Volume 12 , Issue 16

United States Declares War On Spain (1898)

It was 1898 that America had a short war with Spain and was the nation's first step on the parkway to becoming a world power.

With the U.S. victory brought possession of the Philippines and a vested interest in the politics of the Pacific region that would ultimately lead to conflict with Japan.

The outcome found America embroiled in an insurgency in the Philippines that closely mimicked the conflict in Vietnam over 60 years later.

If you remember, Cuba (another Spanish colony) had been in rebellion since 1895. Do you recall in your high school history class of the US Battleship Maine that arrived in Havanna Harbor in January 1898, which had a dual mission: To protect American interests and present and present the Spanish with a show of force.

It was at 9:40p.m., the evening of February 15, 1898 when an explosion ripped the forward hull quickly sending the ship to the bottom of the harbor, killing 260 of the 345 crew members.

The US Naval Board of Inquiry stated that an external explosion (a mine placed beneath the ship) was attributed to the sinking. They say that the finger of blame pointed to Spanish treachery.

US Congress clamored for action. President McKinley reluctantly succumbed to pressure and asked Congress to declare war on April 21. Congress obliged on April 25, 1898. The war lasted 3 months and cost the U.S. about 400 killed or wounded. The United States gained the Philippines, Puerto Rico and Guam. The US emerged as a power to be reckoned within the world stage and Cuba gained independence fromSpain.
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