| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Imperialism | The policy of extending a nation's authority over other countries by economic, political or military means. |
| Anglo Saxonism | Popular idea in the 19th and early 20th centuries that English speaking nations had superior character, ideas, and systems of government, and were destined to dominate the planet. |
| Annexation | Adding or incorporating a territory into an existing country, state or city. |
| Diplomacy | The practice of conducting international relations in negotiating alliances, treaties and agreements. |
| Protectorate | A relationship of protection and partial control assumed by a superior power over a dependent country or region. |
| Alfred T. Mahan | Admiral and author of The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660 to 1783 advocating American military expansion to protect American economic growth. |
| Pan Americanism | Movement calling for the U.S. and Latin American nations to work together to increase trade and peace. |
| Open Door | Policy first advocated by the United States in 1899 to allow for open and free trading rights in China for all nations. |
| Boxer Rebellion | A 1900 rebellion in which members of a Chinese secret society sought to free their country from Western influence. |
| Francisco "Pancho" Villa | A Mexican revolutionary leader in the early 20th century. |
| ABC Powers | The South American countries of Argentina, Brazil, and Chile, which attempted to mediate a dispute between Mexico and the United States in 1914. |
| Emilio Aguinaldo | Filipino general, politician, and leader of an independence movement in the Philippines. |
| Jose Marti | Cuban writer and poet who was passionately committed to the cause of Cuban independence. |
| Philippe Bunau Varilla | French engineer who advocated an American canal through Panama and helped instigate a Panamanian rebellion against Colombia. |
| Spanish American War | 1898 military conflict between Spain and the United States with fighting mainly in Cuba and the Philippines resulting in an American overseas empire. |
| Platt Amendment | A series of provisions that, in 1901, the U.S. insisted Cuba add to its new constitution, giving the U.S. the right to intervene in Cuban affairs and lease a naval station. |
| Teller Amendment | 1898 disclaimer for U.S. entry into the war with Spain stating the U.S. would not annex Cuba but only leave "control of the island to its people." |
| Insular Cases | Several U.S. Supreme Court cases decided in the early 20th century that full constitutional rights did not automatically extend to all areas under American control. |
| Foraker Act | Legislation in 1900 creating a civilian government for Puerto Rico. |
| Jones Act | 1917 legislation making Puerto Rico a U.S. territory and conferred U.S. citizenship to its inhabitants. |
| Sphere of Influence | An area over which political or economic influence is wielded by one nation. |
| Yellow Journalism | The use of sensationalized and exaggerated reporting by newspapers or magazines to attract readers and often associated with newspaper men William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer prior to the Spanish American War. |
| Roosevelt Corollary | An addition to the Monroe Doctrine by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1904 asserting the right of the United States to intervene in the affairs of small states in the Caribbean and Central America. |
| Gunboat Diplomacy | The pursuit of foreign policy objectives with the aid of displays of military power, implying a direct threat of warfare, should terms not be agreeable to the U.S., and associated with the President Theodore Roosevelt (Big Stick Diplomacy). |
| Mexican Revolution | Major power struggle in Mexican politics during the 1910s in which the United States attempted to intervene during the Wilson administration. |
| Rough Riders | Name of the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry raised in 1898 for the Spanish American War and associated with Theodore Roosevelt. |
| Treaty of Paris 1898 | The treaty ending the Spanish American War resulting in Cuban independence, U.S. acquisition of Puerto Rico and Guam, and the U.S. purchase of the Philippines. |
| Dollar Diplomacy | William Taft's policy aimed at furthering the interests of the United States abroad by encouraging the investment of U.S. capital in foreign countries. |
| Missionary Diplomacy | Woodrow Wilson's idealistic policy of advocating just principles, peace and democracy, especially in Latin America, and often ended in military intervention (Moral Diplomacy). |
| Jingoism | extreme nationalism marked by aggressive foreign policy. |
| Commerce | the buying and selling of goods and services, especially between nations (trade). |
| Markets | The world of commercial activity where goods and services are bought and sold. |
| Panama Canal | Canal built by the United States in the early 20th century across the isthmus of Panama connecting the Caribbean Sea to the Pacific Ocean. |
| John J. Pershing | American general sent into Mexico to capture Pancho Villa and the leader of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) in World War One. |
| USS Maine | American battleship that exploded in Havana Harbor in 1898 leading to the Spanish American War. |
| De Lome Letter | 1898 correspondence criticizing President McKinley as "weak" and "a bidder for the admiration of the crowd," written by the Spanish ambassador creating more tensions between Spain and the U.S. |
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