Rush Bagot Treaty – 1817

- At the time, a naval race was occurring between US and Britain building up war ships on
the Great Lakes
- Exacerbates tensions between the nations
- President Monroe proposed they both stop
- Treaty agrees to stop build up
- Between British Minister to the US Charles Bagot and Acting Sect. of State Richard Rush
- Allowed for 1 armed ship on Lake Champlain, 1 on Lake Ontario, 2 on each of other
Great Lakes max
- Important turning point in Anglo-American relations post War of 1812

Know Nothings
- Late 1840s, emergence of nativist political party
- Wave of immigration in 1830s-50s fueled nativism and xenophobia
- Between 1815 – 1860, 5 million immigrants came to the US
o Highest proportion of immigration
o Mostly from North and Western Europe (Britain, Germany, Ireland)
o Many lived in North because of shipping routes and literature warning against
slavery and climate in the South
- Late 1840s – establishment of Know Nothing Party
o Had to be descendant of at least 2 generations of Protestant Americans
o Gained nearly 1 million members
o Started as a secret group
o Pledge to never vote for Catholics or foreigners
o Wanted nationalization to take 25 years, not 5
o Nationalized immigrants were voting Democrat
- Actually, gained political success
o 1854 – swept votes in MA, population angered by influx of Irish
o Fillmore got more than 20% of popular vote in 1856
o Contributed to decline of Whigs, second most powerful political party for some
time
- National attention shifts from slavery to nativism
- Lincoln worried they would add Irish and Catholics to unequal status of blacks
- Panic of 1857 and economic downturn made America less attractive
- Soon disappeared after period of dominance, Republican emerged

Treaty of Wanghia (1844)

- In July 1843, the Cushing Mission was sent to China in response to economic and
religious pressure to prove US was unique and didn’t want colonies in Asia, just trade
- Sent 4 warships, gifts, and a letter from President Tyler which was self-important and
condescending
- Chinese initially rejet Cushing’s offers, but American persistence wins out
o Cushing declared not to receive envoy is insult and declaration of war
o Went directly to Beijing to deal with emperor himself, considered insulting
 - After negotiations, Treaty of Wanghia signed
o Opens 4 more ports to the US
o Fixes dues, duties, and other charges
o Grants US most-favored nation status
o Concedes extraterritoriality to US
 Ex. 1821 Terra Nova case – American crewman caused drowning of
Chinese woman and strangled slowly to death by Chinese
- US ended up carrying 1/3 of China’s Western trade

Ostend Manifesto (1854)

- Soule failed to secure purchase of Cuba in 1853
- Soule (US), Mason (France), and Buchanan (Britain) meet in Ostend, Belgium and
recommend to Pierce that US use force to seize Cuba if Spain refused sale
- Leaked to the press before it got back to Pierce
- Another example of US expansionist drive, seen as plot to extend slavery
- Rebuked by anti-slavery agitators, Pierce obliged to repudiate
- Soule blamed and forced to resign
- Buchanan’s involvement helped him win Presidency
o Pro-slavery tones gained him support in the South
o As president, focused on annexing Cuba but Congress wouldn’t vote

King Cotton Diplomacy

- Diplomatic method used by the Confederacy during Civil War to persuade Britain and
France to support Confederates
- Confederacy implemented cotton trade embargo against Britain and the rest of Europe
- Confederates believes that Britain and France would both be forced to support their war
effort because of their dependency on Southern cotton for textile manufacturing
- Embargo was unsuccessful as European powers were able to find alternate cotton
sources

Social Darwinism (1880s)

- Justification for American imperialism
- Revolves around idea that individuals and groups compete with one another
- Those at top of society (economically, socially, politically) had all competed and earned
their place there
- Herbert Spencer transformed “Survival of the Fittest” into non-Scientific applications
- Asserted all aspects of life are guided by constant struggle in which weak are subjugated
by the strong
- Darwin himself applies “Survival of the Fittest” to human society and contest of nations,
calls US “the heir of all ages”
- Anglo-Saxons are naturally more gifted than other peoples, and that the institutions of
representative democracy and federalism render the US the most advanced Anglo-
Saxon nation
 - US used Social Darwinism to justify imperialism and its stratified positions relative to
indigenous people of the world

Platt Amendment
- A part of Army Appropriation Act of 1901
- Stipulated conditions for withdrawal of US troops remaining In Cuba since Spanish
American War and molding US-Cuba relations until 1934
o Cuba may not allow foreign power to secure control of any part of the island
o Cuba may not incur indebtedness beyond its means (may lead to foreign
intervention)
o US may intervene in Cuba at any time to preserve order
o Cuba must adopt US sponsored sanitation program
o Cuba must sell or lease sites to the US for naval and coaling stations
- Cuba basically becomes protectorate of US, incorporate this into their constitution

Maine Crisis (1898)

- February 15, 1898 – USS Maine sinks in Cuba’s Havana harbor from a massive explosion
o Kills 260 American crewmen aboard
- Docked there to protect interests of Americans in Cuba after earlier rebellions broke out
- US Naval Court of Inquiry ruled ship was blown up by a mine
o Congress and majority of American public believed Spain was at fault and called
for war
- McKinley asked and received $50 million for US defenses, under pressure
- “Hearsteria” – yellow press keeps anti-Spanish sentiment at a fever pitch
o untruthful accounts to excite American appetite for war
- US Businessmen opposed the war
o Rockefeller
o War disrupts trade, prosperity, takes over ports
o Proponents of war accused businessmen of lack of courage and patriotism
- March 7, 1898 – Vermont Senator Proctor’s speech persuades Americans of necessity of
war
o Conveyed shock of concentration camps and deaths in Cuba
- Spanish American War soon broke out

Gentleman’s Agreement
- Between United States and Japan in 1907-1908
- Effort by Roosevelt to calm growing tension over immigration of Japanese workers
- Since treaty in 1894, increase in immigrants brought hostility and anti-Asian sentiment
- Spurs racist legislation in San Francisco
- October 1906  San Francisco school board segregated 93 Japanese school children
into separate school (25 were actually American citizens)
- Japanese very insulted, even consider going to war
- Roosevelt brokered diplomatic agreement whereby Japanese government assumed
responsibility for restricting Japanese immigration
 - Japan would only give passports to limited number of laborers, Japanese that are
American citizens already or direct relatives
- US would not pass laws to specifically exclude Japanese immigration or discriminate
against

Lusitania Crisis (1915)

- British passenger ship was sunk by German submarine
- German submarine violated international law by not stopping a merchant ship before
destroying it
- 128 Americans were among 1000+ deaths from attach
o Call for US response
- US was regionally divided over response
o East Coast ready to fight alongside allies
o Midwest and West both recoil at prospect of entering war
- Wilson sought to maintain US nonalignment
o His will was tested after Berlin responded insolently to his message following
attack
- Wilson follows Berlin’s response with more stern and aggressive message
o Slight wavering from pledge to nonalignment
o Leads to Sect. of State Bryan resigning

Fourteen Points (1918)

- Speech by Woodrow Wilson delivered to Congress in 1918
- Outlined vision for stable, long-lasting peace in Europe, Americas, and the world follow
WWI
- Transparency and peace
- No more secret agreements between countries
- Free trade, free navigation of international seas
- Worldwide reduction of arms
- Resolved territorial disputes in Europe
- Form a League of Nations to protect independence of all countries no matter size