Spanish-American Relations in the 1890s in the Context of the Monroe Doctrine

The Monroe Doctrine, proclaimed in 1823, was successfully used by the United States throughout the 19th century to protect US territorial and political interests in the Western Hemisphere. One of the most obvious examples of its application in international relations was the Spanish-American War of 1898. The Russian ambassador in Madrid, Dmitry Shevich, was an unbiased witness of the application of the Monroe Doctrine by the Americans to Spain and Cuba in the 1890s. Based on his reports, we analyze the stages of the escalation of the conflict, examine the evolution of the aggressive US policy towards Madrid under the pretext of protecting the interests of Spain from Cuban «insurgents», we address the role and participation of Russia in the conflict. The Monroe Doctrine was applied where and when the position of the US government was absolutely strong. Whereas in the 1870s the situation in Cuba, and even in the United States itself, was not very appropriate, it is in the 1890 that the position of the United States in the international arena, the stabilization of the situation in the country as a result of the Reconstruction era and the chaos in the domestic political situation in Spain served as key factors for Washington’s confidence in the success of its enterprise. The United States used various methods of pressure on Spain in order to squeeze it out of Cuba and get the island into its undivided possession. At the same time, whereas in 1896–1897 the relations were dominated by diplomatic rhetoric about the need to «pacify» the situation in Cuba and the willingness to act as an intermediary between the metropole and the insurgents, the relations with Spain turned into threats and ultimatums after the explosion of the battleship Maine. Washington openly voiced its right to decide the fate of the states and nations of the Western Hemisphere.

1. Anikeeva N.E., Vedyushkin V.A., Volosyuk O.V., Mednikov I.Yu., Pozharskaya S.P. (2014) Istoriya vneshnei politiki Ispanii [History of Spanish foreign policy], Moscow, Mezhdunarodnye otnosheniya, 504 p. (In Russian)

2. Belyavskaya I.A. (1985) Ispano-amerikanskaya voina 1898 g. [Spanish-American War of 1898], in Sevostyanov G.N. (ed.) Amerikanskii ekspansionizm [American expansionism], Moscow, Nauka, 342 p. (In Russian)

3. Bukharmedova L.M. (2016) Mikhail Aleksandrovich Gorchakov (1879–1896) [Mikhail Alexandrovich Gorchakov (1879–1896)], in Volosyuk O.V. (ed.) Rossiiskie diplomaty v Ispanii. 1667–2017 [Russian diplomats in Spain. 1667–2017], Moscow, ID “Mezhdunarodnye otnosheniya”, pp. 164–172. (In Russian)

4. Vladimirov L.S. (1957) Diplomatiya SShA v period amerikano-ispanskoi voiny 1898 [U.S. Diplomacy during the American-Spanish War of 1898], Moscow, Gos. izd-vo polit. lit-ry, 255 p. (In Russian)

5. Volosyuk O.V., Lipkin M.A., Yurchik E.E. (eds.) (2014) Istoriya Ispanii. T. 2: S nachala XVIII veka do nashikh dnei [History of Spain. Vol. 2: From the beginning of the eighteenth century to the present day], Moscow, Indrik, 872 p. (In Russian)

6. Ivkina L.A. (2007) Desyatiletnyaya voina za nezavisimost’ na Kube 1868–1878 [Decade War of Independence in Cuba 1868-1878], Moscow, Nauka, 319 p. (In Russian)

7. Koval T.B. (2016) Dmitrii Egorovich Shevich (1896–1905) [Dmitry Egorovich Shevich (1896–1905)], in Volosyuk O.V. (ed.) Rossiiskie diplomaty v Ispanii. 1667–2017 [Russian diplomats in Spain. 1667–2017], Moscow, ID “Mezhdunarodnye otnosheniya”, pp. 173–181. (In Russian)

8. Morales O. (1998) Pozitsiya Rossii v period ispano-amerikanskogo konflikta iz-za Kuby v kontse XIX veka [Russia’s position during the Spanish-American conflict over Cuba in the late 19th century], PhD. Thesis Abstract, Moscow, 28 p. (In Russian)

9. Slezkine L.Yu. (1956) Ispano-amerikanskaya voina 1898 g. [Spanish-American War of 1898], Moscow, Izdatel’stvo Akademii Nauk SSSR, 134 p. (In Russian)

10. Friedman M.A. (2011). Doneseniya D.E. Shevicha o nachale ispano-amerikanskoi voiny 1898 g. [D.E. Shevich’s reports on the outbreak of the Spanish-American War in 1898], RUDN Journal of World History, no. 1, pp. 76–82. (In Russian)

11. Shustov K.S. (1970) Osvoboditel’naya voina na Kube i politika SShA [The Cuban War of Liberation and U.S. Policy], Moscow, In-t Latin. Ameriki AN SSSR, 91 p. (In Russian)

12. Guerra R. (1975) La expansión territorial de los Estados Unidos a expensas de España y de los países hispanoamericanos [The territorial expansion of the United States at the expense of Spain and Hispanic countries of America], La Habana, Nacional de Cuba, 502 p. (In Spanish)

13. Menéndez L. (1944) Cánovas y la política exterior española [Cánovas and Spanish foreign policy], Madrid, Instituto de Estudios Políticos, 460 p. (In Spanish)

14. Paniagua Pérez J. (1990) Las negociaciones de Pío Gullón con Estados Unidos en vísperas de la guerra Hispano-norteamericana [Pío Gullón’s negotiations with the United States on the eve of the Spanish-American War], Astórica: revista de estudios, documentación, creación y divulgación de temas astorganos, Año 8, no. 9, pp. 177–194. (In Spanish)

15. Salom Costa J. (1967) España en la Europa de Bismarck. La política exterior de Canovas [Spain in the Europe of Bismarck. Canovas’ foreign policy], Madrid, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, 434 p. (In Spanish)