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Article: Spanish-American War
- Article from:
- Dictionary of American History
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SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR
SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR.
The sinking of the battleship
Maine
in Havana harbor on 15 February 1898 provided a dramatic
casus belli
for the Spanish-American War, but underlying causes included U.S. economic interests ($50 million invested in Cuba; $100 million in annual trade, mostly sugar) as well as genuine humanitarian concern over long-continued Spanish misrule. Rebellion in Cuba had erupted violently in 1895, and although by 1897 a more liberal Spanish government had adopted a conciliatory attitude, U.S. public opinion, inflamed by strident "yellow journalism," would not be placated by anything short of full independence for Cuba.
The
Maine
had been sent to Havana ...