US Victory in Spanish-American War: The Birth of an Empire - Essay Sample

Introduction

The Spanish-American War happened for six weeks, where the United States won against Spain. Due to the war, America became an empire and took over other territories such as Guam and the Philippines. Many Americans expected the United States to enter the battle, compete for over-sees territories, and show their power. For instance, chaos in Cuba strengthens the fight between America and Spain, where America thought Spain was facilitating the fights, and they joined fighting against Spain. The Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December in the year 1941 at 7:55 am. Pearl Harbor is on the South of Oahu Island. On the attack, the Harbor was about 22,000 acres in size. Since 1887 after King Kalakua allowed the development of coal stations, Pearl Harbor became the centre of American naval power (Gibson and Ann). A peaceful negotiation between America and Japan was sought until America was attacked. However, talks were dismissed by the Japanese government indirectly to the Americans through the reply to a particular letter. Below are the reasons why Pearl Harbor was attacked.

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Japan had been hostile and isolated itself from America. Even with these signs, America would never think of an attack on Pearl Harbor. America was reluctant because there was no war declared between the two nations. American cryptanalysts were less funded, understaffed, under-equipped, and received orders to assume any naval messages and instead concentrate on Japanese diplomatic traffic (Hall 29). Only if America were severe on the letters sent, they would be in a position to prevent the attack on Pearl Harbor. Japan was so severe in the attack because they were under pressure of their planned expansion. Natural resources such as oil were crucial for their development and were available in Pearl Harbor.

After winning so many territories during the Spanish-American war, America was reluctant to meet the agreement. America could not allow any other nation to own any land. Japanese targeted on battleships and aircraft among other vessels in the Pearl Harbor to punish Americans. Japanese was concerned with destroying Pearl Harbor because they suspected two missing American aircraft carriers were here. Unfortunately, at the time of the attack, those two carriers were miles away (Hall 29)

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Japanese were encouraged to conduct the attack in two ways. First, America saw it impossible for Japan to hurt them. Having survived and conquered many battles during the invasions, America considered itself supreme. Secondly, America had vowed to engage only in what occurred within its borders. Therefore, without the Spanish-American War, America could never have unleashed their potential over other countries. Cooperation between different nations over various territories would have been smooth.

Work Cited

Hall, Megan. "Heroes of World War II: Attack on Pearl Harbor." Children's Book and Media Review 40.1 (2019): 29.

Gibson, Pamela N., and Ann Shank. "The Spanish American War South of Tampa Bay." Sunland Tribune 24.1 (2018): 8.