12. William McKinley and the conquest of the Philippines
When the United States went to war with Spain in 1898, the short conflict known to history as the Spanish-American War, the American triumph led to the acquisition of overseas territories which other countries would call an empire. Among the territories acquired were the islands of Guam and Wake in the Pacific, and the former Spanish possessions of the Philippines. The Filipinos had been fighting for their freedom from Spain before the war, and welcomed the American victory over their oppressors, believing it meant that Filipino independence and freedom were at hand. President McKinley had other ideas.
McKinley ordered the US Army to remain in occupation and to suppress the rebellion which had started against Spain, and then continued against the United States. The military occupation of the Philippines led to one of the most brutal wars in American history, largely ignored by the history classes taught in American schools. American tactics included reprisals against civilians who aided, or were believed to have aided, the rebels. Concentration camps were built and quickly riddled with disease and malnutrition. The war, which was well covered in the press at the time, grew to be unpopular in the United States, but the desire to retain the Philippines as a military base outweighed public concerns.
