Gilded Age Foreign Policy (1877-1890) Flashcards
1
Q
Expansion of the US Navy
A
- 1882: William H. Hunt advocates for US naval expansion after a review
- 140 ships in the US navy with only 42 being operational
- US navy mainly composed of wooden sailing vessels rather than modern steamships
- Only had 17 steamships, 14 of which were dated back to the Civil War
- Captain Alfred Thayer Mahan was the most famous advocate for US naval expansion
- Wrote a largely influential book called ‘The Influence of Sea Power Upon History’
- Argued that nations with powerful navies and overseas bases would help the US grow in strength
- Advocated building a modern steam fleet
- Suggested cutting a canal across Latin America to facilitate communication between the Atlantic/Pacific Oceans
2
Q
Hawaii
A
- US became interested in Hawaiian Islands during the 18th century as a way to station ships, sailors and whalers trading with Asian nations
- Post-1875: US imported Hawaiian sugar, free of duty, in return for the Hawaiian gov refusing to import manufactured goods from any other country other than the US
- Hawaii was effectively reliant on the US economically
- 1877: Senate agreed to the renewed/expanded form of the 1875 treaty of friendship with Hawaii
- This gave permission to establish the naval base at Pearl Harbour
3
Q
The Pan American Conference (1890)
A
- 1881: James Blaine, Garfield’s Sec of State, advocated the first P.A Conference
- He believed that the US should act as a leader across the continent to prevent future conflict and that all countries would benefit from greater trade links
- Proposal didn’t occur under Garfield’s short presidency, passed onto Harrison
- Washington 1889: delegates from 18 countries attended the conference
- 2 main aims: customs union offering free trade across the continent and a system for international arbitration to avoid future wars
- International Bureau of American Republics set up to organise future conferences, cooperation between US and Latin American states
