Essay

The Spanish-American War

The Teller Amendment: The Teller Amendment, at the beginning of the war, stated that the people have the right to be free and independent, as well as the US to demand that Spain resign its authority and government in the island of Cuba and withdraw its land and naval forces from Cuba and Cuban waters. The Teller Amendment also stated that the President is allowed to use US naval forces and Militia to carry out these resolutions. The Teller Amendment also said that the United States disclaims any intention to exercise sovereignty, jurisdiction, or control over the island except for the pacification thereof and asserts its determination and to leave the government in control of the island to its people.

George Dewey, and The Battle of Manila: At the beginning of the War, a commodore named George Dewey, who was the navy leader of the US fleet, took down most of the Spanish fleet in the war. On ** May 1, 1898, the Battle of Manila occurred. ** The USS Olympia led US Navy boats to Manila Bay. The Spanish Naval forces opened fire when the US Navy fired one by one, destroying many ships of the Spanish. Unfortunately, The US Navy withdrew their ships to restock ammo, but they came back and destroyed the rest of the Spanish forces, winning the battle.

Rough Riders: Rough Riders was the name given to the first Volunteer Calvary of the US. Colonel Leonard Wood led the Calvary. The ended up fighting on foot as an infantry. They were volunteers from Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Indian Territory.

The Battle of San Juan Hill, and The Battle of Santiago:

Another Battle in the war was the Battle of San Juan Hill, in which people called "rough riders". Rough Riders was the name given to the first Volunteer Calvary of the US, and were led by Colonel Leonard Wood. The "rough riders" were volunteers from Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Indian Territory. The Battle of San Juan Hill set them up for a perfect attack for Santiago. In the battle of Santiago, the U.S. Navy defeats Spanish ships, who were trying to break out of Santiago Harbor. When Spain was trying to escape, the US Army led their troops to the harbor and took heavy fire from the US navy who had blockaded the harbor. This resulted in an American victory, complete destruction of Spanish ships, the end of the entire Spanish-American War, and resulted in Spain giving up Cuba to the Americans.

What war was like at the time: People who served in the war were ill-trained and equipped with minimal weapons, and less protection made war a more horrible experience. Soldiers wore heavy wool while they fought in the Tropics during the summer. About 400 soldiers died in combat, but over 5,000 died from food poisoning, yellow fever, and malaria.