Unenthusiastic Imperialism: William Mckinley And The Acquisition Of The Philippines In The Spanish-American War Of 1898

Abstract

"In 1898 President William McKinley faced a choice that changed American history. Three years earlier, yet another Cuban insurrection for independence had broken out against their imperial ruler, Spain. Frustrated by the failure of the Captain-General of Cuba, Arsenio Martínez Campos, to quell the insurrection, the Spanish government sent General Valeriano Weyler to Cuba as his replacement. To combat the rebels, Weyler implemented a strategy to separate the rebels from their greatest resource: the general population.1 This plan marked the beginning of the now infamous reconcentración policy..."