The Spanish-American War: The Fighting and Results

The Spanish-American War: The Fighting and ResultsUS HistorySpiconardi

1The Teller AmendmentPrior to the start of the war, Congress passed the Teller AmendmentTeller Amendment Under Sen. Teller of Colorado, the amendment vowed that the U.S. would not annex Cuba after the wars conclusion, but rather leave control of the island to its people

Based on what we have learned about the US this unit, do you think the US followed through on its promise?Sen. Henry Teller (R-Co)NO!The WarFighting occurred in Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the PhilippinesProblemsThe U.S. Army was depleted after the Civil War some 35 years earlier, as it only had 28,000 members.The U.S. had to rely on the National Guard and volunteers to boost its numbers to 263,000This led to many untrained and undisciplined soldiersEnter Theodore Roosevelt

3The WarThe Rough RidersA group of volunteer infantry soldiers who, as Roosevelt stated, were children of the dragons blood and eager for warMany were too young to remember the horrors of the Civil War and saw war as an adventure

Segregation in the armyBlack troops were segregated from their white counterparts. When many white soldiers contracted malaria and yellow fever, the were evacuated, but blacks were left behind to fight under the belief that being use to the Souths climate would make them immune from diseases.The War: Casualties and Losses The United States5,452 deathsOnly 379 from combatThe rest died of malaria, yellow fever, and food poisoning Embalmed beef ScandalA medical officer wrote, "Much of the beef I examined arriving on the transports from the United States ... was apparently preserved by injected chemicals to aid deficient cold storageIt looked well, but had an odor similar to that of a dead human body after being injected with preservatives, and it tasted when first cooked like decomposed boric acid ..."

The WarSo despite disease and a predominately volunteer army, how the heck did the U.S. win this war?The Navy The U.S. had a superior navyU.S. blockaded Cuba to prevent Spanish from reinforcing and resupplying its army on the islandRebels Cubans and Filipinos teamed up with U.S. soldiers to fight he SpanishWriter Sherman Anderson noted that fighting Spain was like robbing an old gypsy woman in a vacant lot at night after a fair

The Treaty of ParisSpain, after being beaten so badly, agreed to the following:Spain must give up all claims to CubaThe U.S. will maintain peace and protect life & property on the islandSpain must give the U.S. control of Puerto Rico & GuamSpain will sell the Philippine Islands to the U.S. for $20 million

The Platt AmendmentThe Platt Amendment replaced the Teller AmendmentIn exchange for withdrawing U.S. Troops from Cuba:The U.S. had an open door to intervene in Cuban affairsCuba also agreed to sell or lease to the United States "lands necessary for coaling or naval stationsCuba leased Guantnamo Bay to the United States

The Philippine-American WarLike Cuba, the U.S. took control of the Philippines and intended to uplift and civilize the FilipinosIn 1899, the Philippines declared independence and took arms against the United StatesAfter 3 years of fighting, 200,000 dead Filipinos, 5,000 dead Americans and unspeakable atrocities, the U.S. had suppressed the rebellionU.S. promised Philippines self government in 1916Philippines was granted independence in 1946