Warm Up

1. Warm Up • On a piece of Notebook paper • What do the following words mean? Write definitions down in your own words. • You may use your phone or a dictionary to look up words you don’t know. • chronological order • historical era • historical significance

2. Unit 4: Rise to World Power (1890-1920) Day 1: American Imperialism

3. Rise to World Power This historical era is characterized by the rise of the United States into the position of a world power. Prior to this unit, we learned about domestic issues that were the focus of the progressive era reform efforts. During this unit we will examine early twentieth century foreign policy in the United States, including the decision to partake in the Spanish-American War, increasing economic influence around the world, movements towardexpansionism, and involvement in the First World War (WWI).

4. Progressive Era (1890-1920) • World War I • Sussex Pledge • Zimmerman Telegram • New Weapons & Warfare • Alvin York • Treaty of Versailles • Wilson 14 Points Economic Reforms Political Reforms Social Reforms • Spanish American War (1898) • Yellow-Journalism • Cuba • DeLome Letter • Sinking of the Maine • American Expansionism • New Market • New territories • China • Open Door Policy • Panama Canal Rise to World Power (1890-1920)

5. Why did the U.S. become more involved with the world? American Imperialism • Imperialism – Policy in which stronger nations extend their economic, political, or military control over weaker territories.

6. Reasons for American Imperialism • Desire for Military Strength • European nations were establishing a global military presence and the U.S. needed to keep up. • U.S. became the third largest navy in the world. Built 9 steel-hulled cruisers. • Alfred T. Mahan– urged the government to build up the navy to compete with other nations. He was a historian and author of a book on the importance of the navy to a country’s power

7. Discussion Question: Talk with your shoulder partners • Alfred T. Mahan supported the idea of naval dominance as a way to position the U.S. into world power. Why do you think the navy was important to Mahan?

8. Reasons for American imperialism • Thirst for New Markets • America needed new markets to sell agricultural and manufactured goods and to get raw materials from. • Reasons for new markets • raw materials for factories • new markets for its agriculture • new markets for manufactured goods

9. Reasons for American Imperialism • Belief in Cultural Superiority • The U.S. had a responsibility to spread Christianity and civilization to the inferior peoples of the world. • Cultural Superiority • social Darwinism • racial superiority of Anglo-Saxons • Spread Christianity

10. ***Important Concept: • As the United States takes over territory, it expands its markets and gains access to resources.

11. American Imperialism and Alfred T. Mahan • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMWOx2ZB3qU • (7:08)

12. Critical Writing Question #1 • Day 1: As the United States gained more territories, what was the effect on the U.S.? How did Alfred Thayer Mahan play a role in American Imperialism?

13. Synthetic Snowball • American Imperialism is like… because……