For close in point defense, each side contained ten rapid firing 3-inch guns and six rapid firing 2-inch guns. These guns were designed to combat lightly armored destroyers and torpedo boats. Each battleship also mounted four submerged torpedo tubes, two per side. The battleships had a top speed of nineteen knots, which allowed them to maintain position with the fast cruisers.
USS Connecticut
On the drawing board was a revolutionary class of larger big gun battleships. These battleships would have four twelve-inch super-firing gun turrets. The casement guns would be for point defense and consist of 22 three-inch and ten one-inch rapid firing guns. The first ship scheduled would be the USS South Carolina, with anticipated delivery in 1905.
Chapter 12
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
On March 1, 1898, a courier ship sailed into Pearl Harbor with urgent dispatches for Admiral Kincaid. He was instructed to sail to Hong Kong to await developments in the Philippines. A major revolt was in progress against Spanish rule. Complicating the issue was the presence of the German Far East Fleet consisting of two armored cruisers and three fast cruisers. The German Empire was anxious to expand its empire in the Far East, and Spanish possessions looked to be lucrative easy acquisitions. The United States had numerous mercantile enterprises in the Philippines, which needed protection.
On March 4, Kincaid’s fleet left Pearl Harbor. Kincaid's flagship, the Battleship USS Connecticut led the fleet out of the harbor. Other vessels following in line included: the Battleship USS Missouri, five cruisers: USS Olympia, USS Baltimore, USS Boston, USS Charleston, and USS Raleigh; two gunboats, USS Concord and USS Petrel; and the revenue cutter USS McCulloch. The fleet arrived in Hong Kong on March 25. There he learned that the mostly Filipino crew and some junior officers of the Spanish Navy mutinied, and were in control of the Spanish Pacific Squadron. Portions of Manila had fallen to the rebels. The rebels besieged the remnants of the Spanish Army at the fortress in Cavite.
The rebels also surrounded the American Consul, his diplomats, and surviving American merchants at the United States Consulate; protected by a platoon of United States Marines. In the confusion of the rebel advances, the Consul sent a dispatch to Hong Kong providing the most recent dispositions of rebel forces, and that the rebels mined the North Chanel, past Corregidor into Manila Bay.
Kincaid ordered the re-coaling of his warships and received permission from the US Consul General to purchase two freighters as supply ships the SS Nanshan and SS Safiro. These he loaded with food and munitions. On March 29, 1898, USS Connecticut led the United States Navy fleet out of Hong Kong. On their way out, they passed the German Empire’s Far East Squadron arriving in port. Upon hearing the news about the Philippines, the German Admiral re-coaled his warships and headed towards Manila Bay.
Kincaid’s fleet entered Subic Bay on April 3. Kincaid sent the revenue cutter USS McCulloch to investigate the cause of smoke on the horizon. Several hours later USS McCulloch returned with the news of the approaching German Fleet. Admiral Kincaid held a conference with his captains. He divided his fleet into two squadrons; and appointed Captain George Dewey to be Commodore of the Cruiser Squadron consisting of USS Olympia, USS Baltimore, USS Boston, USS Charleston and USS Raleigh. Dewey was instructed to enter Manila Bay by the South Channel. If fired upon by the Filipino warships, Dewey was ordered to engage and destroy. Admiral Kincaid and the remaining warships would establish a blockade of Subic Bay.
Dewey’s flagship, the USS Olympia, was commanded by Captain Charles V. Gridley, who was the next most senior captain and transferred over from USS Charleston. At midnight, Commodore Dewey entered Manila Bay through the South Channel. The Filipino warships, mostly obsolete cruisers sallied out to meet Dewey’s flotilla. Dewey standing on the Bridge spoke to Captain Gridley: “You may fire when ready Gridley.” Olympia’s eight-inch guns fired, followed by the other cruiser’s guns. Within an hour, the Filipino Navy warships including Tina Castina, Castilla, Isla de Luzon, Isle de Cuba and Velasco were burning wrecks that grounded themselves on shoals to prevent sinking.
During the sea battle, the Filipino ground forces assaulted the defenders at the fortifications at Cavite. Following intense hand to hand fighting, the Spanish drove off the attackers. Dewey then ordered two companies of Marines ashore to link up with the Consulate. Under cover of a naval bombardment, the Marines lifted the siege.
USS McCulloch steamed into the bay to obtain a status update. She passed the wrecked and burned Filipino warships. Commodore Dewey signaled that the Marines secured the consulate, and it was safe to bring in the supply ships through the South Chanel.
Admiral Kincaid hoisted the parlay flag as the German East Asia Squadron Subic Bay at 8 am. The German commander Rear Admiral Otto Von Diederichs accepted the invitation to board USS Connecticut. With the sound of distant gunfire as a background, the stewards served coffee and sweet bread to the admirals as they engaged in a courteous exchange of views. Von Diederichs offered assistance. Kincaid was adamant that the engagement was entirely an American effort, and assistance by the German Empire was not needed. He offered Von Diederichs a tour of USS Connecticut which was accepted.
As the Admirals chatted amicably on the bridge wing, USS McCulloch steamed into view with signal flags flying. Dewey read the signals and said to Von Diederichs: “The Filipino Navy no longer exists, and my Marines lifted the siege of the consulate. The Flag Captain Percival Jenkins walked over for orders. Kincaid said: “Signal USS Petrel and USS Concord to escort Nanshan and Sapiro into the Bay, through the south channel and dock where Commodore Dewey directs.” Kincaid then thanked Von Diederichs for his concerns and escorted him to the motorized barge back to his flagship. The German East Asiatic Fleet then departed.
Admiral Kincaid ordered the balance of the fleet into Manila Bay. The first order of business was clearing the mines out of the north channel. The next day, USS Concord and USS McCulloch carrying identical dispatches steamed out of Manila Bay to Pearl Harbor.
Three weeks later, an alliance between the United States Marines and the remaining Spanish Garrison drove the rebels 50-miles away from Manila. Leaving Commodore Dewey’s cruiser squadron, and three-thousand Marines as a garrison, Admiral Kincaid left Manila Bay and steamed to Pearl Harbor.
The new United States Secretary of State, John Hay entered into negotiations to purchase the Philippine archipelago and the Island of Guam from Spain. The Spanish government was in turmoil as King Alfonso XII died and his wife; Queen Maria Christina was pregnant with a hoped male heir. Months later she gave birth to Alfonso XIII and was declared Queen-Regent until the infant king reached majority.
John Hay was very persuasive noting that Spain was unable to defend her Pacific Oceania possessions. Hay, who previously was the Ambassador to the United Kingdom, had a very amicable relationship with the British foreign service. The British, concerned that if the United States left the Philippines, the German Empire would take over, supported Hay's efforts.
The treaty signing took place on April 15, 1899. The United States paid Spain the sum of twenty million dollars and paid for the removal of the Spanish garrisons and their dependents. On June 2, 1899, in a ceremony in Manilla, the last Spanish Governor-General Diego de los Rios lowered the Spanish Flag in Manila and watched as the Stars and Stripes rose up the flagstaff. With bands playing, the Spanish garrison marched onto troop ships and steamed for home.
The Philippine rebel leaders wrote a Constitution and declared the Philippine Republic on January 21, 1899. The United States and all the other nations refused recognition. On June 2, 1899, in response to the United States purchase, and refusal to recognize Philippine independence, the Philippine Republic declared war on the United States.
The Philippine-American war lasted until July 2, 1902, first with pitched battles, then guerrilla warfare. Major fighting ended with the capture of the Philippine President Emilio Aguinaldo on March 23, 1901, and the collapse of the Philippine government in 1902. The capture, trial, imp
risonment and subsequent execution of Aguinaldo’s self-proclaimed successor Macario Sakay on September 13, 1907, reduced the war to sporadic guerrilla warfare. The Battle of Bud Basak on June 13, 1913, ended with the annihilation of the last of the Moro rebels by a combined American and Filipino army led by Black Jack Pershing.
The war cost the United States army over 15,000 casualties including over 5,000 dead. The brutal guerilla warfare resulted in atrocities from both sides including the massacre of whole villages, and the torture and execution of prisoners.
The war changed the cultural landscape of the islands. The conflict resulted in the deaths of an estimated 25,000 Filipino soldiers, and 200,000 to 250,000 Filipino civilians. The introduction of freedom of religion ended the role of the Catholic Church as the state religion. English became the primary language of government, education, business, industry, and among families of educated individuals. English became the primary language taught in the public schools.
A census took place in 1903, followed by elections for The Philippine Assembly in 1904. That assembly consisted of eighty elected representatives, empowered to handle local legislative matters. The Assembly changed the name of their body to the House of Representatives. The American Governor appointed an upper chamber which served as the Senate. The House voted on and approved a Bill of Rights for Filipino citizens, and the Governor signed it into law. The House and Senate also elected two non-voting representatives to attend the United States Congress.
Democrats in the United States heavily criticized American Imperialism. They often quoted George Washington’s caution against foreign entanglements. Democrat newspapers lampooned with editorials and cartoons.
Republicans ridiculed the Democrats as isolationists, who were out of step with the realities of the modern age.
Chapter 13
China Crisis:
China had become a major trading partner for Western nations, and for Japan. China lacked the military muscle to resist these countries, and several, including Russia at Port Arthur, Britain at Hong Kong, and Germany at Tientsin, carved off bits of China as Treaty Ports. The controlling nations used the ports as trading centers and military bases. Within those jurisdictions, the nation in possession gave preference to its citizens in trade and the development of infrastructures such as railroads, churches, schools, and hospitals.
Although the United States did not claim any parts of China, United States-flagged ships carried a third of the China trade. Having an outpost in the Far East became a major factor in the decision to obtain the Philippines.
As Secretary of State, it was Hay's responsibility to put together a workable China policy. Charles Beresford, a British Member of Parliament, met with Hay, who introduced him to President McKinley. In that meeting, an Open Door Policy developed. The Open Door policy assured that all nations would play on an even playing field in China. That would give the foreign powers little incentive to dismember the Chinese Empire through territorial acquisition.
Concerned that the Senate would object, Hay convinced McKinley to formally issue his Open Door Executive Order on September 6, 1899. The policy was not a treaty and did not require the approval of the Senate. Most of the powers had at least some caveats, and negotiations continued through the remainder of the year. On March 20, 1900, Hay announced that all powers had agreed, and he was not contradicted.
The Boxer Rebellion.
The Chinese reaction to the Open Door Policy quickly became violent. Strong opposition opposed Western influence. A movement in Shantung province became known as the Fists of Righteous Harmony, or Boxers, after the martial arts they practiced. The presence of missionaries and their converts especially angered the Boxers. By the middle of June, the Boxers, joined by imperial troops, had cut the railroad between Peking and the coast. They killed many missionaries and converts and besieged the foreign legations.
McKinley faced a precarious situation; how to rescue the Americans trapped in Peking, and how to avoid giving the other powers an excuse to partition China, in an election year when there was already Democrat opposition to what they deemed American imperialism.
McKinley sent American troops from the Philippines to China to relieve the nation's legation. He instructed Hay to make all possible efforts preserve to the Open Door Policy. On July 3, 1900, Hay sent a letter to foreign powers stating while the United States wanted to see lives preserved and the guilty punished. The United States intended to prevent the dismemberment of China.
Communication between the foreign legations and the outside world had been cut off, and the personnel there were presumed slaughtered. Hay realized that the Chinese Ambassador Wu Ting-fang could communicate with his Foreign Office, and used Wu to communicate directly to the Chinese government. Ambassador Wu informed him the legations were under siege, but still intact.
Hay diplomatically suggested to the Chinese government that it now cooperate as a condition of its survival. The Dowager Empress instructed the Imperial Troops to stand down. The Boxers abandoned by the Imperial Army faced annihilation when the foreign relief force, principally Japanese but including 2,000 Americans, relieved the legations. The victors sacked Peking and China was made to pay a huge indemnity. However, there was no cession of land.
Chapter 14
Election of 1900
On June 19 to 21 the Republican Convention re-nominated William McKinley by acclamation. They also nominated first term Governor of New York as Vice President on the first ballot. Roosevelt was a reformer, and party leaders wanted him out of the way. Roosevelt initially resisted the nomination as he considered the Vice Presidency to be a powerless office. Ultimately he accepted.
The Republicans campaigned on a booming economy, a strong dollar and respect from abroad. Roosevelt barnstormed across twenty-three states, making four-hundred and eighty whistle stops. McKinley again campaigned from his front porch, receiving delegations of thousands of voters.
The Democrats again nominated William Jennings Bryan, who also received the nomination of the Populists and Anti-Imperialism Parties. Their Vice Presidential nominee was Adlai Stevenson, who was Grover Cleveland's Vice President during his second term.
The Democrats campaigned on free silver, the end of the gold standard. They also heavily criticized the Republican imperialistic war in the Philippines. He accused McKinley of replacing a brutal Spanish regime with a cruel American one.
The final vote total gave McKinley a plurality more than one and one-half million popular votes. McKinley also won 332 Electoral votes. He won 34 states including the northeast and mid-west, the west coast, the Caribbean states, and the former Canadian states.
The Democrats under William Jennings Bryan won only 155 Electoral votes. Bryan took the Democrat stronghold in the south and a few scattered farm states.
In the Congressional elections, the Republicans won 225 seats, the Democrats 155, the Populists five, and the Parti Patriote Five. The Republicans, by winning thirty-four states increased their total to a 20 seat majority in the Senate following senatorial selection of expiring terms in the 1901 state legislatures.
Democrat influence slowly diminished with the depopulation of the southern states. Over the past twenty-five years, more than ninety-five percent of the black population had relocated to the Caribbean states or joined relatives in Liberia. That decreased the overall population in that region by one-third, and those states were losing representatives with each census.
Migration to the West complicated the issue. Poor whites, seeing little incentive to stay in the south migrated west. There they could homestead on 160 acres of land. Wealthy landowners were finding fewer and fewer people to work their land.
The Inauguration of William McKinley took place on March 4, 1901. Patriotic fervor surrounded the ceremonies. The new Vice President Theodore Roosevelt was very popular. The economy was growing, and prosperity was spreading. However, political discord was still apparent, with sharp divides between the Democrat-dominated south, and the Republican do
mination of most the rest of the country.
At the Inaugural Ball following the inauguration, McKinley and Roosevelt stood before a large mural of the United States of America. The map showed the United States dominating all of North America, plus the Caribbean states of Domenica, Puerto Rico, and Cuba. Only Mexico remained independent.
In thirty-five years the United States had grown from a country torn by civil war to the dominant nation in the Western Hemisphere. Internationally, the United States was universally respected, and by some nations feared. With overseas possessions in Hawaii, the Philippines, and Guam, the United States was also an imperial power. A fleet of modern battleships projected this power.
In Africa, a firm alliance with Liberia cemented relations. Trade was brisk between the two nations. Liberia’s Navy still employed a cadre of former United States Navy officers, paying a premium to entice recruitment. However, many of these senior officers were teaching in the Liberian Naval War College. Most of the junior officers, graduates of the College, were Liberian born. The United States still constructed Liberian warships, mostly fast or armored cruisers to protect their burgeoning maritime enterprises.
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