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Klondike Gold Rush
A migration by an estimated 100,000 prospectors to the Klondike region in search for Gold -
The Influence of Sea Power
Argued that control of the sea was the key to world dominance which caused calls for better naval armies -
Hawaii Revolt
American Planters revolted against Queen Liliuokalani and later petitioned the president for annexation. -
Sanford Dole
A lawyer and jurist in the Hawaiian Islands as a kingdom, protectorate, republic and territory. A descendant of the American missionary community to Hawaii, Dole advocated the westernization of Hawaiian government and culture. -
Annexation of Hawaii
Spurred by the nationalism aroused by the Spanish-American War, the United States annexed Hawaii in 1898 at the urging of President William McKinley -
USS Maine sent to Cuba
Sent to protect U.S. interests during the Cuban revolt against Spain, she exploded suddenly, without warning, and sank quickly, killing nearly three quarters of her crew -
McKinley Approves War with Spain
President William McKinley asks Congress to declare war on Spain on this day in 1898. ... The Spanish military responded with brutal force; approximately 100,000 Cuban civilians died in wretched conditions within Spanish concentration camps between 1895 and 1898 -
Spain Declares War on US
On April 25, 1898 the United States declared war on Spain following the sinking of the Battleship Maine in Havana harbor on February 15, 1898. -
Battle of Manila Bay
The American Asiatic Squadron under Commodore George Dewey engaged and destroyed the Spanish Pacific Squadron under Contraalmirante Patricio Montojo. -
Battle of Santiago
Concluding naval engagement, near Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, of the Spanish-American War, which sealed the U.S. victory over the Spaniards. -
Spain signs Armistice
In Puerto Rico, Spanish forces likewise crumbled in the face of superior U.S. forces, and on August 12 an armistice was signed between Spain and the United States. -
Treaty of Paris
A treaty signed by Spain and the United States on December 10, 1898, that ended the Spanish–American War. -
Philippines declares itself as an independent state
Philippine independence declared. During the Spanish-American War, Filipino rebels led by Emilio Aguinaldo proclaim the independence of the Philippines after 300 years of Spanish rule -
Open Door Policy
The protection of equal privileges among countries trading with China and in support of Chinese territorial and administrative integrity. -
Philippine-American War
Spain ceded its longstanding colony of the Philippines to the United States in the Treaty of Paris. -
Philippine-American War
The decision by U.S. policymakers to annex the Philippines was not without domestic controversy. Americans who advocated annexation evinced a variety of motivations: desire for commercial opportunities in Asia, concern that the Filipinos were incapable of self-rule, and fear that if the United States did not take control of the islands -
Boxer Rebellion
A Chinese secret organization called the Society of the Righteous and Harmonious Fists led an uprising in northern China against the spread of Western and Japanese influence there. -
Big Stick Diplomacy
International negotiations backed by the threat of force. The phrase comes from a proverb quoted by Theodore Roosevelt, who said that the United States should “Speak softly and carry a big stick.” -
Big Stick Diplomacy
Big Stick diplomacy is the policy of carefully mediated negotiation ("speaking softly") supported by the unspoken threat of a powerful military -
Building the Panama Canal
President Theodore Roosevelt oversaw the realization of a long-term United States goal—a trans-isthmian canal. -
Dollar Diplomacy
A form of American foreign policy to further its aims in Latin America and East Asia through use of its economic power by guaranteeing loans made to foreign countries -
Mexican Revolution
A long lasting conflict between revolutionists ended dictatorship in Mexico and established a constitutional republic -
Archduke Franz Ferdinand Assassination
The assassination of Austria's Archduke Ferdinand set into motion a series of international events that led to World War I. This one event is widely considered the most important event in leading up to war. -
Russian Mobilization
However, when Russia entered the first world war, it had the largest standing army in the world with a total of 5 million soldiers. Furthermore, a large army also meant the need for large amounts of artillery. In 1914, 400,000 men ended up going into battle without any arm. -
Germany Invades Belgium
The German invasion of Belgium was a military campaign which began on 4 August 1914. Earlier, on 24 July, the Belgian government had announced that if war came it would uphold its historic neutrality. -
Panama Pacific International Exposition
A world's fair held in San Francisco, California. Its stated purpose was to celebrate the completion of the Panama Canal, but it was widely seen in the city as an opportunity to showcase its recovery from the 1906 earthquake. -
Germany uses Gas
The Germans fire shells filled with chlorine gas at Allied lines. This is the first time that large amounts of gas are used in battle, and the result is the near-collapse of the French lines. -
Lusitania Sinks
A German submarine sinks the passenger liner Lusitania on its' way from New York to Liverpool. The ship carries 1,198 people, 128 of them Americans. -
First Tanks Used
The British employ the first tanks ever used in battle, at Delville Wood. Although they are useful at breaking through barbed wire and clearing a path for the infantry, tanks are still primitive and they fail to be the decisive weapon. -
Mexican Constitution
Formally the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States is the current constitution of Mexico. It was drafted in Santiago de Querétaro, in the State of Querétaro, by a constitutional convention, during the Mexican Revolution. -
Zimmerman Telegram
British intelligence gives Wilson the so-called Zimmermann Telegram, a message from German foreign secretary Arthur Zimmermann proposing that Mexico side with Germany in case of war between Germany and the United States. In return, Germany promises to return to Mexico the "lost provinces" of Texas and much of the rest of the American Southwest -
Red Scare
The promotion of widespread fear by a society or state about a potential rise of communism, anarchism, or radical leftism -
Japanese Invasion of Manchuria
The Japanese claimed that Chinese soldiers had sabotaged the railway, and attacked the Chinese army (which had just executed a Japanese spy). The Chinese army did not fight back because it knew that the Japanese were just wanting an excuse to invade Manchuria.
