7 - American Foreign Policy: Post-Monroe Doctrine to World War I

Summary

It sheds light on how the American foreign policy gradually shifted from ‘Splendid Isolation’ to ‘Manifest Destiny’ to suit the politico-economic realities of the time. With the success of the Monroe Doctrine in the domestic front, it began to look outward with imperialist aspirations. Gradually, the Monroe Doctrine re-evolved to define a recognized sphere of American control in several countries including Cuba, Venezuela, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, etc. Along with the political history of annexation and conquest, the chapter explores US strategies and tactics to legitimize political control. The second part is on the US involvement in the WWI and how and why the policy of ‘armed neutrality’ was replaced by opposition against Triple Alliance.

a. From ‘Splendid Isolation’ to ‘Manifest Destiny’

The Monroe Doctrine which had essentially been a doctrine for isolation underwent a gradual transformation, its principle and ideology being re-interpreted and applied to pave the way towards ‘Manifest Destiny’ especially since the fag end of the nineteenth century, though the process already initiated few decades before that. It is worth mentioning here that American Foreign Policy was the indispensable midwife to the birth of the American Republic.