Week 6 Reflection - US Imperialism and WWI

The main goal of US Imperialism in the 19th century was to drive the country’s economy and increase the benefits for the nation's economy. The country's objective consisted of executing policies for expansion as well as grabbing political, economic, and military control of other foreign nations. The main target was to find nations and markets in which they could easily colonize. They sought out numerous opportunities in other countries like the Philippines as these were deemed attractive investments for the country. Americans also established imperialism in the 19th century due to the fact that the American West was shutting down and there was a demand for the opening of new markets. American imperialism operates on the idea that stronger nations are there to seize control of

weaker nations. The weaker nations would in turn help the stronger nations in order to gain wealth that would be passed along to the nation or colonies which they would then take over, a cycle of some sort. During the 19th century, the American government was able to realize the potential of other countries and states which can serve as their 'helper' colonies during their global imperialism. These colonies included Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines. Some significant events that occurred during the period were the advantage of the imperial nations being able to expand foreign commerce and being able to improve the economies of the nations under their colonization. Exports were greater than the imports, contributing to increased wealth across the nations.World War I, often referred to as “The Great War", began in 1914 and ended in 1918. America witnessed much devastation in this time period with nearly 9 million people dying and millions psychologically scarred due to the after effects. World War I was deemed "the first man-made catastrophe of the twentieth century". The causes and effects of the war altered the lives of many individuals who lived in the countries affected. World War I began as a European conflict with growing tensions between the European countries being caused by alliances, imperialism, nationalism, and militarism between nations. Historians believe the immediate cause of the war was because of the assassination of Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary. They believed Archduke Ferdinand's death was the result of a conspiracy. The empire immediately suspected the Serbians of the assassination and sought to punish Serbia, and put Austria-Hungary’s prestige and determination at the center of attention for all European nations to see. After the loss of many lives over a four-year span, the war was finally over. In the aftermath of World War I, new countries were formed, old ones were abolished, and new international organizations were established. Inflation plagued the continent of Europe because of the war costs. The optimistic outlook of previous decades soon were forgotten and a feeling of  discouragement was later adopted after the casualties and the overall brutality of warfare.

Image information: Picture called “Readying Fire,' by Galerie Bilderwelt/Getty Images.”     Source: https://www.history.com/news/wwi-color-photos#&gid=ci023cb7dd800027dc&pid=wwi_color_getty152594329

Royde-Smith, John Graham, and Dennis E. Showalter. “World War I.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 3 Feb. 2020, www.britannica.com/event/World-War-I.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Imperialism.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 6 Jan. 2020, www.britannica.com/topic/imperialism.