington's Farewell Address and the Spanish American War changed that when the United States got involved. The Spanish-American War marked a turning point in America’s national role and paved the way for US involvement outside our borders. Prior to the Spanish American War Americans had prided themselves on their policy of isolation. While this idea of isolation was only partially correct, the Spanish American War caused the United States to shift their focus from domestic policy to foreign...
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..."The Spanish-American War of 1898 transformed the United States into a major overseas power" (Schultz, 2014). The major reasons for the Spanish-American War of 1898 were for a variety of humanitarian, geopolitical, and commercial causes. The Cubans strived for independence from the harsh treatment by the Spanish and in 1895, violence erupted, provoking an interracial rebellion between the Cubans and the Spanish government. The three-year-long war devastated the Cuban economy, which had impacted the Americans that were heavily invested in the Cuban sugar plantations. Despite the lack of support from the Cubans for the U.S. to enter the war, it became inevitable in February of 1898 after the U.S. intercepted a letter from Spain's U.S. Ambassador...
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...The Spanish-American war began on a Monday, April 25 1898, and ended on a Friday August the 12th. It was between the United States and Spain. Spain declared war on the U.S. because they supported Cuba's wish to be independent of Spanish rule. The Treaty of Paris was signed and the war was declared over. As a result to the war Spain lost its ruling over many islands. There was many deaths of Americans do to the war, and the amount of U.S. troops engaged was 306,760. The Untied States and Spain were already at war, when the ship going to pick up American citizens blew up. The president at the time which was President McKinley gave an ok to finally call it an actual war. The war was said to be only fighting for the good of Cuba and McKinley said that after the...
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